Purpose

Given the thriving attention paid to brand personification in marketing, this paper aims to delve into consumers’ psychological traits that may moderate the positive anthropomorphic effects on brand outcomes specific to relationship marketing.

Design/methodology/approach

A theoretical model was proposed based on a review of the extant literature. Study 1 conducted an online survey and used confirmatory factor analysis to validate the constructs significantly correlated with anthropomorphic processing. Two follow-up studies (Study 2a and 2b) using experimental designs were performed to provide evidence substantiating the moderated mediation in the process.

Findings

Based on the results across the three studies, motivational, rather than cognitive, disposition significantly correlates with perceived anthropomorphism and brand relationship outcomes. Need for belonging serves as a sociality moderator in strengthening the mediating effects of perceived anthropomorphism on brand attachment and brand experience, respectively. Parasocial interaction serves as an effectance moderator in augmenting the mediating effects of perceived anthropomorphism on brand attachment.

Research limitations/implications

This research extends and contrasts the theoretical grounding for anthropomorphism as a set of situational consumer perceptions by integrating its boosting factors in social psychology with emerging brand constructs in marketing and consumer behavior research. More studies are encouraged to probe into the complex anthropomorphic phenomenon.

Practical implications

This research sheds light on marketers’ strategic management efforts in implementing brand personification to target a wide range of market segments with diverse psychological disposition.

Originality/value

Conceiving anthropomorphism as an in-process situational output in information processing, this research provides further understanding of the psychological traits that facilitate the construction of consumer-brand relationships through anthropomorphic perceptions in the context of brand personification.

中文翻译：

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重新审视拟人化对品牌关系结果的影响：心理倾向的调节作用

目的

考虑到营销中对品牌拟人化的高度关注，本文旨在深入研究消费者的心理特征，这些心理特征可能会缓和对关系营销特有的品牌结果的积极拟人化影响。

设计/方法/方法

在回顾现有文献的基础上，提出了一种理论模型。研究1进行了在线调查，并使用验证性因子分析来验证与拟人化处理显着相关的构建体。使用实验设计进行了两项后续研究（研究2a和2b），以提供证据证实该过程中的调解作用。

发现

根据三项研究的结果，动机而不是认知的倾向与感知到的拟人化和品牌关系结果显着相关。归属感在加强感知的拟人化对品牌依恋和品牌体验的中介作用方面，起着社会调节作用。超社会互动在增加感知到的拟人化对品牌依恋的中介作用中充当效应调节剂。

研究局限/意义

这项研究通过将社会心理的推动因素与市场营销和消费者行为研究中的新兴品牌构造相结合，扩展并对比了拟人化作为一组情景消费者感知的理论基础。鼓励开展更多研究以探究复杂的拟人现象。

实际影响

这项研究揭示了营销人员在实施品牌拟人化以针对具有不同心理倾向的广泛细分市场的战略管理方面的努力。

创意/价值

将拟人化视为信息处理中的过程中情景输出，该研究提供了对心理特征的进一步理解，这些心理特征通过在品牌拟人化背景下的拟人化感知来促进消费者-品牌关系的构建。