INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH AND INNOVATION IN SOCIAL SCIENCE (IJRISS)  
ISSN No. 2454-6186 | DOI: 10.47772/IJRISS | Volume IX Issue XI November 2025  
Warm Brands: Impact of Empathetic Advertising on Positive Mood  
Regulation and Brand Relationship Quality  
1Nadia Sfar., 2Ahmed Ben Hammouda  
1Lecturer at the Faculty of Economics and Management of Mahdia, University of Monastir  
2Professor at the Higher Institute of Management of Tunis MUT-COM/ LARIME  
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.47772/IJRISS.2025.91100356  
Received: 28 November 2025; Accepted: 03 December 2025; Published: 11 December 2025  
ABSTRACT  
This study aims to leverage consumers' positive moods to optimize the effectiveness of advertising campaigns.  
It seeks to determine how empathy can be used in advertising as a tool for emotional regulation, helping to  
establish a deeper and more lasting connection with consumers. An online experiment was conducted for the  
empirical study of the issue. The hypotheses were tested using structural modeling (via AMOS software) on a  
sample of 240 participants, and the sampling method adopted was convenience sampling. The results show that  
the perception of advertising that is congruent with the consumer's positive mood as empathetic stimulates the  
anthropomorphism of the advertised brand. Furthermore, this anthropomorphism of the advertised brand  
improves the quality of the consumer's relationship with that brand. However, the positive mood induced in  
consumers does not seem to stimulate their need for social affiliation or their perception of advertising that is  
congruent with their mood as empathetic, and the need for social affiliation, in turn, does not tend to stimulate  
brand anthropomorphism. This research is part of the current trend toward humanizing the customer-brand  
relationship through AI and paves the way for hyper-personalized and emotionally intelligent advertising. By  
measuring parameters such as facial expressions, heart rate variations, and vocal tones, integrated technologies  
(smartphone cameras, connected watches, etc.) make it possible to tailor advertising content to match the user's  
positive mood. This research goes beyond traditional segmentation criteria (age, gender, marital status) to rely  
on precise emotional data, enabling highly personalized advertising campaigns. This research reverses the  
dominant perspective in the literature on empathy in advertising. It shifts the focus away from consumers'  
empathetic responses to advertising and treats advertising itself as a non-interpersonal empathetic agent, capable  
of projecting itself onto the consumer to share and maintain their pleasant emotional state. This tends to influence  
the quality of the consumer-brand relationship.  
Keywords: Empathetic advertising, positive mood regulation, anthropomorphism, social affiliation, quality of  
brand relationship  
INTRODUCTION  
Today, consumers no longer buy solely for rational reasons, but also—and above all—for emotional benefits.  
They are interested in the tangible benefits of consumption, as well as the emotional experience that comes with  
it. The challenge is clear: in a saturated market, emotion and personification become differentiating factors. As  
a result, modern marketing does not sell a product, it creates a relationship (Hamamouch, 2022). In this  
relationship, the brand, perceived as a living partner, must understand and respond to the consumer's emotions.  
Historically, research has focused primarily on how people regulate negative emotions to cope with negative  
events, while the regulation of positive emotions has received much less attention (Tugade and Frederickson,  
2007). This imbalance reflects the importance placed, in everyday life and in clinical settings, on managing  
distress rather than maintaining or adjusting pleasant positive emotional experiences (Folkman & Moskowitz,  
2004).  
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However, a range of studies indicate that people actively regulate positive emotions (Tugade and Frederickson,  
2007). For example, in a pioneering qualitative study by Gross et al. (2006), participants reported that although  
they regulate negative emotions more frequently, they also reported and described the use of regulatory strategies  
aimed at modifying the experience or expression of positive emotions, such as love and pride. Furthermore,  
hedonistic perspectives suggest that individuals naturally seek to maintain or prolong positive affective states.  
For example, people often share good news with others to prolong their joy (Tugade and Frederickson, 2007).  
Research supports this view, demonstrating that happiness motivates behaviors aimed at preserving the positive  
state (Isen & Patrick, 1983). Wegener and Petty (1994) further explain, according to the hedonic contingency  
model, that people associate benefits with positive emotions and strategically choose actions or thoughts to  
maintain or reinforce these experiences.  
