احساساتی که محرک دور کردن مصرف کنندگان از نام های تجاری (برند ها) هستند : اندازه گیری احساسات منفی نسبت به نام های تجاری و اثرات رفتاری آنها

Consumers' appraisals of brand-related stimuli originating from both marketer- and non-marketer-controlled sources of information may evoke negative emotional reactions toward certain brands. We derive a scale that includes six distinct brand-related negative emotions (anger, discontent, dislike, embarrassment, sadness, and worry). Studies 1 through 4 demonstrate that our scale achieves convergent and discriminant validity and provides superior insight and better predictions compared to extant emotion scales. Study 5 manipulates specific negative brand-related emotions and reveals that they predict particular behavioral outcomes (i.e., switching, complaining, and negative word of mouth).

Research has largely ignored consumers' negative emotions toward brands, even though consumers increasingly consider the brand-related stimuli when deciding which products and services to consume. The premise that consumers experience strong negative emotions toward brands is interesting given that psychological theories on emotions (Frijda et al., 1989 and Roseman et al., 1994; Zeelenberg & Pieters, 2006) suggest that the nature of the emotion experienced has a highly determinant effect on an individual's subsequent actions. For example, in general, individuals who experience anger verbally attack the perceived cause of this state, actively seeking a solution. Like anger, fear encourages individuals to take action, but unlike anger, fear motivates them to flee from the fear-evoking stimulus and/or to avoid further confrontation (Roseman et al., 1994). Thus, consumers' anger toward a brand is likely to be predictive of their decision to complain (e.g., file written complaints) to the brand's parent company and/or to participate in campaigns against the company. On the other hand, fear may predict an unwillingness to try the brand or, if the consumer previously used the brand, the decision to switch to a competing brand. To date, there is no empirically tested measure of negative emotions experienced by consumers when exposed to brand-related stimuli originating from both marketer-controlled and non-marketer-controlled sources of information. Consequently, it is difficult for both researchers and marketing practitioners to understand the nature of these negative emotions and to predict possible negative consumer behaviors toward a brand. In this paper, which builds on Zeelenberg and Pieters (2006) “Feeling is for Doing” approach and recognizes that the utility of emotions resides in their possible effect on actions, we develop and test a comprehensive scale for measuring specific consumers' negative emotions toward brands. Such a scale is necessary to document consumers' negative reactions to determine their nature, reliability, and construct validity. Moreover, a valid scale is a prerequisite for demonstrating that specific negative emotions are indeed predictive of behavior and, consequently, for a number of empirical and theoretical advancements with respect to emotions and related forms of behavior in a brand-related context.

