이 연구에서는 부모와 친구, 교사와의 애착이 청소년비행에 미치는 영 향을 알아보는데 그 목적이 있다. 부모, 친구, 교사와의 애착이 각각 지 위비행, 폭력비행, 재산비행, 성비행에 미치는 영향을 분석하고, 애착을 세부적으로 나누어 구체적으로 어느 정도의 친밀함이 비행에 어떠한 영 향을 주는지 분석한다. 분석 결과, 지위비행에 영향을 미치는 변수들 간 에 상대적 영향력을 평가하면, 부모와의 애착 중에는 시간(=-.114)이 가장 큰 영향력을 보이고, 교사와의 애착 중에는 관계(=-.083)만이 영 향력을 보인다. 폭력비행에 가장 큰 영향을 미치는 요인은 교사와의 애 착 중 관계이다. 재산비행에 가장 큰 영향을 미치는 요인은 교사와의 애 착 중 관계로 나타나며 이는 폭력비행과 같은 결과이다. 성 비행의 경우 에는 교사와의 애착 중 관계(=-.105)가 전체 애착 요인 중에서도 가장 높은 영향력을 보인다. 이 연구에서는 친밀도를 측정한 문항을 하나의 변수로 묶지 않고 각각의 영향력을 따로 분석하여 선행연구와 차별된 결 과를 얻었다. 이 연구는 청소년의 비행을 예방하기 위해서는 청소년 개 개인에게 세부적인 처우가 제공되어야 한다는 시사점을 제시하고 있다.

본 연구는 아일랜드 문예부흥을 이끈 W.B. 예이츠와 올리비아 셰익스피어의 관계 고찰을 통해, 그것이 서로에게 끼친 영향을 규명하고자 한다. 두 사람은 1894년 처음 친구로 사귄 이래로 서로의 작품을 최초로 읽어주는 독자가 된 후 40여 년간 친구에서 연인, 다시 친구로서 밀접한 관계를 맺었다. 먼저 예이츠 시에 언급된 올리비아 셰익스피어를 통해서 그들의 관계를 추적할 것이다. 아울러 작가로서의 교유는 예이츠가 추구했던 신비학이 올리비아 셰익스피어의 󰡔아름다움이 머문 순간󰡕에 어떻게 구체적으로 나타나 있는지를 밝히고자 한다. 결과적으로 본 논문은 두 사람 간의 절친한 친구, 연인, 작가로서의 그들의 관계를 상호 중첩된 관계의 시학이라 명명한다.

Every day, billions of messages about news, rumours, and experiences are shared by consumers through different kinds of social network medias (Berger, 2014). These shared messages, so called word-of-mouth (WOM), have crucial influence on the success of products and services (Dubois, Bonezzi, & De Angelis, 2016). WOM is a kind of interpersonal communication about products and services between consumers. Thus, it can be significantly influenced by interpersonal relationships. We conducted three experiments to investigate the effects of interpersonal relationships on brand evaluation. In three experiments, we examined how interpersonal relationship affects consumers’ evaluation of brands when they receive a eWOM message in the setting of closed virtual group of friends. The results make several contributions. First, we provide a framework to understand how interpersonal relationships affect the effects of eWOM in a closed virtual group of friends. Second, the effects of interpersonal relationship can be moderated by different situation of agreements, which extends the researches on eWOM. Third, the results reveal the reasons why different dimension of interpersonal relationship can play different role in the relationship between eWOM and brand evaluation.

Introduction User-generated online reviews have become an essential part of consumer decisionmaking process (Mayzlin, Dover, & Chevalier, 2014) affecting product attitudes (Schlosser, 2005), purchase intentions (Ba & Pavlou, 2002), sales (Babić Rosario, Sotgiu, De Vlack, & Bijmolt, 2016), as well as price and quantity of transactions (Berger, Sorensen, & Rasmussen, 2010). For instance, 58% of consumers prefer sites with peer reviews, and nearly all consumers (98%) reported reading peer review before making purchases online (eMarketer, 2010). Given the reach and influence of user-generated content (UGC), it is unsurprising that companies offer numerous incentives such as coupons, rebates, free samples, and monetary payments to encourage user-generated online reviews. In 2012, Tesco, a British multinational grocery and general merchandise retailer, ran a “Share & Earn” scheme where the retailer gave loyalty points to Facebook fans sharing products. Since such reviewers are more like friends than random strangers, how does the review source and incentives affect reviewer trustworthiness and purchase intentions? Would these effects differ across individualistic and collectivistic cultures? Our research examines the cross-cultural differences in the effects of review source and incentives on reviewer trustworthiness and purchase intentions between Americans and Taiwanese. Review Source and Trustworthiness Extant research has shown that reviews from friends are usually more persuasive than reviews from strangers (Huang, Zhang, Liu, & Liang, 2014). Dubois et al. (2016) revealed that high levels of interpersonal closeness increased the negativity of reviews shared, whereas low levels of interpersonal closeness increased the positivity of reviews shared. Correspondingly, individuals tend to perceive friendly review sources as being more trustworthy and honest (Ben-Ner & Halldorsson, 2010). The circulation for UGC online reviews on social media platforms such as YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram could also make the review source appear like a friend. Since user-generated online reviews appear on the user’s own profile page as well as newsfeeds of each friend connected to that user (Chatterjee, 2011), individuals could easily perceive review sources as friendly and trustworthy. Given that online trust often increases purchase intention (Bart, Shankar, Urban, & Sultan, 2005), we posit that reviews from friends increase reviewer trustworthiness, which, in turn, increase purchase intentions. Incentives While online reviews from friends could be deemed as more trustworthy, incentives could muddy the waters. Sterling (2013) showed that over 40% of consumers in a survey reported some level of doubt in the credibility of UGC, fueled by reports of firms posting “fake” positive reviews, deleting negative reviews, or manipulating consumers into making positive statements that might not be a true representation of their options (Mayzlin et al., 2014). Given