Marketing Department's Lecture

Theme：Desirability or Feasibility: What Do Consumers Prefer in Public Context?

Speaker：Mo Luan （Tsinghua University）

Time：2019-12-11 10:00

Address：Room 713, Mingde Business Building

Language：English/Chinese

Abstract：

We explore the trade-offs that consumers make between desirability and feasibility in public context (vs. in a private context). Using different manipulations of public context and measures of desirability/feasibility preference, we demonstrate that consumers are more likely to choose a desirable option in public context than in a private context. We also explore the underlying mechanism of this effect: adopting the perspectives of others in public context. A mediation analysis suggests that consumers prefer the desirable option in public context because they adopt the perspectives of others. Additionally, the link between context and preference is broken when participants are explicitly asked to focus on their own perspective in public context or to adopt the perspectives of others in a private context. Finally, implications for evaluation of gifts is tested.