PurposeThe paper seeks to present discussion on laddering application in the practice of marketing, considering both academic and market researches.Design/methodology/approachIt provides summary points of laddering as a qualitative research technique and the importance it can have in better understanding behaviour.FindingsThe paper argues that laddering is a useful and powerful technique but still underused by scholars and practitioners. The authors consider that the main apparent barriers precluding its proper use can be related to the following aspects: time‐consuming and expensive interviews; artificial set of answers; researcher biases; and simplistic analysis of the results.Originality/valueThis paper contributes to a better practice of laddering since it highlights its limitations and suggests alternatives to cope with them.

RESUMO ste artigo aborda a tipologia do método do caso na área de administração e tem por objetivo identificar os principais tipos de casos e as situações mais apropriadas para o emprego de cada uma de suas versões. Realizou-se um levantamento bibliográfico sobre os tópicos: (i) definição do método do caso, (ii) finalidades pedagógicas do método do caso, (iii) tipologia dos casos e (iv) critérios para classificações dos casos. Com base nisso, foram sugeridos quatro critérios para categorização dos tipos de casos, a saber: finalidades pedagógicas, disponibilidade de informações, nível de estruturação e nível de complexidade. Cada formato de caso se mostra adequado a uma situação educacional peculiar, incluindo diferentes níveis de ensino. Recomenda-se que essa técnica seja utilizada em conjunto com outras estratégias educacionais. É fundamental que os instrutores estejam habilitados a selecionar o tipo do caso conforme a necessidade dos alunos e os objetivos pedagógicos pretendidos.ABSTRACT his article focuses the types of cases in the business area. The goal was to identify the main types of cases and the more appropriate situations to use each version. A desk research was made, leading to the development of the following topics: (i) definition of case study, (ii) the educational purposes of the case study, (iii) the types of cases and (iv) criteria to classify the cases. Based on the bibliographical research, it could be suggested four criteria to categorize the types of cases; there are: educational purposes, information available, structure level and complexity level. Each case format is more appropriate to a particular educational situation, including undergraduate and graduate courses. The case method has to be accompanied by other educational techniques. It is important that the instructors are able to select the type of case according to the student needs and the desired educational objectives.

This article aims at analyzing laddering as a technique of qualitative research, emphasizing the procedures for data collection, analysis and interpretation, and its main limitations as well. “Laddering refers to an in-depth, one-on-one interviewing technique used to develop an understanding of how consumers translate the attributes of products into meaningful associations with respect to self, following means-end theory” (Reynolds & Gutman, 1988, p. 12). The critical literature review shows that laddering is useful in studies on human behavior, especially those related to the Means-End Chain (MEC) model. For a successful application, highly trained interviewers, homogeneous groups of respondents, and the Laddermap should be taken into consideration.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to develop valid and reliable scales for assessing a driver and two obstacles potentially related to financial well-being (FWB): financial preparedness for emergency, beliefs of credit limits as additional income and risky indebtedness behaviour. Design/methodology/approach The scales were developed from scratch across six studies, employing a two-step methodology, which encompassed both qualitative (e.g. focus group, interviews) and quantitative (i.e. online surveys) data collection. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were employed to test and validate the proposed scales. Findings This study provides a set of three parsimonious, self-reported behavioural measures that could be employed in conjunction with objective economic indicators to identify individuals who are financially ill prepared and potential candidates for delinquency. The three proposed scales achieved satisfactory levels of reliability and convergent and discriminant validity. Research limitations/implications The resulting scales still need to be tested for predictive validity and in different consumer groups. The scales were validated in a single culture population (Brazil, a country that presents extraordinarily high credit card interest rates), and they should be tested cross-culturally in countries with different economic and credit policies. Originality/value The literature on FWB has traditionally employed objective financial indicators as an attempt to measure the concept of FWB and its elements. Self-reported behavioural measures of such constructs are scant to the point of being non-existent for some elements. This study is the first to offer scales for measuring the elements of financial preparedness for emergency, beliefs of credit limits as additional income and risky indebtedness behaviour.

