This paper investigates the AI intention–behaviour gap in higher education, defined as the misalignment between students' stated intention to use generative AI for study-related purposes and their enacted use. Although behavioural intention is central in technology acceptance research, prior evidence indicates that intention explains only a modest share of variance in technology use, suggesting that intention and behaviour may diverge. Building on this premise, I examine how AI-specific perceptions and individual characteristics predict (a) students' intention to use ChatGPT and (b) their self-reported usage behaviour, allowing a direct test of whether determinants of intention and behaviour overlap or differ. Survey data were collected from 310 higher-education students in the Netherlands. Results indicate a substantive intention–behaviour gap, with intention to use ChatGPT being more prevalent than actual use. Logistic regression analyses show that emotional creepiness, need for human interaction, and self-efficacy are associated with both intention and use, whereas trust predicts intention but not use, and observability predicts use but not intention. These findings advance research on human-AI interaction and educational technology adoption by demonstrating that predictors of intention and enacted use are not fully aligned for generative AI tools in higher education. Practically, the results provide support for the notion that efforts to support effective implementation should not focus solely on increasing positive attitudes, but also on reducing affective barriers, strengthening students’ capability to use generative AI responsibly, and improving the visibility of acceptable use practices within institutions.
Artificial intelligence can advance the Sustainable Development Goals, yet its societal impact depends on equitable, responsible, context-sensitive adoption. Across higher education, fragmented or restrictive policies, limited stakeholder engagement, and unclear guidance can suppress legitimate use and widen inequities. This article synthesises two empirical studies of ChatGPT adoption among Dutch higher-education students. Study 1, an eight-month longitudinal panel (n = 222), shows that declining use is predicted by reduced trust, lower perceived behavioural control, and heightened emotional creepiness. Study 2, a cross-sectional survey (n = 355) extending meta-UTAUT, finds that anthropomorphism, trust, and design novelty shape attitudes and intentions, while institutional policy negatively moderates the intention-use link, indicating that restrictive governance can deter engagement. The evidence supports SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities), and SDG 16 (Strong Institutions) and yields actionable recommendations to implement transparent, proportionate rules, build targeted AI literacy, minimise emotional discomfort, and embed safeguards that limit misuse. Grounded in Responsible Research and Innovation, the article positions universities as settings for testing governance models that balance innovation with educational integrity and inclusion, and unveils an impact pathway from institutional levers to short-, medium-, and long-term societal outcomes, informing policymakers and institutional leaders on responsible AI integration.
Although previous literature has identified personal branding as an important concept in marketing, little is understood about the effects of personal brand equity (PBE) during the personnel selection process. To address this research gap, we performed two experimental studies and one field study in the domains of sales and engineering to examine the effect of candidates’ PBE on hiring outcomes through recruiters’ perceptions. This research draws upon signaling theory and an integration of the accessibility-diagnosticity model with the competence-based view of careers and regards PBE as the interpreted outcome of personal branding signals, reflecting how recruiters perceive and evaluate the value conveyed by job candidates. We unveil that candidates’ PBE positively predicts hiring recommendation and that credibility mediates this relationship. Moreover, job hierarchy and objective job qualifications appear to negatively moderate the relationship between candidates’ PBE and hiring recommendation. Our findings also indicate that objective job qualifications negatively interact with candidates’ PBE in predicting their credibility. The present research contributes to personal branding and selection research by offering novel insights into the role of PBE during the interview process, thereby providing guidance for job candidates and practitioners.
When exposed to advertisements, consumers are often suspicious of brand claims. To that end, prior research has explored how individuals evaluate claims to form a judgement under a state of suspicion. Yet, consumer research has not examined how suspicion affects consumers' suspension of their judgement towards the brand. We experimentally investigate the effects of three (low vs. moderate vs. high) levels of consumer suspicion on judgement suspension. Study 1 shows that compared with low or high levels, moderate levels of suspicion lead to significantly higher judgement suspension. Studies 2 and 3 replicate this inverted U-shaped effect for additional brand and product category contexts and unveil that uncertainty towards the brand mediates the effect of suspicion on judgement suspension. In turn, the impact of uncertainty towards the brand on judgement suspension is mediated by product imagery. This research corroborates the effects of suspicion on consumer judgement suspension.
