Open research questions in Consumer Behavior in Brand Consumption and Identification

What the literature leaves open

• This review has demonstrated that the constructs that can be manipulated in an experimental manner — narrative transportation, narrative perspective — have a relatively mature empirical foundation, whereas the more complex constructs that cannot be manipulated in an experimental manner, such as narrative identity, archetype and monomyth, continue to be used in practice but are under-researched and, in some instances, conceptually ambiguous.

  Systematic Literature Review of Narrative Theory in Classic Fiction and Modern Brand Storytelling · 2026 · DOI

• 6) was undertaken on AI-assisted scholarly discovery, not through direct access to Scopus, Web of Science or ABI/INFORM Complete; although all sources were checked individually, the counts in the review are a working document and should not be regarded as a definitive export from any database and should be replicated using institutional access to those databases before submitting.

  Systematic Literature Review of Narrative Theory in Classic Fiction and Modern Brand Storytelling · 2026 · DOI

• It is also suggested that future research should consider a broader scope, including diverse markets from other countries and both luxury products and services, to enhance the robustness and applicability of the findings. Research limitations This study encountered several limitations that should be acknowledged.

  Sustaining luxury brand presence across different generations: strategies to enduring distinction and growth · 2026 · DOI

• The study recommends that sports shoe brands and marketing practitioners strengthen their digital marketing strategies by creating engaging and interactive campaigns that build consumer interest, emotional attachment, and customer engagement. Businesses are encouraged to improve product quality, comfort, durability, and brand image while enhancing customer relationships through personalized experiences, responsive communication, and active social media interaction. The study also recommends the use of emotional marketing strategies and community- building activities to strengthen customer loyalty, trust, and long-term relationships. In addition, marketing managers and business strategists are encouraged to utilize data visualization tools and analytics techniques such as heat maps and scatter plots to better understand consumer behavior and support data-driven decision-making. Future researchers are also encouraged to conduct similar studies in different industries and locations, include additional variables related to consumer behavior, and apply advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence and eye-tracking to gain deeper insights into digital marketing effectiveness and customer engagement.

  Heat maps and data visualization analytics on brand value and customer relationships using hierarchy of effects model · 2026 · DOI

• https://www.outlookindia.com India. (2021, July). How boAt became India's most popular audio brand. Outlook India. Porter, M. E. (1980). Competitive strategy: Techniques for analyzing industries and competitors. Free Press. Sarasvathy, S. D. (2001). Causation and effectuation: Toward a theoretical shift from economic inevitability to 243–263.

  boAt Lifestyle: Navigating the Crossroads of Affordability and Ambition in India's Consumer Electronics Market · 2026 · DOI

• Drawing on associative network memory theory, this study examines the sequential mediating roles of brand awareness and brand image in the relationship between SMMAs and brand love, addressing a critical gap in understanding nonmaterialistic drivers of emotional brand attachment in higher education.

  Creating brand love among higher education’s students through social media marketing activities: mediating role brand awareness and brand image · 2026 · DOI

• Purpose Prior research shows that AI involvement in physical luxury design often triggers negative consumer responses, but whether this effect extends to virtual luxury remains unclear.

  Consumer responses to AI-designed virtual luxury products: a double-edged sword for perceived brand innovativeness and authenticity · 2026 · DOI

• Abstract Despite growing attention to consumer ethics and environmental consciousness, limited research has examined how nation‑level corporate social responsibility (NCSR) shapes international consumers’ purchasing behavior.

  Nation-level CSR, affective country image, and international consumers: A case of fashion products · 2026 · DOI

• the Consumer Culture Theory (CCT) provides a broader on consumption, emphasising role of cultural meanings, social practices, and identity formation (Arnould & Thompson, 2005). CCT posits that consumption is not merely a functional activity but a symbolic process through which individuals construct and communicate their identities. to integral become evident, Belk’s (1988) concept of the extended self is central to this perspective, suggesting that possessions an individual’s sense of self. In fashion, this is particularly and accessories are used to express personal style, social affiliation. Thompson and Haytko (1997) further argue that consumers actively interpret and negotiate the meanings of fashion products within cultural contexts. clothing status, group and as frameworks Marketing narratives play a crucial role in these meanings by providing shaping symbolic through which consumers can understand and use products. For instance, a brand that positions itself around inclusivity and diversity may use narratives that celebrate individuality and self-acceptance. These narratives not only influence how products are perceived but also how they are integrated into consumers’ identity projects. CCT also highlights the importance of cultural authenticity and resonance in brand communication. Narratives that align with cultural values and social trends are more likely to be effective in influencing consumer 7 Akhi et al. 2026 Fashion Product Positioning through Marketing Narratives: A Qualitative Study behaviour. In the contemporary fashion landscape, this includes themes such as sustainability, ethical consumption, and social responsibility (Joy et al., 2012). 3.4 Integrated Theoretical Model By integrating brand positioning theory, narrative this study theory, and CCT, develops a comprehensive framework for fashion marketing narratives.

