The stereotypes content model indicates that two traits (i.e., warmth and competence) govern individuals' impression formation. The great variety of research that has used this theory since the early 2000s leads to a need for a structured overview of prior findings. The goal of this study is to provide a concise map of research streams and present a research agenda. We conducted a systematic literature review of 955 articles. A bibliographic coupling analysis showed four clusters, i.e., (1) the general theoretical foundations of the SCM, (2) the societal impact of key stereotypes (with emphasis on gender), (3) research in clinical psychology and child development, and (4) marketing. Taking a closer look at research in marketing (using co-occurrence analysis), six research streams were identified, including research on branding, country-of-origin, front-line service providers, prosocial consumer behavior, perception of endorsers, and, more recently, on artificial intelligence (AI). The review presents key findings and research gaps across these topics. Finally, we reviewed the few articles that, although not falling into these streams, opened important research veins. This process provided the essential information to present a promising and complete research agenda, to continue building knowledge with impactful implications in different contexts.

Este trabajo analiza los efectos de las variables subyacentes de una situación crisis económica sobre el estrés del personal de ventas; específicamente se examina el caso de España. Para ello, se realizaron 150 encuestas a vendedores en la ciudad de Valencia, y se examinó el estrés y su relación con variables derivadas de la crisis. La relación entre los constructos se analizó a través de un Análisis Factorial Confirmatorio y Ecuaciones Estructurales. Los resultados indican que la percepción de un entorno poco estable y que ofrece pocas posibilidades laborales ejerce una influencia sobre el estrés de la fuerza de ventas. Por otro lado, muchos de los vendedores contratados por las empresas en la actualidad española han sido formados en otras áreas y sienten una baja identificación con el puesto de trabajo, lo que también provoca un aumento de estrés. Con base en los resultados, la investigación concluye con una serie de directrices para mejorar la gestión en relación con la temática de análisis.

The dimensions and effects of the construct “child routine” have been broadly investigated in the field of social psychology. Three studies were conducted to adapt this construct to the field of human–animal relationships and to measure dog routine. The procedure included the initial item generation and item reduction process. Study 1 was conducted to examine the dimensionality, reliability, and validity of the scale. A total of 245 dog owners from Bogotá (Colombia) participated in this study. The results revealed four dimensions to measure the construct: (1) daily activities, (2) exercise, (3) discipline, and (4) family time. The reliability and validity of the scale were accepted. Study 2 was conducted to test the reliability of the scale in another country and in a different language (German). This study included an analysis of the nomological validity of the scale by examining the association between dog routine and canine behavioral problems. A total of 154 dog owners from Ingolstadt (Germany) participated in this study. The results supported the reliability and validity of the scale. Additionally, the results showed that a consistent routine is associated with reduced behavioral problems. Study 3 was performed to validate the scale in a third language (English) and to examine the associations between dog routine and behavioral problems, owner satisfaction, and intention to abandon the dog. A total of 182 English-speaking dog owners from Ingolstadt (Germany) participated in this study. The results showed that a consistent routine is associated with reduced behavioral problems, which is associated with higher owner satisfaction and reduced intention to abandon the animal. The implications of these results in the field of human–animal relationships and thoughts on future research are presented.

This research analyzes if generational segmentation moderates the relationships among self-congruity, nation brand, destination brand and the use of social media by USA tourists to create positive content about Colombia. Using the methodology of SEM, the results show that experience self-congruity influences the perception of the destination brand and the content created in social media about Colombia. Also, a positive perception of the nation brand motivates the creation of positive content about the country. Using an invariance test and a multi-group analysis, it was found that the relationship between self-congruity and the positive content created on social media can only be accepted among Generation Y tourists. Furthermore, the relationship between nation brand, destination brand and the content created on social media can only be accepted among Generation X tourists. The conclusions of the paper present the managerial implications of these findings.

