Retracted Marketing Articles

  • Running tally: 20 marketing pubs retracted
  • By default, the most recent retractions are at the top.
Original paperRetraction noticeReasonAuthor w/multiple retractionsCategoryJournalYear of retraction
Chan, E. Y., Northey, G., & Borau, S. (2022). Economic Conservatism Predicts Preference for Automated Products. Journal of the Association for Consumer Research, 7(3), 287-295.https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/723896After publication, the first author identified significant errors in the experimental procedure for study 1, as well as an error in the analysis, for which he apologizes. Given this, the findings can no longer be considered reliable. All the data in this article were collected and analyzed by the first author. The second and third authors joined the research after study 1 was completed and after completion of the first round of reviews. We regretfully retract this article. The authors apologize for any problems that the publication of this article may have caused.ErrorsJournal of the Association of Consumer Research2023
Sinha, J., & Wang, J. (2013). How time horizon perceptions and relationship deficits affect impulsive consumption. Journal of Marketing Research, 50(5), 590-605.Sinha J, Wang J. RETRACTED : How Time Horizon Perceptions and Relationship Deficits Affect Impulsive Consumption. Journal of Marketing Research. 2013;50(5):590-605. doi:10.1509/jmr.11.0246A third party contacted the journal to identify concerns that Table 1 in the article seemed to display improbable results. Following AMA’s standard procedures, the Editor forwarded the concerns to the AMA Vice President of Publications, who arranged for a review by a panel of independent scholars. The AMA Vice President of Publications also contacted the authors, who were cooperative in assisting with the process. The first author did provide an alternate version of the table that she stated she found within her files, but both authors informed the journal that they had not retained the original data associated with the research. In order to review the concerns raised to the journal with only the published table and corrected table, but no data, the independent panel examined the rightmost digits in the reported data of the published table—a standard method of detecting data fraud (Mosimann, Wiseman, and Edelman 1995). The panel found that the published table, as the complaints had suggested, is inconsistent with the data process that generated the data. The panel expressed concerns with the alternate table, but without the original data, there was no way to confirm the veracity. The panel determined the published table is unquestionably highly anomalous and the alternate table cannot be confidently used as a correction. Based on these concerns, the panel recommended that the article overall was not reliable, and the Editor in Chief concurred. Reference Mosimann, James E., Wiseman, Claire V., Edelman, Ruth E. (1995), “Data Fabrication: Can People Generate Random Digits?” Accountability in Research, 4 (1), 31–55.Jayati SinhaData anomaliesJournal of Marketing Research2022
Gao, Fei, Tina M. Lowrey, L.J. Shrum, and Mark J. Landau (2022), “Priming the Concept of Fullness with Visual Sequences Reduces Portion Size Choice in Online Food Ordering,” Journal of Marketing Research, 0 (0), https://doi.org/10.1177/00222437221105028.https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/00222437221149006The second and third authors were contacted by an anonymous reader who identified data and analysis anomalies in the published research and posted data. The reader requested the raw Qualtrics data files from Study 2a and Study 3. Since the data is owned by HEC Paris, the authors requested an independent investigation be conducted to determine if the original data files matched the posted data files on which the analyses and results were conducted and reported in the article. An investigation led by the AMA in collaboration with the authors has indicated that the results reported in the article are not supported by the data. Due to the inconsistencies between the published data and the underlying raw data, the article has been retracted.Data anomaliesJournal of Marketing Research2022
