This research aims to examine the interplay of fluency and framing in consumers’ perception of online review helpfulness. We propose to conduct three experiments to study how consumers evaluate a product review as presented in easy- vs. hard-to-read font and promotion vs. prevention frame. INTRODUCTION Nowadays consumers are often exposed to and influenced by online product reviews. These reviews are generated and posted by consumers on online shopping websites, such as Amazon.com. Obviously, the content of an online product review, either appraisal or criticism, would offer valuable information for consumers to make purchase decisions. The almost immediate and strong impact of product reviews on a prospective consumer’s decision would not be easily achieved by other marketing attempts (Daugherty, Eastin, & Bright, 2013; Ghose & Ipeirotis, 2006; Mahajan, Muller, & Kerin, 1984). In particular, past research has proposed that, if a review is believed to be more helpful it is more likely to add value for a future customer (Mudambi & Schuff, 2010; Yin, Bond, & Zhang, 2014). In this research, we would like to research what makes a review helpful. According to consumer psychology literature, metacognitive cues, such as fluency, would play an important role in consumer judgments (Lee, 2004; Schwarz, 2004). So, we first propose that fluency, the ease of information processing, could influence perceived review helpfulness. Moreover, a growing body of research has suggested some factors that could interact with fluency when influencing consumer decisions and judgments (Shah, Alter, & Oppenheimer, 2010; Tsai & McGill, 2010). For example, framing effect has been extensively studied in consumer decision making literature (Block & Keller, 1995; Rothman, Salovey, Antone, Keough, & Martin, 1993). Accordingly, we would like to study the effect of framing, emphasizing on gain vs. loss, on perceived review helpfulness. Specifically, we research whether framing a review as promotion- vs. prevention-focused would moderate fluency effect on consumers’ perception of online product reviews. To sum up, in this research we investigate how consumers’ evaluation on online product reviews is influenced by manipulating the review to be promotion- vs. preventionoriented and easy- vs. hard-to-read. To our best understanding, little of past research has directly examined the interplay of fluency and framing in consumer judgments, especially in social media contexts. We wish to collect further evidence regarding the underlying rationale involving fluency and framing effects on consumers’ perception of review helpfulness. THEORETICAL DEVELOPMENT AND HYPOTHESES Researchers have defined online reviews as peer-generated product evaluations posted on a company or third party website (Mudambi & Schuff, 2010). To better understand how consumers evaluate online reviews, we propose to examine the effects of fluency and framing on perceived review helpfulness. First, fluency, defined as the ease of information processing, could make a strong impact on various judgments, including perceived risk, liking, and confidence (Alter & Oppenheimer, 2009; Novemsky, Dhar, & Schwarz, 2007; Reber, Winkielman, & Schwarz, 1998). We notice that limited empirical work has yet addressed the relationship between fluency and perceived review helpfulness, although fluency is easy to manipulate and could have overwhelming effect on judgments. Rather, marketing and social media researchers have long been focused on content- and emotion-based features of online reviews in relation to review helpfulness (Moore, 2015; Mudambi & Schuff, 2010). Therefore, this research aims to address this limitation by exploring fluency effect on review helpfulness. Second, we suggest that framing, by focusing on promotion vs. prevention, could influence consumers’ perception of online product reviews. In particular, regulatory focus literature has revealed that, message framing would influence the effectiveness of persuasion (Higgins, 1998; Meyerowitz & Chaiken, 1987; Tykocinski, Higgins, & Chaiken, 1994). To emphasize, past research has gained mixed results about promotionvs. prevention-focused messages in persuasion (Block & Keller, 1995; Rothman et al., 1993). In this research we will have a close look at framing and explore its effect on online review helpfulness. Third, we would like to test whether a gain (vs. loss) frame is more effective when disfluency (vs. fluency) is experienced. In a past study, Shah, Alter, and Oppenheimer (2010) argue that fluency (vs. disfluency) makes people feel they are close to (vs. distant from) a stimulus, and then become more likely to be engaged in low (vs. high) level thinking. According to construal level theory, when people think concretely they are more likely to focus on concrete, specific details; by contrast, when they think abstractly they are more likely to focus on abstract, global properties (Trope & Liberman, 2003). In addition, past research has found that mind-set, or thinking concretely vs. abstractly, could interact with framing in consumer judgments (White, MacDonnell, & Dhal, 2011). Regarding the interaction between fluency and framing, mixed results are found in literature. On the one hand, Shah and colleagues (2010) have suggested that, disfluency is related to high-level thinking, and thus would make a promotion frame more effective. On the other hand, researchers have proposed that, disfluency induces negative feelings, and thus would make a prevention frame more effective (White, MacDonnell, & Dhal, 2011). Given the disagreement in past findings, we would like to further examine the underlying mechanisms for consumers to perceive online product reviews presented in easy vs. hard font and promotion vs. prevention frame. Following these studies, we will conduct three experiments to test fluency and framing effects on perceived review helpfulness. Our hypotheses are listed below: H1: Consumers perceive an online product review in easy-to-read font (vs. hard-to-read) as more helpful. H2-a: Consumers perceive an online product review in easy-to-read font and a promotion (vs. prevention) frame as more helpful. H2-b: Consumers perceive an online product review in easy-to-read font and a prevention (vs. promotion) frame as more helpful. H3-a: Consumers perceive an online product review in hard-to-read font and a prevention (vs. promotion) frame as more helpful. H3-b: Consumers perceive an online product review in hard-to-read font and a promotion (vs. prevention) frame as more helpful. RESEARCH METHOD We propose three experiments to examine fluency and framing effects on perceived review helpfulness, by using an actual product review collected from Amazon.com. Two hundred undergraduate students from a public university in mainland China will participate in our experiments. In Experiment 1, we will investigate the main effect of fluency on review helpfulness. It is expected that, fluency would have significant effect on perceived review helpfulness. A review on a home speaker – Amazon Echo Dot is selected, and then rated by three individual researchers as relatively neutral and objective. We manipulate fluency by displaying the review in an easy- vs. hard-to-read font, respectively. After reading the review, using 7-point scales participants rate fluency (1 = very difficult, 7 = very easy) and review helpfulness (1 = not helpful at all, 7 = very helpful). To test fluency effect as predicted in H1, we will conduct a t-test. Also, using t-test we will check if the manipulation is successful. In Experiments 2 and 3, we will examine the main effect of framing on review helpfulness, as well as the interaction between fluency and framing. As discussed earlier, past research suggests two opposing expectations. As stated in H2-a and H3-a, promotion (vs. prevention) frame is more effective when a review is shown in easy (vs. hard) font. However, H2-b and H3-b are holding the contradictory predictions. Here, the review is modified to be more focused on promotion vs. prevention respectively, shown in either easy- or hard-to-read font. In each experiment, half of the participants read the Amazon Echo Dot’s review in a promotion frame and the other half will process the review in a prevention frame. In both promotion and prevention conditions, participants are randomly assigned to read the review in an easy- or hard-to-read font. To test our hypotheses, we will employ a 2 (easy vs. hard) x 2 (promotion vs. prevention) ANOVA. In addition, to understand the rationale of consumers’ making evaluation on reviews, we ask participants to use information contained in the review to write a short description of the product. So that, we will be able to capture participants’ thinking mode. Also, we ask participants to rate review valence (1 = very negative, 7 = very positive) and describe their feelings after reading the review, in order to examine if framing would result in different feelings. Then, we analyze these self-reported responses, in attempts to determine either participants’ mind-set (concrete vs. abstract) or their feelings (positive vs. negative) would be more prevalent when they process and evaluate the review. A mediational analysis will be conducted to explore the mechanisms underlying consumers’ perception of review helpfulness. DISCUSSION The aim of this research is to test whether fluency and framing would influence perceived online review helpfulness. Also, our research is designed to explore the interplay of fluency and framing in review perception. The completed work will present empirical results to demonstrate the roles of fluency and framing in consumers’ review evaluations, through the three experiments as proposed. Theoretically, our research will contribute to existing literature by addressing the effects of fluency and framing on consumer decision making, in the context of online marketing communications. Practically, our research will provide insights for marketers and consumers to engage in communications via online review systems. Given that fluency and framing are considered as salient cues to influence consumer decisions, marketers should learn how to leverage these factors while shaping the framework in which online product information is created and shared by consumers.

