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Reminders of Money Elicit Feelings of Threat and Reactance in Response to Social Influence

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  • Jia (Elke) Liu
  • Dirk Smeesters
  • Kathleen D. Vohs

Abstract

When consumers are reminded of money, do they conform, shrug off, or react against others' attempts to influence them? Prior research on reminders of money suggests that either of the last two outcomes is probable. The current research proposed that the self-sufficient motivation induced by money reminders causes consumers to perceive social influences as threats to their autonomy. We predicted that consumers reminded of money would deviate from social influence, an effect that would be caused by feeling threatened. Across three experiments, money-primed participants behaved opposite to the source of influence, displaying reactance stemming from heightened feelings of threat. However, this reactance response was eliminated when money-primed participants were not personally invested in a decision; consequently, they showed indifference in the face of social influence. Hence, reminders of money boost the motivation to be autonomous and sensitize consumers to potential constraints on their personal decision-making freedom.

Suggested Citation

  • Jia (Elke) Liu & Dirk Smeesters & Kathleen D. Vohs, 2012. "Reminders of Money Elicit Feelings of Threat and Reactance in Response to Social Influence," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 38(6), pages 1030-1046.
  • Handle: RePEc:oup:jconrs:doi:10.1086/661553
    DOI: 10.1086/661553
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    Cited by:

    1. Kouchaki, Maryam & Smith-Crowe, Kristin & Brief, Arthur P. & Sousa, Carlos, 2013. "Seeing green: Mere exposure to money triggers a business decision frame and unethical outcomes," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 121(1), pages 53-61.
    2. Gasiorowska, Agata, 2012. "Psychologiczne skutki aktywacji idei pieniędzy a obdarowywanie bliskich [The psychological consequences of mere exposure to money and gift-giving]," MPRA Paper 48170, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    3. Gasiorowska, Agata & Zaleskiewicz, Tomasz & Wygrab, Sandra, 2012. "Would you do something for me? The effects of money activation on social preferences and social behavior in young children," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 33(3), pages 603-608.
    4. Julija Michailova & Christoph Bühren, 2015. "Money priming and social behavior of natural groups in simple bargaining and dilemma experiments," MAGKS Papers on Economics 201530, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Faculty of Business Administration and Economics, Department of Economics (Volkswirtschaftliche Abteilung).

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