Nicole Verrochi Coleman, Patti Williams, Andrea C Morales, Andrew Edward White, Retracted: Attention, Attitudes, and Action: When and Why Incidental Fear Increases Consumer Choice, Journal of Consumer Research, Volume 44, Issue 2, August 2017, Pages 283–312, https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucx036Retraction: Attention, Attitudes, and Action: When and Why Incidental Fear Increases Consumer Choice, Journal of Consumer Research, Volume 47, Issue 3, October 2020, Page 473, https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucaa039The authors wish to retract the above-referenced article due to data and analysis anomalies in the studies underpinning the research and because the record of primary data from the studies is incomplete. The editors agree that these anomalies make the findings reported in this article unreliable. The authors and the editors apologize for any problems that the publication of this article may have caused.Nicole ColemanData anomaliesJournal of Consumer Research2020
Nicole Verrochi Coleman, Patti Williams, and Andrea C. Morales (2019), “Identity Threats, Compensatory Consumption, and Working Memory Capacity: How Feeling Threatened Leads to Heightened Evaluations of Identity-Relevant Products,” Journal of Consumer Research, 46, 1 (June), 99–118.Retraction: Identity Threats, Compensatory Consumption, and Working Memory Capacity: How Feeling Threatened Leads to Heightened Evaluations of Identity-Relevant Products, Journal of Consumer Research, Volume 47, Issue 3, October 2020, Page 472, https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucaa033The authors wish to retract the above-referenced article due to data and analysis anomalies in the studies underpinning the research and because the record of primary data from the studies is incomplete. The article states the second and third co-authors supervised the data collection and the data were analyzed by the first author. All authors have subsequently stated that the data were the sole responsibility of the first author. Ultimately, the editors agree that these anomalies make the findings reported in this article unreliable. The authors and the editors apologize for any problems that the publication of this article may have caused.Nicole ColemanData anomaliesJournal of Consumer Research2020
Patti Williams & Nicole Verrochi Coleman & Andrea C. Morales & Ludovica Cesareo, 2020. “Retraction,” Journal of the Association for Consumer Research, University of Chicago Press, vol. 5(4), pages 495-495.Patti Williams & Nicole Verrochi Coleman & Andrea C. Morales & Ludovica Cesareo, 2020. “Retraction,” Journal of the Association for Consumer Research, University of Chicago Press, vol. 5(4), pages 495-495.The authors hereby retract the article “Connections to Brands that Help Others versus Help the Self: The Impact of Incidental Awe and Pride on Consumer Relationships with Social-Benefit and Luxury Brands,” published in the April 2018 issue (vol. 3 [2], 202–215) of the Journal of the Association for Consumer Research. After reviewing, the first, third, and fourth authors noticed irregularities in the raw data, which were collected under the supervision of and analyzed solely by the second author. The first, third, and fourth authors state that they had no prior knowledge of these irregularities. Unfortunately, the anomalies in the raw data cannot be sufficiently explained, nor corrected. As such, the results drawn from these data can no longer be considered reliable. We regretfully retract this article. The first, third, and fourth authors apologize for any problems that the publication of this article may have caused.Nicole ColemanData anomaliesJournal of the Association of Consumer Research2020
Xun (Irene) Huang, Ping Dong, and Meng Zhang (2019), “Crush on You: Romantic Crushes Increase Consumers’ Preferences for Strong Sensory Stimuli,” Journal of Consumer Research, 46, (June), 53–68.Retraction: Crush on You: Romantic Crushes Increase Consumers’ Preferences for Strong Sensory Stimuli, Journal of Consumer Research, Volume 46, Issue 6, April 2020, Page 1128, https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucaa009The first and third authors have requested to retract the above-referenced article due to data and analysis anomalies they discovered across the studies underpinning the research. The editors of the Journal of Consumer Research have been unable to contact the second author. The editors agree that these anomalies make the findings reported in this article unreliable. The two co-authors and the editors apologize for any problems that the publication of this article may have caused.Ping DongData anomaliesJournal of Consumer Research2020