  Fashion Product Positioning through Marketing Narratives: A Qualitative Study · 2026 · DOI

• Future research should explore the applicability of CBR across different industries, cultural contexts, and social media environments. The study contributes to the literature by validating the role of CBR in the SME context, an area previously underexplored compared to larger firms.

  Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and Brand Sustainability: Brand Resonance as a Competitive Advantage · 2026 · DOI

• Sharing Hard advertising refers to traditional, explicitly promotional advertising that directly introduces product or service information with the primary aim of stimulating immediate consumer action. In contrast, "soft advertising" refers to sponsored or paid content that does not appear as conventional advertising, including advertorial-style content that resembles news or lifestyle posts, as well as brand-sponsored activities or influencer collaborations that embed promotional intent within seemingly organic narratives.2 Based on the sample analysis in Table 1, it is found that among all advertising types, soft-sell collaborative posts exhibit the richest semiotic system. Compared with official advertisements, which are characterized by relatively fixed brand discourse and standardized visual presentations delivered by celebrity endorsers, soft-sell content requires influencers to organically integrate product information into their own everyday content production frameworks. As a result, these posts demonstrate a higher degree of autonomy and creativity in semiotic expression. This variation in creative latitude directly leads to greater diversity in semiotic types and more refined pragmatic strategies in soft-sell content. Accordingly, this study selects representative influencer cases from the soft-sell collaboration samples listed in Table 1 and conducts a coding-based analysis from three dimensions: linguistic signs, visual signs, and situational signs. The specific results are presented in Table 2. The address system constructs an intimate "we-feeling" through quasi-kinship discursive strategies. Influencers frequently employ forms of address such as "sisters," "little darlings," and "everyone," thereby transforming an otherwise distant influencer–audience relationship into a quasi-friendship or "girlfriend talk" context. This quasi-kinship mode of address not only reduces psychological distance but also establishes a discursive boundary between "in-group" and "out-group." Users who are able to understand, accept, and respond to this mode of address are thereby incorporated into the emotional community of the "sisters circle." 2 https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E7%A1%AC%E5%B9%BF%E5%91%8A/2385227 200200 | Advances in Social Behavior Research | Vol.17 | Issue 7 Table 2.

  From "sharing" to "identification": a study on the discursive construction of the "sisters circle" in rednote beauty advertising · 2026 · DOI

• Despite its contributions in revealing the symbolic mechanisms through which Rednote beauty advertising constructs the discourse of the "sisters circle" across address systems, evaluative systems, persona labeling, and situational narratives, and in integrating perspectives from semiotics, identity theory, and platform communication studies, this study still has several limitations that warrant further investigation.

  From "sharing" to "identification": a study on the discursive construction of the "sisters circle" in rednote beauty advertising · 2026 · DOI

• Future research could examine the transformation of prestige over time and the evolution of 986 International Journal of Contemporary Economics and Administrative Sciences ISSN: 1925 – 4423 Volume: XVI, Issue: 1, Year: 2026, pp. Considering the findings regarding how digitalization transforms the perception of prestige (Armutlu, 2025), the mediating or moderating roles of variables such as social media interaction intensity, influencer credibility, or digital brand community membership could be investigated. Firstly, the lack of a direct impact of perceived mass prestige on brand advocacy demonstrates that prestige alone is insufficient to generate behavioral outcomes.

  The Impact of Perceived Brand Mass Prestige on Brand Advocacy: The Sequential Mediating Roles of Brand Perception and Brand Happiness · 2026 · DOI

• Future should research statistically to generate employ probability-based sampling across multiple Indian cities representative findings. A dedicated empirical study on the gold versus black luxury colour divergence identified here would contribute significantly to both academic literature and luxury brand practice in India. Longitudinal research tracking how colour- brand associations develop and change across a consumer's lifetime would add important temporal depth to the findings on age and colour perception.

