No description available.

abstract: This dissertation explores conditions under which food messages backfire among consumers leading them to engage in behaviors that are opposite to what was intended by the messages. The first essay shows when and how food-related warnings can backfire by putting consumers in a state of reactance. Across three studies, I demonstrate that dieters (but not nondieters) who see a one-sided message focusing on the negative aspects of unhealthy food (vs. a one-sided positive or neutral message) increase their desire for and consumption of unhealthy foods. In contrast, dieters who see a two-sided message (focusing on both the negative and positive aspects of unhealthy food) are more likely to comply with the message, thereby choosing fewer unhealthy foods. My research suggests that negatively-worded food warnings (such as PSAs) are unlikely to work – nondieters ignore them, and dieters do the opposite. Although preliminary, the findings also suggest that two-sided messages may offer a better solution. The second essay shows how certain messages advocating for genetically modified organisms (GMOs) can backfire by activating consumers’ thoughts about risk of GMOs. Across four studies, I demonstrate that strong anti-GMO (but not weak anti-GMO) consumers who see a pro-GMO message claiming that GMOs are safe for human consumption (vs. a neutral message) perceive higher risk from GMOs, resulting in more unfavorable attitudes toward GMOs and lower intentions to consume GMOs. My research also suggests that a pro-GMO message claiming that GMOs are beneficial will be more effective in persuading both strong and weak anti-GMO consumers. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Business Administration 2016

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

The creation of excessive budgetary slack can be costly, causing organizations to implement internal controls to motivate employees to report more honestly. Internal control research explores many control-related motivations; however, the behavioral effects of autonomy in expanded organizational hierarchies are not well understood in budgeting contexts. This paper examines managerial autonomy and firms’ rationales for the implementation of internal controls in a setting that extends the common participatory dyad utilized in prior literature to an organizational hierarchy that includes owners, mid-level managers, and employees. This setting is explored through the lens of self-determination theory and psychological reactance theory, which offer complementary yet opposite conceptualizations of autonomy. This paper posits that owner restrictions on mid-level manager autonomy can spillover and indirectly influence budgeting decisions. Additionally, the potential for this spillover to influence the relationship between a firm’s rationale for the implementation of internal controls and subsequent budgetary decisions is examined. Findings indicate that the autonomy of mid-level managers has a spillover effect that influences manager’s rejection rates between rounds, but not across rounds and does not interact with a firm’s control implementation rationale.

THE PREDICTORS OF RELATIONSHIP COMMITMENT: PERCEIVED PARENTING STYLE, PARENTAL APPROVAL, AND PSYCHOLOGICAL REACTANCE BeSikci, Ezgi M.S., Department of Psychology Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Nuray Sakalli-Ugurlu September 2008, 81 pages The main objective of the current thesis was to investigate the association between parental approval and romantic relationship commitment, and the roles of parenting style dimensions and psychological reactance in this association. Sample of the current study consisted of 166 METU students who had ongoing romantic relationships. An integrated model icluding associations between parenting style dimensions, parental approval, psychological reactance and relationship commitment was tested with LISREL 8. Since structural equation modeling did not provide results as informative as expected, the proposed model was examined as two seperate models. In the first model, the role of parental approval in the link between parenting style dimensions and relationship commitment was examined. In the second model, the role of psychological reactance in the link between parental approval and relationship commitment was examined. The results revealed that maternal acceptance had an indirect effect on relationship commitment via parental approval. In particular, increases in maternal acceptance led to increases in parental approval, which in turn led to increases in relationship commitment However, there was no significant finding regarding the impact of psychological reactance on the link between parental approval and relationship commitment. This thesis aims to make its own contribution to the literature by scrutinizing a) the association between parental approval and relationship commitment, and b) the role of parenting style dimensions in this association. Keywords: Relationship Commitment, Parental Approval, Perceived Parenting Styles, Psychological Reactance

An experiment is conducted among male adolescents to assess the impact of data collection methodology toward response quality factors, including completeness of answers, response distortion, response time, and item omissions. Data collection methodologies include in-person interviews, self-administered questionnaires, and use of an electronic form. Results suggest that personal interviews are generally the most effective method for collecting quality data from adolescent males. The impact of warning labels toward product evaluations was also tested using psychological reactance (Brehm 1966) to underpin hypotheses. Results indicate that adolescents rate their preference for entertainment products with restrictive labels higher than products with non-restrictive labels. Implications for public policy makers and both academic and managerial researchers are presented.