This research aims to look at the contradictory effects of corporate social responsibility as conducted by luxury brands. On the one hand, corporate social responsibility (CSR) is known to product positive effects on brands such as the transfer of goodwill and image but on the other hand because of the purported impact of disfluency, previous research has argued that the emphasis on self enhancement runs counter to the more social agenda of CSR. In this study we examine of power and how that can mediate when positive and negative impact of CSR when such campaigns are implemented by luxury brands.

Although vast research has been done to better understand brand knowledge, few studies explore the conscious and the unconscious mental processes that increase brand equity when a brand is linked with value adding entities like persons, events or symbols. In our paper we introduce an integrated approach that includes both the explicit and implicit facets of customers’ brand knowledge and the leveraging effects when a brand is framed by another entity. In order to analyze brand knowledge enhancement effects in sufficient detail, we fall back on the multifaceted model of brand leverage by combining a brand with an external label. Our study results show that the combination of measuring implicit and explicit facets of brand knowledge is a better indicator to predict brand knowledge enhancement, and also that the analysis of subconscious processes help to better position the linked object in customers’ perception in order to foster the brand leveraging success.Although vast research has been done to better understand brand knowledge, few studies explore the conscious and the unconscious mental processes that increase brand equity when a brand is linked with value adding entities like persons, events or symbols. In our paper we introduce an integrated approach that includes both the explicit and implicit facets of customers’ brand knowledge and the leveraging effects when a brand is framed by another entity. In order to analyze brand knowledge enhancement effects in sufficient detail, we fall back on the multifaceted model of brand leverage by combining a brand with an external label. Our study results show that the combination of measuring implicit and explicit facets of brand knowledge is a better indicator to predict brand knowledge enhancement, and also that the analysis of subconscious processes help to better position the linked object in customers’ perception in order to foster the brand leveraging success.

