Many recent corporate scandals have been described as resulting from a slippery slope in which a series of small infractions gradually increased over time (e.g., McLean & Elkind, 2003). However, behavioral ethics research has rarely considered how unethical behavior unfolds over time. In this study, we draw on theories of self-regulation to examine whether individuals engage in a slippery slope of increasingly unethical behavior. First, we extend Bandura's (1991, 1999) social-cognitive theory by demonstrating how the mechanism of moral disengagement can reduce ethicality over a series of gradually increasing indiscretions. Second, we draw from recent research connecting regulatory focus theory and behavioral ethics (Gino & Margolis, 2011) to demonstrate that inducing a prevention focus moderates this mediated relationship by reducing one's propensity to slide down the slippery slope. We find support for the developed model across 4 multiround studies.
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of belonging to brand communities in improving consumer well-being and brand evaluations.
Design/methodology/approach
Two studies were conducted. Study 1 manipulates the framing of a brand to be either socially- or product-oriented and measures brand community joining intentions based on underlying levels of consumer loneliness and need to belong. Study 2 manipulates feelings of belongingness with a brand community and measures its impact on relatedness satisfaction, state loneliness and brand evaluations.
Findings
Study 1 finds that lonely consumers with a high need to belong are more likely to express intentions to join a brand community when it is socially-oriented. Study 2 finds that belonging to a brand community improves relatedness satisfaction which, in turn, reduces state loneliness and improves brand evaluations.
Practical implications
This research has significant implications for marketing practitioners who are looking to foster relationships among consumers in the form of brand communities, especially given the positive impact of these communities on consumer well-being. These findings suggest that marketers should create brand communities that foster a social (rather than product) focus to create a sense of belongingness with the brand and among its community members, and that doing so can improve relatedness satisfaction needs and reduce consumer loneliness.
Originality/value
This research contributes to the growing literature on consumer loneliness and is among the first to identify the positive psychological outcomes of socially-oriented brand communities on loneliness.
Boomerang employees—previous employees who return to an organization after an absence—offer unique value in the talent pool, representing external employees with internal job experience. Utilizing a sample from a professional services firm in the United States, we draw from the literature on talent management and renegotiated psychological contracts to compare the compensation, satisfaction, commitment, and performance of boomerangs to similar employees who never left the firm. We find that reentry yields improvements in compensation, satisfaction, and organizational commitment for boomerangs relative to matched internal employees. Archival analysis of hours worked reveals that boomerangs spend significantly more hours on extra‐role projects rather than in‐role billable client hours. Boomerang performance is, however, on par with that of matched internal employees who never left the firm. Implications for adopting a boomerang talent management strategy and the renegotiation of disrupted psychological contracts are discussed.
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