Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

When one bad apple spoils consumers’ judgment of the brand: exposure to an employee’s non-workplace transgression and potential remedies

  • Original Empirical Research
  • Published:
Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Four experiments investigate consumers’ moral judgments of a firm’s brand reputation when given information about an employee’s non-workplace transgression. To the extent that the employee is perceived to have power in the firm (i.e., control over resources and decisions), the employee’s offensive action damages the firm’s reputation and decreases consumers’ purchase intentions. These effects occur even though the action occurs in the employee’s private life and is unrelated to product quality. The results replicate for three types of products and three types of offenses. The employee’s perceived power in the firm provides the most consistent explanation of customers’ negative responses and is a better predictor than the alternative explanations tested (e.g., perceived status). Results also show that after an offense comes to light, firm reactions that decrease or eliminate the employee’s power in the organization—such as reducing decision-making responsibilities or firing the employee—can help restore the firm’s reputation.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Ahluwalia, R. (2002). How prevalent is the negativity effect in consumer environments? Journal of Consumer Research, 29(2), 270–279.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Andreoni, J. (1990). Impure altruism and donations to public goods: A theory of warm-glow giving. The Economic Journal, 100(Jun), 464–477.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Avery, D. R., McKay, P. F., & Volpone, S. D. (2016). Blaming the building: How venue quality influences consumer bias against stigmatized leaders. Journal of Applied Psychology, 101(8), 1111–1121.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bartz, S., Molchanov, A., & Stork, P. A. (2013). When a celebrity endorser is disgraced: A twenty-five-year event study. Marketing Letters, 24(2), 131–141.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bendahan, S., Zehnder, C., Pralong, F. P., & Antonakis, J. (2015). Leader corruption depends on power and testosterone. The Leadership Quarterly, 26(2), 101–122.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Berens, G., van Riel, C. B. M., & van Bruggen, G. H. (2005). Corporate associations and consumer product responses: The moderating role of corporate brand dominance. Journal of Marketing, 69(July), 35–48.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bhattacharjee, A., Berman, J. Z., & Reed, A. (2013). Tip of the hat, wag of the finger: How moral decoupling enables consumers to admire and admonish. Journal of Consumer Research, 39(6), 1167–1184.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brown, T. J., & Dacin, P. A. (1997). The company and the product: Corporate associations and consumer product responses. Journal of Marketing, 61(1), 68–84.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brown, T. J., Dacin, P. A., Pratt, M. G., & Whetten, D. A. (2006). Identity, intended image, construed image, and reputation: An interdisciplinary framework and suggested terminology. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Research, 34(2), 99–106.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carrillat, F. A., d'Astous, A., & Christianis, H. (2014). Guilty by association: The perils of celebrity endorsement for endorsed brands and their direct competitors. Psychology & Marketing, 31(11), 1024–1039.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carrillat, F., d'Astous, A., & Lazure, J. (2013). For better, for worse? What to do when celebrity endorsement goes bad. Journal of Advertising Research, 53(1), 15–30.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chen, C.-w. (2014). Are workers more likely to be deviant than managers? A cross-national study. Journal of Business Ethics, 123(2), 221–233.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Coovert, M. D., & Reeder, G. D. (1990). Negativity effects in impression formation: The role of unit formation and schematic expectations. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 26(1), 49–62.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Crawford, M. T., Sherman, S. J., & Hamilton, D. L. (2002). Perceived entitativity, stereotype formation, and the interchangeability of group members. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 83(5), 1076–1094.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dave, P. & Masunaga, S. (2016). Soylent CEO charged over defiance of permits and codes for 'unsightly' container home. Los Angeles Times http://www.latimes.com/business/technology/la-fi-tn-soylent-container-home-20160729-snap-htmlstory.html, accessed Aug. 22, 2016.

  • Ellen, P. S., Webb, D. J., & Mohr, L. A. (2006). Building corporate associations: Consumer attributions for corporate socially responsible programs. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 34(2), 147–157.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Folkes, V. S., & Kamins, M. A. (1999). Effects of information about firms’ ethical and unethical actions on consumers’ attitudes. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 8(3), 243–259.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Galinsky, A. D., Magee, J. C., Gruenfeld, D. H., Whitson, J. A., & Liljenquist, K. A. (2008). Power reduces the press of the situation: Implications for creativity, conformity, and dissonance. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 95(6), 1450–1466.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gans, H. J. (2011). Multiperspectival news revisited: Journalism and representative democracy. Journalism, 12(1), 3–13.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gomulya, D., Wong, E. M., Ormiston, M. E., & Boeker, W. (2016). The role of facial appearance on CEO selection after firm misconduct. Journal of Applied Psychology, 102(4), 617–635.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gruen, T. W., Summers, J. O., & Acito, F. (2000). Relationship marketing activities, commitment, and membership behaviors in professional associations. Journal of Marketing, 64(3), 34–49.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Halper, K. (2015). A brief history of people getting fired for social media stupidity. Rolling Stone, http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/lists/a-brief-history-of-people-getting-fired-for-social-media-stupidity-20150713, accessed Nov. 15 2017.

