- Library Home /
- Search Collections /
- Open Collections /
- Browse Collections /
- UBC Theses and Dissertations /
- Consumer responses to flattery during sales transactions...
Open Collections
UBC Theses and Dissertations
UBC Theses and Dissertations
Consumer responses to flattery during sales transactions : empirical evidence of the sinister attribution error Main, Kelley J.
Abstract
The aim of the current research was to examine consumer reactions to flattery using an attributional framework. The first study, using scenario methodology, illustrated that consumers made rational and irrational attributions for flattery. Consumers who were flattered prior to purchase accurately adjusted for the presence of ulterior motives and responded negatively to flattery whereas consumers who were flattered after purchase over accounted for the possibility of ulterior motives and responded more negatively than was warranted by the situation. The second study, a field experiment, demonstrated that consumers in a real shopping situation were even less likely to distinguish between when flattery occurred and responded simply to its presence or absence. This negativity in consumers flattered after purchase is evidence of the sinister attribution error; as consumers were overly suspicious of the motives and intentions of others. The third study, also a field experiment, demonstrated that even flattery preceded by a negative evaluation only resulted in a slightly more positive response from consumers. The contributions of the current research are discussed within their relevant literatures.
Item Metadata
Title |
Consumer responses to flattery during sales transactions : empirical evidence of the sinister attribution error
|
Creator | |
Publisher |
University of British Columbia
|
Date Issued |
2004
|
Description |
The aim of the current research was to examine consumer reactions to flattery using
an attributional framework. The first study, using scenario methodology, illustrated that
consumers made rational and irrational attributions for flattery. Consumers who were
flattered prior to purchase accurately adjusted for the presence of ulterior motives and
responded negatively to flattery whereas consumers who were flattered after purchase over
accounted for the possibility of ulterior motives and responded more negatively than was
warranted by the situation. The second study, a field experiment, demonstrated that
consumers in a real shopping situation were even less likely to distinguish between when
flattery occurred and responded simply to its presence or absence. This negativity in
consumers flattered after purchase is evidence of the sinister attribution error; as consumers
were overly suspicious of the motives and intentions of others. The third study, also a field
experiment, demonstrated that even flattery preceded by a negative evaluation only resulted
in a slightly more positive response from consumers. The contributions of the current
research are discussed within their relevant literatures.
|
Genre | |
Type | |
Language |
eng
|
Date Available |
2009-12-23
|
Provider |
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
|
Rights |
For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use.
|
DOI |
10.14288/1.0092382
|
URI | |
Degree | |
Program | |
Affiliation | |
Degree Grantor |
University of British Columbia
|
Graduation Date |
2005-05
|
Campus | |
Scholarly Level |
Graduate
|
Aggregated Source Repository |
DSpace
|
Item Media
Item Citations and Data
Rights
For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use.