Article ID Journal Published Year Pages File Type
1018971 Journal of Business Research 2007 9 Pages PDF
Abstract

This article extends the discussion of congruity or the preference by consumers for alternatives similar to themselves 1) by examining the effect in a retail context and, 2) by considering the moderating role of self-monitoring, or the tendency to regulate one's mood in line with the social context, on congruity. Two experiments find that when low self-monitors imagine a context that differs in valence from their mood, they feel more distinctive from the environment while high self-monitors do not. The feelings of low self-monitors, in turn, seem to lead them to prefer contexts that are congruent in valence with their mood. High self-monitors on the other hand prefer a context that differs in valence from their mood. It is argued that high self-monitors seek a mood-incongruent context to achieve normative regulation of their mood. The implications of these results for retail atmospherics are discussed.

Related Topics
Social Sciences and Humanities Business, Management and Accounting Business and International Management
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