Please view the posters presented at the 18th Annual CityTech Faculty and Student Research Poster Session below. You can click on each poster to enlarge it and view the PDF version under the poster abstract.
We thank all presenters for sharing their innovative and informative research with the CityTech community and beyond!
6. Taken for Suckers: Casual Attributions of the Consequences of Overcharging Sales Tax in Daily Deal Transactions
In an experimental setting, we examine consumer participant reactions when daily deal operators provide additional discounts beyond that originally agreed to with the merchants. These discounts could result in sales tax overcharges to consumers. We argue that, under these circumstances, consumers would feel cheated and seek to hold the party most responsible for their feelings. Drawing on attribution theory, we posit that the lower status of the merchants as compared to the daily deal operators will result in consumers ascribing cause to the merchants. We examine the main and moderating effects of the overcharges on the behavioral intentions of consumers to repurchase from merchants. We find support for all hypotheses suggesting that even minor ethical violations come with consequences. Implications of these findings for daily deal participants and tax accountants are discussed. View or download a PDF version of this poster.
