In the egoism philosophical framework, it is contended that when organizations focus on their long-term interests, they, without knowing it, advance the interests of society as a whole, which is perceived as ethical. In this research, this premise is challenged using data collected from the social media outlets of 29 randomly selected companies from the 2013 Fortune 500 list. Through qualitative comparative analysis, the exact opposite was found. In fact, the organizations that focused on striving for their long-term success are (...) perceived as unethical. It was also found that socially responsible organizations are perceived as ethical whereas those that misrepresent their positions and attempt to influence the decisions of others are perceived as unethical. Implications for managers are discussed, and future directions are suggested. (shrink)

As a new addition to the marketing research toolbox, neuromarketing science has given rise to a variety of questions relevant to consumer perceptions of this nascent area of investigation. Neuromarketing researchers are dependent on consumer involvement as research participants, and finding means to educate the public about neuromarketing is a priority for professionals working in the field. This article describes the results of two online questionnaire studies focused on the role of personal constructs presumed to underlie perceptions of neuromarketing research. (...) The findings point to neuromarketing research knowledge, attitudes toward science, attitudes toward technology, and ethical ideology as important factors linked to neuromarketing research attitudes, perceptions of the ethicality of neuromarketing research, and willingness to participate in neuromarketing studies. We discuss the implications of our findings for educating the public about neuromarketing research and encouraging research participation, and we conclude by suggesting directions for future research. (shrink)