Keyword

Word-of-Mouth, Relationship Strength, Self-Determination Theory, Motivation

Abstract

To understand the generation of WOM motivation, this research studies the relationship between three innate psychological needs (e.g. autonomy, competence, and relatedness) and word-of-mouth motivation based on Self-Determination Theory. How the expertise of the sender, the relationship strength between the sender and the receiver affect the motivation of word-of-mouth through these three psychological needs is also studied. A questionnaire based survey was employed to collect data. The results indicate that three psychological needs affect the motivation of word-of-mouth. Moreover, the expertise of the sender affects the motivation of word-of-mouth through competence need, and the relationship strength between the sender and the receiver affects word-of-mouth motivation through relatedness need. This study will help companies to get deeper understanding of WOM motivation, and suggestions is given to improve satisfaction of consumer basic psychological needs in marketing activities.


Full Text : PDF
References
  1. Anderson, E. W. 1998. Customer Satisfaction and Word of Mouth. Journal of service. 1:5-17
  2. Bansal, H.S. & P.A. Voyer. 2000. Word-of-Mouth Processes within a Services Purchase Decision Context. Journal of Service Research. 3(2): 166-177
  3. Bristor, J.M. 1990. Enhanced Explanations of Word-of-mouth Communications: The power of Relationships [J]. Research in Consumer Behavior. 4: 51-83
  4. Brown, T.J. 2005. Spreading the Word: Investigating Antecedents of Consumers' Positive Word-of-Mouth Intentions and Behaviors in a Retailing Context. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science. 33(2): 123-138
  5. Childers, T. L., C. L. Carr, P. Joann, & C. Stephen. 2001. Hedonic and Utilitarian Motivations for online Retail Shopping Behavior. Journal of Retailing. 77: 511-535
  6. Deci, E.L. & R.M. Ryan, 2001. The 'What' and 'Why' of Goal Pursuits: Human Needs and the Self-Determination of Behavior. Psychological Inquiry. 11(4): 227-242
  7. Dichter, E. 1996. How Word-of-Mouth Advertising Works. Harvard Business Review. 44(6): 147-161
  8. Engel, J. F., R. J. Kegerreis & R.D. Blackwell. 1969. Word-of-Mouth Communication by the Innovator. The Journal of Marketing. 33(3): 15-19
  9. Fieck, L.F.，& L. L. Price. 1987. The Market Maven: A Diffuser of Marketplace Information. Journal of Marketing. 51(1): 87-97
  10. Frenzen, J. K. & K. Nakamoto. 1993. Structure, Cooperation, and the Flow of Market Information, Journal of Consumer Research. 20: 360-375
  11. Hennig-Thurau, Thorsten, Kevin P. Gwinner, Gianfranco Walsh & Dwayne D. Gremler. 2004. Electronic Word of Mouth via Consumer-opinion Platforms——What Motivates Consumers to Articulate Themselves on the Internet? Journal of Interactive Marketing. 18(1): 38-52
  12. Lihong Liu & Jijia Zhang. 2010. The Theory and application of Self-determination on Motivation, Academic Journal of Huanan Normal University (Social Science). 4: 53-59
  13. Mee-Shew, C., M.M. Anitsal & I. Anitsal. 2007. Revisiting Word-of-mouth Communications; A Cross-National Exploration. Journal of Marketing Theory & Practice. 15(3): 235-249
  14. Mitchell, A.A. & P.A. Dacin. 1996. The Assessment of Alternative Measures of Consumer Expertise. Journal of Consumer Research. 23(3): 219-239
  15. Netemeyer, R.G., W.O. Bearden & J.E. Teel. 1992. Consumer Susceptibility to Interpersonal Influence and Attributional Sensitivity. Psychology & Marketing. 9(5): 379-394
  16. Price, L.L., L.F. Feick & A. Guskey. 1995. Everyday Market Helping Behavior. Journal of Public Policy and Marketing. 14(2): 255-266
  17. Smith, D. N. 2002. Trust Me, Would I Steer You Wrong? The Influence of Peer Recommendations within Virtual Communities. Doctoral. Thesis, University of Illinois, Chicago
  18. Sundaram, D.S., K. Mitra & C. Webster. 1998. Word-of-Mouth Communications: A Motivational Analysis. Advances in Consumer Research. 25(1): 527-531
  19. Vallerand, R.J. 1997. Toward a Hierarchical Model of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology. 27: 271-360
  20. Wirtz, J. & P. Chew. 2002. The Effects of Incentives, Deal Proneness, Satisfaction and Tie Strength on Word-of-mouth Behaviour. International Journal of Service Industry Management. 13(2): 141-162