			Home About us Contact

Consumer Trust (consumer + trust)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Business, Economics, Finance and Accounting	100%

Selected Abstracts

The effect of service quality on trust and commitment varying across generations

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CONSUMER STUDIES, Issue 4 2009
Jinsook E. Cho
Abstract We examine the effect of service quality on consumer trust and commitment in the context of obtaining a financial loan and how these relationships vary across different generational cohorts. We find that the service quality offered by a loan officer has a significant effect on consumer trust towards a financial institution, which in turn influences consumer commitment to a financial institution for a future transaction. We also find that relative strengths of a few paths in the model differ across different age cohorts, indicating some generational variability in the relationship between service quality, trust and commitment. [source]

Online shoppers in Australia: dealing with problems

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CONSUMER STUDIES, Issue 1 2008
Huong Ha
Abstract Although the Internet is a convenient platform to conduct commercial transactions, consumers are disadvantaged in the online marketplace due to insufficient information about goods and services as well as business and transaction process, lack of access to redress and several other problems. The number of complaints regarding online transactions increased in Australia from 2001 to 2005, and the number of Internet-fraud related complaints reported to Consumer Sentinel (USA) also increased from 2003 to 2006. This, in turn, has undermined consumer trust and impeded the growth of e-retailing as well as added to the fear among e-consumers of falling prey to online fraud. In spite of this, the nature and effectiveness of e-consumer protection has not been adequately studied, notwithstanding extensive research into other aspects of e-retailing. This article examines (i) the level of awareness of the respondents in the survey in Australia of the current policy framework for addressing consumer protection about online shopping in terms of redress; and (ii) the behaviour of the two groups of respondents in this survey who have and have not encountered problems with online purchases. The findings suggest that most respondents are not aware of the following issues, namely (i) which organizations are involved in e-consumer protection; (ii) government regulations and guidelines; (iii) industry codes of conduct; (iv) self-regulatory approaches adopted by business; and (v) the activities of consumer associations to protect consumers in the online marketplace. The findings also show that most respondents would seek redress if they were unhappy with their online purchases and if they knew how to proceed, and that most of them would settle disputes directly with e-retailers. Also, online shoppers who had encountered problems were more likely to continue purchasing via the Internet than online shoppers who had not encountered any problems. This suggests that respondents find that the benefits offered by e-retailing outweigh the risks associated with it. [source]

Food Scares and Trust: A European Study

JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS, Issue 1 2008
Mario Mazzocchi
Abstract The complex interactions between the determinants of food purchase under risk are explored using the SPARTA model, based on the theory of planned behaviour, and estimated through a combination of multivariate statistical techniques. The application investigates chicken consumption choices in two scenarios: (a) a ,standard' purchasing situation; and (b) following a hypothetical Salmonella scare. The data are from a nationally representative survey of 2,725 respondents from five European countries: France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Results show that the effects and interactions of behavioural determinants vary significantly within Europe. Only in the case of a food scare do risk perceptions and trust come into play. The policy priority should be on building and maintaining trust in food and health authorities and research institutions, while food chain actors could mitigate the consequences of a food scare through public trust. No relationship is found between socio-demographic variables and consumer trust in food safety information. [source]

Dynamic pricing in internet retail: Effects on consumer trust

PSYCHOLOGY & MARKETING, Issue 6 2003
Ellen Garbarino
Individual-level price discrimination, while not a new idea, is more than a theoretical possibility in the Internet age. Economic theory argues that dynamic pricing (i.e., individual-level price discrimination) is inherently good for the profitability of the firm, because it allows the firm to capture a larger share of the consumer surplus, but anecdotal evidence from recent retail experiments with Internet-based dynamic pricing suggests that consumers react strongly against this practice. Using a two-dimensional conceptualization of trust, based on benevolence and competence trust, the current experiment examines how the experience of a dynamic pricing event and the direction of the pricing discrimination (i.e., whether one is offered the higher or the lower price) affects both the mean levels of trust and the weight given to the separate trust dimensions in the formation of overall trust. Because demand-based pricing, such as dynamic pricing, is generally considered unfair, it is expected that trust levels will be lower and that more weight will be given to benevolence trust. Results show that mean benevolence trust is significantly lower (which leads to a marginal decrease in overall trust) and the weight given to benevolence trust in the formation of overall trust substantially increases. The direction-of-price-discrimination effects are generally unsupported. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source]

The Financial Performance of Low-Cost and Full-Service Airlines in Times of Crisis

CANADIAN JOURNAL OF ADMINISTRATIVE SCIENCES, Issue 1 2005
Triant Flouris
This paper examines the stock and accounting performance of three major airlines in the United States in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. September 11 (9/11) resulted in dramatic changes in the airline industry and had significant implications for the economic gains and future prospects of most airlines. Our study focuses on the stock market's perception of the viability of low-cost versus full-service business models in the aftermath of 9/11. We choose Southwest Airlines as a typical low-cost airline and compare its accounting and stock performance to two full-service airlines, Continental and Northwest. We find that Southwest's performance was highly superior to that of Continental and Northwest and argue that Southwest's business model, in the eyes of investors, provides the firm with significantly more financial and operational flexibility than full-service airlines. Southwest's lower operating costs, consumer trust, product offering, corporate structure, workforce and work practices, as well as operational procedures are all factors that appear to contribute to Southwest's relative success. Résumé Cet article étudie la performance boursière et comptable de trois grands transporteurs aériens opérant aux États-Unis au lendemain des attentats du 11 septembre 2001. Ces événements ont entraîné des changements radicaux dans l'industrie du transport aérien et ont eu des répercussions considérables sur les gains économiques de la plupart des compagnies aériennes. Notre étude compare la viabilité des modèles d'entreprise à bas prix à celle des modèles traditionnels, au lendemain de l'attaque terroriste. Nous avons choisi Southwest Airlines comme l'exemple type de transporteur aérien pratiquant des bas prix et nous comparons sa comptabilité et le rendement de son action à ceux de deux transporteurs aériens à service complet, notamment Continental et Northwest. Nous constatons que le rendement de Southwest est de loin supérieur à celui de Continental et de Northwest. Nous montrons que, d'après les investisseurs, le modèle de gestion de Southwest lui donne beaucoup plus de flexibilité financière et opérationnelle que le modèle de gestion pratiqué par les transporteurs aériens traditionnels. La faiblesse de ses charges d'exploitation, la confiance des consommateurs, son offre de produits, sa structure d'organisation, son effectif, ses pratiques de travail, ainsi que ses méthodes opérationnelles sont autant d'éléments qui semblent contribuer au succès relatif de Southwest. [source]