These findings have broadened the traditional view of emotion regulation to include positive emotions and have  
raised new questions for exploration. For example: Why do people regulate positive emotions? What strategies  
do they use to maintain (prolong) or intensify (reinforce) these pleasant states (Tugade and Frederickson, 2007)?  
It is this aspect of emotional regulation that we focus on in the present study dealing with positive moods.  
Theories of mood regulation (Festinger, 1957; Zillmann, 1988), consumer-brand relationship theory (Fournier,  
1998), the mechanism of brand anthropomorphization (Fournier, 1998; Epley et al., 2007), and the empathy that  
can develop between these two interactive partners (Consoli, 2010) served as the pillars for constructing the  
following research question: Effect of consumers' perception of empathetic advertising in a positive mood  
on the quality of their relationship with the anthropomorphized advertised brand.  
To address this issue, our research is positioned within the positivist epistemological tradition, following a  
hypothetical-deductive approach.  
Theoretical development:  
Regulation of positive emotions  
According to Gross (1998), emotional regulation involves efforts to influence the type of emotions felt, including  
when they occur and how they are expressed or felt (Gross, 1998). These efforts may consist of amplifying  
(upward regulation) or attenuating (downward regulation) emotions, whether positive or negative (Parrot, 1993).  
In addition, emotion regulation processes can occur consciously or unconsciously (Gross, 1998).  
The literature indicates that strategies aimed at maintaining or reinforcing positive emotions play a crucial role  
in achieving adaptive outcomes. While these benefits are appreciable in the short term, positive emotions can  
also have lasting effects on an individual's well-being. To better understand these short- and long-term effects, it  
is useful to distinguish between hedonic well-being and eudaimonic well-being (Tugade and Frederickson,  
2007). Hedonic well-being refers to the pursuit of short-term pleasure and the enjoyment of positive subjective  
experiences. In contrast, eudaimonic well-being is associated with long-term fulfillment and encompasses  
personal development, meaningful relationships, self-acceptance, and a sense of mastery (Ryff & Singer, 1998,  
2000). Although these two forms of well-being are distinct, they are interdependent, each with unique  
determinants and consequences (Ryan & Deci, 2001).  
How does regulating positive emotions contribute to hedonic and eudaimonic well-being? One possibility is that  
regularly experiencing positive emotions—much like exercising a muscle—can have lasting beneficial effects  
over time (Fredrickson, 2000). For example, cultivating positive emotions on a daily basis (hedonic well-being)  
can promote resilience and other personal strengths and, ultimately, contribute to long-term fulfillment  
(eudaimonic well-being). This "exercise" of positive emotions reflects the importance of regulating positive  
emotions in overall well-being and justifies the tendency of individuals to maintain and prolong this emotional  
state for as long as possible (Tugade and Frederickson, 2007).  
It should be noted that emotional regulation also differs from mood regulation. The latter concerns the  
management and adaptation of the experience of mood rather than the discrete elements of emotional behavior.  
Emotions are psychological states s that influence how individuals respond to significant events, while mood or  
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affect refers to the subjective experience of positivity or negativity in these emotional states (Brave and Nass,  
2003). Thus, mood differs from emotion in terms of duration, intensity, and specific evocation. These three  
differences influence the management of strategies available for regulating moods, as opposed to those available  
for regulating emotions (Larsen 2000). However, following Forgas's (1992) approach, we can refer to the broad  
and inclusive term "affect" as both mood (a lasting affective state) and emotion (an intense and short-lived  
affective state) (Chang, 2011). We therefore refer to "emotional regulation" as "mood regulation," specifically  
the positive mood of the consumer.  