Yaxuan Ran, Sam J Maglio, RETRACTED: Sorry by Size: How the Number of Apologizers Affects Apology Effectiveness, Journal of Consumer Research, Volume 46, Issue 6, April 2020, Pages i1–i58, https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucz056Retraction: Sorry by Size: How the Number of Apologizers Affects Apology Effectiveness, Journal of Consumer Research, Volume 46, Issue 6, April 2020, Page 1127, https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucaa002This article has been retracted by the editors of the Journal of Consumer Research because it overlaps with an article published previously in another journal. A comparison of the two articles by the editors revealed similarity on a number of dimensions, both conceptual and empirical. The first author, as the primary author for both the previously published article and the retracted article, states that she misunderstood the duplication policy. The second author was unaware of the existence of the previously published article. The editors and both authors apologize for any problems that the publication of this article may have caused.DuplicationJournal of Consumer Research2020
Coleman, N. M. V., & Williams, P. (2015). Looking for My Self: Identity-Driven Attention Allocation. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 25 (3), 504–511. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcps.2015.01.001Retraction: Coleman, N. M. V., & Williams, P. (2015). Looking for My Self: Identity-Driven Attention Allocation. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 25 (3), 504–511. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcps.2015.01.001The above article from the Journal of Consumer Psychology, published online on January 13, 2015, in Wiley Online Library (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1016/j.jcps.2015.01.001), has been retracted by agreement between the authors, the Editors, and John Wiley & Sons Ltd. The retraction has been agreed because the first author, who was responsible for data collection and analysis, can no longer provide the original, raw data reported in this article for independent inspection.Nicole ColemanData anomaliesJournal of Consumer Psychology2020
Ping Dong and Chen-Bo Zhong (2017), “Witnessing Moral Violations Increases Conformity in Consumption,” Journal of Consumer Research, 44, 4 (December), 778–793.Retraction: Witnessing Moral Violations Increases Conformity in Consumption, Journal of Consumer Research, Volume 47, Issue 4, December 2020, Page 632, https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucaa048The second author wishes to retract the above-referenced article due to data and analysis anomalies. An anonymous researcher identified anomalies that the editors of the Journal of Consumer Research and the second author agree make the findings reported in this article unreliable. The editors of the Journal of Consumer Research have been unable to obtain a response from the first author. The second author and the editors apologize for any problems that the publication of this article may have caused.Ping DongData anomaliesJournal of Consumer Research2020
Xun (Irene) Huang, Ping Dong, Anirban Mukhopadhyay, Retracted: Proud to Belong or Proudly Different? Lay Theories Determine Contrasting Effects of Incidental Pride on Uniqueness Seeking, Journal of Consumer Research, Volume 41, Issue 3, 1 October 2014, Pages 697–712, https://doi.org/10.1086/677225Retraction, Journal of Consumer Research, Volume 46, Issue 5, February 2020, Page 1008, https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucz057The first and third authors wish to retract the above-referenced article due to data and analysis anomalies they recently discovered across the studies underpinning the research. The editors of the Journal of Consumer Research have been unable to obtain a response from the second author. The editors agree that these anomalies make the findings reported in this article unreliable. The two co-authors and the editors apologize for any problems that the publication of this article may have caused.Ping DongData anomaliesJournal of Consumer Research2019
Kim, K., & Ahn, S. J. (Grace). (2017). The Role of Gamification in Enhancing Intrinsic Motivation to Use a Loyalty Program. Journal of Interactive Marketing, 40, 41–51.Kyongseok Kim, Sun Joo (Grace) Ahn, RETRACTED: The Role of Gamification in Enhancing Intrinsic Motivation to Use a Loyalty Program, Journal of Interactive Marketing, Volume 40, 2017, Pages 41-51, ISSN 1094-9968, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intmar.2017.07.001.This article has been retracted at the request of the Co-Editors-in-Chief. The article is a duplicate of a paper that has already been published in Psychology & Marketing, 34(9), 842–852. https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.21026. One of the conditions of submission of a paper for publication is that authors declare explicitly that the paper has not been previously published and is not under consideration for publication elsewhere. As such this article represents a misuse of the scientific publishing system. The scientific community takes a very strong view on this matter and apologies are offered to readers of the journal that this was not detected during the submission process.DuplicationJournal of Interactive Marketing2017
