Duarte Paulo, Linardi Marcelo Augusto, Domingues Helena Sá, Silva Susana C
NECE - Research Centre in Business Sciences - Universidade da Beira Interior, Avenida Marquês D'Ávila e Bolama, 6201-001, Covilhã, Portugal.
Católica Porto Business School - Universidade Católica Portuguesa & CEGE, Rua Diogo Botelho 1327, 4169-005, Porto, Portugal.
Heliyon. 2023 Mar 16;9(3):e14612. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e14612. eCollection 2023 Mar.
This article assesses the relationship between consumer vulnerability (CV) and well-being (WB) by comparing the effects of ordinary (non-pandemic) and pandemic consumption contexts among Portuguese and Brazilian consumers. Data on pre-and post-pandemic perceived vulnerability and well-being from a cross-cultural sample of 397 consumers were analyzed through structural equations modelling using the PLS-Path. The results revealed an inverse relationship between CV and well-being, which worsened with the emergence of the pandemic. Refund Policies, Product Promotions and Purchase Ability are the dimensions of CV identified as the most affected by the COVID-19 outbreak. Furthermore, fear proved to mediate the effect of vulnerability on well-being partially. The findings allow us to conclude that the most disrupted CV dimensions during COVID-19 are Refund Policy (RP), Purchase Ability (PA), and Product Promotion (PP). Studies comparing consumer vulnerability in international contexts are scarce. By finding the most critical dimensions of CV during a pandemic crisis, this study provides novel insights for companies and public institutions when planning responses and strategies to future disruptive occurrences. The conclusions represent an original contribution by analysing and comparing consumers' vulnerability in an everyday consumption situation and an extreme situation deployed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Valuable insights for governments and policymakers are provided. Firms working in international markets can use the insights to adapt their business strategy as effects on well-being vary across cultures.
本文通过比较葡萄牙和巴西消费者在普通（非疫情）和疫情消费背景下的影响，评估了消费者脆弱性（CV）与幸福感（WB）之间的关系。通过使用PLS路径的结构方程模型，对来自397名消费者的跨文化样本在疫情前和疫情后感知到的脆弱性和幸福感数据进行了分析。结果显示，CV与幸福感之间存在负相关关系，且随着疫情的出现而恶化。退款政策、产品促销和购买能力是CV中被确定为受新冠疫情爆发影响最大的维度。此外，恐惧被证明部分介导了脆弱性对幸福感的影响。研究结果使我们得出结论，在新冠疫情期间，受干扰最大的CV维度是退款政策（RP）、购买能力（PA）和产品促销（PP）。在国际背景下比较消费者脆弱性的研究很少。通过找出疫情危机期间CV最关键的维度，本研究为公司和公共机构在规划应对未来破坏性事件的对策和战略时提供了新的见解。这些结论通过分析和比较消费者在日常消费情境和新冠疫情引发的极端情境下的脆弱性，做出了原创性贡献。为政府和政策制定者提供了有价值的见解。在国际市场上运营的公司可以利用这些见解来调整其商业战略，因为对幸福感的影响因文化而异。
