Author

Hsin-Yi Liao

ORCID Identifier(s)

0000-0002-4888-4242

Graduation Semester and Year

2022

Language

English

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy in Business Administration

Department

Business Administration

First Advisor

Narayanan Janakiraman

Second Advisor

Zhiyong Yang

Abstract

This paper examines the relationship between power distance belief (PDB) – the tendency to accept and endorse power disparity – and preference for a discount on the focal (vs. tie-in) product in a product bundle. The findings show that high PDB consumers prefer a discount on the focal (vs. tie-in) product in a bundle, whereas low PDB consumers’ preference is not affected by the locus-of-discount. This difference is driven by the greater tendency to differentiate among high (vs. low) PDB consumers. Furthermore, contextual factor that affect consumers’ differentiation tendency, namely consumers’ prioritization tendency, set boundary condition for the impact of PDB on consumers’ locus-of-discount preference. We conduct multiple studies, including a field experiment, to provide empirical support to these predictions. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.

Keywords

Power distance belief, Culture, Price bundling, Price discounts

Disciplines

Business | Business Administration, Management, and Operations

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