Consumers frequently forecast how their choices will make them feel in future consumption situations. One possible influence during such affective forecasting is their current emotional state. Although the impact of incidental emotions on consumer decision making is well established, limited research has examined the impact of incidental emotions on affective forecasting. The purpose of the present research is to contribute to the understanding of the effects of certainty–uncertainty, as a key appraisal dimension of incidental emotions, on the process and outcome of affective forecasting. The results of four experimental studies demonstrate that experiencing uncertainty associated incidental emotions, such as fear and hope, during affective forecasting, leads to smaller forecasting error compared with experiencing certainty emotions, such as anger and happiness. Furthermore, heuristic processing, as a result of the certainty versus uncertainty appraisals, plays a mediating role in the effect of certainty–uncertainty on forecasting error. The findings of the present research extend the effects of the certainty–uncertainty appraisals in the context of consumer affective forecasting and elucidate the impact of incidental emotions on decision making.
As the field of artificial intelligence (AI) continues to progress, the use of AI-powered chatbots, such as ChatGPT, in higher education settings has gained significant attention. This paper addresses a well-defined problem pertaining to the critical need for a comprehensive examination of students' ChatGPT adoption in higher education. To examine such adoption, it is imperative to focus on measuring actual user behavior. While measuring students' ChatGPT usage behavior at a specific point in time can be valuable, a more holistic approach is necessary to understand the temporal dynamics of AI adoption. To address this need, a longitudinal survey was conducted, examining how students' ChatGPT usage behavior changes over time among students, and unveiling the drivers of such behavior change. The empirical examination of 222 Dutch higher education students revealed a significant decline in students' ChatGPT usage behavior over an 8 month period. This period was defined by two distinct data collection phases: the initial phase (T1) and a follow-up phase conducted 8 months later (T2). Furthermore, the results demonstrate that changes in trust, emotional creepiness, and Perceived Behavioral Control significantly predicted the observed change in usage behavior. The findings of this research carry significant academic and managerial implications, as they advance our comprehension of the temporal aspects of AI adoption in higher education. The findings also provide actionable guidance for AI developers and educational institutions seeking to optimize student engagement with AI technologies.
Despite their environmental benefits, products made from recycled materials are not readily adopted. Prior studies focused on improving consumer adoption via product attributes and marketing elements, but the impact of product appearance remains a gap in the literature. This research contributes by investigating how observability of the recycled content, as a product appearance intervention, influences consumer adoption of products made from recycled materials. Building on the integrated conceptual framework for consumer response to the visual domain in product design, the findings from three experiments (n1=162, n2=219, n3=320) demonstrate that observability of the recycled content leads to higher purchase intentions (Studies 1, 2 and 3). The underlying process for this effect is that these observable appearance cues trigger identity signaling (Studies 2 and 3). This effect is stronger when the consumption context is public (Study 3). These findings enable practitioners to enhance adoption of these products through altering their appearance.
While the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) tools holds promise for delivering benefits, it is important to acknowledge the associated risks of their deployment. In this article, we conduct a focused literature review to address two central research inquiries concerning ChatGPT and similar AI tools. Firstly, we examine the potential pitfalls linked with the development and implementation of ChatGPT across the individual, organizational, and societal levels. Secondly, we explore the role of a multi-stakeholder responsible research and innovation framework in guiding chatbots’ sustainable development and utilization. Drawing inspiration from responsible research and innovation and stakeholder theory principles, we underscore the necessity of comprehensive ethical guidelines to navigate the design, inception, and utilization of emerging AI innovations. The findings of the focused review shed light on the potential perils of ChatGPT implementation across various societal levels, including issues such as devaluation of relationships, unemployment, privacy concerns, bias, misinformation, and digital inequities. Furthermore, the proposed multi-stakeholder Responsible Research and Innovation framework can empower AI stakeholders to proactively anticipate and deliberate upon AI’s ethical, social, and environmental implications, thus substantially contributing to the pursuit of responsible AI implementation.
The present research aims to highlight the underlying factors that drive students' adoption of the ChatGPT chatbot in higher education. This study extends the meta-UTAUT framework by including additional exogenous factors of anthropomorphism, trust, design novelty, and institutional policy. Empirical examination with Structural Equation Modelling among 355 students in Dutch higher education institutions revealed attitude and behavioural intention as significant positive predictors of students' ChatGPT use behaviour. Institutional policy negatively moderated the effect of behavioural intention on use behaviour. Behavioural intention was significantly and positively influenced by attitude, performance expectancy, social influence, and facilitating conditions. Anthropomorphism, design novelty, trust, performance expectancy, and effort expectancy were unveiled as significant positive antecedents of attitude. The central theoretical contributions of this research include investigating students' use behaviour instead of behavioural intention, establishing attitude as a core construct, underlining additional antecedents of attitude, and highlighting the importance of institutional policy. The present study contributes to prior research on technology adoption, especially in the area of artificial intelligence in education. The findings yield valuable insights for chatbot designers, product managers, and higher education policy writers.
