Browsing by Author "Ekici, A."
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Item Open Access Applying a transformative consumer research lens to understanding and alleviating poverty(Journal of Research for Consumers, 2011) Blocker, C. P.; Ruth, J. A.; Sridharan, S.; Beckwith, C.; Ekici, A.; Goudi-Hutton, M.; Rosa, J. A.; Saatcioglu, B.; Talukdar, D.; Trujillo, C.; Varman, R.Increasing attention to global poverty and the development of market-based solutions for poverty alleviation continues to motivate a broad array of academicians and practitioners to better understand the lives of the poor. Yet, the robust perspectives residing within consumer research remain to a large degree under-utilized in these pursuits. This paper articulates how applying a transformative consumer research (TCR) lens to poverty and its alleviation can generate productive insights with potential to positively transform the well-being of poor consumers.Item Open Access A bayesian network analysis of ethical behavior(SAGE Publications Inc., 2016) Ekici, A.; Ekici, S. O.Using one of the major domains of macromarketing – ethics – this paper aims to introduce the Bayesian network (BN) method and demonstrate its added value for macro-level decision makers. Bayesian networks are particularly important for macromarketers because they allow researchers to analyze a domain from a system perspective. The BN approach is considered one of the most powerful tools for observing system changes. The method can also deal with multiple variables at once, which can lead to efficient scenario analyses, critical for understanding how a system functions. As such, BNs offer a powerful tool for macromarketers who deal with systems, interactions, and higher levels of aggregation. We believe that the adoption of this methodology by macromarketing researchers is likely to contribute to the discipline by advancing the understanding of how certain systemic/network relationships and various domains of macromarketing work.Item Open Access Consumer attitude toward marketing and subjective quality of life in the context of a developing country(Sage Publications, 2007) Peterson M.; Ekici, A.The purpose of this research is to better understand Consumer Attitude toward Marketing (CATM) and how it relates to quality of life (QOL) in a developing country. Such sentiments toward marketing practice are core indicators of the marketing system's performance in delivering well-being to consumers during the first stage of the consumption process - acquisition. In this stage, the activities of businesses are set in high relief for consumers. As Douglas and Craig (2006) have noted how marketing is sadly neglected in developing countries, the Consumer Attitude toward Marketing (CATM) measures suggest how QOL-marketing might correlate with QOL in developing countries. Measures used in Gaski and Etzel's (1986) Index of Consumer Sentiments toward Marketing (ICSM) are enhanced and refined in this study of Turkish consumers. Using a confirmatory-factor-analysis approach, these measures are then used to derive a second-order factor representing CATM and to assess its nomological relationship with subjective quality of life (QOL).Item Open Access Consumer trust and distrust in the food system: some implications for the debates on food biotechnologies(Association for Consumer Research, 2004) Ekici, A.Biotechnology is considered to be one of the most influential revolutions, one far greater in its potential societal consequences than the computer, electronic or atomic revolutions. As with most revolutions, the public’s view on the risks and benefits of the technology is divided. However, most scholars agree that public trust in social institutions and in the food system would be a central issue to understanding public attitudes toward the risks and benefits of food biotechnologies. To date, the nature of such trust has received little systematic empirical attention. This study provides a detailed look at consumer trust and distrust in social institutions and in food safety system. Theoretical significance and practical (public policy) implications of the findings are also discussed.Item Open Access Consumers' use of country-of-manufacture information: Turkey versus the U.S.A.(Allied Academies, 2016) Kurpis, L. V.; Helgeson, J. G.; Ekici, A.; Supphellen, M.Globalization and the growth of international trade increase the importance of strategic decisions involving the positioning of brands for successful entry into foreign markets. One of these marketing decisions concerns whether the use of the country-of-manufacture information should be emphasized or masked in brand positioning. Country-of-manufacture (the "made in") information has been shown to influence consumers' purchase decisions. However, a number of researchers have been recently questioning the universality of this impact by pointing out at the instances when consumers stated or demonstrated that the country-of-manufacture information did not significantly influence their purchase decisions. The purpose of this study is to expand our understanding of the boundary conditions for the country-of-manufacture (COM) effect. Specifically, this study examines whether the consumers from Turkey (an emerging market) or the U.S.A. (a developed market) differ in their reliance on the country-of-manufacture information. The study was conducted in non-laboratory setting, a condition that provides a more rigorous test for the study hypotheses since the influence of the country-of-manufacture information cue was examined in our study in the presence of many other information cues (product appearance, retailers' reputation, salespeople advice, etc.) that could have potentially weakened the country-of-manufacture influence on consumer decisions. The results indicate that consumers in Turkey rated the COM importance