How the product-harm crisis influences consumer boycotts
The role of social distance
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 22234239 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Yalin Li (0000-0003-0827-8632, Suqian University), Min Zhao (0000-0002-2500-3035, Hubei University of Economics, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 12 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Publication date | 2025-06-04 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Humanities and Social Sciences Communications (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2662-9992 • E-ISSN: 2662-9992 |
| Publisher | Springer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1057/s41599-025-05058-6 |
| OpenAlex | W4411033776 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 109 |
Product-harm crises can be categorized into two types on the basis of the number of enterprises involved: single-enterprise and group product-harm crises. Although the incidence of group product-harm crises is increasing, prior research has focused predominantly on single-enterprise product-harm crises, with limited attention paid to group product-harm crises, particularly their impact. This study aims to examine how a product-harm crises influence consumer boycott behaviour by investigating the mediating role of blame attribution and perceived betrayal, as well as the moderating role of social distance. Through a scenario-based experimental survey, three studies were conducted, collecting a total of 726 samples to test the hypotheses. The results indicate that consumers exhibit stronger boycott intentions in response to group product-harm crises than in response to single-enterprise product-harm crises. Crucially, this effect is mediated by blame attribution and perceived betrayal. Additionally, social distance moderates the relationships between product-harm crises and consumer boycotts, perceived betrayal, and blame attribution
Advertising · Business · Harm · Political science · Behavioral Health and Interventions · Consumer Behavior in Brand Consumption and Identification · Digital Marketing and Social Media · Law
Customer betrayal and retaliation
Traversing psychological distance
Construal Levels and Psychological Distance
The Protective Powers of Crisis Response Strategies
Corporate social responsibility and consumers' attributions and brand evaluations in a product–harm crisis
Construal-level theory of psychological distance.
PLS-Sem
G*Power 3
Assessing an organizational crisis at the construal level
Understanding drivers and barriers affecting tourists’ engagement in digitally mediated pro-sustainability boycotts
The role of consumer ethnocentrism on boycott behaviour
Vanishing Boycott Impetus
Social Motivation, Justice, and the Moral Emotions
Attribution Theory and Research
Trust as a Social Reality
Product-harm crisis and perceived betrayal
Double jeopardy
Memory and forgetfulness in tourism crisis research
How do destination negative events trigger tourists’ perceived betrayal and boycott? The moderating role of relationship quality
When, where, and with whom during crisis
Tourism boycotts and animosity
Turn it around in crisis communication
Affective forecasting and travel decision-making
The effect of level of construal on the temporal distance of activity enactment
Mood and memory
Shaping Attributions of Crisis Responsibility in the Case of an Accusation
Corporate Social Responsibility Beyond Borders
Culture and the construal of agency
Emotions as Moderators of Information Cue Use
How Do Consumers React to Company Moral Transgressions? The Role of Power Distance Belief and Empathy for Victims
Complaining to the Masses
Adversaries of Consumption
Attributional Thoughts about Consumer Behavior
| Citations per year | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Highly cited | No |