This research studies how symbolic consumption (consistency between consumed object and consumer’s identity) currently broadens until the field of consumption of experiences. As results indicate, when consumers observe an experience that reinforces their own identity, they perceive more value on such experience, which increases their satisfaction and repurchase intention. Results also point that consumers use an essential tool when externally materializing experiences: Digital social networks. In this sense, the results of this research show that consumers make greater use of social networks when consuming experiences that match their identity, increasing the value of the experience even more. Finally, based on the results, a series of guidelines at a managerial level are presented.

En esta investigación se analiza el uso de las fuentes de información y su incidencia en distintas etapas del proceso de decisión, incidiendo en la búsqueda de información realizada por los turistas en destino. Los resultados muestran que tanto el número y tipo de fuentes de información utilizadas, así como la intensidad de la búsqueda y las decisiones tomadas en destino, es muy diferente del que realizan los turistas antes de llegar a su destino vacacional. Basados en los resultados, como parte de las conclusiones, se exponen ciertas directrices de interés para la gestión empresarial, en relación a la utilización de fuentes de información en los destinos turísticos.

Prior studies showed that optimism has positive benefits for students in higher education. However, research indicates different types of optimism, including the unrealistic optimism associated with the illusion of control. The literature review showed a lack of research on the effect of the illusion of control among students in higher education. Two studies were conducted to fill this gap. In Study 1 (N = 210), university students responded to two surveys: one before oral presentations in class (measuring illusion of control and unrealistic optimism) and another after they received their grades for the presentations (measuring disconfirmation and satisfaction). The results show that the illusion of control is positively associated with unrealistic optimism, which leads to disconfirmation and dissatisfaction. Study 2 was a between-subjects design experiment (condition (N = 102) vs. control (N = 102)) that tested a stimulus to mitigate the illusion of control in this context. The results of Study 2 show that explaining to students their inability to control some variables during the presentation helps to reduce the illusion of control. This influences lower unrealistic optimism and disconfirmation, leading to higher satisfaction after the presentations. When testing moderating effects of demographics among these relationships, we found that gender moderates the effect of the stimulus used to reduce the illusion of control, with females showing a significantly higher decrease in this bias in comparison with male students. Based on these findings, we provide recommendations that can help to decrease the illusion of control in the context of higher education, with benefits for students and educators.

Th is research aims to examine vacationers' perceived stress in Colombia. Based on the literature review, the following dimensions are examined: (1) transportation at the destination -including the variables lack of control, insecurity, cleanness, noise, temperature and space; (2) the conditions of the accommodation -including the variables lack of sleep, insecurity, distance to sightseeing, cleanness and the perceived quality of the room, the services and the food; and (3) the behavior and culture of the locals at the destination -including the variables language proximity, insecurity, the way the locals prepare the good, litter and noise. A quantitative research was performed, based on 651 foreign travelers in the capital of Colombia. The results show that a second-order model, which includes nine factors and three dimensions, presents the highest goodness-of-fi t indices. As a part of the conclusions, this paper presents the theoretical and managerial implications of the model obtained in this research to measure tourists' stress in Colombia.

The different characteristics of literacy scales in tourism, together with the variety of constructs, the methods and samples used, lead to a need for a structured overview of prior research in the field. Through a systematic review of the literature, the purpose of this practice paper is to present a concise view of the methods, samples and literacy scales used in tourism, as well as a synthesis of prior findings on the effects of literacy constructs on perceptions, intentions, and behavioral variables. Based on the review, this practice paper presents a research agenda on literacy in tourism.

The multidisciplinary nature of research on yachting leads to a need for a synthesis of prior findings. To fill this gap, this article presents a systematic review of the literature. Although the search conducted uses terms such as sailboat and cruising, the study focuses on yachting, including both ownership or chartering. The review provides first a descriptive view of the fields, journal outlets, authors, and years of publications. Next, the study shows four mainstreams identified: (1) innovation, (2) consumer experience (3) sustainability, and (4) yacht-related events. Based on the description of prior findings, future research needs are identified.

