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AbstractThe present age is witnessing a rise in materialism and its sub‐traits such as possessiveness, nongenerosity and envy. Combined with a marked increase in habitual shopping, this trend has resulted in some degree of shopping addiction. There are scant studies on contribution of materialistic tendencies of consumers towards shopping addiction; therefore, this study aimed to examine the effect of the sub‐traits of materialism (possessiveness, nongenerosity and envy) on shopping addiction. The role of hedonic shopping motives and self‐efficacy as mediators was also investigated. Data for the study were derived by administering a structured questionnaire to 423 young female consumers from the northwest region of India. The structural equation modelling technique was used to empirically evaluate the proposed model. The results confirmed that the personality traits pertaining to materialism have a significant impact on hedonic shopping motives and self‐efficacy, potentially triggering shopping addiction in young female consumers. The findings offer fresh insights for academicians, researchers and market practitioners into the impact of the materialistic attitudes of young female consumers on their buying habits. This study is unique as it provides an unprecedented holistic view of factors predicting the materialistic behaviour of young female consumers in fast‐growing, emerging markets and its impact on their consumption behaviour.

Store Choice has been a subject of frequent research in the developed retail markets of the west. However, the retail sector in India has been largely fragmented and unorganized. However, the retail scenario in India is changing at a very brisk pace. Many international retailers entering India and many Indian retailers in the organized segment are coming up with stores all across the western formats onto the Indian retail scene without actually evaluating the salience of various store attributes from the customer perspective. In light of this the purpose of this paper is to study the store choice criteria in the context of apparel retailing in India. Drawing from major global and Indian studies conducted in the past, this research has identified two dimensions, which in different combinations could create sustainable store choice and hence, store loyalty. These two dimensions are termed loyalty drivers and experience enhancers.

"Digital disintermediation, or the elimination of "middle-men" in a traditional market setting, has had profound effects on global economies. The rise of peer-to-peer networks and decentralized marketplaces has also led to some market destabilization, and the discussion on data sovereignty and privacy challenges raises concerns surrounding business in the digital age. Digital Technologies, Ethics, and Decentralization in the Digital Era is a research-based book which boldly tackles a myriad of ethical dilemmas, including bias, privacy, and inclusivity, and advocates for a future where digital access is fair and equitable.Academic scholars and industry professionals will embark on an enlightening journey through the digital revolution's transformative power. This book delves into the very core of digital technologies, shedding light on their role as catalysts for decentralization and de-globalization. Readers will gain invaluable insights into how these technologies disrupt established systems, paving the way for innovative alternatives. The exploration of blockchain and decentralized finance shines a light on how individuals and communities can harness technology to empower themselves, reshaping the dynamics of power in an increasingly interconnected world."--

Amid an unprecedented digital revolution, our society grapples with profound challenges, from the upheaval of traditional global systems to the ethical implications of technology's inexorable advance. As academic scholars seek a comprehensive understanding of this dynamic environment, Driving Decentralization and Disruption With Digital Technologies emerges as a beacon of insight. This compelling book confronts the intricate issues spawned by decentralization, de-globalization, and the transformative power of digital technologies, providing a roadmap for traversing the complexities of our digitally connected world. The book starts by unraveling the disruptive forces at play, shedding light on the threats posed to existing hierarchies and the potential consequences for disadvantaged groups. Digital disintermediation, driven by platforms and peer-to-peer networks, shakes the foundations of traditional economic systems, leaving banks and markets in flux. As global relationships redefine themselves in the face of decentralized markets, supply chains, and economic ties, scholars grapple with the profound implications for the future. Driving Decentralization and Disruption With Digital Technologies stands out by offering a deep dive into decentralized technologies, particularly blockchain and distributed ledger technologies. It showcases their capacity to empower individuals and local communities, examining the transformative potential of decentralized finance (DeFi) and governance models. The book examines the difficult issue of digital identity and data sovereignty, examining policy considerations, challenges, and the promise of decentralized identification systems. For academic scholars seeking clarity amidst the complexities of the digital era, Driving Decentralization and Disruption With Digital Technologies is the indispensable guide. It meticulously dissects the ethical and societal ramifications of the digital revolution, advocating for a fair and just digital society. By fostering an understanding of the intricate interplay between technology, decentralization, and de-globalization, this book equips scholars with the knowledge needed to navigate the uncharted territories of a digitally connected world. Driving Decentralization and Disruption With Digital Technologies is a roadmap for academics seeking to comprehend and contribute to the ongoing transformation of our global society

PurposeEarlier, the consumption of products was based mainly on their utilitarian benefits, but at present, the love for nature has driven consumers towards products not harming the environment and society. Therefore, this paper aims to examine the influence of consumers' attitudes towards organic personal care products on brand love, brand trust, altruism and sustainable consumption behaviour. Furthermore, the study further examines the impact of sustainable consumption behaviour on continuous purchase intention using health consciousness as a moderator. Finally, the study validates Behavioural Reasoning Theory and the emotional affinity towards nature to understand the proposed claims.Design/methodology/approachThe data were collected from 364 respondents from India. Only those respondents were included in the survey who had prior experience of using organic personal care products. This study used the structural equation modelling approach to test the conceptual model.FindingsResults of the study confirmed the positive influence of consumer attitude on brand love, brand trust and altruism. Brand love and altruism had a significant impact on sustainable consumption behaviour. Health consciousness also emerged as a moderating variable between sustainable consumption behaviour and continuous intention. Interestingly, the brand trust had no impact on sustainable consumption behaviour. Furthermore, sustainable consumption behaviour had a significant impact on continuous intention.Originality/valueThe study is helpful to organic product companies, practitioners, academicians, environment protection agencies and market regulatory authorities as it gives fresh insight into the new collective relationship of consumer attitude with brand love, brand trust, altruism and sustainable consumption behaviour in case of organic personal care products.

