The paper examines national identity in Scotland. The research explores how consumers perceive th... more The paper examines national identity in Scotland. The research explores how consumers perceive the symbols used to represent Scotland, how these symbols relate to their perceptions of contemporary Scottish identity and their responses to the use of these symbols to promote Scotland and Scottishness. A series of in-depth interviews revealed that national identity in Scotland was seen to be multidimensional. Activities associated with art and culture, as opposed to business and industry, were identified as primary characteristics of contemporary Scotland. The traditional symbols of Scottish identity (e.g. tartan and whiskey) remain dominant signifiers, however, and the problems of this are discussed.
This paper explores the dialogical dimensions of discursive legitimation in social media sites to... more This paper explores the dialogical dimensions of discursive legitimation in social media sites to understand how organisations produce knowledge of legitimacy in concert with their stakeholders. Drawing on the dialogical theories of Bakhtin and Nikulin, we consider the potential for conceptualising discursive legitimation as a product of dissent: an ongoing ‘allosensual’ dialogue comprising different voices and competing knowledge claims. We explore this through a micro-level analysis of organisation-led social media sites, wherein organisational practices are increasingly subjected to public scrutiny and where knowledge of legitimacy can be significantly shaped. Our dialogical lens highlights three interrelated functions of discursive legitimation. Discursive authorisation represents attempts to assume a credible ‘voice’ in-relation-to ‘other’ voices, within the dialogue. Discursive validation represents attempts to subject truth claims about legitimacy to rational, normative and m...
Drawing upon legitimacy theory, this paper explores the processual and interdiscursive nature of ... more Drawing upon legitimacy theory, this paper explores the processual and interdiscursive nature of legitimacy construction in a corporate social responsibility (CSR) and social media context. The paper moves away from the managerialist assumptions of legitimacy theory that have traditionally downplayed the role of communications in constructing legitimacy, to investigate how legitimacy is (re)constituted in communicative dynamics between organisations and stakeholders in the Facebook page of a UK retailer, The Co-Operative. Using discourse analysis, findings reveal that interlocutors utilise discursive legitimation strategies, including authorization, moral evaluation, rationalization, mythopoesis and normalization, and identify intertextual interconnections between these strategies and broader societal discourses of scepticism, collaboration and protection. In contributing to understandings of communicative legitimacy within management and CSR scholarship, this paper asserts that legitimacy is a fluid, sub...
Hibbert, SA and Piacentini, Maria and Al-Dajani, H (2000) Socially excluded? Exploring the grocer... more Hibbert, SA and Piacentini, Maria and Al-Dajani, H (2000) Socially excluded? Exploring the grocery shopping behaviour of consumers in a deprivation area. In: American Marketing Association Winter Educators' Conference (Chicago, IL) - 2000. unknown, N/A.
Consumption impacts identity projects especially when it facilitates, accelerates, ameliorates or... more Consumption impacts identity projects especially when it facilitates, accelerates, ameliorates or impedes identities in transition. Earlier studies have largely examined identity transitions within the context of privileged groups of consumers, to the relative neglect of less privileged consumer groups. Negative experiences such as stigmatization can impede identity transitions by interrupting the acquisition not just of an adult identity, but also of some of the essential consumer skills for operating in the marketplace, thus threatening self-esteem. ...
The paper complements existing research regarding the interplay between impulsive and deliberativ... more The paper complements existing research regarding the interplay between impulsive and deliberative processes in consumer decision making, by examining how cognition (in the form of rationalizations or motivated judgements) enables people to proceed with (rather than control) their impulses. It applies the concept of neutralization (Sykes and Matza, 1957), in the manner of a theory of motivated cognition and as a taxonomy of pre-and postbehavioral rationalizations; and presents findings from a preliminary study which suggests that neutralization theory can be applied to accounts of impulse buying episodes.
The paper complements existing research on ethical consumer behavior by examining how people cope... more The paper complements existing research on ethical consumer behavior by examining how people cope with the psychological tensions that arise when they behave in ways that are in apparent contradiction to their expressed ethical concerns. It advances the concept of neutralization-justifications that soften or eliminate the impact that norm-violating behavior might have upon self-concept and social relationships-and presents hypotheses on the role of neutralization in ethical consumer decision making processes.
Today's communication landscape affords multiple service interfaces to promote customer engagemen... more Today's communication landscape affords multiple service interfaces to promote customer engagement (i.e. adherence) with complex and prolonged services, but understanding of how customers use them is limited. This study compares personal and non-personal interfaces that provide educational and/or emotional support for customers to develop the operant resources (i.e. competence and motivation) necessary for adherence. A survey of 270 subscribers to a weight-loss programme demonstrates that booklets and a website (nonpersonal interfaces) provide educational support that enhances role clarity and ability to adhere, respectively. For novices, it is customer forums (personal interface) that afford the educational support needed to develop ability. Group meetings (personal interface) provide emotional support that boosts customer motivation to adhere and, in turn, encourages them to help other customers. Our study distinguishing types of support for adherence, accessed via multiple service interfaces, has implications for management and highlights needs for future research into complex and prolonged services.