the level of distrust, the Federal Trade Commission sent out more than 90 letters reminding influencers and marketers that they required to clearly and conspicuously disclose their relationships with brands when promoting or endorsing products on social media (FTC, 2017). Relatedly, in 2012, the UK Advertising Standards Authority ruled that travel website TripAdvisor must cease claiming that it offers “honest, real, or trusted” reviews from “real travelers” since they are unable to assure consumers that all review content was genuine. Even when incentives are disclosed, incentivized reviews are often viewed with suspicion and are discounted as a means of correcting for presumed reviewer bias, even if the reviewer was not biased by the incentive (Du Plessis, Stephen, Bart, & Gonclaves, 2016). Taken together, we argue that incentivized reviews will decrease reviewer trustworthiness, and consequently, purchase intentions. Cultural Differences Existing work on the effects of review source and incentives have, at least implicitly, assumed that its effects hold globally and failed to consider individual or cultural moderating factors. In particular, individualistic and collectivistic cultures differ in their perceptions of trust violations: collectivists tend to become less trusting after experiencing a violation from in-group rather than out-group members; individualists’ trust levels are less affected by violations from in-group members (Fulmer, Gelfand, 2010; van Hoorn, 2015). In the context of our research, incentivized reviews could be regarded as trust violation, where reviewers no longer act altruistically to provide honest reviews. Thus, we posit that incentives could moderate the effects that reviews from friends have on perceived trustworthiness, and consequently, purchase intention in collective cultures (i.e. Taiwanese participants). In contrast, we expect to replicate the results of previous research where reviews from friends increases reviewer trustworthiness and purchase intentions; while incentivized reviews decreases reviewer trustworthiness and purchase intentions. Formally, we hypothesize that: Hypothesis 1a (H1a): Reviews from friends will be considered as more trustworthy than review from strangers amongst American participants. Hypothesis 1b (H1b): American participants will be more likely to purchase products reviewed by friends than strangers. Hypothesis 2a (H2a): Amongst American participants, reviewers providing incentivized reviews will be perceived as less trustworthy than reviewers providing non-incentivized reviews. Hypothesis 2b (H2b): American participants will be less likely to purchase products from incentivized reviews than non-incentivized reviews. Hypothesis 3a (H3a): Amongst Taiwanese participants, when reviews are not incentivized, reviews from friends will be considered more trustworthy than reviews from strangers. The effect will be attenuated when reviews are incentivized. Hypothesis 3b (H3b): Taiwanese participants will be more willing to purchase products reviewed by friends than strangers when the reviews are not incentivized. The effect will be attenuated when reviews are incentivized. Method Participants and Design Three hundred and sixteen participants (50% female, 18-85 years old) were recruited on Qualtrics for nominal payment. Half of the participants were American and completed the survey in English while the rest were Taiwanese and completed the survey in Mandarin. A 2 (review source: stranger vs. friend) x 2 (incentive: no incentive vs. incentivized review) x 2 (nationality: USA vs. Taiwan) mixed design was adopted with source and incentive manipulated within-subject and nationality manipulated between-subjects. Procedure All participants were instructed to assume that they were travelling to London, and was searching for a hotel to stay for a couple of days. They were then presented with four hotel reviews. Both source and incentive were manipulated within-subjects. Source of the reviews was either a friend or a stranger. Reviews were either not incentivized or incentivized where the reviewer was given discount on their stay for leaving a review. To prevent order effects, the reviews were presented in random order. All reviews were 4 out 5 stars reviews, were generally positive, and were dated at a similar time. Measures After every review, participants indicated purchase intention on two items (e.g. “After reading this review, I feel like booking this hotel.”; “If there is a chance, I will book this hotel.”) on a 7-point scale (1 = strongly disagree, 7 = strongly agree)(Kim, Park, & Lee, 2013). Participants also rated how much they trusted the reviewer on a 7-point scale (1 = strongly disagree, 7 = strongly agree) on three items (e.g. “I trust this reviewer to choose a hotel for me.”; “I have confidence in this reviewer.”; “I believe this reviewer is being honest.”) (Smith, Menon, & Sivakumar, 2005). Individualism/collectivism as well as uncertainty avoidance was assessed using a 3-item measure (e.g. “Individuals should stick with the group even through difficulties.”; “It’s important to closely follow instruction and procedures.”) (Yoo, Donthu, & Lenartowicz, 2011) with a 7-point Likert scale (1= strongly disagree, 7 = strongly agree) Results Outliers were removed using Stem and Leaf plots, leaving 295 participants, 148 Taiwanese participants and 149 American participants (50% female, 18 to 85 years old). Contrary to previous research (Hofstede Insights, 2018), American participants (M = 6.07, SD = 0.96) scored significantly higher on the uncertainty avoidance scale than their Taiwanese counterparts (M = 5.56, SD = 1.01). In addition, American participants (M = 5.00, SD = 1.35) did not score significantly higher on the individualism/collectivism scale than their Taiwanese counterparts (M = 5.08, SD = 1.23). As predicted in Hypothesis 1a, a 2 (review source: stranger vs. friend) x 2 (incentive: no incentive vs. incentivized review) on reviewer trustworthiness revealed a significant main effect of review source, F(1, 146) = 25.34, p =.00, where friends (M = 5.34, SD = 1.19) were significantly more trustworthy than strangers (M = 4.97, SD =1.24) amongst USA participants. In line with H2a, there was also a significant main effect of incentive, where non-incentivized reviews (M = 5.24, SD = 1.21) were considered more trustworthy than incentivized reviews (M = 5.07, SD = 1.22), F(1,146)=6.43, p =.01. There was no significant interaction effect, F <1. Amongst the Taiwanese participants, a 2 (review source: stranger vs. friend) x 2 (incentive: no incentive vs. incentivized review) on reviewer trustworthiness revealed a significant main effect of review source, F(1, 147) = 13.02, p =.00, and incentive, F(1,147)=6.43, p =.01, qualified by the predicted interaction, F(1,147)=3.77, p =.05. Consistent with our predictions (H3a), when reviews were not incentivized, friends (M = 5.41, SD = 1.08) were significantly more trustworthy than strangers (M = 5.15, SD = 1.10), F(1,147)=15.63, p=.00. However, when reviewers were incentivized, friends (M = 5.20, SD = 1.05) were just as trustworthy as strangers (M = 5.09, SD = 1.15, F(1,147) = 1.85, p =.18. As predicted (H1b), amongst USA participants, a 2 (review source: stranger vs. friend) x 2 (incentive: no incentive vs. incentivized review) on purchase intention revealed a significant main effect of review source, F(1, 146) = 4.46, p =.04, where reviews from friends (M = 5.40, SD = 1.20) elicited higher purchase intentions than reviews from strangers (M = 5.27, SD =1.20). Contrary to Hypothesis 2b, there was no main effect of incentive, F(1,146) = 1.34, p =.25, nor interaction, F<1. Amongst Taiwanese participants, a 2 (review source: stranger vs. friend) x 2 (incentive: no incentive vs. incentivized review) on purchase intention revealed a significant main effect of incentive where non-incentivized reviews (M = 5.49, SD = 0.94) elicited greater purchase intentions than incentivized reviews (M = 5.39, SD = 0.98), F(1,147) =3.74, p=.06. There was no main effect of source, F(1,147)= 2.31, p = .13 nor an interaction effect, F(1,147) = 1.81, p =.18. In line with our hypothesis (H3b), planned contrasts revealed that when reviews are not incentivized, friends (M = 5.55, SD = 0.96) elicited significantly higher purchase intention than strangers (M = 5.42, SD = 0.95), F(1,147) = 5.73, p =.01. In contrast, when reviews were incentivized, friends (M = 5.40, SD = 0.94) elicited as much purchase intention as strangers (M = 5.38, SD = 1.02), F<1. Discussion Given the ever-important role of user-generated online reviews in consumer decisionmaking, it is necessary to understand how review sources and incentives affects perceptions of trust and purchase intentions, especially across cultures. Our study demonstrates how review sources and incentives affect reviewer trustworthiness and purchase intentions differently across individualistic versus collectivistic cultures. Specifically, review source and incentives affect reviewer trustworthiness independently in Americans. Friends are considered more trustworthy than strangers, and non-incentivized reviews are considered more trustworthy than incentivized reviews. In contrast, the effect of review source on reviewer trustworthiness is moderated by incentive in Taiwanese participants. In particular, friends are considered more trustworthy than stranger only when reviews are not incentivized. When reviews are incentivized, trust seems to be violated, and friends are regarded as just as trustworthy as random strangers. Our contributions to the UGC literature are twofold. To date, research on UGC have largely ignored the role of culture and nationality (as well as individual differences, more broadly) can play. This potentially concerning since the proliferation of UGC are not limited to a Western sample. Our work highlights how culture can complicate findings in the UGC literature, and suggests a need to better consider the role culture plays. In addition, our research specifies the specific mechanism through which culture might influence the effect of review source and incentives affect purchase intention, trustworthiness. Additional studies will be conducted to examine how and why incentives are deemed as trust violations and reduce purchase intentions when accepted by friendly reviewers in collectivist cultures. Moreover, we will attempt to detangle trust in the reviewer versus review.