The present research examines the connection of self-congruity and destination brand with tourists’ use of social media. The study focuses on US tourists who visit Colombia (South America). Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to examine these relationships. The results show that self-congruity positively influences the perception of the destination brand and the positive content created in social media about the destination. The conclusions of this article present the managerial implications of the findings.

The goal of this research is to present a scale to measure foreigners' stress due to the use of public transportation in Bogotá. The study provides a literature review on travelers’ stress and the characteristics of public transportation in the capital of Colombia. Based on the literature review, the following variables are examined: lack of control, crime, accidents, cleanness, noise, temperature and space. Different structures are analyzed through Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), focusing on the Absolute Fit Indexes and the Incremental Fit Indexes. The results show that a model with two correlated constructs –a set of variables related to negative emotional outcomes, and a set of variables related to discomfort– presents the highest goodness-of-fit indexes. In addition, the CFA proofs the validity and reliability of the scales used to measure the constructs. Finally, the descriptive analysis and the T-test show that these variables affect female travelers at a higher level than they affect male travelers.

This research examines the relationship of materialism and self-congruity with behavioral problems of dogs and the owners’ intention to abandon them. This study focuses on owners of purebred dogs in Colombia (South America). Using the methodology of confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling, the results show that more materialistic consumers own pets that, in their own opinions, present more behavioral problems. These problems influence owners’ intention to abandon their pets. In addition, materialism appears as a construct that directly influences the intention to abandon the dogs. However, the acquisition based on the congruence between the characteristics of the dog and the owners’ self-concept negatively influences the behavioral problems shown by their pets and, consequently, the intention of the owners to abandon the animals. A social marketing intervention is presented as a part of the conclusions, which focuses on these consumers’ motivations, in order to improve some aspects of the dogs’ welfare in Colombia. 

Some consumers in Colombia show a clear preference for purebred dogs. At the same time, there are many abandoned dogs on the streets and in shelters in this country. Previous research has revealed that appearances of the breeds influence the caregivers’ (owners’) choice. A choice based on appearances has been connected with materialism in the psychology and consumer behavior literature. Buying purebred dogs based on materialistic standards could affect the welfare of these nonhuman animals. With the use of quantitative research and the methodology of structural equation modeling, this research demonstrated that more materialistic consumers in Colombia have purebred dogs who, in the owners’ opinions, show more behavioral problems. Furthermore, the results showed that materialism influenced the owners’ intentions to abandon their companion animals when they perceived these problems. Finally, this research examined the moderating effect of generational segmentation regarding these relationships. It was observed that the intention to abandon the dogs was greater among members of Generation X than among members of Generation Y.

This research examines how symbolic consumption can be extended to the consumption of experiences. As shown in the results, when customers think that one experience reinforces their identities, they perceive higher value. In addition, perceived value influences satisfaction and satisfaction influences revisit intention. Furthermore, the results indicate that, when consumers want to materialize their experience, they use the basic tool of virtual social networks. In connection with that, consumers use more of their digital social networks when they perceive congruence between their experience and identity. It is indicated as well that higher social value and satisfaction increases the intensity of the use of social sites. Based on the results, some managerial guidelines are included. 

This research examines the effect of dimensions of keepers' perceived value (utilitarian, emotional, social) of their dogs on the dogs' behavioral problems, keepers' satisfaction, and intent to abandon their dogs, using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modeling (SEM). A questionnaire was administered to 330 keepers walking their dogs in a national park in Bogotá, Colombia, which examined their perceptions of and attitudes toward their dogs. Keepers who placed a higher utilitarian value on their dog were more satisfied with their dog. Positive feelings toward their dogs (emotional value) negatively affected the keepers' intention to abandon their dogs. Contrary to prior findings, the social value of dogs did not influence dogs' behavioral problems. Finally, as expected, dogs' behavioral problems negatively influenced keepers' satisfaction, which affected keepers' intention to abandon their dogs. Theoretical and practical implications of the dimensions of perceived value in the field of dogs' welfare are discussed. 

