Impact of the perceived threat of COVID-19 on variety-seeking.

• We focus on the relationship between the COVID-19 threat and variety-seeking. • Increased perceived threat of COVID-19 increases the number of different options selected in multiple choices. • Increased perceived threat of COVID-19 increases the number of risky activities selected. • The type of decision moderates the impact of the perceived threat on variety-seeking. The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly influenced our daily and social lives as well as our consumption patterns. This paper focuses on the relationship between the COVID-19 threat and variety-seeking. Based on several theories, including reactance theory and terror management theory, we predict that the perceived threat of COVID-19 will increase the tendency to choose more and different options in multiple choice settings. Firstly, two empirical studies demonstrate that variety-seeking in food and stationery choices is enhanced as people's perceived threat from the disease increases. Study 3 further suggests the boundary conditions of the above pattern in that the type of decision (i.e., multiple option selections across different brands vs. within the same brand) will moderate the impact of the perceived threat on varietyseeking. Specifically, when the decision involved choice across different brands, participants showed higher variety-seeking under high (vs. low) perceived threat. However, the opposite pattern was true when the decision involved choice within the same brand. This research offers a deeper understanding of how variety-seeking can be changed by the perceived threat of COVID-19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

新冠肺炎疫情对我们的日常生活和社会生活以及消费模式产生了重大影响.本文主要研究新冠肺炎威胁与多样性产品之间的关系.基于一些理论, 包括抗拒理论和恐怖管理理论, 我们预测, 新冠肺炎的感知威胁将增加)消费者(在多选择环境中选择更多和不同产品的倾向.首先, 两项实证研究表明, 随着人们对疾病威胁的感知增加, 他们在选择食品和文具时寻求多样性的意愿增强.研究三进一步表明, 上述模式的边界条件, 即决策类型)跨不同品牌的多个产品选项 vs. 同一品牌内的多个产品选项(将缓和感知威胁对寻求多样性产品的影响.具体地说, 当决策涉及对不同品牌的选择时, 参与者在高)低(感知威胁下表现出更高的多样性寻求.然而, 当决策涉及同一品牌的选择时, 情况就相反了.这项研究使人们对新冠病毒的潜在威胁如何改变寻求多样性的行为有了更深入的了解. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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