Psychological ownership and brand hate: A scenario-based survey study

Abstract

This study aims to explore the impact of psychological ownership on brand hate in the context of the Vietnamese automotive market. Using a scenario-based survey study and PLS-SEM methodology, the study assesses the influence of psychological ownership on brand hate when consumers face product and service defects. Simultaneously, the study examines the differences in emotional responses among consumers with various levels of psychological ownership. Analysis of data collected from 631 Vietnamese car consumers through purposive sampling strategy shows that psychological ownership has a positive and statistically significant impact on brand hate; the higher level of psychological ownership leads to the stronger brand hate reaction when the defects occur. This result confirms the role of psychological ownership as an important antecedent but it is often neglected in brand hate research. The study's findings contribute to a broader understanding of the factors leading to brand hate, while also providing important insights for businesses in sustainable brand management, indicating that fostering consumer psychological ownership without appropriate risk control mechanisms can make brands more vulnerable, especially for high-value, high-involvement assets such as automobiles in the Vietnamese context.