Social games where players play together with others in multiplayer mode are currently emerging and attracting attention in the media after the success of e.g. Pokemon GO. Nevertheless, little is known about the profitability of social players. Previous gaming research that has profiled different types of players has focused on games played alone, without social mechanics (cf. Vahlo et al., 2017). From a marketing perspective, it is also interesting to study the effects of merely watching game play or browsing new game ads as a mode of entertainment, and what kind of effect that has on future behaviour. Passive participation as a type of aesthetic entertainment has been acknowledged in eSports context (Seo, 2013). This paper analyses big data of a gaming company on an individual player level, including different types of single play and multiplayer gaming sessions and in-game purchase behaviour data. We compare the effects of social and non-social ingame mechanics on how individuals spend money in-game over time, frequency of play, sessions as well as the length of played sessions in minutes during the gamers’ whole lifecycle. The anonymized repository data includes gaming behaviour, in-game purchase behaviour related to the use of one specific digital game in the USA. The game can be played both alone, and with others as a team. We used structural equation modeling to analyse the behavior of 23 049 randomly selected players, who have played the game for at least one week. The data included the individual players’ total session history during their play lifecycle. Interestingly, social play with other people is a strong predictor of money spent in the long term. Social play also prompts long-term interest in the game, as friends invite and encourage each other to play with or against other virtual teams. Nevertheless, social play is not for everyone! The results help to optimize player journeys and to make strategic decisions that support long term profitability of gaming companies.

Based on the collaborative and social characteristics, social networking services (SNSs) are growing platforms for consumer-to-consumer conversation including electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM). eWOM is defined as ‘any positive or negative statement made by potential, actual, or former customers about a product or company, which is made available to a multitude of people and institutions via the Internet’ (Hennig-Thurau, Gwinner, Walsh, & Gremler, 2004, p.39). Despite its academic and managerial significance, several preliminary studies have examined what determines effective eWOM in SNSs (e.g., Chu & Kim, 2011; Teng, Khong, Goh, & Chong, 2014). Extending these attempts, we empirically investigate what influences consumers’ evaluation of eWOM, especially on Facebook. We suggest a new perspective of focusing on the psychological stream of social identity (Tajel & Turner, 1986) which is a distinctive factor explicit on Facebook. Unlike conventional eWOM platforms like bulletin boards and online communities where the user information is limited due to anonymity or presented in restricted manner (e.g., reputation from ratings by other members) (Dou, Walden, Lee, & Lee, 2012), Facebook provides profile information about users including one’s social group membership (e.g., school, company). This implies that the perception of social identity on Facebook may influence how one evaluates the source and his/her eWOM message.

Introduction The research described in this abstract discusses “multilevel marketing,” including a review of academic literatures and studies that have used the direct sales business method as a research context. The multilevel marketing business structure represents an alternative to the business-employee-consumer relationships of those offered by traditional bureaucratic organizations. As such, they have, on one hand, collectively prospered and, on the other hand, attracted negative attention from regulatory and government entities, scholars, and competitors. Studies related to MLM organizations have examined these businesses on every populated continent, and have considered the viewpoints of consumers, MLM participants, and sales managers. Research has included a variety of empirical approaches, from quantitative survey methods to qualitative ethnographic studies. Consumer dispositions toward MLM have been measured intermittently over several years, and include consumer responses from many different countries. One consistent finding is that people who have purchased products from MLMs expressed more favorable opinions of them than do those who have not bought from MLM. Further, studies also provide evidence that consumers perceive that buying from direct selling is perceived to be less risky than some other non-store shopping modes (Gillett, 1976; Peterson, Albaum & Ridgway 1989; Alturas, Santos & Pereira 2005). Nonetheless, the practice is controversial and faces intense scrutiny in many countries while being banned in others. However, the research literature suggests careful consideration of the benefits of MLM organizations, in that the nontraditional organizational structure and methods of promotion may provide economic development in poor economies and also allow consumer-participants to develop important skills. One common method of retailing is direct sales. Direct selling companies emphasize promotion and distribution of their products through person-to-person contact, usually away from a physical retail location and usually through some network of independent sellers. The sales presentations are often held in homes, in the form of door-to-door solicitation, one-to-one meetings, through sales “parties,” or through some type of online social media platform (e.g., Facebook). Direct selling provides a channel of distribution for companies as an alternative to traditional retail outlets; it is attractive to companies that may be unable to compete with the vast advertising and promotion expenses that other manufacturers employ to gain shelf space in traditional retail stores. The variety of products and services that are sold through direct sales matches that of major traditional retailers, including cosmetics, home décor, wellness, jewelry, kitchen products, clothing, organic gardening, and scrapbooking supplies. Promotion of the products often relies on product demonstrations. One type of direct sales is multilevel marketing. A multilevel marketing organization (MLM) is a type of compensation structure (Coughlan & Grayson 1998) through