The aim of this study is to investigate the positive impact of accented voice-over ads in the globalized consumer market and the factors that affect the purchasing intentions for the products being advertised. Two studies were conducted to examine the factors that affect consumers’ perceptions, attitude, and purchase intentions of the voiceovers in online advertisements.

Many corporate brands are strongly associated with the person the companies are headed by (Argenti & Druckenmiller, 2004). Attention for corporate psychopaths (CPs), defined as individuals who show psychopathic traits and work successfully in corporations, has been growing lately (Boddy, 2005). Psychopathic traits (e.g. charm, lack of remorse and empathy) can easily be interpreted as leadership characteristics (e.g. charisma and decisiveness) and therefore boost the career of the psychopath allowing him/her to climb up the corporate ladder (Boddy, 2011). Empirical evidence—although limited—supports this assumption. It has been found that CPs more frequently have senior level positions in organizations than junior ones (Boddy, Ladyshewsky, &Galvin, 2010b) and that the chances of finding a psychopath among CEOs is four times higher than in the general population (Bercovici, 2011). A CP in a high level position (e.g. a CEO) can not only be assumed to have the largest leverage on how the company’s resources are deployed, but the way s/he is perceived by others also has a great impact on the company’s image (McGrath, 1995). The willingness to trust an entity is “based on the expectation that the other party will perform a particular action important to the trustor, irrespective of the ability to monitor or control that other party” (Mayer, Davis, & Schoorman, 1995). Therefore, the perception of negative/psychopathic traits in a CEO is of considerable importance to organizations because it influences the CEO’s public image and subsequently the level of trust placed in the top manager. This, in turn, can have far-reaching consequences for the company he works for because an executive’s greatest capital consists in the trust placed in him/her and a company cannot be successful in the long run without the trust from stakeholder groups (Hage, 2012). The perception of psychopathic traits can thus have severe consequences for the company’s attractiveness to its stakeholders. The current research investigates the effects of perceived psychopathy of CEOs for the attractiveness of any form of interaction with the company. Results of a structural equation model based on a survey among 670 participants show that perceived corporate psychopathy negatively influences perceived trust in the CEO. Perceived trust in the CEO, in turn, has a positive effect on perceived attractiveness of products, of shares, and of perceived employer attractiveness. Furthermore, if an individual considers sustainability to be of high importance, the ethical standards concerning sustainable behavior seem to be stricter because the trustor cares about them more than the economic aspects of how the CEO manages the company. Therefore, it was found that attitude toward sustainability moderates the relationship between perceived corporate psychopathy and perceived trust in the CEO.

Purpose: This study has two purposes; (a) to advance the understanding of rhythmic gymnastics’ attractiveness factors perceived by female elementary school students and their mothers, and (b) to discuss similarities and differences between the attractiveness factors. In this study, a concept-mapping method was used for a research methodology. A concept-mapping method is useful in that it can deal with both quantitative and qualitative research issues and compensate limitations. A concept-mapping method enables researchers to directly explore the frames of participants’ experiences and/or ideas, rather than to explore those frames based on researchers’ hypotheses or direction of the study. Results: This study collected data (original N=10/10) from female rhythmic gymnastics students and their mothers. All students participated in the study were children at the age between 8 and 11, who have been learning rhythmic gymnastics more than 12 months in Seoul, South Korea. This study collected participants’ statements using an open-ended survey. Among total of N statements, 51 of the children’s statements and 49 of the mothers’ statements were confirmed through a clarification process. Multidimensional scaling and hierarchical cluster analysis were conducted to investigate the purposes of the study. A concept map of rhythmic gymnastics’ attractiveness was derived as a result. Test results showed that children and mother groups presented 5 and 3 clusters, respectively, on a two-dimensional axis diagram. Conclusion: This study revealed the attractiveness factors of rhythmic gymnastics perceived by female students and their mothers. The tested results have implications for both academia and instructional method. The results would be a basic reference source for developing measurement scale for testing rhythmic gymnastics students’ pleasure and interest levels. The results of this study also could be applied to designing effective teaching and learning strategies of rhythmic gymnastics, and developing various programs.