한국의 대학생을 대상으로 틀유형(긍정틀 vs. 부정틀)과 자기관련성 수준(저 vs. 고)의 조합에 따른 의사결정 틀효과에서의 차이를 살펴보았다. 참가자들을 긍정틀 조건과 부정틀 조건에 할당한 후, 참가자 자신의 개인적 사안이나 혹은 사회 일반적 사안으로 자기관련성 수준이 조작된 여섯 가지의 의사결정 시나리오에 대한 위험추구와 위험회피의 틀효과 차이를 비교하였다. 본 연구의 결과를 요약하면 다음과 같다. 첫째, 긍정틀 조건보다는 부정틀 조건에서의 틀효과가 더 작은 경향이 있었으나, 자기관련성 저수준 조건과 자기관련성 고수준 조건 사이에서는 틀효과 차이가 관찰되지 않았다. 둘째, 자기관련성 수준과 틀유형 조건 사이의 상호작용이 유의하였다. 즉, 긍정틀 조건에서는 자기관련성 수준에 따른 틀효과 차이가 관찰되지 않았던 반면, 부정틀 조건에서는 자기관련성 저수준 조건의 경우보다 자기관련성 고수준 조건의 경우 틀효과가 유의하게 더 작았다. 이러한 결과는 일반적으로 자기관련성은 틀효과를 감소시키는 효과를 가져 오지만, 이러한 효과는 부정틀 조건과 같이 특정 조건에서만 차별적으로 나타날 수 있다는 것을 시사한다.

본 연구는 광고메시지의 모호성 수준에 따라 광고태도와 구매의도에 미치는 영향을 분석하고, 이득 및 손실 메시지 프레이밍의 조절효과를 검증함으로써 긍정적인 태도를 유발하는 모호성 광고에 대해서 부정적인 태도가 형성될 수 있다는 것을 보여주고 있다. 본 연구에서는 인쇄 광고에 제공되는 메시지의 양을 조절하여 광고 메시지의 모호성 수준을 구분하였고 이에 대한 광고효과를 검증하였다. 실험 결과, 광고 메시지의 모호성 수준이 높을수록 광고태도와 구매의도는 낮아지는 것으로 나타났다. 이는 광고 메시지 제작에 있어서 모호성의 수준에 따른 소비자 반응의 차이를 발견할 수 있었다. 그리고 메시지 프레이밍의 조절효과는 광고메시지의 모호성 수준이 높은 경우 이득 메시지에 비해 손실 메시지의 광고태도가 현저히 떨어지는 것으로 나타나 선행연구에서 밝혀진 바와 같이 수용자는 동일한 상황의 이익보다 손실을 더 크게 인지한다는 것을 알 수 있다. 이러한 손실 메시지 상황에서 모호성 수준이 높은 광고는 오히려 소비자에게 부정적인 태도를 형성하게 하는 요인이 될 수 있다는 것이다. 이와 같은 연구결과를 토대로 효과적인 모호성 광고 제작을 위한 논의를 제안하고 실무적 시사점을 제공하고 있다.

본 연구는 광고의 시각적 메시지 프레이밍 유형이 광고 태도와 이미지 선호도에 미치는 영향을 밝히 고, 그 과정에서 제품 관여도와 성별의 조절 효과를 규명하는데 그 목적이 있다. 이를 위해 본 연구에 서는 광고의 시각적 메시지 유형을 긍정과 부정적 메시지로 분류하고, 제품 관여도를 저 관여와 고 관 여 제품으로 분류하여 이들이 광고 태도와 이미지 선호도에 미치는 영향을 실증 분석하였다. 실험물은 시각적 메시지 프레이밍(긍정/부정)과 관여도(고관여/저관여)를 포함하여 2×2 = 4 가지 버전으로 구 성되었다. 총 197명의 피험자가 실험에 참여하였으며, 각각 4가지 버전 중 한가지의 실험광고물을 보 고 설문에 응답하였다. 실증분석 결과, 부정적 메시지가 긍정적 메시지에 비해 더욱 높은 이미지 선호 도를 보여주었으며, 관여도는 광고 태도와 이미지 선호도에 모두 유의한 조절 역할을 하는 것으로 조 사되었다. 성별은 이미지 선호도에만 유의한 조절역할을 하는 것으로 나타났다. 본 연구의 결론에는 연 구결과의 요약과 시사점, 그리고 한계점을 논의하고 미래연구에 대한 제언을 하였다.