Based on previous research in the literature of symbolic consumption and social media, the present study analyses the relationship between tourism experience self-congruity, perceived social value and tourists’ use of virtual social networks. The study presents a series of hypotheses and an empirical model, which establishes the relationship between these constructs. In order to contrast the hypotheses, a quantitative research was carried out in the city of Valencia (Spain), using a structured survey and personal interviews. During the analysis of the results, the reliability and the validity of the scales used to measure the constructs were verified by confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Subsequently, the methodology of the structural equation models (SEM) was used to estimate the relation between the constructs.The results show that tourists perceive higher social value when they live a tourism experience that is congruent with their self-concepts and, when tourists perceive higher social value, the revisit intention increases. When it comes to virtual social networks, experience self-congruity and perceived social value influence their use. Finally, the use of social networks also increases the perceived social value of the experience.

Purpose

Academics recently identified a lack of research regarding who should guide interactions in virtual social networks when risks appear. Data shows that organizers are usually less active than other users in this context, which can lead to negative reactions among attendees. This research examines if and how virtual social network communication guided by an official source (vs a nonofficial source vs control group) reduces perceived crime risks and trust before the event, leading to lower ambivalence and higher intention to attend. The study was conducted in Colombia, a country where many individuals face this type of risk.

Design/methodology/approach

First-year university students (N = 210) from Colombia were invited to a “Welcome Cocktail”. Two weeks before the cocktail, they were divided into three groups (70 per condition) to receive information. In Group 1, participants were invited to be part of a WhatsApp group administered by one of the organizers. In Group 2, they participated in a WhatsApp group administered by a student. Group 3 was the control (i.e. no virtual communication established before the event). One week after the meeting, they were gathered again and answered a questionnaire, which measured perceived crime risk, trust, ambivalence and intention to attend.

Findings

Participants in the WhatsApp group administered by an official source perceived lower risk and higher trust in the organizers, which led to lower ambivalence towards the event and higher intention to attend it. The relationship between ambivalence and intention to attend is moderated by the nationality of the participants (locals vs foreigners), such as, at equal levels of ambivalence, foreigners show lower intention to attend the event.

Originality/value

This is the first study that compares different approaches on a virtual social network to reduce perceived crime risk in event management. The results present new findings on how the presence of an official source can mitigate this risk, and which potential attendees (i.e. locals vs foreigners) are especially benefited from it. The findings are particularly useful for managers in regions where attendees face crime risks every day, and might feel low trust towards public and private institutions, such as in Colombia.

En la presente investigación se realiza una revisión de la literatura del constructo “consumo simbólico” y se aplica al área del turismo. De la revisión se desprenden dos grandes perspectivas de análisis: desde el prisma de qué se consume (materialismo), y desde el prisma de quién lo consume (congruencia objeto de consumo - identidad del consumidor); se ahonda en las mencionadas perspectivas, analizando las distintas temáticas de estudio en cada una. Posteriormente, se presenta una revisión sobre el constructo “consumo de experiencias”, y nos preguntamos, ¿cómo puede en la actualidad relacionarse la proyección de símbolos y el consumo de experiencias turísticas? De los diferentes planteamientos se desprende que las redes sociales son una herramienta básica para el consumo simbólico de experiencias y su proyección en sociedad. Finalmente, se presenta un modelo teórico que incluyen tanto las perspectivas como lasconclusiones del análisis. 

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship of masculine eating/drinking beliefs on male consumers’ concern with unhealthy eating/drinking habits and, in turn, with binge drinking. Additionally, this research tests if and how a change in these beliefs influences binge drinking intention and intention to eat unhealthy food.

Design/methodology/approach: Three studies were conducted in Bogotá (Colombian males; convenience sampling). The purpose of Study 1 (N = 209) was to develop a scale to measure masculine eating/drinking beliefs. Study 2 (N = 191) tested the mediating role of concern with unhealthy eating/drinking habits in the relationship of masculine eating/drinking beliefs with binge drinking. Study 3 (N = 179) was an experimental study, which examined the effect of information about some negative consequences of masculine beliefs on the answers to the masculine eating/drinking beliefs inventory and, in turn, on binge drinking intention and intention to eat unhealthy food.