Purpose - The objective is to identify the effects of suspicion as well as knowledge gaps, especially in noninterpersonal contexts. This study aims to propose a robust framework for future research. The overarching goal is to foster a comprehensive understanding of consumer suspicion, its implications and its potential avenues in the ever-evolving field of consumer behavior. Design/methodology/approach - Based on a focused review of the literature, this study synthesizes the effects of suspicion in interpersonal and noninterpersonal contexts to unveil its importance for consumer behavior. Findings - The cognitive, affective and behavioral effects of suspicion are identified. Furthermore, a discernible imbalance is observed, as the predominant focus on interpersonal consumer contexts leaves a significant gap in the comprehension of how consumers navigate and perceive suspicion in noninterpersonal interactions. This topic is important especially in an era dominated by complex brand interrelationships and digital touchpoints. Also, the operationalization of the suspicion construct in a plethora of studies seems to be suboptimal, suggesting a need for improvements with respect to its dynamic nature. In this regard, this review provides insightful directions to advance research in the abovementioned domains. Research limitations/implications - The synthesis of the findings of the empirical articles did not focus on variations in consumer suspicion across different cultures or regions. In addition, the dynamic nature of suspicion and the evolving landscape of consumer behavior mean that findings and implications may require periodic reassessment to maintain relevance. Also, this review did not delve into the methodological diversities across the studies examined. Practical implications - This review offers marketers and businesses critical insights into the consumer suspicion dynamics. By understanding these nuances, companies can tailor strategies to mitigate suspicion and optimize consumer relationships. Originality/value - Through synthesizing the effects of suspicion and providing avenues for future research, this study significantly contributes to consumer behavior literature.
Consumers have a positive attitude towards products made from recycled materials; however, they frequently end up not purchasing them. To shed light on the factors that influence consumer preferences and acceptance of products made from recycled materials, a scoping review was conducted with the following objectives: (1) to explore which factors are drivers of the acceptance of products made from recycled materials, (2) to identify and analyse potential barriers for their adoption, and (3) to formulate recommendations for future research in order to further enhance choices of alternatives made from recycled materials. The review of the results from 46 articles demonstrated that factors such as environmental benefits, perceived quality, safety, risks, emotions, and individual differences influence consumer acceptance of products made from recycled materials. The present review presents the state-of-the-art of the existing literature and future potential directions that can be fruitful for academics and practitioners interested in the topic.
The circular economy can reduce the environmental footprint of today’s consumption and close the resource loop through circular material flows. Companies are encouraged to follow circular principles, such as using more recycled plastic materials. This initiative seems promising; however, it will only be successful if consumers are willing to adopt products that are made from recycled plastics. Consumers often have a positive image of products made from recycled plastics; however, they are also concerned about the perceived product risks. How can companies increase the appeal of recycled plastics to consumers? In this paper, we propose a set of seven guidelines intended to highlight the value of products made from recycled plastics, tackle any perceived risks, and thereby enhance consumer acceptance of such products. Specifically, we highlight how aspects related to product design, marketing elements and business models, can increase consumer evaluations and adoption of products made from recycled plastics. The proposed guidelines provide future directions that could be inspiring for both academics and managers interested in the topics of consumer behaviour, circular economy, and sustainability.
The impact of incidental emotions on decision making is well established. Incidental emotions can be differentiated on several appraisal dimensions, including certainty-uncertainty. The present research investigates the effect of certainty-uncertainty of incidental emotions on hedonic forecasting. The results of four experimental studies indicate that uncertainty-associated incidental emotions, such as fear and hope, compared with certainty emotions, such as anger and happiness, amplify predicted utility. This amplification effect is confirmed for opposite utility types; uncertainty-associated emotions, when compared with their certainty counterparts, lead to an overprediction of positive utilities and to an underprediction of negative utilities. This effect is mediated by the prediction task uncertainty, providing evidence for a carryover process of the incidental emotion. The effect of task uncertainty on predicted utility is, in turn, partly mediated by attention to the task, suggesting that an affective adaptation process lies behind the amplification of forecasts. Taken together, these findings extend the impact of certainty-uncertainty to the context of hedonic forecasting and further corroborate the impact of incidental emotions in judgment and decision making.