Rebecca K. Trump

• PhD
• Professor (Assistant) at Loyola University Maryland

Purpose The marketplace is becoming increasingly automated, with consumers frequently expected to interact with machines. Not all consumers are receptive to this trend. We examine how the individual difference of speciesism impacts consumer reactions to automation in the marketplace. Design/methodology/approach We conducted three studies, includin...

Purpose This research aims to identify how resistant individuals can be persuaded to support a charitable cause. Prosocial acts, like supporting a charitable cause, are an important part of human behavior and yet it is not fully understood how to encourage particularly resistant individuals, like those with low moral identity importance (MII), to s...

It is in society’s best interest for people to consume sustainably. However, some consumers are less likely to do so, with men (vs. women) being more resistant to engaging in sustainable consumption. This research explores this eco-gender gap by identifying methods to improve men’s responses (brand attitudes and self-brand connections) to sustainab...

People prefer to experience pleasant (vs. unpleasant) emotions and thus will take actions to repair unpleasant emotions. In addition, consumers perceive brands as possessing personality characteristics. This research demonstrates that consumers experiencing unpleasant emotions are attracted to brands with opposing, pleasant personalities as a means...

Purpose Companies are increasingly emphasizing corporate social responsibility (CSR). However, consumers are often skeptical of the sincerity of companies’ CSR claims, particularly when the claim comes directly from the company. This paper aims to demonstrate how to reduce consumer CSR skepticism by examining the role of a company spokesperson’s g...

We examine whether the unethical actions of marketplace brands (e.g., the Volkswagen emissions scandal) hurt the ethical perceptions of competing brands (e.g., Ford, BMW). Across two studies, we find evidence for this unethical spillover effect and show that it can negatively affect consumers’ liking and purchase intentions for a competing brand. T...

This research adds to the growing literature on what draws consumers to ethical brands. Findings from three studies demonstrate that guilt motivates consumers to connect with ethical brands, especially those consumers with high levels of moral identity importance (MII). Specifically, Study 1 finds that consumers report stronger self-brand connectio...

Purpose This research aims to demonstrate that coupons with short durations for redemption can backfire, lowering consumers’ attitudes toward the company. Design/methodology/approach Two experimental studies in the restaurant context demonstrate the backfire effect. A boundary condition of the effect as well as the underlying psychological process...

Identity appeals—marketing communications that invoke one of the target market's identities—are typically well liked by consumers. In contrast with this notion, this research examines a situation when consumers respond negatively to identity appeals in advertising. Through three studies, we find that identity appeals fail when consumers judge an id...

This research examines the effect of perceived closeness to a source of money on people's likelihood to take financial risks. Across two experiments using gambling decision scenarios, we find that people make riskier choices when the monetary cost of the decision is high (vs. low) and when they perceive the source of the money as distant from (vs....

People's mental representations of self overlap with those of significant others and in-groups. We extend this finding to show that people's mental representations of self also overlap with inanimate, seemingly impersonal, marketplace entities: consumer brands. Our study follows the “including others in the self” paradigm set forth by Aron and coll...