In daily life, consumers often shop in busy malls, commute during rush hours, and dine in crowded restaurants. As a pervasive aspect of urban life, crowded environments influence consumer behaviors, including calorie intake, purchase intentions toward products displayed in more crowded spaces, and a preference for safety-related products. However, less ... Read More

Power can have a major influence on how we receive, provide, and respond to information. In an important contribution to marketing research, HKUST’s Linying Fan and colleagues show how feeling powerful—a fundamental psychological state—can affect consumers’ construction and reception of communications. They propose a novel psychological mechanism, “need-for ... Read More

“Save from 30% to 50% today!” Range offers like this—advertising flexible price options within a fixed range—are a popular marketing strategy. Surprisingly, however, we know little about how customers react to such offers. Shedding light on this underexplored topic, HKUST’s Prof. Linying (Sophie) Fan and her colleagues propose and test a novel theory: the ... Read More