The paper examines national identity in Scotland. The research explores how consumers perceive th... more The paper examines national identity in Scotland. The research explores how consumers perceive the symbols used to represent Scotland, how these symbols relate to their perceptions of contemporary Scottish identity and their responses to the use of these symbols to promote Scotland and Scottishness. A series of in-depth interviews revealed that national identity in Scotland was seen to be multidimensional. Activities associated with art and culture, as opposed to business and industry, were identified as primary characteristics of contemporary Scotland. The traditional symbols of Scottish identity (e.g. tartan and whiskey) remain dominant signifiers, however, and the problems of this are discussed.
This paper explores the dialogical dimensions of discursive legitimation in social media sites to... more This paper explores the dialogical dimensions of discursive legitimation in social media sites to understand how organisations produce knowledge of legitimacy in concert with their stakeholders. Drawing on the dialogical theories of Bakhtin and Nikulin, we consider the potential for conceptualising discursive legitimation as a product of dissent: an ongoing ‘allosensual’ dialogue comprising different voices and competing knowledge claims. We explore this through a micro-level analysis of organisation-led social media sites, wherein organisational practices are increasingly subjected to public scrutiny and where knowledge of legitimacy can be significantly shaped. Our dialogical lens highlights three interrelated functions of discursive legitimation. Discursive authorisation represents attempts to assume a credible ‘voice’ in-relation-to ‘other’ voices, within the dialogue. Discursive validation represents attempts to subject truth claims about legitimacy to rational, normative and m...
Drawing upon legitimacy theory, this paper explores the processual and interdiscursive nature of ... more Drawing upon legitimacy theory, this paper explores the processual and interdiscursive nature of legitimacy construction in a corporate social responsibility (CSR) and social media context. The paper moves away from the managerialist assumptions of legitimacy theory that have traditionally downplayed the role of communications in constructing legitimacy, to investigate how legitimacy is (re)constituted in communicative dynamics between organisations and stakeholders in the Facebook page of a UK retailer, The Co-Operative. Using discourse analysis, findings reveal that interlocutors utilise discursive legitimation strategies, including authorization, moral evaluation, rationalization, mythopoesis and normalization, and identify intertextual interconnections between these strategies and broader societal discourses of scepticism, collaboration and protection. In contributing to understandings of communicative legitimacy within management and CSR scholarship, this paper asserts that legitimacy is a fluid, sub...
Hibbert, SA and Piacentini, Maria and Al-Dajani, H (2000) Socially excluded? Exploring the grocer... more Hibbert, SA and Piacentini, Maria and Al-Dajani, H (2000) Socially excluded? Exploring the grocery shopping behaviour of consumers in a deprivation area. In: American Marketing Association Winter Educators' Conference (Chicago, IL) - 2000. unknown, N/A.
Consumption impacts identity projects especially when it facilitates, accelerates, ameliorates or... more Consumption impacts identity projects especially when it facilitates, accelerates, ameliorates or impedes identities in transition. Earlier studies have largely examined identity transitions within the context of privileged groups of consumers, to the relative neglect of less privileged consumer groups. Negative experiences such as stigmatization can impede identity transitions by interrupting the acquisition not just of an adult identity, but also of some of the essential consumer skills for operating in the marketplace, thus threatening self-esteem. ...
The paper complements existing research regarding the interplay between impulsive and deliberativ... more The paper complements existing research regarding the interplay between impulsive and deliberative processes in consumer decision making, by examining how cognition (in the form of rationalizations or motivated judgements) enables people to proceed with (rather than control) their impulses. It applies the concept of neutralization (Sykes and Matza, 1957), in the manner of a theory of motivated cognition and as a taxonomy of pre-and postbehavioral rationalizations; and presents findings from a preliminary study which suggests that neutralization theory can be applied to accounts of impulse buying episodes.
The paper complements existing research on ethical consumer behavior by examining how people cope... more The paper complements existing research on ethical consumer behavior by examining how people cope with the psychological tensions that arise when they behave in ways that are in apparent contradiction to their expressed ethical concerns. It advances the concept of neutralization-justifications that soften or eliminate the impact that norm-violating behavior might have upon self-concept and social relationships-and presents hypotheses on the role of neutralization in ethical consumer decision making processes.
Today's communication landscape affords multiple service interfaces to promote customer engagemen... more Today's communication landscape affords multiple service interfaces to promote customer engagement (i.e. adherence) with complex and prolonged services, but understanding of how customers use them is limited. This study compares personal and non-personal interfaces that provide educational and/or emotional support for customers to develop the operant resources (i.e. competence and motivation) necessary for adherence. A survey of 270 subscribers to a weight-loss programme demonstrates that booklets and a website (nonpersonal interfaces) provide educational support that enhances role clarity and ability to adhere, respectively. For novices, it is customer forums (personal interface) that afford the educational support needed to develop ability. Group meetings (personal interface) provide emotional support that boosts customer motivation to adhere and, in turn, encourages them to help other customers. Our study distinguishing types of support for adherence, accessed via multiple service interfaces, has implications for management and highlights needs for future research into complex and prolonged services.
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Papers by Sally Hibbert