Empathetic Advertising:  
Research shows that people often use different strategies to amplify or intensify their positive emotions in  
everyday life. For example, smiling when feeling sad can help mitigate negative emotions (Ekman, 1989; Gross  
et al., 2006; Fredrickson & Levenson, 1998). Another approach is to reflect on the benefits of life in order to  
cultivate gratitude (Emmons & McCullough, 2003). These methods not only intensify positive emotions, but are  
also effective coping mechanisms in difficult times (Tugade and Frederickson, 2007). Thus, people who believe  
that their positive mood will dissipate tend to engage in mood maintenance processes to prolong their pleasant  
affective state (Labroo and Mukhopadhyay, 2009). As a result, a positive mood stimulates expectations that an  
experience or message congruent (of the same valence) with the mood will make one feel even better (Di Muro  
and Murray, 2012).  
The importance of sharing and understanding the positive emotions of others has long been recognized and  
discussed by philosophers, scientists, and even religious figures (Morelli, 2015). Recent theoretical and empirical  
work on positive empathy refers to this phenomenon using different but related terms, such as empathic joy  
(Smith et al., 1989), reactivity to others' positive emotional disclosure (Gable et al., 2006; Reis et al., 2010),  
vicarious conditioning (Aronfreed, 1968), or vicarious reward (Mobbs et al., 2009). Thus, positive empathy can  
be defined as the vicarious understanding and sharing of others' positive emotions (Morelli et al., 2015).  
Since empathy involves understanding the emotional state of others, it is therefore based on communication.  
Stiff and colleagues (1988) postulated that the most frequently manifested display of empathy is communicative,  
and categorized communicative responses to others as prosocial behaviors.  
The role of empathy has been recognized in the appreciation of several aesthetic/emotional experiences: films  
(Mills, 1993; Oliver, 1993, 2008), novels (Mar et al, 2011), and paintings and sculptures (Freedberg and Gallese,  
2008).  
How could advertising constitute an aesthetic experience?  
By nature, advertising is about informing, entertaining, selling, and sometimes inspiring. Advertising is therefore  
neither objective nor neutral. It creates images in people's minds. As a result, in order to persuade and impress  
the target audience, advertising must contain aesthetic elements. Consumers must find something that attracts  
them in the advertisement in order to be persuaded and seek out the advertised product/brand. Thus, no  
advertisement can attract its target audience without aesthetic design (Asemah, Edegoh, and Ogwo, 2013). The  
most likely aesthetic elements in advertising—television advertising in particular—include sound, characters,  
dance, music, colors, etc. (Asemah, Edegoh, and Ogwo, 2013).  
Furthermore, Lee (2012) suggests that aesthetic/emotional pleasure lies partly in the empathic and communal  
experience between the emotional tone of the stimuli and the mood of the perceiver. According to the author,  
aesthetic experiences offer a sense of connection and emotional sharing. These experiences signal an empathetic  
emotional tone, similar to that of an empathetic other. People's preferences for these aesthetic stimuli mimic their  
preferences for others, insofar as these stimuli can serve as substitutes for interpersonal mood sharing (Lee,  
2012). Advertising therefore brings together aesthetic elements that enable it—if well executed and targeted—  
to fulfill the role of an empathetic aesthetic experience, capable of regulating the emotional state of its target  
audience.  
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Quality of Relationship with the Brand (QRM):  
BMQR is a diagnostic tool for conceptualizing and evaluating the strength of the consumer-brand relationship  
(Fournier, 1998). The evaluation of this relationship quality must be based on the manifestations of the  
experience provided to the consumer by the brand (Fournier, 1998).  
BMQ evolves through significant actions on the part of the consumer or the brand, according to the principle of  
reciprocity on which all relationships are based. As a result, and as in any relationship, the actions of consumers  
and/or brands can increase QRM, dilute it, or simply dissipate without having any coincidental effect on QRM  
levels (Fournier, 1998).  
Brand anthropomorphism:  
Fournier's theory (1998) states that one way to legitimize the notion of the brand-as-partner is to look at how  
brands are animated, personalized, or humanized. Brands thus become living entities and qualify as partners in  
legitimate, reciprocal relationships. Brands will therefore play an active role in establishing relationships with  
consumers, insofar as the latter attribute personalities to the brand based on all the actions it undertakes (Aaker  
and Fournier, 1995).  