Miao, C., Hughes, D., Richards, K., & Fu, F. (2016). RETRACTED ARTICLE: Understanding the interactive effects of service climate and transactional sales climate on service quality and sales performance. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 44(4), 555. https://doi-org.libproxy.lib.ilstu.edu/10.1007/s11747-015-0430-0Miao, C., Hughes, D., Richards, K., & Fu, F. (2016). RETRACTED ARTICLE: Understanding the interactive effects of service climate and transactional sales climate on service quality and sales performance. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 44(4), 555. https://doi-org.libproxy.lib.ilstu.edu/10.1007/s11747-015-0430-0This article has been retracted by the Academy of Marketing Science because the findings are unreliable as a result of honest error by the authors involving inaccurate description of the measurement approach. The online version of this article contains the full text of the retracted article as electronic supplementary material.Explainable errorsJournal of the Academy of Marketing Science2016
Chatterjee, P., Rose, R.L. & Sinha, J. RETRACTED ARTICLE: Why money meanings matter in decisions to donate time and money. Mark Lett 24, 109–118 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11002-012-9215-0Chatterjee, P., Rose, R.L. & Sinha, J. RETRACTED ARTICLE: Why money meanings matter in decisions to donate time and money. Mark Lett 24, 109–118 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11002-012-9215-0This article has been retracted at the suggestion of journal Editors-in-Chief, Peter N. Golder and Joel H. Steckel. The article’s authors unanimously requested retraction of Study 3 based on unexplained anomalies in the data and coding errors. As a result, the editors deem it appropriate to retract the entire article.Jayati SinhaData anomaliesMarketing Letters2016
Dirk Smeesters, Thomas Mussweiler, Naomi Mandel, RETRACTED: The Effects of Thin and Heavy Media Images on Overweight and Underweight Consumers: Social Comparison Processes and Behavioral Implications, Journal of Consumer Research, Volume 36, Issue 6, April 2010, Pages 930–949, https://doi.org/10.1086/648688Retraction, Journal of Consumer Research, Volume 41, Issue 1, 1 June 2014, Page 236, https://doi.org/10.1086/676823It has come to our attention that the article “The Effects of Thin and Heavy Media Images on Overweight and Underweight Consumers: Social Comparison Processes and Behavioral Implications,” by Dirk Smeesters, Thomas Mussweiler, and Naomi Mandel, which appeared in the April 2010 issue of the Journal of Consumer Research (vol. 36, no. 6), was found to involve blameworthy inaccuracies in the way the research was carried out by Dirk Smeesters but not by the coauthors of the work. The EUR Inquiry Committee on Scientific Integrity (CWI) commissioned by the Board of Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR) has made this determination. We are therefore informing our readers that this article has been retracted. We apologize for any problems that the publication of this article may have caused.Dirk SmeestersData fabricationJournal of Consumer Research2014
Liu, J., & Smeesters, D. (2010). Have you seen the news today? The effect of death-related media contexts on brand preferences. Journal of Marketing Research, 47(2), 251-262.https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/00222437221139856On March 19, 2014, the Journal of Marketing Research and American Marketing Association (AMA) issued a retraction related to Jia (Elke) Liu and Dirk Smeesters’s (2010) article, “Have You Seen the News Today? The Effect of Death-Related Media Contexts on Brand Preferences” (Volume 47, Issue 2, pp. 251–62), at the recommendation of then–Editor in Chief Robert Meyer. The retraction was issued following the recommendation of a report dated March 5, 2014, from Tilburg University. A Tilburg committee conducted an intensive investigation into the data collection and analysis of this article and concluded that it should be retracted. Although the retraction was made public in 2014, when the AMA entered into a partnership with SAGE Publications to produce and distribute the Journal of Marketing Research in 2018, the retracted version was not included in SAGE’s scholarly record due to a clerical error. This notice serves to correct the error.Dirk SmeestersData fabricationJournal of Marketing Research2014