Findings: A one-dimensional (eight-items) scale was developed and validated. The results of this paper show that masculine eating/drinking beliefs are associated with lower concern with unhealthy eating/drinking and, in turn, with higher binge drinking. Information that influences these beliefs leads to lower binge drinking and unhealthy food ingestion intentions.

Research limitations/implications: This research presents the first scale that measures masculine eating/drinking beliefs. It provides initial evidence on how an intervention focused on the negative consequences of sexism can influence these beliefs, affecting binge drinking and overeating intentions.

Practical implications: This research provides new findings on a topic associated with several health problems in many countries, including the effect on consumers’ weight gaining and related illnesses.

Originality/value: This research presents the first scale that measures masculine eating/drinking beliefs. It provides initial evidence about factors (through mediating variables) that link masculine eating/drinking beliefs with some unhealthy eating/drinking habits. In addition, the results show how information about some negative consequences of these beliefs can influence consumers’ binge drinking and unhealthy food ingestion intentions, which leads to key recommendations for future interventions. As a result, this research provides new findings on a topic associated with several health problems in many countries, including the effect on consumers’ weight gaining and related illnesses.

En esta investigación se analiza el uso de las fuentes de información y su incidencia en distintas etapas del proceso de decisión de los turistas en Valencia (España). Tras la realización de una investigación de corte cuantitativo, utilizando un cuestionario estructurado, y el análisis de los datos a través de estadísticos descriptivos y pruebas de diferencia de medias, los resultados muestran que el uso de fuentes de información, la intensidad la búsqueda y la importancia otorgada a las fuentes, cambia en función del momento en que se encuentra el turista respecto a sus vacaciones. Posteriormente, se especifican cuáles son estas diferencias y en qué radica su importancia para la gestión en el ámbito turístico.

Con el objetivo de analizar en profundidad las razones de la dirección e intensidad de la búsqueda de información en destino, en este trabajo se ahonda en el estudio del valor percibido, que hasta el momento no ha sido analizado en relación a la información obtenida en los destinos turísticos. Centrados en el análisis de la fuente de información “personal del hotel”, las conclusiones, ponen de manifiesto que en destino el valor más importante de la información es su dimensión funcional, que junto a otros parámetros, explican la probabilidad de elección de esta fuente de información y la intensidad de la búsqueda de información realizada. Por último, y como parte de las conclusiones, se incluyen directrices de interés para el ámbito empresarial, acorde a los resultados obtenidos.

Recent research suggests that some deficiencies in the insurance industry might be associated with tourists’ lack of knowledge. However, the literature does not present a tool that captures objective knowledge of travel insurance literacy. This research presents a comprehensive, multi-step scale development process resulting in a 15-item scale, which measures objective knowledge about travel insurance terms, regulations, and processes. The results show that travel insurance literacy is associated with trust in sellers. Although no relationship was found between travel insurance literacy and perceived travel risks, these two constructs influence purchase intention. The results also show that there is no relationship between subjective knowledge (self-assessment literacy) and objective knowledge (ratings on the scale). Hence, the research presents a new measurement tool that differs from self-assessment scales prevailing in the tourism literature, opening new opportunities for literacy constructs in the field. Finally, the findings present key managerial implications for the insurance industry.

Building on prior findings on co-innovation and dark tourism, this research examined if and how the experiential stage (before vs. after the visit) affects the quality and the type of ideas provided by tourists. Four hundred visitors shared new ideas for a dark tourism experience, in Medellin (Colombia). Half of the sample was interviewed before visiting the site and the other half after the visit. The results show that before the visit (i.e. less information: higher cognitive flexibility and lower functional fixedness) the respondents provided more original ideas. After the visit, their ideas were rated higher in terms of feasibility and persuasiveness. Furthermore, tourists showed higher morbid curiosity before the visit, leading to morbid ideas. After the visit, curiosity about history and empathy increased, leading to educational ideas. The results can help managers to set goals for co-innovation at dark tourism sites, by considering the different experiential stages.