The brand is thus anthropomorphized insofar as it is perceived as an intentional agent with abilities and  
motivations (Kervyn et al, 2012). It consequently becomes a more plausible partner in the consumer-brand  
relationship (Rauschnabel and Ahuvia, 2014). Aggarwal and McGill (2012) suggest that the role assigned by  
consumers to a particular brand (similar to a business partner, a community partner, or a friend) influences their  
motivation to interact with an anthropomorphized version of that brand as well as their subsequent behaviors in  
response to it.  
Thus, the consumer-brand relationship is not merely metaphorical. In certain circumstances, brands can actually  
meet consumers' interpersonal psychological needs (Dunn and Hoegg, 2014). As a result, the art of giving brands  
personalities lies in the hands of marketers (the writers) and the minds of target consumers (the readers) who  
attribute a meaningful human "face" to the brand (Kniazeva, Russell, and Belk, 2010). By attributing to the  
advertised brand the status of an empathetic agent comparable to an interpersonal other, our work aims to  
investigate the effect of a specific and innovative advertising technique on the quality of the relationship with  
the brand, focusing on its role in regulating the target's emotional state.  
Induced consumer mood:  
Previous research shows that incidental emotions (such as induced mood) influence the evaluation of advertising  
(e.g. Goldberg and Gorn, 1987), the evaluation of the advertised product/brand (e.g. Axelrod, 1963), as well as  
preferences for mood-congruent/incongruent experiences (Lee, 2012; Zillmann et al., 1994, 2000, 2002, 2003).  
However, mood states should not significantly affect evaluations in all cases. The influences of mood can be  
accentuated or reduced depending on circumstances related to the ambiguity of the situation, the time between  
mood induction and evaluation of effects, situational factors that promote objectivity and accuracy, and the  
specific mood itself (Gardner, 2005).  
The Need for Social Affiliation  
Human beings are naturally engaged in a continuous search for intimate, consistent, and meaningful  
interpersonal relationships and interactions (Baumeister and Leary, 1995) that reflect a need for social affiliation  
with others. Any social approach behavior that initiates or maintains social interactions can be considered  
affiliative behavior (Leroy, 2010).  
This is the "need that manifests itself in a tendency experienced by the subject to feel close to someone who is  
similar to them or who loves them, with whom cooperation or exchanges are pleasant; to please that person, to  
win their affection; to seek and value the company of others" (Vallerand, 1994).  
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Hypotheses development  
Consumer mood and need for social affiliation:  
Interpersonal research suggests that individuals in a negative emotional state are more likely to seek affiliation  
with others and share their experience with them (Sarnoff and Zimbardo 1961; Schachter 1959).  
Psychologists have proven that the ability of affiliation to reduce the discomfort of negative emotions is similar  
to the ability of empathy/sympathy, rescue, emotional care, or any other form of emotional support provided to  
stressed or desperate individuals (Hill, 1987a).  
H1: Positive mood stimulates the consumer's need for affiliation  
Consumer Mood and Perception of Empathetic Advertising  
Festinger's (1957) Theory of Selective Exposure to Persuasive Messages and Zillmann's (1988) Mood-  
Management Theory stipulate that individuals arrange and rearrange their environment to manage their affective  
states (positive and negative). These environmental arrangements and rearrangements imply that people are able  
to select stimuli that are likely to affect their moods and modify them as needed (Zillmann, 1988).  
Negative experiences that induce people into an unfavorable emotional state promote the desire for emotionally  
connected, empathetic relationships, both interpersonal and non-interpersonal (Lee, 2012). The desire to feel  
better may well explain this preference for pleasant stimuli, and the literature on emotional regulation confirms  
this proposition (see Cohen, Pham, and Andrade [2008]).  
Empathy and social support absorb discomfort. When individuals perceive adequate social support, the situation  
seems less unpleasant, and their lowest mood level seems less negative. People who receive more social support  
tend to experience a more positive mood (Abro, Klein, and Tabatabaei, 2015).  
All of this leads us to the following research proposal:  
H2: Positive consumer mood stimulates the perception of advertising that is incongruous with their mood as  
empathetic.  
Perception of Empathetic Advertising and Brand Anthropomorphism  
The absence of neutral language in everyday life has made it inevitable and virtually impossible to detach oneself  
from anthropomorphism (Mitchell, 2005). Marketers take advantage of this by using more metaphorical  
language to make their brands more human and bring them closer to the target consumer (Kogeer, 2013).  