Jia Liu, Dirk Smeesters, Kathleen D. Vohs, RETRACTED: Reminders of Money Elicit Feelings of Threat and Reactance in Response to Social Influence, Journal of Consumer Research, Volume 38, Issue 6, 1 April 2012, Pages 1030–1046, https://doi.org/10.1086/661553Retraction, Journal of Consumer Research, Volume 41, Issue 1, 1 June 2014, Page 236, https://doi.org/10.1086/676822It has come to our attention that the article “Reminders of Money Elicit Feelings of Threat and Reactance in Response to Social Influence,” by Jia (Elke) Liu, Dirk Smeesters, and Kathleen D. Vohs, which appeared in the April 2012 issue of the Journal of Consumer Research (vol. 38, no. 6), was found to involve blameworthy inaccuracies in the way the research was carried out by Dirk Smeesters but not by the coauthors of the work. The EUR Inquiry Committee on Scientific Integrity (CWI) commissioned by the Board of Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR) has made this determination. We are therefore informing our readers that this article has been retracted. We apologize for any problems that the publication of this article may have caused.Dirk SmeestersData fabricationJournal of Consumer Research2014
Trampe, D., Stapel, D. A., Siero, F. W., & Mulder, H. (2010). Beauty as a tool: The effect of model attractiveness, product relevance, and elaboration likelihood on advertising effectiveness. Psychology & Marketing, 27, 1101–1121. DOI: 10.1002/mar.20375Retraction statement: Beauty as a tool: The effect of model attractiveness, product relevance, and elaboration likelihood on advertising effectiveness. (2012). Psychology & Marketing, 29(10), 805. https://doi-org.libproxy.lib.ilstu.edu/10.1002/mar.20565The following article from Psychology & Marketing, “Beauty as a tool: The effect of model attractiveness, product relevance, and elaboration likelihood on advertising effectiveness” by Trampe, D., Stapel, D. A., Siero, F. W., & Mulder, H. published online on 4 Nov. 2010 in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com), has been retracted by agreement between the authors, the journal Editor-in-Chief, Ronald Jay Cohen, and Wiley Periodicals, Inc. following the results of an investigation into the work of Diederik A. Stapel (https://www.commissielevelt.nl/). The Levelt Committee has determined that this article contained data that was fabricated as supplied by Diederik A. Stapel. His co-authors were unaware of his actions, and not in any way involved.Diederik StapelData fabricationPsychology and Marketing2012
Jia Liu, Dirk Smeesters, Debra Trampe, RETRACTED: Effects of Messiness on Preferences for Simplicity, Journal of Consumer Research, Volume 39, Issue 1, 1 June 2012, Pages 199–214, https://doi.org/10.1086/662139Retraction, Journal of Consumer Research, Volume 39, Issue 2, 1 August 2012, Page 444, https://doi.org/10.1086/667689The article “The Effects of Messiness on Preferences for Simplicity,” by Jia (Elke) Liu, Dirk Smeesters, and Debra Trampe, which appeared in the June 2012 issue of the Journal of Consumer Research (vol. 39, no. 1), has been retracted. We apologize for any problems that the publication of this article may have caused.Dirk SmeestersData fabricationJournal of Consumer Research2012
Debra Trampe, Diederik A. Stapel, Frans W. Siero, Retracted: The Self-Activation Effect of Advertisements: Ads Can Affect Whether and How Consumers Think about the Self, Journal of Consumer Research, Volume 37, Issue 6, 1 April 2011, Pages 1030–1045, https://doi.org/10.1086/657430Retraction, Journal of Consumer Research, Volume 39, Issue 2, 1 August 2012, Page 444, https://doi.org/10.1086/667237It has come to our attention that “The Self-Activation Effect of Advertisements: Ads Can Affect Whether and How Consumers Think about the Self,” by Debra Trampe, Diederik A. Stapel, and Frans W. Siero, which appeared in the April 2011 issue of the Journal of Consumer Research (vol. 37, no. 6), contained fraudulent data that had been manipulated and at times fabricated by Diederik A. Stapel. This has been determined by a joint investigation by the Universities of Tilburg, Groningen, and Amsterdam. We are therefore informing our readers that this article has been retracted. We apologize for any problems that the publication of this article may have caused.Diederik StapelData fabricationJournal of Consumer Research2012
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Inclusion criterion: These retractions are in journals with high bars to publication. Some would call them “A” and “B” journals. I’ve also left out a few where there was a minor issue that was corrected or it was a mistake by the publisher.