which distributors earn income from their own sales as well as through commissions from the sales made by individuals they have recruited into their organization. As depicted in Figure 1, there are three basic components to compensation: 1. Distributors purchase the products or services at wholesale cost from the MLM organization; these products are sold at a profit (markup) to end consumers 2. Distributors are paid a commission by the MLM for what they sell directly 3. Distributors earn a bonus (percentage) of the sales made by individuals they recruit into the MLM. Recruits are referred to as the distributor’s “downline,” while the recruiter is referred to as the recruited person’s “upline.” MLM and traditional organizations MLM participants include people with diverse backgrounds, levels of education and experience, and personal qualities. Direct selling organizations rely on social connections and relationships to broaden their potential customer base; MLM organizations rely on these social connections as integral to their recruiting as well. MLM organizations do not have formal sales management structures. MLM participants are not “employees,” but rather act as independent franchisees that must adhere to organizational, ethical, and legal parameters. MLM participants are usually not co-located – they do not work at a central office – and often begin work part-time. Participants usually pay start-up or membership fees and pay for training and other selling-related materials. Because MLMs operate without bureaucratic organizational structure or traditional workplace, the company’s culture and ideologies are circulated through social relationships of each individual participant. Several researchers have asserted that cultural characteristics have a significant impact on the success of MLMs in any economy. Biggart (1989) observed that MLMs are successful in Asian countries because those societies tend to be very structured and hierarchical, and individuals in those countries carry a Confucian work ethic similar to Protestant ethic characteristic of the United States. Additionally, Asian extended family networks make selling and recruiting easier. By contrast, Herbig and Yelkurm (1997) observed that MLMs have not succeeded in parts of Europe, because the cultural and ideological climate is comparatively unreceptive to free enterprise and market entry. Laws restrict sellers to contact people at home. Southern European countries, however, tend to have larger informal sectors, fewer worker protections and restrictions, and stronger family and extended-family relationships. Statistics Worldwide, direct retail sales were $182.8 billion in 2014, an increase of over 6% from the previous year; these sales were generated by over 99 million direct-sellingretailers, including cosmetics, home décor, wellness, jewelry, kitchen products, clothing, organic gardening, and scrapbooking supplies. Promotion of the products often relies on product demonstrations. One type of direct sales is multilevel marketing. A multilevel marketing organization (MLM) is a type of compensation structure (Coughlan & Grayson 1998) through which distributors earn income from their own sales as well as through commissions from the sales made by individuals they have recruited into their organization. As depicted in Figure 1, there are three basic components to compensation: 1. Distributors purchase the products or services at wholesale cost from the MLM organization; these products are sold at a profit (markup) to end consumers 2. Distributors are paid a commission by the MLM for what they sell directly 3. Distributors earn a bonus (percentage) of the sales made by individuals they recruit into the MLM. Recruits are referred to as the distributor’s “downline,” while the recruiter is referred to as the recruited person’s “upline.” MLM and traditional organizations MLM participants include people with diverse backgrounds, levels of education and experience, and personal qualities. Direct selling organizations rely on social connections and relationships to broaden their potential customer base; MLM organizations rely on these social connections as integral to their recruiting as well. MLM organizations do not have formal sales management structures. MLM participants are not “employees,” but rather act as independent franchisees that must adhere to organizational, ethical, and legal parameters. MLM participants are usually not co-located – they do not work at a central office – and often begin work part-time. Participants usually pay start-up or membership fees and pay for training and other selling-related materials. Because MLMs operate without bureaucratic organizational structure or traditional workplace, the company’s culture and ideologies are circulated through social relationships of each individual participant. Several researchers have asserted that cultural characteristics have a significant impact on the success of MLMs in any economy. Biggart (1989) observed that MLMs are successful in Asian countries because those societies tend to be very structured and hierarchical, and individuals in those countries carry a Confucian work ethic similar to Protestant ethic characteristic of the United States. Additionally, Asian extended family networks make selling and recruiting easier. By contrast, Herbig and Yelkurm (1997) observed that MLMs have not succeeded in parts of Europe, because the cultural and ideological climate is comparatively unreceptive to free enterprise and market entry. Laws restrict sellers to contact people at home. Southern European countries, however, tend to have larger informal sectors, fewer worker protections and restrictions, and stronger family and extended-family relationships. Statistics Worldwide, direct retail sales were $182.8 billion in 2014, an increase of over 6% from the previous year; these sales were generated by over 99 million direct-selling distributors (World Federation of Direct Selling Associations, 2015). The primary product categories included cosmetics/personal care, wellness, household products, and clothing/accessories. The largest markets for direct selling include the United States, Europe, and Japan. The European Direct Selling Association (Seldia) reported that 2014 sales of direct selling firms in European Union countries were €24 billion (about $26.7 billion), with over 5 million direct sellers (Seldia, 2015). In Japan, 2012 direct selling revenues were ¥177 trillion ($16 billion), with 3.3 million participants (WFDSA, 2015). In the United