Purpose
Intervention strategies are designed by policymakers to impact people by effectively changing the environment in which people make decisions. Many government-led agencies and nongovernmental organizations promote behavioral change by adopting social marketing strategies. Social marketing uses the application of commercial ideas to influence the voluntary behavior of individuals. Under these circumstances, this study aims to examine the effect of these emerging brand-building techniques social marketing especially in public campaign.


Design/methodology/approach
This descriptive study collected opinions related to the constructs from 324 respondents across India. This study used statistical package for the social science and Smart partial leased square software to test the validity of the hypotheses.


Findings
The results of this study indicate that when the campaigns target the emotional state of the consumer, he or she crosses all boundaries like physical attributes, service parameter or even any form of assessment and provides incremental value to the campaign, thus forming a favorable behavior.


Research limitations/implications
This study provides insights on how emotional branding can be used for better involvement and relationship building, which leads to long-term engagement with the customers. The marketers can also get facilitated through this study by developing a new perspective of creating their advertisements through emotional branding techniques, especially with a focus on corporate social responsibility in the global environment.


Originality/value
In recent times, marketers have adopted a new communication strategy to build their brand through promotions that might appeal directly to customer's emotional state, popularly termed as "emotional branding." This new communication strategy aims at creating and nurturing a relationship between the consumer and the brand by accumulating memories, emotions, personal narratives and expectations.

Purpose Using data from Twitter, the purpose of this paper is to assess the coping behaviour and reactions of social media users in response to the initial days of the COVID-19-related lockdown in different parts of the world. Design/methodology/approach This study follows the quasi-inductive approach which allows the development of pre-categories from other theories before the sampling and coding processes begin, for use in those processes. Data was extracted using relevant keywords from Twitter, and a sample was drawn from the Twitter data set to ensure the data is more manageable from a qualitative research standpoint and that meaningful interpretations can be drawn from the data analysis results. The data analysis is discussed in two parts: extraction and classification of data from Twitter using automated sentiment analysis; and qualitative data analysis of a smaller Twitter data sample. Findings This study found that during the lockdown the majority of users on Twitter shared positive opinions towards the lockdown. The results also found that people are keeping themselves engaged and entertained. Governments around the world have also gained support from Twitter users. This is despite the hardships being faced by citizens. The authors also found a number of users expressing negative sentiments. The results also found that several users on Twitter were fence-sitters and their opinions and emotions could swing either way depending on how the pandemic progresses and what action is taken by governments around the world. Research limitations/implications The authors add to the body of literature that has examined Twitter discussions around H1N1 using in-depth qualitative methods and conspiracy theories around COVID-19. In the long run, the government can help citizens develop routines that help the community adapt to a new dangerous environment – this has very effectively been shown in the context of wildfires in the context of disaster management. In the context of this research, the dominance of the positive ...

Purpose
Conventionally, consumers perceive luxury products as a means of displaying their wealth and prosperity. Consumption of luxury products has usually been considered the prerogative of the Western world. Although there are a number of studies capturing the pre-purchase and purchase behaviour of consumers, there is a dearth of quality studies that have been conducted in this field to understand the post-purchase behaviour of consumers towards luxury brands, especially in the context of young shoppers in an emerging market context. Studying the post-purchase behaviour of shoppers is important to understand their experience with the brand. A negative experience could lead to a post-purchase dissonance, which in turn could lead to an unbalanced or distorted attitude towards the brand and other marketing stimuli. Keeping this in consideration, the purpose of this study is to explore the experiences and attitudes of young shoppers in India towards luxury consumption.


Design/methodology/approach
The study captured responses from young shoppers of Chandigarh and its satellite cities located in the relatively prosperous northwest region of India. The data were collected from 200 participants through a structured questionnaire that was based on an adapted "Attitude towards the concept of luxury" scale by Dubois and Laurent (1994) and "Brand Experience" Scale by Brakus et al. (2009). The structural equation modeling technique was applied to test the proposed model.


Findings
The empirical results indicate that sensory, intellectual, behavioural and affective experience play a significant role in building the attitude of consumers towards luxury brands.


Research limitations/implications
The study selected university students from Chandigarh (India) Tricity region as target respondents, which may limit the generalisability of the results to other target respondents in different regions of India or other countries.


Practical implications
The study is useful for researchers, academicians, marketers and retailers of luxury brands, as it gives fresh insights into understanding the consumer behaviour of a young segment towards the consumption of luxury brands in the post-purchase scenario, especially in the context of an emerging market.


Originality/value
The uniqueness of the study lies in the fact that it examines the post-purchase behaviour of a segment consisting of young, educated and aspirational individuals in one of the world's fastest-growing major economies.