PurposeDrawing on extant literature on narrative persuasion, online advertising, and transportation theory, this research aims to study Internet‐based online narrative advertising and investigate the effects of four pertinent advertising design elements, interactivity, entertainment, vividness, and self‐referencing, on consumer products and the moderating effects of advertisement involvement on these relationships.Design/methodology/approachData were collected using an online questionnaire that contained measures adapted from prior studies. Participants first selected a product that they would seriously consider purchasing and answered a set of questions prior to viewing a narrative online advertisement, which was followed by a different set of questions. Structural equation modeling was used to empirically test the authors’ proposed model.FindingsGreater levels of interactivity, vividness, entertainment, and self‐referencing in narrative online advertisements led to more favorable attitudes toward a product. In particular, self‐referencing had a substantial effect on transportation in forming product attitudes. Advertisement Involvement moderates (i.e. enhances) the effect of self‐referencing on attitudes toward a product.Practical implicationsIf properly designed, a narrative online advertisement can fully utilize Internet‐enabled features and can maximize their potential to produce a favorable consumer attitude toward a featured product.Originality/valueThis study advances narrative advertising research and provides empirical evidence to highlight the effects of the pertinent characteristics of Internet‐based advertising, interactivity and entertainment in the conversion process of transportation and consumer attitudes. Moreover, this study identifies and sheds light on important contingencies (i.e. advertisement involvement) of the focal relationships.

The authors report the results of a survey of 420 deans at Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business-accredited business schools in an attempt to describe how these schools have implemented the new assurance of learning standards. The results indicate that the majority of schools budget over $10,000 annually to implement their assessment programs. Written or oral assignments are frequently used as direct measures of student leaning. Surveys of graduating seniors and alumni are often used as indirect measures of student learning. Minor modifications to existing courses and closer coordination of multisection courses were the most frequent changes made to improve student learning. Faculty frequently participate in assessment tasks, including defining the learning goals of the degree program, developing instruments to measure student learning, and creating and implementing changes to improve student learning. Major causes of faculty resistance to assessment include the demanding time commitment and the lack of appropriate knowledge required to conduct assessment.

Purpose -This paper aims to advance interfirm relationship (IR) research by applying a theoretically based typology in IR settings and empirically investigating the association of information technology (IT) and relational reciprocity with IR types. Design/methodology/approach -This study draws on Fiske's relational models theory to conceptualize an IR typology. In a business service context, a questionnaire was administered and IR types modeled via a multivariate logistic regression with IT pervasiveness, IT customization, reciprocity and embeddedness as predicting variables. Findings -The IR typology comprises communal sharing, authority ranking, equality matching, and market pricing types. The authors find that reciprocity is more likely to associate with an equality-matching relationship and a communal sharing relationship than with a market-pricing relationship. Pervasive use of IT fosters an equality-matching IR, but IT-enabled customization distances an IR from an equality-matching relationship.Research limitations/implications -A theoretical implication flows from the innovative application of Fiske's relational models theory to a context of business interactions and investigation of IT in association with IR types. The affirming findings empirically validate the IR typology and offer a new perspective in studying IR structures. This research also exemplifies the theoretical value and great potentials for further exploration of the theory in IR research. Practical implications -The IR typology equips marketing managers with a useful tool in comprehending the intricate IRs and developing appropriate strategies for effective IR management. In designing IT use in IR interactions, both the scope and specific function of IT should be considered in order to ensure that all aspects affect consistently. Managers may encourage reciprocal exchange in shifting an IR away from a calculating relationship but consider intensive IT to foster an IR emphasizing balance and correspondence. Originality/value -The novelty of this paper lies in the innovative application of Fiske's relational forms in IR settings and the empirical examination of the IT-IR structure association. The IR typology advances IR research by offering a theoretically compelling and practically advantageous framework in studying IR structure, and the examination of IT-IR associations brings to light the significance of IT in IR structures, which has been largely underexplored.

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The purpose of this research is to investigate the effectiveness of Digital Content Marketing (DCM) on a Mixed Reality (MR) training platform environment with the consideration of online purchase intention (OPI) through social media. E-commerce today encounters several common issues that cause customers to have reservations to purchase online. With the absence of physical contact points, customers often perceive more risks when making purchase decisions. Furthermore, online retailers often find it hard to engage customers and develop long-term relationships. In this research, a Structural Equation Model (SEM) is proposed to examine the efficacy of DCM from both immediate and long-term OPI. The results examine whether adopting DCM on an MR training platform environment through social media brings positive results in OPI. Empirical research was carried out through online questionnaires collected in 2021 and 2022. A total of 374 questionnaires were qualified for data analysis in this study, conducted with IBM SPSS and AMOS. The results imply that DCM is critical to stimulating both immediate and long-term OPI. The immediate OPI is positively affected by increasing perceived value through MR in DCM. Regarding the long-term OPI, increased customer engagement with DCM under MR environment can cultivate brand trust and significantly affect the long-term OPI.