higher, were more aware of the country-of-manufacture of their recent purchases, and cited the "made in" information as a purchase-influencing factor more frequently than consumers in the U.S.A. The effects of country/culture was significant even when the data were adjusted for individual differences in consumer ethnocentrism, and the influence of income, age, and education were taken into account. Consumers' age, income, ethnocentrism and perceived importance of brands as sources of product quality information were positively related to COM importance in both countries while retailers' role as guarantors of product quality was negatively related to COM importance in the U.S.A only. This exploratory study has tested the differences between Turkish and American consumers' perceptions of the role of retailers as guarantors of product quality and their reliance on brands (ratings of brand importance). As expected, Turkish consumers gave higher ratings to brand importance and lower ratings to retailers' role as guarantors of product quality. Several possible explanations including cultural differences and stage of market development were discussed in this explanatory study.Item Open Access Consumers' view of food biotechnology: a proactive approach to marketing and public policy(Association for Consumer Research, 2005) Ekici, A.Item Open Access Consumers’ use of country-of-manufacture information? Norway and the United States : ethnocentric, economic, and cultural differences(Routledge, 2017) Helgeson, J. G.; Kurpis, L. H. V.; Supphellen, M.; Ekici, A.The influence and use of the country-of-manufacture (COM) information on purchase decisions is examined in Norway and the USA in a nonlaboratory setting. Ethnocentrism, dependence on imported products, market size, and cultural difference are variables that may have led to differences in measured behaviors between Norway and the USA. Respondents in Norway showed less ethnocentrism, were less aware of COM, and showed no difference in the rating of COM importance, but cited self-reported COM as a purchase influencing factor more frequently than consumers in the USA. The overarching finding is that COM is rarely used by the studied consumers in actual purchase decisions with little difference found between Norway and the USA. © 2017 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.Item Open Access Development and quality of life in Turkey: how globalization, religion, and economic growth influence individual well-being(SAGE Publications Inc., 2016) Sandıkcı, Ö.; Peterson M.; Ekici, A.; Simkins, T.Recently, scholars have been calling attention to the macro-social and institutional structures shaping development and welfare. In this study we offer a socio-temporally situated understanding of quality of life (QOL) in a developing country setting and investigate the effects of macro structures on consumer well-being. Specifically, we focus on neoliberal development (led by the business sector, rather than led or directed by the government) and examine how a neoliberal transformation of the marketplace affects consumers’ QOL perceptions. The context of our research is Turkey, a developing country that has been an avid follower of neoliberal policies since the 1990s. We focus on three key macro-social developments that have been shaping Turkish society in the past decades – globalization, religion, and economic growth – and seek to understand how these forces influence consumers’ satisfaction with life. Our study contributes to the literature on development and QOL by first, showing the moderating effect of income, and second, introducing faith and global brands as important variables in conceptualizing QOL.Item Open Access An enlargement of the notion of consumer vulnerability(Sage Publications, 2008-06) Commuri, S.; Ekici, A.Consumer vulnerability has long been an important issue in public policy and macromarketing. The focus of a special issue of the Journal of Macromarketing (vol. 26, issue 1) underscores this importance. The articles in that special issue lend both conceptual and methodological clarity to the subject of consumer vulnerability, thus bringing to the fore the hitherto overlooked importance of this construct. The purpose of this article is to extend this renewed interest by introducing an integrative view of consumer vulnerability that is a sum of two components: a transient, state-based component dominant in some of the articles in the special issue, and a systemic, class-based component. The proposition is that such an integrative view provides a proactive tool for macromarketers and policy makers in their efforts to safeguard and to empower vulnerable consumers.Item Open Access An extension and further validation of a community-based consumer well-being measure(Sage Publications, 2008) Sirgy, M. J.; Lee, D.; Grzeskowiak, S.; Chebat, J. C.; Johar, J. S.; Hermann, A.; Hassan, S.; Hegazy, I.; Ekici, A.; Webb, D.; Su, C.; Montana, J.The goal of this study is to extend the research and further validation of Lee and colleagues' measure of community-based consumer well-being. The measure is based on the notion that consumers experience well-being to the extent that they are satisfied with local marketplace experiences related to (1) shopping for desired consumer goods and services in the local area, (2) preparing locally purchased consumer durables for personal use, (3) consuming locally purchased goods and services, (4) owning consumer durables purchased in the local area, (5) using repair and maintenance services in the local area, and (6) using selling, trading-in, and disposal services in the local area. Data were collected from ten localities in nine countries/states (California, Minnesota, Canada, Australia, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, Turkey, Egypt, and China) using the mall intercept method. The data