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Purpose – The purpose of this study is to assess the moderating and mediating roles of credit card usage in the relationship between money attitudes (i.e. power-prestige, retention-time, distrust and anxiety) and compulsive buying behaviour. Design/methodology/approach – The research design comprised a cross-sectional survey and two focus-group interviews. A structured questionnaire was completed by 365 young credit card users in São Paulo in Brazil, and two focus group discussions were conducted comprising six participants each. Findings – Results showed that misuse of credit cards significantly increased compulsive buying among individuals with high levels of anxiety. Credit card usage partially mediates the relationship between compulsive buying and three variables established in the literature: power-prestige, retention-time and anxiety. Credit card usage did not significantly mediate the effect of distrust (or price sensitivity) on compulsive buying behaviour. Respondents’ price sensitivity did not by itself reduce levels of usage, though it did have an effect on overspending in conjunction with the other factors studied. The key themes that emerged from the focus-group interviews enhanced the survey’s results with greater in-depth understanding. Originality/value – This study was the first to compare the moderating and mediating effects among the four elements of money attitudes and compulsive buying behaviour. It addresses the issue of financial literacy, money management and overspending – a special concern for today’s emerging economies – in a Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRIC) country.

This study tested an expanded TBP model, which included personal norms and self-identity as cognitive variables, in a sample of current young volunteers of a general charity in the UK. Actual volunteering was measured via continued observation throughout the duration of the projects. An integrative model of sustained volunteering was proposed because some relationships did not follow the hypothesized paths. Subjective norm emerged as the exclusive determinant of sustained volunteering and also as the potential mediator of the effects of other variables over future volunteering behavior. Two focus groups with volunteers and 28 personal interviews with the coordinators of the volunteering projects were conducted to triangulate the research findings and reveal the main causes for dropouts and non-attendance.Résumé Cette étude a testé un modèle élargi de la théorie du comportement planifié (TPB -Theory of Planned Behavior), ayant inclus des normes personnelles et une identité du moi à titre de variables cognitives, dans un échantillon de jeunes bénévoles actuels d'une organisation caritative générale du Royaume-Uni. Le bénévolat effectif a été mesuré par le biais d'une observation continue tout au long de la durée des projets. Un modèle d'intégration de bénévolat durable a été proposé car certaines relations n'étaient pas conformes aux pistes faisant l'objet d'une hypothèse. Une norme subjective a émergé comme le déterminant exclusif d'un bénévolat durable et également comme le médiateur potentiel des effets d'autres variables sur un comportement futur du bénévolat. Deux groupes témoins Resumen El presente estudio puso a prueba un modelo ampliado TBP (Teoría del Comportamiento Planificado), que incluyó normas personales y la identidad propia como variables cognitivas, en una muestra de voluntarios jóvenes actuales de una organización benéfica general en el Reino Unido. El voluntariado real se midió mediante observación continua a lo largo del período de duración de los proyectos. Se propuso un modelo integrador de voluntariado sostenido porque algunas relaciones no siguieron las vías que se plantearon como hipótesis. La norma subjetiva emergió como el determinante exclusivo del voluntariado sostenido y también como el mediador potencial de los efectos de otras variables sobre el comportamiento futuro del voluntariado. Se llevaron a cabo dos grupos de enfoque con voluntarios y 28 entrevistas personales con los coordinadores de los proyectos de voluntariado para triangular los hallazgos de la investigación y revelar las causas principales de los abandonos y la no asistencia.Keywords Theory of planned behavior Á Volunteering Á Young Á Volitional behavior Á Intentionality Thinking is easy, acting is difficult, and to put one's thoughts into action is the most difficult thing in the world. Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do. (Goethe)

Purpose This study aims to develop and test a parsimonious theoretical model of risky indebtedness behaviour, a facet of over-indebtedness that refers to the behavioural tendency of often assuming hazardous debt levels. Design/methodology/approach The authors administered an online survey to credit card owners (n = 1,288) in an emerging economy in which consumer credit is characterized by extremely high interest rates (i.e. Brazil). The authors used covariance-based structural equation modelling to analyse the data and test for mediation effects. Findings Individuals who inadvertently consider their credit limits a part of their current income or are typically anxious about money are prone to engage in impulsive buying and, consequently, risky indebtedness behaviour. By engaging in such indebtedness behaviour, individuals weaken their financial preparedness for emergencies, which potentially jeopardizes their overall financial well-being. Research limitations/implications As indebtedness is a highly sensitive issue, the self-report measures used may have produced social desirability bias. Practical implications This study discusses the responsibility of financial institutions to support consumers in building awareness on how to adequately use financial services and to provide credit access to high-risk consumers. Policymakers need to ensure that those in the private sector play fairly. Originality/value This study adds new knowledge about how destructive financial behaviours operate and impact marketing and consumers’ financial well-being. It theorizes about indebtedness by critically examining existing and newly developed concepts in the financial services marketing literature.