Spatial Distance Effect in Shaping Perceived Similarity of Products in the Online Store

JANG,, J. M. (2021). Spatial Distance Effect in Shaping Perceived Similarity of Products in the Online Store. The Journal of Distribution Science, 19(2), 53-64, https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.15722/jds.19.2.202102.53

copy

Abstract

Purpose: Even though arranging images of products is a common practice in the online retail context, relatively little attention has been paid to the distance effect among alternatives, that is, how distance among displayed products can impact consumers' responses. Drawing on contagion theory, the primary goal of the current study is to investigate how spatial distance between two products in a product display can influence consumers' perceived similarity. Research design, data and methodology: This study used a 2(spatial distance: close vs. far) experimental design and collected data from undergraduate students in Korea through an online survey using Qualtrics. ANOVA was conducted to test the proposed effect, in which the dependent variables are the perceived similarity of usage occasion/purpose (Study 1) and the indexed differences of perceived brand statuses between two products (Study 2). Results: The results of both experiments indicated that the displayed products were perceived to be more similar to one another when products were presented close together (vs. far). Conclusions: The results help to fill a research gap and provide a better understanding of the role of physical distance in diverse marketing communications. This is especially useful when designing online shopping websites to form perceptions of brand images.

keywords: Product Display, Spatial Distance, Perceived Similarity, Usage Occasion, Perceived Brand Status

Reference

Abou-Shouk, M. A., & Khalifa, G. S. (2017). The influence of website quality dimensions on e-purchasing behaviour and eloyalty: A comparative study of Egyptian travel agents and hotels. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 34(5), 608–623. https://doi.org/10.1080/10548408.2016.1209151

Argo, J. J., Dahl, D. W., & Morales, A. C. (2006). Consumer contamination: How consumers react to products touched by others. Journal of Marketing, 70(2), 81–94. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkg.70.2.081

Argo, J. J., Dahl, D. W., & Morales, A. C. (2008). Positive consumer contagion: responses to attractive others in a retail context. Journal of Marketing Research, 45(6), 690–701. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkr.45.6.690

Belk, R. W. (1988). Possessions and the extended self. Journal of Consumer Research, 15(2), 139–167. https://doi.org/10.1086/209154

Bloom, P. (2010). How pleasure works: The new science of why we like what we like. New York, US: Norton.

Byun, S. (2018). Evaluating information technology systems using consumer surveys: The role of personal product knowledge. The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics, and Business, 5(4), 117–125. https://doi.org/10.13106/JAFEB.2018.VOL5.NO4.117

Byun, S., & Kyung, M. S. (2020). Effects of the attributes of mobile shopping apps on purchase intention of fashion products. Journal of Industrial Distribution & Business, 11(1), 49–57. https://doi.org/10.13106/JIDB.2020.VOL11.NO1.49

Chae, B., Li, X., & Zhu, R. (2013). Judging product effectiveness from perceived spatial proximity. Journal of Consumer Research, 40(2), 317-335. https://doi.org/10.1086/670393

Choi, J. W., Yoo, H. G., Kwon, Y. E., & Kwon, L. S. (2019). Women’s skin care factors affecting Korean women’s skin and beauty industry market. Journal of Industrial Distribution & Business, 10(8), 25–32. https://doi.org/10.13106/IJIDB.2019.VOL10.NO8.25.

10.

Crawford, M. T., Sherman, S. J., & Hamilton, D. L. (2002). Perceived entitativity, stereotype formation, and the interchangeability of group members. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 83(5), 1076–1094. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.83.5.1076\

11.

Dai, W., & Lee, J. H. (2018). Effects of website characteristics and delivery service quality on repurchase intention. Journal of Industrial Distribution & Business, 9(5), 17–24. https://doi.org/10.13106/IJIDB.2018.VOL9.NO5.17

12.

Fajardo, T. M., & Townsend, C. (2016). Where you say it matters:Why packages are a more believable source of product claims than advertisements. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 26(3), 426-434. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcps.2015.11.002.

13.

Frazer, J. G. (1890). The new golden bough: A study in magic and religion, In T. H. Gaster, abridged, ed., New York, US:Macmillan.

14.

Fishbach, A., & Zhang, Y. (2008). Together or apart: When goals and temptations complement versus compete. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 94(4), 547–559. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.94.4.547

15.

Grose, E., Forsythe, C., & Ratner, J. (1998). Using web and traditional style guides to design web interfaces. In Human Factors and Web Development (pp. 121-131), New Jersey, US:Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

16.

Hejmadi, A., Rozin, P., & Siegal, M. (2004). Once in contact, always in contact: Contagious essence and conceptions of purification in American and Hindu Indian children. Developmental Psychology, 40(4), 467–476. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.40.4.467

17.

Ban, J., & Lee, H. S. (2020). The role of empathy in crowdfunding channel platform. Journal of Distribution Science, 18(10), 15–23. https://doi.org/10.15722/JDS.18.10.202010.15

18.

Kim, S., Baek, T. H., & Yoon, S. (2020). The effect of 360-degree rotatable product images on purchase intention. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 55, 102062. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2020.102062

19.

Kim, M. J., Park, C. J. & Park, J. S. (2017). Negative spillover effects of other-customer failure in airline context. Journal of Distribution Science, 15(1), 15–20. https://doi.org/10.15722/JDS.15.1.201701.15

20.

Kong, L. L., Ma, Z. Q., Ji, S. H., & Li, J. (2020). The mediating effect of empathy on the relationship between cultural intelligence and intercultural adaptation in intercultural service encounters. The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics, and Business, 7(2), 169–180. https://doi.org/10.13106/JAFEB.2020.VOL7.NO2.169

21.

