The Allure of Arrogance: When Arrogance in Persuasive Communication Enhances Consumer Attitudes

• Main Authors: Hasford, Jonathan, Senyuz, Aysu
• Format: Conference Proceeding
• Language: English
• Subjects: Brands; Consumer attitudes; Consumer behavior; Market strategy
• ISSN: 0098-9258

To persuade buyers and signal superiority relative to the competition, companies use a variety of tactics to emphasize the benefits of their products and brands. In the process of emphasizing one's superiority, however, a brand may be viewed as arrogant by consumers if it exhibits an exaggerated sense of superiority while simultaneously disparaging competitors (Brown 2012). While many studies have noted the detrimental effects of arrogance, we propose that arrogance may have beneficial effects when individuals have a salient relationship motive. We predict that individuals with a relationship formation motive are more accepting of arrogant displays given the importance of self-promotion during the relationship formation process. Because of the importance of emphasizing one's unique characteristics relative to potential rivals during the initial formation of romantic relationships (Buss 1988), we propose that this greater acceptance of selfpromoting behaviors extends into more favorable responses toward arrogance in persuasive communications. Furthermore, boundary conditions to this effect are identified, such as the type of product being featured (image-enhancing vs. non-image enhancing) and perceptions of the brand (luxury vs. value). In Study 1, 144 undergraduate students (46.5% female, Mage = 21.4) were randomly assigned to a single-factor (ad type: arrogant vs. control) between-subjects design. First, participants were asked to indicate whether they are currently in a relationship. 63 participants reported that they are currently not in a relationship, while 81 participants reported that they are. Participants who said they were currently in a relationship were asked to provide the duration of the relationship in years and months (M = 2.79 years). Relationship length was converted to total years for all participants (e.g. 2 years and 6 months equals 2.5) and participants not in a relationship were coded as 0. Next, participants were shown one of two print ads for a Samsung phone (arrogant ad condition: slogan of "Bend to those who are worthy"; control ad condition: no slogan). Then, participants provided their attitudes toward the ad and rated the arrogance of the advertisement. Results of moderation analysis via PROCESS Model 1 (Hayes 2013) showed a significant interaction effect of relationship length x ad type (ß = -.40, t = -3.26, p = .001). Conditional effects of the predictor at different levels of moderator revealed a significant effect of relat