provided support for the predictive/nomological validity of the measure by providing empirical support for the relationship between the consumer well-being construct and other well-being constructs such as life satisfaction.Item Open Access How ethical behavior of firms is influenced by the legal and political environments: a bayesian causal map analysis based on stages of development(Springer Netherlands, 2013) Ekici, A.; Onsel, S.Even though potential impacts of political and legal environments of business on ethical behavior of firms (EBOF) have been conceptually recognized, not much evidence (i.e., empirical work) has been produced to clarify their role. In this paper, using Bayesian causal maps (BCMs) methodology, relationships between legal and political environments of business and EBOF are investigated. The unique design of our study allows us to analyze these relationships based on the stages of development in 92 countries around the world. The EBOF models structured through BCMs are used to explain how EBOF in a given country group are shaped by how managers perceive political, legislative, and protective environments of business in these countries. The results suggest that irregular payments and bribes are the most influential factors affecting managers' perceptions of business ethics in relatively more advanced economies, whereas intellectual property protection is the most influential factor affecting managers' perceptions of business ethics in less-advanced economies. The results also suggest that regardless of where the business is conducted in the world, judicial independence is the driving force behind managers' perceptions of business ethics. In addition, the results of this study provide further support for scholars who argue that business ethics is likely to vary among countries based on their socio-economic factors. In addition to its managerial implications, the study provides directions for policy makers to improve the ethical conduct of businesses in their respective countries.Item Open Access How the poor in a developing country view business' contribution to quality-of-life 5 years after a national economic crisis(Elsevier, 2010) Peterson M.; Ekici, A.; Hunt, D. M.This study proposes and tests a three-step model of business' contribution to quality of life 5 years after a devastating national economic crisis in a developing country. The model incorporates both a beneficent dimension of the marketplace (represented by consumer attitude toward marketing - CATM) and a non-maleficent dimension (represented by consumer trust for market-related institutions - CTMRI). This study compares how the poor and the non-poor draw differently on these two dimensions in forming their perceptions about how business contributes to their quality of life. Beginning with the exogenous construct attitude toward changes in marketing practices since the last economic crisis (5 years ago), this study 1) proposes a causal model that introduces a first-order construct - Business' Contribution to My Quality of Life (BCM-QOL), and 2) explains how BCM-QOL serves as a mediator between marketplace perceptions of both beneficence and non-maleficence and quality of life. Results reveal differences between how the poor and the non-poor in a developing country think about the effects of market changes after an economic crisis. Consumers living below the Turkish poverty line, although not within the UN-defined ranks of the global poor (e.g., 2 per-day earnings) tend to see their place in the market in a manner similar to subsistence consumers. © 2009 Elsevier Inc.Item Open Access Is Materialism All That Bad? Effects on Satisfaction with Material Life, Life Satisfaction, and Economic Motivation(2013) Joseph Sirgy, M.; Gurel-Atay, E.; Webb, D.; Cicic, M.; Husic-Mehmedovic, M.; Ekici, A.; Herrmann, A.; Hegazy I.; Lee, D.-J.; Johar J.S.The literature in economic psychology and quality-of-life studies alludes to a negative relationship between materialism and life satisfaction. In contrast, the macroeconomic literature implies a positive relationship between material consumption and economic growth. That is, materialism may be both good and bad. We develop a model that reconciles these two contrasting viewpoints by asserting that materialism may lead to life dissatisfaction when materialistic people evaluate their standard of living using fantasy-based expectations (e. g., ideal expectations), which increases the likelihood that they would evaluate their standard of living negatively. In turn, dissatisfaction with standard of living increases the likelihood that they would evaluate their life negatively. However, materialistic people who evaluate their standard of living using reality-based expectations (e. g., ability expectations) are likely to feel more economically motivated than their non-materialistic counterparts, and this economic motivation is likely to contribute significantly and positively to life satisfaction. Survey data were collected from seven major cities each in a different country (Australia, Bosnia/Herzegovina, Germany, Egypt, Korea, Turkey, and the USA) using a probability sample (cluster sampling method involving income stratification). The results provide support for the model. The economic public policy implications concerning how people evaluate their standard of living using ability-based expectations are discussed in the context of the ideals of meritocracy. © 2011 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.Item Open Access Linking advertising, materialism, and life satisfaction(Springer Netherlands, 2012) Sirgy, M. J.; Gurel-Atay E.; Webb, D.; Cicic, M.; Husic, M.; Ekici, A.; Herrmann, A.; Hegazy, I.; Lee, Dong-Jin; Johar, J. S.This paper develops theory related to advertising, materialism, and life satisfaction by formally testing explanations related to the antecedents