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Flag backlash: Why does the presence of the American flag reduce product evaluation?
Author(s) -
Wang Lili,
Zuo Peng
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
psychology and marketing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.035
H-Index - 116
eISSN - 1520-6793
pISSN - 0742-6046
DOI - 10.1002/mar.21016
Subject(s) - flag (linear algebra) , psychology , persuasion , product (mathematics) , outrage , social psychology , reactance , advertising , construal level theory , hypocrisy , business , political science , politics , mathematics , engineering , geometry , electrical engineering , voltage , pure mathematics , law , algebra over a field
The American flag is often incorporated into product branding. However, little research has investigated how the use of American flag imagery as a marketing tool for products influences consumer behavior. The present research examines (1) whether the presence of the American flag on a product affects consumers’ evaluation of products and (2) the social cognitive mechanisms underlying the effect of the flag on product‐related judgments. This research provides evidence that the presence of the American flag on a product induces negative product evaluation (Study 1). This negative effect is found to be moderated by participants’ trait level of psychological reactance (Study 2) and mediated by participants’ outrage (Study 3a) and perceived persuasion (Study 3b). When the American flag's link with the product is broken, its negative impact on product evaluation disappears (Study 4).