  • Hayes, A. F. (2013). Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis: A regression-based approach. New York, NY: Guilford Press.

  • Herr, P. M., Kardes, F. R., & Kim, J. (1991). Effects of word-of-mouth and product-attribute information on persuasion: An accessibility-diagnosticity perspective. Journal of Consumer Research, 17(4), 454–462.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hsieh, M. H., Pan, S. L., & Setiono, R. (2004). Product-, corporate-, and country-image dimensions and purchase behavior: A multicountry analysis. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 32(3), 251–270.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ipsos MORI (1999). New study pinpoints what consumers want from corporations. Retrieved June 15, 2015 from https://www.ipsos-mori.com/researchpublications/researcharchive/1851/Ipsos-MORI-New-Study-Pinpoints-What-Consumers-Want-From-Corporations.aspx

  • Irwin, J. R., & McClelland, G. H. (2003). Negative consequences of dichotomizing continuous predictor variables. Journal of Marketing Research, 40(3), 366–371.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kang, C., Germann, F., & Grewal, R. (2015). Washing away your sins? Corporate social responsibility, corporate social irresponsibility, and firm performance. Journal of Marketing, 80(March), 59–79.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kent, R. J., & Allen, C. T. (1994). Competitive interference effects in consumer memory for advertising: The role of brand familiarity. Journal of Marketing, 58, 97–105.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kirmani, A., Hamilton, R. W., Thompson, D. V., & Lantzy, S. (2017). Doing well versus doing good: The differential effect of underdog positioning on moral and competent service providers. Journal of Marketing, 81(1), 103–117.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lacey, R., Kennett-Hensel, P. A., & Manolis, C. (2015). Is corporate social responsibility a motivator or hygiene factor? Insights into its bivalent nature. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 43(3), 315–332.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lickel, B., Schmader, T., & Hamilton, D. L. (2003). A case of collective responsibility: Who else was to blame for the columbine high school shootings? Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 29(2), 194–204.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Louie, T. A., & Obermiller, C. (2002). Consumer response to a firm's endorser (dis) association decisions. Journal of Advertising, 31(4), 41–52.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Magee, J. C. (2009). Seeing power in action: The roles of deliberation, implementation, and action in inferences of power. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 45(1), 1–14.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Magee, J. C., & Galinsky, A. D. (2008). Social hierarchy: The self-reinforcing nature of power and status. The Academy of Management Annals, 2(1), 351–398.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McCracken, G. (1989). Who is the celebrity endorser? Cultural foundations of the endorsement process. Journal of Consumer Research, 16(3), 310–321.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Miller, F. M., & Allen, C. T. (2012). How does celebrity meaning transfer? Investigating the process of meaning transfer with celebrity affiliates and mature brands. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 22(3), 443–452.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Paharia, N., Vohs, K. D., & Deshpande, R. (2013). Sweatshop labor is wrong unless the shoes are cute: Cognition can both help and hurt moral reasoning. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 121, 81–88.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pappu, R., & Cornwell, T. B. (2014). Corporate sponsorship as an image platform: Understanding the roles of relationship fit and sponsor–sponsee similarity. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 42(5), 490–510.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Parekh, N., and Zmuda, R. (2013). More than a pitchman: Why stars are getting marketing titles. Advertising Age, February 11. http://adage.com/article/news/timberlake-beyonce-marketing-titles/239712/. Accessed May 4, 2018