For their part, consumers use advertising messages to satisfy their needs and desires, to provide themselves with  
companionship, to resolve their frustrations and insecurities, or to engage in as a form of escapism and fantasy  
(Brierley, 1995). These advertisements are capable of eliciting favorable responses and acting as an emotional  
regulation mechanism for consumers (Kemp et al., 2013): a negative mood stimulates expectations that messages  
incongruous with the mood will make them feel better (Di Muro and Murray, 2012).  
As a result, the use of empathetic language in advertising communications, giving the brand an empathetic  
interpersonal role similar to that of a provider of social support, tends to stimulate the anthropomorphization of  
the advertised brand. Thus:  
H3: The perception of mood-congruent advertising as empathetic stimulates the anthropomorphism of the  
advertised brand.  
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Need for Affiliation and Brand Anthropomorphization  
Previous research suggests that the desire for social affiliation is a major motivational factor in  
anthropomorphism (Epley et al., 2007). The need for social affiliation with others and the ability of non-human  
agents to fulfill this need is the motivational factor of sociality in the theory of Epley et al. (2007). Indeed, this  
theory shows that individuals who need to affiliate and form social bonds tend to form relationships with "new  
potential sources of affiliation" (Maner et al., 2007). These individuals then tend to engage in anthropomorphic  
thinking to satisfy their social needs (Epley et al., 2007).  
In a marketing context, research suggests that consumers with a need for affiliation (e.g., chronic loneliness) are  
more receptive to social cues from human characteristics reflected by brands. This could stimulate successful  
humanization of these brands, with the ultimate goal of overcoming the unpleasant emotional state resulting  
from social disconnection (Puzakova et al., 2009). Thus, the following hypothesis is revealed:  
H4: Consumers' need for affiliation stimulates their tendency to anthropomorphize the advertised brand.  
Brand Anthropomorphization and Brand Relationship Quality  
Existing research stipulates that for a brand to be a legitimate partner in a relationship, consumers must perceive  
it as having human characteristics (Aggarwal and McGill, 2012; Fournier, 1998; Puzakova et al., 2009). This  
suggests that brand anthropomorphism affects the construction of the consumer-brand relationship (Ghuman et  
al., 2015). Moreover, consumers who think of a brand/product in anthropomorphic terms are less willing to  
replace it (Chandler and Schwarz 2010).  
Hudson et al (2015) note that consumers who are cognitively prepared to see the brand as a partner in a  
relationship (anthropomorphizing it) are more motivated to interpret their interaction with the brand as  
interpersonal and thus improve their perception of the quality of their relationship with that brand. The authors  
predict that the higher the level of brand anthropomorphism by consumers, the more likely it is that interactions  
will be positively associated with the quality of the relationship with that brand (Hudson et al., 2015). We will  
therefore test the following hypothesis:  
H5: Brand anthropomorphization improves the quality of the consumer's relationship with that brand.  
The conceptual model for our research is therefore as follows:  
Figure 1: Conceptual model  
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RESEARCH METHODOLOGY  
Description of the study  
The objective of our empirical study is to test the causal links between the negative mood induced in consumers,  
the perception of empathetic advertising as an emotional regulator of this mood, the attenuation of the consumer's  
need for affiliation, the consumer's tendency to anthropomorphize the advertised brand, and the consequences  
of these processes on the quality of the consumer's relationship with the brand. To this end, the experimental  
method is appropriate for testing the hypotheses developed. The hypotheses are tested using structural modeling  
(via AMOS software) on a sample of 240 participants. The sampling method used is convenience sampling.  
Conduct of the experiment  
There are two main approaches to experimental studies: laboratory experiments and field surveys. In the context  
of our research, the main managerial field of application is based on an online context. Therefore, to ensure the  
relevance and usability of the results, it is essential that the target consumer be connected to the Internet. Thus,  
the online survey appears to be the most appropriate and representative method for the real-world context.  
Hypothesis testing is performed using structural modeling (via AMOS software) on a sample of 240 participants.  
