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When Your World Must Be Defended: Choosing Products to Justify the System

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  • Keisha M. Cutright
  • Eugenia C. Wu
  • Jillian C. Banfield
  • Aaron C. Kay
  • Gavan J. Fitzsimons

Abstract

Consumers are often strongly motivated to view themselves as part of a legitimate and fair external system. Our research focuses on how individuals adopt distinct ways of defending their system when it is threatened and, in particular, how this is revealed in their consumption choices. We find that although individuals differ in how confident they are in the legitimacy of their system, they do not differ in their motivation to defend the system when it is threatened. Instead, they simply adopt different methods of defense. Specifically, when an important system is (verbally) attacked, individuals who are the least confident in the legitimacy of the system seek and appreciate consumption choices that allow them to indirectly and subtly defend the system. Conversely, individuals who are highly confident in the system reject indirect opportunities of defense and seek consumption choices that allow them to defend the system in direct and explicit ways.

Suggested Citation

  • Keisha M. Cutright & Eugenia C. Wu & Jillian C. Banfield & Aaron C. Kay & Gavan J. Fitzsimons, 2011. "When Your World Must Be Defended: Choosing Products to Justify the System," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 38(1), pages 62-77.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:jconrs:doi:10.1086/658469
    DOI: 10.1086/658469
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    Cited by:

    1. Wang, Jessie J. & Lalwani, Ashok K., 2019. "The distinct influence of power distance perception and power distance values on customer satisfaction in response to loyalty programs," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 36(4), pages 580-596.
    2. Gohary, Ali & Madani, Fatima & Chan, Eugene Y. & Tavallaei, Stella, 2023. "Political ideology and fair-trade consumption: A social dominance orientation perspective," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 156(C).
    3. John T. Jost & Melanie Langer & Vishal Singh, 2017. "The Politics of Buying, Boycotting, Complaining, and Disputing: An Extension of the Research Program by Jung, Garbarino, Briley, and Wynhausen," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 44(3), pages 503-510.
    4. Sweetin, Vernon H. & Knowles, Lynette L. & Summey, John H. & McQueen, Kand S., 2013. "Willingness-to-punish the corporate brand for corporate social irresponsibility," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 66(10), pages 1822-1830.
    5. Ping Dong & Chen-Bo Zhong & Darren DahlEditor & Jennifer ArgoAssociate Editor, 2017. "Retracted: Witnessing Moral Violations Increases Conformity in Consumption," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 44(4), pages 778-793.
    6. Nadine Waehning & Raffaele Filieri, 2022. "Consumer motives for buying regional products: the REGIOSCALE," Marketing Letters, Springer, vol. 33(2), pages 215-236, June.
    7. Kiju Jung & Ellen Garbarino & Donnel A. Briley & Jesse Wynhausen, 2017. "Political Ideology and Consumer Research beyond Complaining Behavior: A Response to the Commentaries," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 44(3), pages 511-518.
    8. S. Venus Jin & Ehri Ryu, 2022. "“The greedy I that gives”—The paradox of egocentrism and altruism: Terror management and system justification perspectives on the interrelationship between mortality salience and charitable donations ," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 56(1), pages 414-448, March.
    9. Madani, Fatima & Seenivasan, Satheesh & Ma, Junzhao, 2021. "Determinants of store patronage: The roles of political ideology, consumer and market characteristics," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 63(C).
    10. Jamel Khenfer & Aaron Kay & Elyette Roux & Eric Tafani, 2014. "The Divergent Effects of External Systems of Control on Early Stage Goal Pursuit," Post-Print hal-01079648, HAL.
    11. Lauren C. Howe & Steven Shepherd & Nathan B. Warren & Kathryn R. Mercurio & Troy H. Campbell, 2024. "Expressing Dual Concern in Criticism for Wrongdoing: The Persuasive Power of Criticizing with Care," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 191(2), pages 305-322, May.
    12. Peluso, Alessandro M. & Bonezzi, Andrea & De Angelis, Matteo & Rucker, Derek D., 2017. "Compensatory word of mouth: Advice as a device to restore control," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 34(2), pages 499-515.
    13. Verena Schoenmueller & Oded Netzer & Florian Stahl, 2023. "Frontiers: Polarized America: From Political Polarization to Preference Polarization," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 42(1), pages 48-60, January.

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