States, there were over 18 million direct-selling distributors in 2014 who generated $34.5 billion, a 5.5% increase from 2013. The Direct Sales Association reported that over 95% of U.S. direct sales in 2011 were through MLMs (Direct Sales Association, 2015). In terms of participation, the vast majority of direct distributors are women in both of two largest aggregate direct-selling markets. In the European Union, 79% of all direct sellers were women in 2014 (Seldia, 2015); seventy-six percent of direct sellers were considered to be part-time. In the U.S., the percentage of female direct sellers in the U.S. in 2014 was 74% (DSA, 2015). Criticism and Legal/Regulatory Issues Legitimate MLMs are often characterized as or confused with illegal “pyramid” or “Ponzi” schemes, and seem to have always attracted regulatory scrutiny (Arun, 2015; Alpert, 2012; Croft, Cutts & Mould, 2000; Hyman, 2008; Herbig & Yelkurm, 1997; O’Regan, 2015). In response to illegitimate operations, consumer protection groups and federal and local governments have provided information and enacted laws which distinguish MLMs from their fraudulent counterparts. MLMs and pyramid schemes Much of the academic and legal literatures have ventured to provide formal delineation between legal MLMs and the illegal and unethical practices related to pyramid schemes (Stockstill, 1985; Coughlan & Grayson, 1998; Epstein, 2010; Vander Nat & Keep, 2002). There is nearly universal concurrence that whether a program is a legitimate multilevel marketing plan or an illegal pyramid depends on: (1) the method by which the products or services are sold; and (2) the manner in which participants are compensated. Basically, if an organization pays participants for sales by their “enrollees,” “recruits,” and/or their downline enrollees and recruits, that plan is multilevel. If a program compensates participants, directly or indirectly, merely for the introduction or enrollment of other participants into the program, unrelated to the sales of any product, it is considered to be a pyramid. In the United States, federal and state anti-pyramid statutes comprise a comprehensive consumer protection umbrella. These laws are designed to protect individuals from being defrauded through illegitimate programs which lure participants with the promise of easy money by compensating them from the investments of additional participants rather than from legitimate product sales. Federal and state regulatory agencies have sought to prohibit such illegal activity using laws that control pyramids, mail fraud, business opportunity, franchise, lottery, and securities. Internationally, many countries ban some forms of pyramid schemes. Pyramid selling and multilevel marketing both take the form of complex organizations, and because of different interpretations of business activities and underlying regulatory philosophies across countries, regulation takes different forms (Micklitz, Monazzahian & Rößler, 1999; Dobson, 2011; Chan, 1999; China Daily, 2013; Epstein, 2010). Economic Development and MLM Organizations Several studies have observed that one of the key reasons for the establishment and growth of MLM organizations has been that they are often introduced into a larger socioeconomic context, using pre-existing social relationships to become engrained in the overall complex of an economy. Indeed, in communities where families and social networks are relatively large and geographically concentrated, MLM organizations have tended to thrive. MLMs are particularly attractive employment options for groups of people who may experience high unemployment and discrimination in the primary labor market (Brodie, Stanworth & Wotruba, 1998), for example women (Biggart, 1989; Casanova, 2011a, 2011b; Vincent, 2003; Dolan & Scott, 2009; Cahn, 2011; Singh & Aggarwal, 2012) and ethnic minorities (Dai, Wang & Teo, 2011; de Vidas, 2008). Further, as many countries attempt to follow a neo-liberalized, free-market approach to economic development, employment has become more feminized (Standing, 1999) and selling for a transnational direct sales organization is often an appealing option for women in developing countries, providing paid employment that takes place not only outside the home, but outside the archetypical, standardized workplace of the export-product manufacturing factory (Casanova, 2011a, 2011b; Wilson, 1998). Other evidence has suggested several macro-environmental developments that continue to have an impact on direct sales organizations (Ingram, 1993; Ragland, 2012). First, the splintering of market segments into subsegments has compelled companies with fewer resources to focus to avoid the “mass market,” and focus instead on smaller segments, tailoring their efforts to gain customer satisfaction (Kotler & Armstrong, 2014). MLMs are particularly suited to this consumer environment – distributors talking directly to consumers to find out what it is that they want, like, and prefer. One further outcome of this fragmentation has been that people have been forced to seek new groups to satisfy their need to belong, and “hybrid” economic social networks such as MLMs satisfy these nonmaterial needs of distributor participants (Green & D’aiuto, 1977). This appears to be a reasonable explanation of why many of the largest MLM organizations have several million distributors, the majority of whom gain only very minimal financial rewards despite devoting a substantial portion of their time to company activities. A second macro trend is that of globalization. Over the past thirty years, a strong demand has developed for Western products in then-newly-opened European and Asian markets. This continues to be the case in central Asia (India, Russia) and Latin America. In addition to consumer demand, a high level of salesperson motivation in those countries cited as a key to success. Thus consumer demand for MLM-supplied products has grown, while the entrepreneurial spirit that multilevel marketing encourages is appealing to many who seek self-managed work and independence from the traditional employer-employee relationship. Third, manufacturers often pursue multiple channels of distribution to make products available, and MLMs offer a realistic (and often creative) alternative component. This makes it easy for shoppers to find what they want, and a “direct” channel can coexist with traditional channels, allowing entry into extremely local markets and extremely poor consumers (Ireland, 2008; Dolan & Scott, 2009). For example, Ireland (2008) provided several