Foreign company misconduct and how consumers’ punitive intent is influenced by country stereotypes and the perceived similarity between the foreign country and the home country
研究通过两个实验发现，消费者对外国不当行为公司的惩罚意图受国家刻板印象（温暖、能力）和感知国家相似性的共同影响，相似性高时刻板印象作用减弱，为企业管理跨国品牌形象提供了策略参考。
Using a previously untested similarity contingency model of country stereotypes, this study assesses the effects of country stereotypes, perceived country similarity, and their interplay on emotion-driven punitive intent toward foreign, wrongdoing companies. In Study 1, positive country stereotypes (warmth, competence) mitigate punitive intent by diminishing agonistic emotions (contempt, anger, and disgust). Study 2 demonstrates that perceived similarity with a wrongdoing company’s country of origin moderates the indirect effects of country stereotypes on emotion-driven punitive intent . Compensatory effects between country stereotypes and perceived country similarity emerge; with greater (lower) perceived country similarity, the indirect effects of country stereotypes on emotion-driven punitive intent are weaker (stronger). The results provide companies with relevant insights into (1) why consumers emotionally react as they do to wrongdoing companies of different nationalities and (2) how to counterbalance negative effects of company misconduct by harmonizing elements of countries’ warmth, competence, and perceived country similarity in branding and communication content.