The sampling method used is convenience sampling.  
Choice of product and brand  
Academics and advertising professionals often suggest that the effectiveness of emotional advertising messages  
depends on the category of the product being advertised. Indeed, several studies suggest that emotional  
advertising is more effective for hedonic products and low product involvement than for utilitarian products and  
high product involvement (Geuens et al, 2011). According to Pham (1998), consumers with hedonic incentives  
to purchase the product—as opposed to those with utilitarian incentives—are more likely to perceive the feelings  
evoked by the advertisement as relevant. Furthermore, hedonic products can be used as a means of emotion  
management in that people can consume them to mitigate or cancel out the effect of negative emotions (Kemp,  
Bui, and Chapa, 2013). This study explores the use of empathetic language in advertising. A hedonic product is  
therefore ideal for emotion management. Hedonic products, such as food, are often consumed to mitigate  
negative emotions (Kemp, Bui, & Chapa, 2013). A sample of 50 students listed foods that improve their well-  
being. Chocolate was among the top five. Derbaix (1995) requires that the choice of brand for the study must  
respect the absence of a pre-existent affective and cogniti al structure. To ensure this condition, we used an  
unknown brand.  
Mood induction:  
The use of films to induce an emotional state has been employed by several researchers in behavioral literature  
(Fredrickson et al., 2000, Garg, Wansink, and Inman, 2007), and this technique of affect induction has proven  
effective in previous research (Martin and Lawson, 1998). Films provide audio and visual elements that help  
modify subjective emotional states and allow participants to focus on discrete emotional states rather than overall  
affect (Garg, Wansink, and Inamn, 2007). They therefore constitute one of the composite techniques (audio and  
images) for inducing affect, unlike other induction procedures, which have several limitations: memory  
exercises, for example, cannot control the intensity of the emotional experience being recalled, or the specific  
type of emotion experienced, whereas films can control the type of experience each participant undergoes. As  
for hypnosis, only participants who scored high on hypnotic susceptibility tests are selected (see, for example,  
Bower, 1981), and these results cannot therefore be generalized (Eysenck and Keane, 1995).  
Data collection procedure  
All participants should watch a neutralizing video consisting of a documentary on the underwater life of tuna.  
This is because mood induction would be more effective if all survey respondents were initially exposed to a  
video that induces a neutral mood. In addition, the use of this neutralizing video makes the objective of the  
procedure (to induce negative moods) less obvious to respondents (Kelly and Jones, 2012). During the online  
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experiment, respondents are initially exposed to pre-tested mood-inducing stimuli. They are then invited to watch  
an empathetic advertisement specially designed and edited for the study. Once the advertisement has been  
viewed, the respondent completes the rest of the pre-tested questionnaire (see Appendices 1). The mood-inducing  
video sequences were first evaluated by a panel of experts, 90% of whom judged the video to be sad. They were  
then tested by 20 respondents selected from the same main population in which our study took place (Owolabi,  
2009).  
Measurement of variables  
To measure induced negative mood, we used the PANAS scales developed by Watson, Clark, and Tellegen  
(1988). The perception of empathetic advertising is assessed using an adaptation of the scale developed by Plank,  
Minton, and Reid (1996), the first and only scale initially designed to measure empathy in the field of sales  
(Delpechitre, 2013). Hill's (1987a) Interpersonal Orientation Scale (IOS) is used to quantify consumers' need for  
social affiliation. For brand anthropomorphism, we used the three-item scale developed by Epley et al. (2008b).  
Finally, the quality of the relationship with the advertised brand (QRM) is measured using the condensed version  
of Fournier's scale (1998), containing nine items.  
Research results and contributions  
Hypothesis testing and interpretation of results  
The psychometric qualities of the measurement scales used in our questionnaire were verified, and the validity  
of their factorial structure was tested. The first step was to verify the reliability of the measurement scales by  
eliminating any questionable items, if necessary, in order to purify the scales using exploratory factor analysis  
(EFA). The new structure of the measurement scales was then confirmed in a second step by confirmatory factor  
analysis (CFA). Ultimately, the measurement instruments used in our study have satisfactory psychometric  
qualities (Appendices).  
The estimation of the structural model revealed acceptable fit indices. A modification was then made to improve  
the model fit: the Social Affiliation construct presented a discriminant validity problem. Among the remedies for  
the non-verification of this constraint, we opted to eliminate the factor most correlated with the others (Levêque  
and Burns, 2017). In addition, we opted to add covariance links between these errors in the structural model  
(Akrout, 2010). As a result, the model's fit improved (Appendices).  
The following table shows the significance of the structural effects between the study variables:  
Table 1: Estimation results and significance of structural effects (regression coefficients)  
Hypothese  
s
Relationship  
Standardized  
regression  
coefficients  
(Beta)  
Non-  
S.E  
C.R  
P
Hypothesis  
validation  
standardize  
d regression  
coefficients  
(Structural links)  
mood 0.215  
0.141  
0.090  
0.639  
4.248  
0.078  
0.077  
0.173  
2.330  
1.801  
1.159  
3.684  
1.823  
0.072  
0.246  
***  
No  
No  
Yes  
No  
H1  
H2  
H3  
H4  
Social_Affiliation  
mood 0.141  
PercepPubEmp  
PercepPubEmp  
Anthropo  
0.579  
0.682  
Social_Affiliation  
0.068  
Anthropo  
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AnthropoQRM  
0.862  
1.065  
0.154  
6.921  
***  
Yes  
H5  
SE = standard error; C.R = critical ratio; *** p < 0.01  
The estimation results (Table 1) show values |c.r| > 1.96 for the structural links, PercepPubEmpAnthropo, and  
AnthropoQRM. Thus, only hypotheses H2 and H4 are accepted.  
Thus, the perception of advertising that is congruent with the consumer's positive mood as empathetic stimulates  
the anthropomorphism of the advertised brand (H1). Furthermore, this anthropomorphism of the advertised  
brand improves the quality of the consumer's relationship with that brand (H4). However, the positive mood  
induced in consumers does not seem to stimulate their need for social affiliation or their perception of  
advertising congruent with their mood as empathetic (H1), and the need for social affiliation (H3a) does not, in  
turn, tend to stimulate brand anthropomorphism (H4a).  
DISCUSSION OF RESULTS  
The various conclusions drawn from the empirical part are then compared with the results of previous studies in  
order to discuss and summarize the theoretical and empirical significance of the results obtained.  
Effect of Consumer Mood on their Need for Social Affiliation (initial)  
With regard to the first hypothesis, we expected that the positive mood induced in consumers would promote  
their need for social affiliation (initial), in line with the literature (Schachter, 1959; Uchino and Garvey, 1997;  
Leroy, 2010). However, the results of our study contradict this: participants' affiliative tendencies were not  
stimulated by positive affective induction.  
The absence of a desire for social affiliation in the case of positive mood induction is also surprising, given that  
there is a solid body of work linking positive affectivity to sociality (Fredrickson and Branigan, 2005, Watson  
and Clark, 1992). These results therefore highlight that the effect of affective state induction on social affiliation,  
described in much of the literature, is not systematic and depends heavily on the emotional situation (Leroy et  
al., 2010).  
This result can be justified by the fact that individuals who are in a good mood and already feel good tend to  
show weak preferences for absorbing activities (including social affiliation with others). Indeed, this result may  
be consistent with the literature on persuasive message processing, which states that people in a pleasant mood  
engage in superficial strategies and tend to process messages with less cognitive elaboration (Clark and Isen,  
1982; Schwarz, 1990; Mackie and Worth, 1991). These people report that their situation is satisfactory and that  
they do not need careful and extensive processing of the message to which they are exposed (Chang, 2011).  
The literature provides an additional explanation based on the differentiation between endogenous emotions  
(emotions with an internal psychological origin triggered by exposure to a sad video) and exogenous emotions  
(emotions with an external origin, such as electric shocks, painful injections, etc.). A priori, the affective states  
induced in our study are endogenous rather than exogenous, and the strategies for regulating endogenous  
emotions differ from those for regulating exogenous emotions. Indeed, according to Leroy et al. (2010), it can  
be assumed that endogenous emotions may lead individuals to implement methods of affective self-regulation,  
due to their internal origins. Exogenous emotions, on the other hand, are more likely to lead people to  
interpersonal emotional regulation strategies, focused on the outside world and society, due to their external  
origins that can be observed by others (Leroy et al., 2010).  