examples of the implementation of MLM in poor communities in South America. This strategy was executed by well-known brands, some of which were recognizable MLMs (e.g. Avon) and some of which were traditional consumer products manufacturers (e.g. Coca Cola). The MLM organization in each of these cases emphasized physical distribution – in some situations going so far as to provide refrigerators in the homes of poor consumers, who would then sell beer or soft drinks directly from their homes. Improving access to products involved elaborate multilevel marketing channels that used the social skills and energy of “bottom of pyramid” (very poor) residents who participated as distributors. A fourth macro-level trend has been that toward trust-based relationship marketing, defined as building, developing and maintaining strong relationships with customers and other stakeholders in order to obtain a high profitability through customer satisfaction (Berry, 1983). The success of the MLM business model as a strategic alternative may thus be linked to the macro-level processes in national and global economies. Discussion and Conclusions Modern versions of direct selling hold the potential to improve lives across the world’s developing economies as the range of products begins to include those that have high social value, such as medicines, hygienic items and communications. Multilevel marketing is an innovation that has become increasingly successful as it has evolved in Western economies to include well-known consumer products (Amway, Tupperware, Mary Kay) but also high-end fashion (J. Hilburn, Etcetera) and even sex toys (Passion Parties). In developing countries, the MLM represents a potentially lucrative channel for traditional companies seeking growth – the flexibility of the channel of distribution, the fact that it relies on existing relationships among potential consumers and distributors, and its ability to reach consumers directly make it a potential tool for economic development. Even still, multilevel marketing carries negative connotations in many marketplaces worldwide. Because MLM participants are technically not employees of their company, “control” over participants is difficult, and continued participation is difficult to maintain. The high degree of commitment and strong organizational culture seem to foster accusations of “cult” behaviors. While there is no question that false product or business opportunity claims may be made – as with any consumer product – academic research tends to suggest that prohibition or strict regulation needs to be carefully weighed against the potential benefits of MLM organizational structures and operations. Multilevel marketing and other direct sales channels of distribution may facilitate economic development, first by employing people who may have little business experience, and second by making products available to consumers in markets where few other retailers may be able to reach. Research also suggests that the MLM business method provides a legitimate alternative strategy to traditional retailing: marketers can get information to consumers in ways that are not feasible using traditional advertising or retail distribution, and person-to-person selling increases the likelihood of customer satisfaction.

The advances of the Internet open consumers new opportunities to share their consumption experiences, opinions and feelings with others. Online customer reviews (OCRs) are a crucial source of information for consumers and are regarded as one of the most influential types of electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) in shaping consumer attitudes and facilitating purchase decisions (Plummer, 2007). Prior research has produced a number of valuable insights on OCRs (e.g., Dellarocas, Gao, & Narayan, 2010; Hennig-Thurau et al., 2004; Mayzlin, Dover, & Chevalier, 2014). Especially the influence of OCR valence (positively vs. negatively framed information) has received considerable attention both from practitioners and from scholars (e.g., Xue & Zhou, 2010; Yang & Mai, 2010; Lee et al., 2009). However, we argue that scientific insights on the influence of OCR valence remain limited. Specifically, this paper shows that the level of source credibility (high vs. low) as well as the type of product (search vs. experience good) are important moderators of the influence of OCR valence on several consumer OCR reactions (product attitude, product quality, and product trust) under specific circumstances only. Four hundred and sixteen respondents (70% females, average age 24 years) participated in an experiment with a 2×2×2 between-subjects full factorial design manipulating the OCR valence (positive vs. negative), the source credibility (high vs. low) and the product type (search vs. experience good). Results demonstrate that the effect of positive OCRs from highly credible sources on diverse outcome variables is larger than from low credible sources. By acknowledging Chaiken et al.’s (1989) theoretical extension of the heuristic-systematic model (Chaiken, 1980) we provide empirical evidence that source credibility intensifies the impact of positive OCRs due to the additivity effect. In contrast, credible negative information is not more influential than incredible information. A similar mechanism becomes operational when considering product type. Here, positive OCRs about experience goods have a stronger influence on product evaluations than similarly valenced information about search goods. This research provides further support for the crucial role of credible, positive OCRs in affecting consumer behavior in contrast to their negative counterparts. From a practical perspective, marketers should consider including highly credible OCRs from trustworthy and experienced customers’ peers as decision aids. This can be achieved, for instance, by including personal postings from Facebook. Such a strategy is particularly efficient as positive OCRs increase the consumer’s confidence towards the product while credible negative OCRs are not more harmful than incredible ones.

이 연구는 가람놀이, 아라놀이, 어울림으로 구성된 『우리는 너나들이』협동 활동이 유아의 사회적 능 력을 키우는데 영향을 미치는가를 알아보기 위한 것으로 연구자의 만5세 유아 28명을 대상으로 연구되었 다. 유아의 사회적 능력 신장을 실행목표로 누리과정과 연계하여 협동 활동을 구안하고 환경을 조성하였 으며, 『우리는 너나들이』지도 계획을 수립하고 활동자료를 제작하여 수업에 활용하였다. 또한, 『우리는 너나들이』협동 활동과 연계한 다양하고 창의적인 지원 프로그램을 전개하였다. 연구 결과, 교사의 사회적 능력 평가, 또래평정법, 학부모와 동료교사의 증명을 통해 유아의 사회적 능력 향상을 확인하였다. 협동 활동에 대한 유아의 인식은 개념과 필요성, 관심, 실천 등에서 폭 넓고 깊게 변화되었다. 이에 유아 협동 활동의 일반화 가능성을 확인하고 당연성을 갖게 되어 다양한 관련 연구와 동료와의 협력 체계를 제언한 다.