  Colour Psychology and its Influence on Branding · 2026 · DOI

• • Sustain the Masstige Balance: YSL should continue to calibrate its pricing and distribution strategy carefully to maintain aspirational appeal without over-distributing to the point of diluting brand equity. • Invest in Wearability Innovation: The Perceived Value gap identified in this study suggests a commercially meaningful opportunity — comfort improvements incremental engineering could reduce cognitive dissonance and satisfaction without compromising aesthetic identity. post-purchase strengthen in • Deepen Digital Engagement: YSL should amplify its presence on platforms frequented by Generation Z, including TikTok and Instagram, leveraging the natural Instagrammability of its influencer through heel designs partnerships and immersive digital content. strategic • Protect Heritage Authenticity: As the brand continues to evolve its creative direction, it should ensure that new collections maintain a visible and meaningful dialogue with its couture heritage — the historical depth of the brand is a competitive asset that cannot be manufactured by newer entrants.

  Consumer Perception on Yves Saint Laurent Heels: A Study of Symbolic Value, Brand Trust, and Luxury Identity · 2026 · DOI

• Future research should address the limitations of this study by employing larger, multi-country samples across diverse age groups and income brackets. Longitudinal studies tracking how cross-cultural pricing and adaptation strategies evolve over time would provide valuable insights. Comparative studies of specific industry sectors, such as fashion, fintech, or healthcare, could yield more targeted findings. Additionally, the growing influence of digital platforms on cross-border price visibility and consumer expectations warrants dedicated incorporating qualitative methods such as ethnographic studies or in-depth interviews could complement quantitative data to deepen understanding of cultural nuances in pricing perception. Finally, studies examining the long-term impact of glocalization strategies on brand equity and customer lifetime value would be particularly valuable for multinational corporations. investigation.

  Cross-Cultural Pricing & Product Adaptation · 2026 · DOI

• Despite its theoretical and empirical contributions, this study is subject to several limitations that should be acknowledged. First, the empirical analysis relies on self-reported data collected through Likert-type scales, which may be susceptible to social desirability bias or response consistency effects, particularly when examining sensitive constructs such as consumer animosity. While this approach is well established and widely accepted in consumer behavior research, future studies could strengthen the robustness of the findings by complementing survey-based data with behavioral or experimental methods, such as simulated implicit measurement techniques. scenarios purchase or the limit Second, the study focuses on a single national context, which may broader generalization of the findings to other cultural and economic environments. Although the sample exhibits substantial demographic and generational heterogeneity, in different national or regional contexts could provide additional insights into the sociocultural determinants of foreign brand consumption and allow for broader validation of the proposed relationships. research conducted future Future studies may also adopt a cross-cultural perspective and explore additional constructs such as cosmopolitanism, xenocentrism, or perceived brand globalness in order to further enrich the understanding of consumer responses to foreign brands. In addition, longitudinal research designs into how could provide valuable geopolitical economic developments, transformations, and generational shifts influence the acceptance of foreign brands over time.

  How collectivism, animosity, cultural heritage, and country-of-origin image shape consumer behavior toward foreign brands · 2026 · DOI

• Website functioned only as a submission tool, not a management system No integrated workflow or visibility for exhibitors Rapid growth in applicant numbers increased complexity Internal criteria existed but were not consistently communicated Feedback delivery depended on time and manpower…

  Evaluating Transparency and Fairness in Booth Registration and Curation Decision-Making at Comic Frontier: A Multi-Method Approach · 2026 · DOI

• The main limitation is that the article uses FY2024-25 evidence only. It therefore cannot establish causality or estimate the long-run effect of brand equity on financial performance. A second limitation is the uneven availability of public brand-valuation data: some companies have direct brand-value evidence, while others are represented through reputation proxies. This limitation is important because commercial valuation systems differ in methodology and are not substitutes for audited accounting data (Brand Finance, 2021; Kantar BrandZ, 2025a). https://unicredit-capitalia.eu/ 419 J Euro Eco His. ISSN : 0391-5115 Volume 7, Issue 2 (2026) Third, the reported financial figures are not perfectly uniform across companies because firms differ in their reporting basis and public disclosure format. Future research should build a five- to ten-year firm-level panel, collect advertising and promotion expenditure, market capitalisation, market-to-book ratio, revenue growth, ROA, ROE, leverage and brand-ranking indicators, and then estimate fixed-effects or random-effects models. A lagged model would be especially useful because brand investment may affect financial performance with a delay, as suggested by quasi-experimental and panel- based brand-performance research (Oliveira et al., 2023; Cheng & Hou, 2024; Kumar et al., 2025).

  Brand Equity and Financial Performance: Evidence from Selected Cement and Steel Companies in India · 2026 · DOI

• This research examines the emerging phenomenon of Peace Brand Activism (PBA) by investigating the so far under-explored reasons that drive brands to engage in and communicate peace-oriented initiatives.