Negative emotions play an important role in consumers' relationships with brands. We developed an 18-item NEB scale that represents the range of negative emotions consumers most frequently experience toward brands. The set of derived emotions can be broken down into six negative emotions (anger, dislike, embarrassment, worry, sadness, and discontent), which various brands evoke differently. The NEB scale proved to be consistent internally as well as across samples and studies; the convergent and discriminant validity was demonstrated by using the MTMM matrix analysis and by comparing other relevant measures available in the marketing and consumer behavior literature. In addition, we demonstrated that the new scale provides superior insights and better predictions than the CES scale and other extant scales do. Lastly, the evidence showed that, consistent with theory, diverse negative emotions toward brands lead to different behavioral consequences. The results of study 5 indicate that focusing on distinctive emotions increases insight into consumers' behavior when they are exposed to brands that elicit negative feelings. Recent studies (Bonifield and Cole, 2007, Bougie et al., 2003, Nyer, 1997, Soscia, 2007 and Zeelenberg and Pieters, 2004) reveal that specific negative emotions have differential effects on customer behavioral responses to service failures. We were able to confirm and extend these findings by revealing the distinctive effects of six negative emotions on consumer responses to brands. In particular, and in line with previous research, we demonstrated the inactive nature of both sadness and discontent and the positive relationship between anger and complaining. Further, our examination of worry, embarrassment, and dislike toward brands revealed new, interesting evidence for brand-related research as well as an understanding of the differential roles that specific negative emotions play. Worry about a brand is positively associated with switching. This finding is in line with basic research in the field of psychology (among others, see Frijda et al., 1989 and Roseman et al., 1994) because this type of behavior is similar to those action tendencies naturally induced by emotional feelings clustered under the label of fear, such as escaping, evading, and seeking safety from a potential threat. We also demonstrated the inhibiting effect of embarrassment on customer complaining and/or a general failure to take any form of action other than avoidance. This effect can be explained by the fact that individuals usually feel embarrassed by their behavior, not by a brand (Storm & Storm, 1987). Consequently, although negative actions against brands are less likely in this case, different types of remedial actions aimed at maintaining or restoring a desired personal or social identity without involving the brand's substitution could well emerge. For example, as also reported in a qualitative study by Grant and Walsh (2009) on brand-related embarrassment, a number of respondents described how they had covered up, removed, or concealed brand logos to avoid potential embarrassment. Finally, the emotion response of dislike merits particular attention. Dislike is a negative affective reaction to brands based on evaluations of unappealingness, which are, in turn, dependent on personal attitudes and tastes (Ortony et al., 1988). Despite having received little attention in previous marketing or consumer behavior research, dislike can activate consumers, leading to various types of possible negative behavioral responses to brands. In sum, given their different effects on consumers' behavioral responses, our results confirm the importance of focusing on specific emotions and, more generally, demonstrate that negative emotions play an incontrovertible role in influencing consumers' actions. 7.1. Managerial implications This research has practical relevance for marketing and brand managers confronted with the difficulties of managing their brands. Specifically, this research may assist in several specific domains. The NEB scale identifies specific negative emotions toward brands, thus providing a brand-specific tool for assessment and tracking purposes; it is also valuable in terms of predictive validity. That is, practitioners can use it to examine behaviors arising from brand-evoked negative emotions. In the event that these forms of behavior warrant consideration, the results of the scale used can be valuable for developing appropriate countermeasures. For example, our results, consistent with previous research (for an extensive review, see Bonfrer, 2010), demonstrate that consumers are generally more likely to switch to other brands or engage in negative word of mouth than they are to seek redress by filing a complaint. Because it does not give the parent company the opportunity to address the problem, this consumer tendency may be detrimental to sales and profits, thus necessitating remedial actions by the parent company. The social sharing of experiences in new media settings is exemplary in this regard. Although it is difficult for managers to address all negative consumer sentiments, our results suggest that it may be more important to address certain types of negative emotions and their antecedents because they are more likely to be shared. Moreover, companies could use this scale to assess consumers' negative emotions toward competitive brands. By identifying competing brands that could be used as “enemies” (e.g., Japanese motorcycle brands vs. the Italian manufacturer Ducati), a company could provide its customers with important new components of its brand. In addition, the company could use these components as important elements for oppositional brand loyalty (Muniz and O'Guinn, 2001 and Thompson and Sinha, 2008, November), thus reducing the likelihood that its customers will purchase products from competing brands. 7.2. Research limitations and further research These results must be tempered by a number of caveats. First, one limitation of this study is its reliance on self-reported measures of emotions and behaviors, which may restrict the conclusions that can be drawn from the findings. Although supportive evidence for actions was found in both studies 4 and 5, it is important that differences in behavior between the emotions constituting the NEB scale be clearly and directly observed in the future. Second, although our findings imply that specific negative emotions affect consumers' behavioral responses toward brands, our results do not imply that these emotions are the only drivers of such reactions. Evaluative judgments related to brands' and/or consumers' individual characteristics and personalities could also play an important role in causing negative outcomes (e.g., Soderlund & Rosengren, 2007, on word of mouth). We would welcome extensions of the present studies that examine the stability and validity of the NEB scale across cultures. We also recommend that future research examine the scale's ability to predict behavioral responses that were not investigated here. In particular, based on our research, we expect that, given the active nature of dislike and anger, these emotions affect the forms of protest used against brands, such as boycotting or anti-brand protests on web sites. Likewise, given the social nature of brands, we expect embarrassment to lead to the propensity to refrain from displaying certain brands in public. Furthermore, it would be interesting to determine whether specific negative emotions in the NEB scale are related to the dimensions of brand personality (Aaker, 1997), which, if true, would make the identification of such dimensions very closely connected and relevant. In addition to future work utilizing the NEB scale, we recommend further research on the experiential dimension of specific negative emotions and the antecedent states related to brands. For instance, it would be useful to understand what it means to feel angry with or sad about brands and to identify the conditions that create these emotions. Research by emotion theorists (Ben-Ze'ev, 2000 and Ortony et al., 1988) may serve as a useful starting point. Finally, additional studies could examine both negative and positive emotions. In particular, it could prove interesting to investigate the concept of emotional ambivalence when a consumer experiences both kinds of emotions toward certain brands. What happens in these situations? Which of the polarized emotions most influences behavior? Could the strongest emotion cancel out the effects of any other emotion, or is it simply prioritized in terms of action, with the less intense emotions influencing behavior at a later date? An exploration of these issues could extend our understanding of negative emotions toward brands.