| Summary: | Guilt appeals are used to try to influence consumer behavior, with literature defining three kinds – existential, anticipatory, and reactive guilt. Anticipatory and reactive guilt appeals have never been individually studied. The purpose of this study is hence to explain the relationship between anticipatory guilt and reactive guilt, respectively, inferences of manipulative intent, and consumers’ attitude toward a brand. To test this, an online questionnaire was used, followed by linear regression and moderation analyses. The results show a positive relationship between both anticipatory guilt and attitude and between reactive guilt and attitude. Inferences of manipulative intent do not moderate either relationship. Keywords Guilt appeal, anticipatory guilt, reactive guilt, inferences of manipulative intent, consumer brand attitudes
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