  What drives activism for peace · 2026

• Originality/value This study’s contribution is twofold: it addresses the crucial gap in understanding how brands can proactively cultivate coolness, moving beyond the well-documented consequences and introduces anthropomorphism as a strategic tool for enhancing BC.

  Wow! you’re so cool! Does anthropomorphism affect brand coolness perceptions? · 2026 · DOI

• Based on the research findings, the following recommendations are offered to optimize their market positioning and customer relationships: 1. Develop Integrated Identity-Function Value Propositions: Providers should craft brand positioning that explicitly connects functional benefits to identity outcomes, demonstrating how service features enable identity expression and social positioning. Marketing communications should show rather than simply tell how provider choice reflects users' values, aspirations, and social connections, using testimonials, user stories, and narrative advertising that illustrate identity alignment. 99 REVIEWS IN ARTS AND SOCIAL SCIENCES VOLUME 2, NUMBER 2, JUNE 2026 E-ISSN: 3141-3633 DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.20494430 2. Cultivate Distinctive Brand Communities: Given social identity's influence on loyalty and advocacy, providers should invest in community-building initiatives that foster interaction among users and strengthen group identification. Online forums, user events, exclusive content, and social media engagement strategies can create belongingness while generating user-generated content that authentically demonstrates brand values and user characteristics. 3. Implement Psychological Segmentation: Move beyond demographic and behavioral segmentation to incorporate identity-based customer profiling. Understanding the selfconcepts and social identities of different user segments enables personalized experiences, targeted messaging, and product development aligned with specific identity configurations, potentially revealing underserved segments whose psychological needs current offerings inadequately address. 4. Cross-Cultural Comparison: Comparative studies examining identity influences on financial service choice across multiple African countries or comparing African and Western contexts would illuminate cultural variations in how identity operates as a consumption determinant, testing theoretical predictions about collectivism, status orientation, and identity salience. 5. Specific Demographic Segments: Targeted studies of particular demographic segments including rural populations, older consumers, lower-income users, and women could reveal group-specific identity dynamics and barriers not adequately captured in research focused on urban, educated, higher-income netizens.

  SOCIAL IDENTITY, SELF-CONCEPT, AND PURCHASING BEHAVIOUR AMONG GTCO, OPAY, AND WEMA USERS IN NIGERIA · 2026 · DOI

• However, past studies have shown inconsistent and contradictory findings regarding product placement in Korean dramas, which has a significant relationship with brand recall.

  The Effectiveness of Samsung Product Placement in Korean Drama · 2025 · DOI

• ABSTRACT How do influencers create content on social media that shapes consumer experiences and discourse around beauty standards? While research recognizes the power of influencers to help motivate market‐level changes, limited research has investigated this performance, particularly related to content intended to resist existing aesthetic norms.

  From Body Positivity and Beyond: Investigating Affective Aesthetic Atmospheres of Influencers · 2025 · DOI

• "A sporty, healthy twist?": Interrogating the deployment of health and wellness discourses in No and Low alcohol (NoLo) marketing and consumer practices AbstractLittle is known about how No and Low (NoLo) alcohol drinks are promoted and used, making it difficult to draw conclusions about the implications of this expanding market.

  “A sporty, healthy twist?”: interrogating the deployment of health and wellness discourses in No and Low alcohol (NoLo) marketing and consumer practices · 2025 · DOI

Most-cited papers in Consumer Behavior in Brand Consumption and Identification

• The Sustainability Liability: Potential Negative Effects of Ethicality on Product Preference · Journal of Marketing · 2010 · 1,499 citations
• The Economic Worth of Celebrity Endorsers: An Event Study Analysis · Journal of Marketing · 1995 · 1,316 citations
• Demystifying customer brand engagement: Exploring the loyalty nexus · Journal of Marketing Management · 2010 · 872 citations
• Metaverse marketing: How the metaverse will shape the future of consumer research and practice · Psychology and Marketing · 2022 · 731 citations
• Brands Taking a Stand: Authentic Brand Activism or Woke Washing? · Journal of Public Policy & Marketing · 2020 · 637 citations
• An Emerging Theory of Avatar Marketing · Journal of Marketing · 2021 · 575 citations
• Causes and consequences of emotions on consumer behaviour · European Journal of Marketing · 2007 · 497 citations
• Marketing in the Metaverse: Conceptual understanding, framework, and research agenda · Journal of Business Research · 2022 · 467 citations
• The influence of country image structure on consumer evaluations of foreign products · International Marketing Review · 2005 · 442 citations
• The Effect of Multiple Extrinsic Cues on Quality Perceptions: A Matter of Consistency · Journal of Consumer Research · 2005 · 441 citations

Most recent work

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