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The Motivating Role Of Dissociative Outgroups In Encouraging Positive Consumer Behaviors, Katherine White, Bonnie Simpson, Jennifer Argo

Management and Organizational Studies Publications

Previous research has found that people tend to avoid products or behaviors that are linked to dissociative reference groups. The present research demonstrates conditions under which consumers exhibit similar behaviors to dissociative out-group members in the domain of positive consumption behaviors. In particular, when a consumer learns that a dissociative out-group performs comparatively well on a positive behavior, the consumer is more likely to respond with positive intentions and actions when the setting is public (vs. private). The authors suggest that this occurs because learning of the successful performance of a dissociative out-group under public conditions threatens the consumer’s group …