This study presents a literature review and an empirical research to analyze the connection between self-congruity, perceived social value, and use of social media by Generation Y tourists. To contrast the hypotheses of the study, a quantitative research was carried out among young Spanish travelers. As a result, 444 valid surveys were collected during February of 2016. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to estimate the connection between the constructs. The results show that self-congruity leads to perceived social value and the use of virtual social networks. In addition, perceived social value leads to satisfaction, and satisfaction leads to revisit intention and positive WOM. Finally, positive WOM intention influences the intensity of the use of virtual social networks by Generation Y travelers. As a part of the conclusions, the article presents the managerial implications of these relationships. 

The attitude-behavior gap has been largely supported in sustainable tourism, but it still contrasts with findings that show a positive effect of environmental concern on tourists’ sustainable behavior. To investigate some missing links between these prior findings, we build on recent research on automaticity. Using a sample of 535 tourists from Spain, we examine the effect of a series of variables on tourists’ perception of change in internal and external cues, which, according to the Theory of Habit Formation, can cause a break of habit (i.e. automatic behavior). In addition, we investigated the moderating role of environmental concern in the relationship of automaticity with a series of sustainable eating behaviors. The results show that novelty seekers (a personality trait), seeking escapism (a motivational factor), and searching for the self (an identity factor) are positively associated with a perception of change in internal and external cues during vacations (in comparison with the cues perceived at home), which in turn influence lower automaticity in this context. Automaticity leads to sustainable eating behavior during vacations only among tourists who show high environmental concern and, as a result, conduct sustainable eating practices at home. Tourists who rate low in environmental concern do not show sustainable eating behavior during vacations, regardless of the level of automaticity of their actions. The results provide evidence of why environmentally concerned consumers behave unsustainably toward food when they travel, filling identified gaps in the literature.

The purpose of this research is to test the moderating role of perceived brand globalness (PBG) on consumer unfavourable attitudes and buying intention towards brands associated with a conflicting political belief. Three studies were conducted. Study 1 (N = 228) examines the effect of a brand being associated with a conflicting political belief on attitude and buying intention. Study 2 (N = 212) tests the moderating role of PBG among these relationships. Study 3 (N = 126) tests the moderating role of PBG for a service brand and adds the mediating role of self-congruity. We followed marketing analytics best practices to examine causal effects of manipulated stimuli. We also examined the psychometric characteristics of the data-collection tool and tested direct relationships between variables. Additionally, we used percentile bootstrap confidence intervals, with PROCESS-Macro, to test mediating effects in the theoretical model. The studies include moderating analyses and analysis of variance. The results show that the association of a brand with a conflicting political belief negatively influences perceived self-congruity, which leads to an unfavourable attitude and, in turn, to a lower buying intention. Presenting a brand as global mitigates such unfavourable effects. The moderating effect of PBG is confirmed for a tangible product and for a service brand.

The increase in the luxury hospitality industry has led to a significant body of new research. Due to some constraints –discussed in detail in this paper–, there is a lack of consensus on the definition and the factors associated with luxury hospitality. This leads to further gaps. To shed some light, this paper presents a systematic review of the literature of 681 articles. Co-occurrence analysis indicates three main topics of research, associated with (1) consumer experience (mainly focused on satisfaction, service quality, and loyalty), (2) sustainability, and (3) recent research on the effects of Covid-19. Regarding the definition, the results show that it varies depending on the perspective taken (e.g., company vs. consumer). Additionally, the theories most frequently used are related to conspicuous consumption and social value. However, recent findings suggest that the hedonic value might be key in some contexts (e.g., seeking escapism), while for some segments (e.g., ultra-high-net-individuals) the functional value might be more important. Finally, the review reveals that new methods need to be applied, such as experimental designs, and research on individual differences (e.g., culture) is still limited. Based on the results, future research recommendations are presented.