  • Peloza, J., & Shang, J. (2011). How can corporate social responsibility activities create value for stakeholders? A systematic review. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 39(1), 117–135.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Porath, C., MacInnis, D., & Folkes, V. (2010). Witnessing incivility among employees: Effects on consumer anger and negative inferences about companies. Journal of Consumer Research, 37(2), 292–303.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pryor, J. B., Reeder, G. D., & Monroe, A. E. (2012). The infection of bad company: Stigma by association. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 102(2), 224–240.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pryor, J. B., Reeder, G. D., Yeadon, C., & Hesson-McInnis, M. (2004). A dual-process model of reactions to perceived stigma. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 87(4), 436–452.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roccas, S., & Brewer, M. B. (2002). Social identity complexity. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 6(2), 88–106.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rockwell, D., & Giles, D. C. (2009). Being a celebrity: A phenomenology of fame. Journal of Phenomenological Psychology, 40(2), 178–210.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Romani, S., Grappi, S., & Bagozzi, R. P. (2013). My anger is your gain, my contempt your loss: Explaining consumer responses to corporate wrongdoing. Psychology & Marketing, 30(12), 1029–1042.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schwepker Jr., C. H., & Hartline, M. D. (2005). Managing the ethical climate of customer-contact service employees. Journal of Service Research, 7(4), 377–397.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sen, S., & Bhattacharya, C. B. (2001). Does doing good always lead to doing better? Consumer reactions to corporate social responsibility. Journal of Marketing Research, 38(2), 225–243.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shamir, R. (2008). The age of responsibilization: On market-embedded morality. Economy and Society, 37(1), 1–19.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Simões, C., Dibb, S., & Fisk, R. P. (2005). Managing corporate identity: An internal perspective. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 33(2), 153–168.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Suggs, E. (2016). "Bank of America fires employee over racist Facebook rant." The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, http://www.ajc.com/news/bank-america-fires-employee-over-racist-facebook-rant/O7tWwb0FfWgnqOBoGmiYwJ/, accessed July 15, 2016.

  • Thomson, M. (2006). Human brands: Investigating antecedents to consumers' strong attachments to celebrities. Journal of Marketing, 70(3), 104–119.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Young, D. (2018). https://deadspin.com/performance-isnt-tied-to-morality-except-for-the-world-1822727078 Accessed Feb. 8, 2018.

Download references

Acknowledgements

The authors wish to acknowledge the funding provided by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, USC Marshall School of Business, and Ivey Business School, and helpful comments on earlier versions of this paper by Deborah MacInnis, David Stewart, Andrea Morales, Brian Lickel, Matt Thomson, and June Cotte. As well, we are grateful for the input of the anonymous JAMS reviewers, the Associate Editor, and the Editor Robert Palmatier, whose collective feedback greatly improved this paper.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ivey Business School, Western University, 1255 Western Road, London, ON, N6G0N1, Canada

    Allison R. Johnson

  2. USC Marshall School of Business, Los Angeles, CA, 90089, USA

    Valerie S. Folkes

  3. Marketing & Consumer Studies, University of Guelph, 50 Stone Rd E, Guelph, ON, N1G2W1, Canada

    Juan Wang

Authors
  1. Allison R. Johnson
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Valerie S. Folkes
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Juan Wang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Allison R. Johnson.

Additional information

John Hulland served as Area Editor for this article.

Appendix 1: Sample Stimuli from Studies 2 and 3

Appendix 1: Sample Stimuli from Studies 2 and 3

Study 2 (Added to original article).

Racist Facebook Post by Bank of America Employee Causes Uproar.

By Ernie Suggs - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Posted: 3:41 p.m. Thursday, June 2, 2016.

Bank of America employee Christine McMullen Lindgren gained considerable attention for her expletive-laced Facebook posting that trashed black people.

Another day, another debacle of social media. Thursday’s example was Christine McMullen Lindgren, an Atlanta-based Vice President at Bank of America.

Lindgren, who described herself as a “personal banking manager” at Bank of America in her profile, posted recently that she hated Facebook because, “you f—-ing (n-words) and yes if (you) can call each other that well I can too f—-ing (n-word) go back to Africa get over your pity party you created this hatred and your own kind that brought your great great grandparents over here and sold them.”

It is unclear who Lindgren is specifically targeting in her rant. However, comments on the post implied that the event that triggered the post occurred at Lindgren’s local grocery store and indicate that the post was made when she returned to her home after that shopping trip.

Study 3 (Italicized text is modified from original article).

Soylent CEO Charged over Defiance of Permits.

By Paresh Dave - The LA Times.

Posted: 4:35 p.m. Dec 10, 2016.

Soylent’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Mr. Rob Rhinehart, has gained considerable attention for the way he treated his neighbors after his unpermitted construction of a personal living space.

Rhinehart put a giant, metal shipping container on his personal property several months ago and planned to convert it into a place to live. But over time, said a neighbor, “he did nothing and just left it there to deteriorate. It became a vandalized graffiti eyesore and a magnet for unwelcome visitors, both human and animal. He seemed not to care about these problems created for the people and pets who live in the neighborhood.”

Although the city’s building and safety inspectors continue to express their concerns, Mr. Rhinehart has not responded. His neighbors are worried. He continues to violate codes put in place by the city to protect both people in the surrounding neighborhood and the health and safety of the property for those who may enter it.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Johnson, A.R., Folkes, V.S. & Wang, J. When one bad apple spoils consumers’ judgment of the brand: exposure to an employee’s non-workplace transgression and potential remedies. J. of the Acad. Mark. Sci. 46, 725–743 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-018-0588-3

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-018-0588-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation