IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/joreco/v77y2024ics0969698923004034.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Effects of information quantity and diversity on consumers under complex uncertainty

Author

Listed:
  • Lin, Yuanfang
  • Pazgal, Amit

Abstract

This paper presents a synthesized theoretical framework based on rational updating to predict the impact of information acquisition on consumers facing complex uncertainty. A larger number of information pieces obtained, and greater consistency across sources are found to increase a consumer's propensity of taking the optimal action. Hypotheses from the theoretical model are empirically validated using data from an online survey completed by 303 participants during one week in the early COVID-19 outbreak. Findings from this research have significant implications for government and business organizations in anticipating consumers' actions and developing communication strategies when operating under catastrophic events with complex uncertainties.

Suggested Citation

  • Lin, Yuanfang & Pazgal, Amit, 2024. "Effects of information quantity and diversity on consumers under complex uncertainty," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:joreco:v:77:y:2024:i:c:s0969698923004034
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jretconser.2023.103652
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0969698923004034
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jretconser.2023.103652?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Artem Timoshenko & John R. Hauser, 2019. "Identifying Customer Needs from User-Generated Content," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 38(1), pages 1-20, January.
    2. Sharma, Manu & Kaushal, Deepak & Joshi, Sudhanshu, 2023. "Adverse effect of social media on generation Z user's behavior: Government information support as a moderating variable," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    3. Prentice, Catherine & Chen, Jinyan & Stantic, Bela, 2020. "Timed intervention in COVID-19 and panic buying," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 57(C).
    4. Bermes, Alena, 2021. "Information overload and fake news sharing: A transactional stress perspective exploring the mitigating role of consumers’ resilience during COVID-19," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 61(C).
    5. Jacoby, Jacob & Speller, Donald E & Berning, Carol A Kohn, 1974. "Brand Choice Behavior as a Function of Information Load: Replication and Extension," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 1(1), pages 33-42, June.
    6. Bikhchandani, Sushil & Hirshleifer, David & Welch, Ivo, 1992. "A Theory of Fads, Fashion, Custom, and Cultural Change in Informational Cascades," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 100(5), pages 992-1026, October.
    7. Banerjee, Abhijit & Fudenberg, Drew, 2004. "Word-of-mouth learning," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 46(1), pages 1-22, January.
    8. Zheng, Han & Chen, Kai & Ma, Zhuoyuan, 2023. "Interactive effects of social norms and information framing on consumers' willingness of food waste reduction behavior," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    9. John H. Roberts & Glen L. Urban, 1988. "Modeling Multiattribute Utility, Risk, and Belief Dynamics for New Consumer Durable Brand Choice," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 34(2), pages 167-185, February.
    10. Alba, Joseph W & Hutchinson, J Wesley, 1987. "Dimensions of Consumer Expertise," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 13(4), pages 411-454, March.
    11. Herbert A. Simon, 1955. "A Behavioral Model of Rational Choice," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 69(1), pages 99-118.
    12. Yuen, Kum Fai & Tan, Lydia Sonia & Wong, Yiik Diew & Wang, Xueqin, 2022. "Social determinants of panic buying behaviour amidst COVID-19 pandemic: The role of perceived scarcity and anticipated regret," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).
    13. Na Hao & H. Holly Wang & Qingjie Zhou, 2020. "The impact of online grocery shopping on stockpile behavior in Covid-19," China Agricultural Economic Review, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 12(3), pages 459-470, August.
    14. Sandra Streukens & Ko de Ruyter, 2004. "Reconsidering Nonlinearity and Asymmetry in Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty Models: An Empirical Study in Three Retail Service Settings," Marketing Letters, Springer, vol. 15(2_3), pages 99-111, July.
    15. Vishal Narayan & Vithala R. Rao & Carolyne Saunders, 2011. "How Peer Influence Affects Attribute Preferences: A Bayesian Updating Mechanism," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 30(2), pages 368-384, 03-04.
    16. Cambra-Fierro, Jesús & Fuentes-Blasco, María & Gao, Lily Xuehui & Melero-Polo, Iguácel & Trifu, Andreea, 2022. "The influence of communication in destination imagery during COVID-19," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    17. Ge, Xin & Messinger, Paul R. & Lin, Yuanfang, 2019. "Gleaning inferences from soldout products," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 173-185.
    18. Na Hao & H. Holly Wang & Qingjie Zhou, 2020. "The impact of online grocery shopping on stockpile behavior in Covid-19," China Agricultural Economic Review, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 12(3), pages 459-470, August.
    19. Tversky, Amos & Thaler, Richard H, 1990. "Anomalies: Preference Reversals," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 4(2), pages 201-211, Spring.
    20. Abhijit V. Banerjee, 1992. "A Simple Model of Herd Behavior," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 107(3), pages 797-817.
    21. V. Kumar & JeeWon Brianna Choi & Mallik Greene, 2017. "Synergistic effects of social media and traditional marketing on brand sales: capturing the time-varying effects," Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Springer, vol. 45(2), pages 268-288, March.
    22. Islam, Tahir & Pitafi, Abdul Hameed & Arya, Vikas & Wang, Ying & Akhtar, Naeem & Mubarik, Shujaat & Xiaobei, Liang, 2021. "Panic buying in the COVID-19 pandemic: A multi-country examination," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 59(C).
    23. Yuanfang Lin & Xuezhu Wang & Tirtha Dhar, 2021. "Impact of Information on Food Stocking during Early Period of COVID-19 Outbreak: Survey Exploration between Canada and US Consumers," International Business Research, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 14(2), pages 1-72, February.
    24. Chen, Yiqun & Rajabifard, Abbas & Sabri, Soheil & Xie, Yuke & Zhang, Yibo, 2020. "A discussion of irrational stockpiling behaviour during crisis," SocArXiv udzah, Center for Open Science.
    25. Omar, Nor Asiah & Nazri, Muhamad Azrin & Ali, Mohd Helmi & Alam, Syed Shah, 2021. "The panic buying behavior of consumers during the COVID-19 pandemic: Examining the influences of uncertainty, perceptions of severity, perceptions of scarcity, and anxiety," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    26. Kum Fai Yuen & Xueqin Wang & Fei Ma & Kevin X. Li, 2020. "The Psychological Causes of Panic Buying Following a Health Crisis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(10), pages 1-14, May.
    27. Chen, Tinggui & Jin, Yumei & Yang, Jianjun & Cong, Guodong, 2022. "Identifying emergence process of group panic buying behavior under the COVID-19 pandemic," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 67(C).
    28. Berinsky, Adam J. & Huber, Gregory A. & Lenz, Gabriel S., 2012. "Evaluating Online Labor Markets for Experimental Research: Amazon.com's Mechanical Turk," Political Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 20(3), pages 351-368, July.
    29. Joseph R. Priester & Richard E. Petty & Kiwan Park, 2007. "Whence Univalent Ambivalence? From the Anticipation of Conflicting Reactions," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 34(1), pages 11-21, March.
    30. Ratneshwar, S & Pechmann, Cornelia & Shocker, Allan D, 1996. "Goal-Derived Categories and the Antecedents of Across-Category Consideration," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 23(3), pages 240-250, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Ge, Xin & Messinger, Paul R. & Lin, Yuanfang, 2019. "Gleaning inferences from soldout products," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 173-185.
    2. Ashutosh Sarkar & Debadyuti Das & Arindam Debroy, 2024. "Panic Buying, Product Substitution and Channel-Shifting Behaviour During Pandemic," IIM Kozhikode Society & Management Review, , vol. 13(1), pages 25-43, January.
    3. Sarraf, Shagun & Kushwaha, Amit Kumar & Kar, Arpan Kumar & Dwivedi, Yogesh K. & Giannakis, Mihalis, 2024. "How did online misinformation impact stockouts in the e-commerce supply chain during COVID-19 – A mixed methods study," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 267(C).
    4. Meng, Jie & Chen, Kai, 2024. "Rethinking preemptive consumption: Building mechanisms of reciprocity, contextuality, and risk hedging across scenarios," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    5. Jacobs Martin, 2016. "Accounting for Changing Tastes: Approaches to Explaining Unstable Individual Preferences," Review of Economics, De Gruyter, vol. 67(2), pages 121-183, August.
    6. Hirshleifer, David & Teoh, Siew Hong, 2008. "Thought and Behavior Contagion in Capital Markets," MPRA Paper 9142, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    7. Liu, Yanfeng & Li, Xue & Yuen, Kum Fai, 2023. "Revenge buying: The role of negative emotions caused by lockdowns," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    8. Vinoi, Nivin & Shankar, Amit & Khalil, Ashraf & Mehrotra, Ankit & Kumar, Jitender, 2024. "Holding on to your memories: Factors influencing social media hoarding behaviour," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    9. Soltanzadeh, Shima & Rafiee, Majid & Weber, Gerhard-Wilhelm, 2024. "Disruption, panic buying, and pricing: A comprehensive game-theoretic exploration," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    10. Chen, Tinggui & Jin, Yumei & Yang, Jianjun & Cong, Guodong, 2022. "Identifying emergence process of group panic buying behavior under the COVID-19 pandemic," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 67(C).
    11. Shan, Haiyan & Pi, Wenjie, 2023. "Mitigating panic buying behavior in the epidemic: An evolutionary game perspective," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    12. Davide Crapis & Bar Ifrach & Costis Maglaras & Marco Scarsini, 2017. "Monopoly Pricing in the Presence of Social Learning," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 63(11), pages 3586-3608, November.
    13. Engström, Per & Forsell, Eskil, 2018. "Demand effects of consumers’ stated and revealed preferences," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 150(C), pages 43-61.
    14. Jadbabaie, Ali & Molavi, Pooya & Sandroni, Alvaro & Tahbaz-Salehi, Alireza, 2012. "Non-Bayesian social learning," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 76(1), pages 210-225.
    15. Song, Yangbo, 2016. "Social learning with endogenous observation," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 166(C), pages 324-333.
    16. Daron Acemoglu & Asuman Ozdaglar, 2011. "Opinion Dynamics and Learning in Social Networks," Dynamic Games and Applications, Springer, vol. 1(1), pages 3-49, March.
    17. Daniel, Kent & Hirshleifer, David & Teoh, Siew Hong, 2002. "Investor psychology in capital markets: evidence and policy implications," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(1), pages 139-209, January.
    18. Daron Acemoglu & Munther A. Dahleh & Ilan Lobel & Asuman Ozdaglar, 2011. "Bayesian Learning in Social Networks," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 78(4), pages 1201-1236.
    19. Amador, Manuel & Weill, Pierre-Olivier, 2012. "Learning from private and public observations of othersʼ actions," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 147(3), pages 910-940.
    20. Ilan Lobel & Evan Sadler, 2016. "Preferences, Homophily, and Social Learning," Operations Research, INFORMS, vol. 64(3), pages 564-584, June.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:joreco:v:77:y:2024:i:c:s0969698923004034. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-retailing-and-consumer-services .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.