Research on dark narratives has focused on various contexts and products. Different perspectives, theories and methods have been applied during the last twenty-five years. The multi-disciplinary nature of the studies and the different approaches lead to a need for research to clarify the definition, classify the types of dark narratives, recognize consumers’ motivations, and identify antecedents and consequent behavior. We conducted a systematic review of 128 published works on dark narratives. Based on the review, this paper presents a structured overview of research in different fields, the contexts where the consumption of dark narratives has been examined, and the theories and methods used. Based on this review, we provide a revised definition, a structured classification of dark narratives and a synthesis of prior findings. Finally, we present a future research agenda. 

Generation Y tourists are presented in the literature as an important group of consumers, who travel more than previous generations and who expend more money in their tourism experiences. They use their virtual social networks intensively before making decisions about their trips. Thus, social media provides important sources of information in current tourism, especially used by young tourists. Information search is a topic of research that has been deeply analyzed in the literature. Several studies have examined the influence of different sources on various types of tourists. However, little is known about the perceived value of the information obtained in social media by Generation Y travelers. Through a literature review and an empirical study, six dimensions of the value of the information were identified in these context of research: (1) the utilitarian value; (2) the risk avoidance; (3) the hedonic value; (4) the sensations felt during the process of search; (5) the value of the interaction with other users; and (6) the perceived congruence between the information obtained in these virtual sources and the identity of the consumer. Based on the results of this research, a series of guidelines are included as a part of the conclusions.

This research focuses on the relationship of self-congruity and perceived social value with the interpersonal connections established by Generation Y tourists in virtual social networks. A quantitative study was performed using a sample of young travelers from Spain. The methodologies of Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and Structural Equation Models (SEM) were used to analyze the results. The findings of the research show that self-congruity influences the perceived social value; the perceived social value leads to satisfaction and the creation of interpersonal connections in virtual social networks; and the interpersonal connections in virtual social networks influence the use of these tools by Generation Y travelers.

Short message service (SMS) advertising refers to the transmission of advertising via mobile phones in the form of text-based messages (Haghirian, Madlberger, and Tanuskova 2005). Recent marketing research indicates that investigations on consumers' attitudes toward SMS advertising are limited, and empirical examination of antecedents that negatively influence attitudes toward SMS advertising is even scarcer. As a consequence of this lack of knowledge, current practices of mobile advertising might be ineffective. This research examines irritation, privacy concerns, and intrusiveness perception as main factors that provoke a negative attitude toward SMS advertising. Using structural equation modeling (SEM), the analyzed data show that privacy concerns affects perceived intrusiveness on mobile phones, which subsequently causes consumers' irritation. Finally, irritation has a major negative effect on attitudes toward SMS advertising.

Consumers' compliance with recommended behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic helps contain the spread of the virus and positively impacts marketplace outcomes. This study investigates the effect of consumers' tolerance of uncertainty on COVID-19 concern, compliance with recommended behavior, and panic buying intentions, across four countries (Germany and USA with a low power distance index; India and The Philippines with a high power distance index; N = 1272). We test the moderating role of power distance, mindfulness, and trust in scientists, among these relationships. Our results show that tolerance of uncertainty is negatively associated with COVID-19 concern, and COVID-19 concern is positively associated with compliance and panic buying intentions. In high power distance countries, tolerance of uncertainty is negatively associated with compliance. The negative association of tolerance of uncertainty with COVID-19 concern is more pronounced at low levels of mindfulness, and consumers with high COVID-19 concern and high trust in scientists demonstrated the highest compliance. Our findings reveal that stressing the importance of mindfulness, though positive overall, might not yield more compliance. Interventions to make consumers more concerned about the consequences of the pandemic and, at the same time, enhancing their trust in scientists, can lead to higher levels of compliance.