Recipients determine the final success, or failure, of a gift. However, despite their importance in the gift exchange, their role has been underinvestigated. Through two experimental designs, we examined relational consequences (i.e. perceived strength of the relationship, and reciprocity) of online personalized gifts, and the moderating role of closeness with the giver and relationship-specific anxiety. Findings revealed that the relationship is perceived as stronger when the personalized gift comes from a non-intimate friend and recipients reported more willingness to reciprocate to an acquaintance. Moreover, the personalized gift reinforces relationship with low anxiety, while increases embarrassment in the high anxiety relations.

Soul of the World (or Anima Mundi) is the key to our grasp of Yeats as a writer in the Hermetic tradition and that it underlies his whole sense of artistic tradition, I affirm that the right to primacy in any consideration of Yeats's major concept belongs to Anima Mundi. Through his vital, lifelong rapport with this Great Mind and Memory, Yeats communed with universal tradition. His desire to make the rapport a group effort, dependent upon collaborators, reinforced the notions of community and unity in multiplicity. Yeats believed that reality is discovered in the soul. For him, the Great Soul was a wellspring of imaginative art, a means by which Nature herself became intelligible. In this study, Yeats's theory of the World Soul, addressing occult, metaphysical, and literary antecedents of his belief, especially the way of his building of concept of "Anima Mundi" in his early life and experiences are surveyed. Yeats has a very keen interest in mysterious strange things in his early life, and he meets many influential friends who could help him build his theory of the World Soul in Dublin and London.

This paper deals with false friends-the source of their sound image (signifiant) is the same, but the concept image (signifie) is differentfound in Korean and Chinese. It is well-known that these false friends frequently cause negative transfer. I demonstrate that the false friends between Korean and Chinese can be classified into four types: ① no semantic resemblance type, ② partially overlapping type, ③ semantic inclusion type I (Korean over Chinese), and ④ semantic inclusion type II (Chinese over Korean). The result of the contrastive analysis of each type shows a striking difference. In the actual communications, false friends between these two languages may lead to misunderstanding. In order to prevent negative transfer due to false friends, students are advised to carefully check the differences in meaning and function.

This research aimed to establish the basic elements of social life and provided initial information to be of help to sports activity participation program by recognizing the necessity of sports activity participation, and at the same time, by using sports

본 연구는 네이버 모바일 메신저 라인의 캐릭터 상품이 중국의 젊은이들 사이에서 브랜드파워를 확장시켜가고 있음에 주목하였다. 이에 라인프렌즈 캐릭터의 브랜드 특성을 살펴봄으로써 중국 소비자들의 구매 동기를 유발시키는 소프트파워를 내재한 캐릭터 상품 개발에 도움이 되고자 함에 본 연구의 목적을 두었다. 본 연구의 범위는 중국 시장에 진출한 라인프렌즈 캐릭터상품에 관한 연구로 한정한다. 구체적으로, 먼저 캐릭터에 대해 개괄적으로 살펴보고 중국캐릭터상품시장의 현황 및 특성을 고찰한 뒤, 라인프렌즈 캐릭터의 브랜드 개성, 라인프렌즈의 표적 집단과 브랜드 파워 등의 특성에 대해 살펴보았다. 본 연구는 질적 연구방법을 실시한다. 먼저 학술논문 등 선행 연구자들의 문헌자료와 온라인 자료를 통하여 중국캐릭터상품시장과 라인프렌즈 캐릭터의 브랜드 특성을 고찰함으로써 라인프렌즈가 중국에서 브랜드 인지도를 높일 수 있었던 요인들을 검토하였다. 첫째, 라인프렌즈 캐릭터의 브랜드개성은 흔히 볼 수 있는 평범한 성격의 소유자들이며, 친근하고 귀여운 이미지 형태를 지니고 있으며, 인종이나 국적 경계 없이 거부감이 주지 않는다. 둘째, 라인프렌즈의 집단화된 캐릭터들은 소비자들의 선택권을 넓혀주고 있으며 다채로운 흥미를 지속적으로 제공하였다. 셋째, 표적집단인 중국 청장년층이 캐릭터 시장의 블루오션이 되었다. (1) 청장년 층은 자금력과 자의적 소비 결정권이 있으며 SNS 등 디지털 환경에 익숙하여 브랜드 파워를 확대시켰다. (2) 중국에서 캐릭터 상품 판매와 기념일의 상관관계가 매우 높은 것도 라인프렌즈의 표적마케팅에 이점이 되었다. (3) 중국의 카페&스토어는 한국-중국 간 민간교류가 저조한 시기에도 높은 매출을 올렸다. (4) 아티스트와의 콜라보레이션을 통해 인지도를 넓혀가고 있다. 그러나 중국 캐릭터 시장의 문제점과 라인프렌즈 캐릭터에 대한 기호학적 분석을 생략하였음은 본 연구의 한계점이다. 이러한 부분에 대한 연구가 속행되어 우수한 소프트파워를 내재한 캐릭터 콘텐츠들이 많이 개발되기를 기대한다.