Dr Ioanna Anninou

Purpose This study examines functional foods, a relatively recent development in the food industry, from the perspective of consumer decision-making. It deals specifically with consumers’ attitudinal dispositions towards such products and seeks an overall comprehension of the elements of decision-making factors that precede their purchase. Design/ Methodology This exploratory work methodologically utilises several elements of a grounded theoretical approach, in-depth interviews with consumers (and food industry experts) and, more importantly, the constant comparative method of analysis. Findings The analysis indicates that three levels of decision-making processing form consumers’ final functional food choices in either affirmative or negative ways. At the abstract level, consumers position functional foods within their food system. A ‘benefit negotiation’ process acts as the central route of decision-making. Finally, during the ‘appraising’ stage a representation of each functional food is built. This representation should not be perceived as a rigid one as it can be influenced by personal characteristics, marketing activities and, more importantly, monetary considerations. Originality/Value The paper proposes a decision-making framework that takes choice issues into consideration. It builds on (connecting and challenging) some of the existing consumer literature on functional foods. The findings indicate the dynamic nature of consumers’ decision-making which is shaped by motivational and other personal factors. The study identifies the concept of perceived efficacy of such foods, a concept discussed widely in previous literature, as a subordinate aspect when compared to consumers’ consumption motivation, perceived importance and perceptions of pricing. The paper discusses the implications for theory, research and practice.

This study aims to provide insights on the concept of experience, its effect on consumer behavior and the role of previous experiences. It uses a behavioral framework and measures the reinforcing and aversive experiential influences on (approach and avoidance) behavior. The study involved 260 participants from an online research panel. The descriptions of two retail situations were used, chosen to differ in terms of levels of previous experience/learning history. The results indicate that confusion, as aversive consequence of retail situations, acts along with functional and social reinforcement to determine behavior. The study further explains and proves the role of accumulated previous encounters on determining the reinforcing and aversive elements of experience. The implications for theory and marketing management are discussed.

Purpose – The purpose of the paper is to suggest a novel framework of consumer confusion based on the appraisal theories of emotions. Extant theoretical and empirical evidence on confusion continues to be vague on the connection between the emotional dimensions and behavioural consequences. The appraisal theories of emotions can help to expand the field of inquiry which is related to the topic of consumer confusion. Design/methodology/approach – A concept- centric review of 112 publications on consumer confusion and research on emotions, provides an integrative critical analysis of the nature of confusion and extends the literature. The review demonstrates that past research has advanced our understanding but not sufficiently explained all of the processes implicated in consumer confusion. Findings – On the above grounds, the paper suggests that although confusion is environmentally driven, it can be seen as a dynamic process implicating two levels of consumer appraisals. Uncertainty/ lack of understanding, goal inconsistency and motivational state form the basis of confusion; agency attribution and coping potential are, however, shaping the development of subsequent emotions and ultimately the expectations on consumer behaviour. Considered as a dynamic process, confusion has coping and behavioural implications. At the most central level the importance of agency (or attribution) and coping potential is highlighted and the way these appraisals lead to different emotions and behaviours is discussed. Originality/value – The paper advances extant consumer decision-making literature and proposes diverse emotions that are associated with the experience of confusion, behaviours that are expected, along with marketing implications and actions required for each of them.

Purpose This study aims to examine the moderating role of dimensions of brand authenticity (continuity, credibility, integrity and symbolism) in the relationship between evaluations of imperfect experiences and satisfaction within a service experience context. Building on prior research arguing for the subjective evaluation of service experiences as well as for the use of signals during dynamic experiences that build a shield to protect a brand, it assumes that service experiences range across a continuum of experiential perfection/imperfection. Design/methodology/approach Two Web-based surveys, one pilot (N = 231) and one main (N = 349) have been conducted. The survey methodology was complemented by a (moderated) structural equation modelling approach taken for the data analysis. Findings The findings indicate that imperfect experiences in a restaurant context have a negative influence on satisfaction. Brand continuity, credibility, integrity and symbolism authenticity weaken the negative relationship between imperfect experiences and satisfaction, but this effect seems to depend on the type of experiential imperfections. Originality/value The current study provides theoretical and preliminary empirical evidence explaining how dynamic interactions with customers can impact subsequent static experiences. The authors found that the strength of the relationship between imperfect experiential elements and satisfaction does not only depend on perceived brand authenticity and does not always weaken when brand authenticity is present.

This paper addresses research calls to explore the theory and practice of arts-based methods in business and management education to better understand the learning processes and the ways of knowing that these methods generate. By focusing on photo-elicitation as a pedagogical tool, we problematize an insufficient focus of current discourses on its arts-based origins and revisit photo-elicitation from an arts-based perspective. Based on a reflective account emerging from our teaching experience with photo-elicitation as an assessment strategy we provide a conceptualization of photo-elicitation as an (experiential) learning and teaching tool. This conceptualization teases out under-theorized elements (i.e. doing, power, multiple framing of meaning, audience) of the method and surfaces overlapping stages of a photo-elicitation learning process. We also offer novel insights into students’ encounters with the photo-elicitation method, thus illustrating the role of the method’s arts-based elements in understanding how learning occurs in such a context. Implications are also provided contributing to an understanding of the value of arts-based methods to the theory and practice of management education.