Methodological Considerations in Crisis Management Research: Fictitious Scenarios Vs. Real Crises

Prof. (Dr.) Surendra Kumar; Prof. Ritesh Kumar

Volume : VI, Issue : I, January - 2016

Methodological Considerations in Crisis Management Research: Fictitious Scenarios Vs. Real Crises

Prof. Dr. Surendra Kumar, Prof. Ritesh Kumar

Abstract :

The current paper aims to investigate consumer reactions under two different methodological conditions: a) imaginary scenarios and b) real crisis situations. For the purpose of this research two sets of questionnaires were developed and distributed. In the first set, a hypothetical toy crisis was described. The second set presented a real crisis concerning a baby soother, which was recently recalled. Analysis of the results revealed no significant differences between purchase intention, attribution of blame, trust and perceived risk, when measured under the real and the imaginary scenario and only the emotion of anger indicated statistically significant higher levels under a real crisis situation. In the light of these empirical findings, the use of imaginary scenarios as a valid method in crisis management research is discussed.