and consequences of materialism. Survey data were collected from seven major cities each in a different country (Australia, Bosnia/Herzegovina, Germany, Egypt, Korea, Turkey, and the USA) using a probability sample (cluster sampling method involving income stratification). The results showed that the extent to which advertising is perceived to be materialistic contributes to materialism. Materialism, in turn, leads to the frequent use of various standards of comparison in making judgments about standard of living. As judgments about standard of living increase, standard of living is evaluated more negatively. In turn, negative self-evaluations contribute significantly to dissatisfaction with life. © 2011 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.Item Open Access Marketing and public policy: Transformative research in developing markets(2012) Shultz, C.J.; Deshpandé, R.; Cornwell, T.B.; Ekici, A.; Kothandaraman P.; Peterson, M.; Shapiro, S.; Talukdar, D.; Ann V.Developing markets are a challenge for researchers who study them and for governments, business leaders, and citizens who strive to improve the quality of life in them. The limitations of the dominant development paradigm coupled with the need to focus on consumers provide tremendous opportunities to engage in truly transformative research. Toward this outcome, several interactive forces must be understood and addressed during research design, management, and implementation. The purpose of this essay is to provide a synthesis-that is, a framework in the form of a conceptual model-with practical applications to transformative research in developing markets and, ultimately, with the broader objective to stimulate new conceptualizations, research, and best practices to transform consumer well-being. © 2012, American Marketing Association.Item Open Access Paradoxes, ambivalences, and consumer coping strategies of food biotechnologies(Association for Consumer Research, 2004) Ekici, A.Item Open Access Politically motivated brand rejection(Elsevier, 2009) Sandıkcı, Ö.; Ekici, A.This paper introduces the concept of politically motivated brand rejection (PMBR) as an emergent form of anti-consumption behavior. PMBR is the refusal to purchase and/or use a brand on a permanent basis because of its perceived association to a particular political ideology that the consumer opposes. Specifically, the paper discusses three distinct sets of political ideologies that can lead to rejection of certain brands by some consumers. These ideologies include predatory globalization, chauvinistic nationalism, and religious fundamentalism. The target of PMBR can be both local and global brands and consumers who engage in PMBR do not expect any change in marketing practice.Item Open Access Poverty in consumer culture: towards a tranformative social representation(Routledge, 2014-10-20) Hamilton, K.; Piacentini, M. G.; Banister, E.; Barrios, A.; Blocker, C. P.; Coleman, C. A.; Ekici, A.; Gorge, H.; Hutton, M.; Passerard, F.; Saatcioglu, B.In this article, we consider the representations of poverty within consumer culture. We focus on four main themes – social exclusion, vulnerability, pleasure and contentment – that capture some of the associations that contemporary understandings have made with poverty. For each theme, we consider the portrayals of poverty from the perspective of key agents (such as marketers, media, politicians) and then relate this to more emic representations of poverty by drawing on a range of contemporary poverty alleviating projects from around the world. We conclude with a set of guidelines for relevant stakeholders to bear in mind when elaborating their representations of poverty. These guidelines may act as a platform to transform marginalising representations of poverty into more empowering representations.Item Open Access Quality of college life (QCL) of students: further validation of a measure of well-being(Springer, 2010) Sirgy, M. J.; Lee, D. -J.; Grzeskowiak, S.; Yu, G. B.; Webb, D.; El-Hasan, K.; Garcia Vega, J. J.; Ekici, A.; Johar, J. S.; Krishen, A.; Kangal, A.; Swoboda, B.; Claiborne, C. B.; Maggino, F.; Rahtz, D.; Canton, A.; Kuruuzum, A.This paper reports a study designed to further validate a measure of quality of college life (QCL) of university students (Sirgy, Grzeskowiak, Rahtz, Soc Indic Res 80(2), 343-360, 2007). Two studies were conducted: a replication study and an extension study. The replication study involved surveys of 10 different college campuses in different countries. The results of the replication study provided additional nomological (predictive) validation support of the measure based on a theoretical model mapping out the antecedents and consequences of satisfaction with college life. With respect to the extension study, the focus was to further test the nomological validity of the QCL measure by arguing and empirically demonstrating that the consequence of QCL is life satisfaction. The extension study involved a survey of three college campuses in different countries. The results were also supportive of the nomological validity of the QCL measure.Item Open Access Regret of action or regret of inaction: examining divergent regret patterns for experiential and material gifts(Now Publishers Inc., 2017) Shiri, A.; Ekici, A.We replicate Rosenzweig and Gilovich’s (2012) study on “differential regrets for experiential and material purchases,” according to which people experience regret of action (buyer’s remorse) for material purchases and regret of inaction (missed opportunity) for experiential purchases. Our results suggest that the original findings can be extended to gift giving context. Furthermore, we demonstrate that perceived subjective economic value of gifts explains the different forms of regrets (regret of inaction vs. regret of action) elicited by experiential and material gifts.