Lai, I. S., Huang, Y. F., Siang, J. H., & Weng, M. W. (2020). Evaluation of key success factors for web design in Taiwan’s bike case study. The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics, and Business, 7(11), 927–937. https://doi.org/10.13106/JAFEB.2020.VOL7.NO11.927

22.

Lee, J. S. & Kim, J. H. (2020). A study on brand personality and experience in early morning delivery as a new distribution service. Journal of Distribution Science, 18(10), 5–14. https://doi.org/10.15722/JDS.18.10.202010.5

23.

Lim, M. S. (2020). The relationships between product quality cues and perceived values based on gender differences at a food select shop. Journal of Industrial Distribution &Business, 11(10), 59–73.

24.

Maheswaran, D., & Sternthal, B. (1990). The effects of knowledge, motivation, and type of message on Ad processing and product judgments. Journal of Consumer Research, 17(1), 66–73. https://doi.org/10.1086/208537

25.

Mallapragada, G., Chandukala, S. R., & Liu, Q. (2016). Exploring the effects of “what” (Product) and “where” (Website)characteristics on online shopping behavior. Journal of Marketing, 80(2), 21–38. https://doi.org/10.1509/jm.15.0138

26.

Mishra, A. (2009). Influence of contagious versus noncontagious product groupings on consumer preferences. Journal of Consumer Research, 36(1), 73–82. https://doi.org/10.1086/595716

27.

Morales, A. C., & Fitzsimons, G. (2007). Product contagion:Changing consumer evaluations through physical contact with ‘disgusting’ products. Journal of Marketing Research, 44(2), 272–283. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkr.44.2.272

28.

Nemeroff, C. J., & Rozin, P. (1994). The contagion concept in adult thinking in the united states: Transmission of germs and of interpersonal influence. Ethos, 22(2), 158–186. http://www.jstor.org/stable/640495

29.

Newman, G. E., & Dhar, R. (2014). Authenticity is contagious:Brand essence and the original source of production. Journal of Marketing Research, 51(3), 371–386. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmr.11.0022

30.

Newman, G. E., Diesendruck, G., & Bloom, P. (2011). Celebrity contagion and the value of objects. Journal of Consumer Research, 38(2), 215–228. https://doi.org/10.1086/658999

31.

Orús, C., Gurrea, R., & Flavián, C. (2017). Facilitating imaginations through online product presentation videos:effects on imagery fluency, product attitude and purchase intention. Electronic Commerce Research, 17(4), 661–700. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10660-016-9250-7

32.

Rozin, P., & Nemeroff, C. (2002). Sympathetic magical thinking:The contagion and similarity 'Heuristics,' in heuristics and biases. In T. Gilovich, D. Griffin, & D. Kahneman, The psychology of intuitive judgment (pp. 201-216), Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

33.

Rozin, P., Nemeroff, C. J., Wane, M., & Sherrod, A. (1989). Operation of the sympathetic magical law of contagion in interpersonal attitudes among Americans. Bulletin of the Psychonomic Society, 27(4), 367–70. https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03334630

34.

Rozin, P., Millman, L., & Nemeroff, C. (1986). Operation of the laws of sympathetic magic in disgust and other domains. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 50(4), 703–712. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.50.4.703

35.

Segev, S., Wang, W., & Fernandes, J. (2014). The effects of adcontext congruency on responses to advertising in blogs. International Journal of Advertising, 33(1), 17–36. https://doi.org/10.2501/IJA-33-1-017-036

36.

Shneiderman, B. (1992). Designing the user interface: Strategies for effective human-computer interaction (2nd ed.). Reading, MA, US: Addison-Wesley Publishers Co.

37.

Spencer-Rodgers, J., Hamilton, D. L., & Sherman, S. J. (2007). The central role of entitativity in stereotypes of social categories and task groups. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 92(3), 369–388. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.92.3.369

38.

Tylor, E. B. (1974). Primitive culture: Researches into the development of mythology, philosophy, religion, art, and custom. New York, US: Gordon Press. (Original work published 1871)

39.

WANG, X. & ZHANG, J. (2020). Factors influencing Chinese online shopping distributions of fresh agricultural products. Journal of Distribution Science, 18(10), 53–63. https://doi.org/10.15722/JDS.18.10.202010.5

40.

White, K., Lin, L., Dahl, D. W., & Ritchie, R. J. B. (2016). When do consumers avoid imperfections? Superficial packaging damage as a contamination cue. Journal of Marketing Research, 53(1),110–123. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmr.12.0388

41.

Xu, J. & Cheng, C. (2021). Uncertainty avoidance, individualism and the readiness of Business-to-Consumer E-commerce. The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics, and Business, 8(1), 791–801. https://doi.org/10.13106/JAFEB.2021.VOL8.NO1.791

42.

Yzerbyt, V. Y., Rogier, A., & Fiske, S. T. (1998). Group entitativity and social attribution: On translating situational constraints into stereotypes. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 24(10), 1089–1103. https://doi.org/10.1177/01461672982410006

43.

Zhang, Y., Fiore, A.M., Zhang, L., & Liu, X. (2020). Impact of website design features on experiential value and patronage intention toward online mass customization sites, Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, Vol. ahead-of-print No.ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/JFMM-11-2019-0261

바로가기메뉴

Article Contents

Vol.19 No.2

Spatial Distance Effect in Shaping Perceived Similarity of Products in the Online Store

Abstract

Reference

The Journal of Distribution Science