Effect of Consumer Mood on Perception of Empathetic Advertising  
The results show that consumers' positive mood does not promote their perception of advertising that is  
congruent with their mood (cheerful and pleasant) as empathetic. These results do not converge with the literature  
on emotional regulation, particularly theories of selective exposure to persuasive messages (Festinger, 1957) and  
mood management (Zillmann, 1988), which stipulate that positive mood stimulates expectations that an  
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experience congruent with that mood will make one feel better and that this mood- courages the desire for  
emotionally connected interpersonal as well as non-interpersonal empathic relationships (Lee, 2012).  
The divergence between our results and those obtained in previous studies may be due to the mood induction  
procedure being stopped once the amusing video ends. Once the positive stimulus is removed, some participants  
may quickly self-regulate from the induced emotional state (Larcom and Isaacowitz, 2009). Thus, the  
advertisements related to our research, designed to be empathetic, fail to play the concrete role of an emotional  
regulator (consolidation) of the consumer's positive emotional state.  
However, it appears that the positive affective state induced in consumers tends to stimulate their perception of  
advertising that is incongruent (antipathetic and unpleasant) with their mood as empathetic. This result does not  
agree with the literature on emotional regulation, according to which people in a good mood tend to seek to  
maintain that state of mind and are therefore less likely to examine messages that are incongruent with their  
mood (Festinger, 1957; Zillmann, 1988; Wegener et al., 1995; Di Muro and Murray, 2012).  
Alow intensity of induced mood may be a likely explanation for this finding. Indeed, the literature defines moods  
as subjectively perceived affective states that are generalized, pervasive, temporary, and mild, rather than intense  
emotions (Batra and Stayman, 1990). They are less likely to attract individuals' attention than emotions, although  
they can influence intentional processes and behaviors (Clark and Isen 1982; Gardner 1985).  
Effect of Perception of Empathetic Advertising on Brand Anthropomorphism  
For consumers in a positive mood, perceiving advertising that is congruent with their mood as empathetic tends  
to stimulate their tendency to anthropomorphize the advertised brand. This result converges with our  
expectations based on the literature. Indeed, the literature on language and cognition states that the choice of  
language used in advertising influences its effectiveness (Winograd, Cohen, and Barresi 1976) (cited in Kemp  
et al, 2013).  
Thus, the incorporation of specific language targeting consumers' emotional sensibilities can elicit favorable  
responses and act as a e mechanism of emotional regulation for consumers (Kemp et al., 2013): a positive mood  
stimulates expectations that a message congruent with that mood will validate that good mood and even make  
the consumer feel even better (Di Muro and Murray, 2012).  
As a result, the use of empathetic language in advertising communications that attributes to the advertised brand  
the status of an empathetic agent comparable to an interpersonal other stimulates the consumer's tendency to  
anthropomorphize that advertised brand.  
Effect of the consumer's need for social affiliation on brand anthropomorphism  
The results for H4 show that when consumers are induced into a positive mood and exposed to empathetic  
advertising that is congruent with their mood, the need for social affiliation does not tend to stimulate the  
tendency to anthropomorphize the advertised brand.  
This result can be explained by referring to the literature on mood and persuasive processing mechanisms.  
Indeed, persuasive message processing pathways stipulate that negative mood stimulates central processing of  
messages, while positive mood inhibits it and instead stimulates heuristic processing (Batra and Stayman 1990;  
Gardner and Hill 1988; Kuykendall and Keating 1990; Mackie and Worth 1991; cited by Aylesworth and  
Mackenzie, 1998). Indeed, individuals in a positive mood engage in superficial and less taxing message  
evaluation strategies (Clark and Isen, 1982; Schwarz, 1990; Mackie and Worth, 1991). These people declare that  
their situation is satisfactory and that they do not need to elaborate on the message in a detailed and extensive  
manner.  
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Effect of Brand Anthropomorphism on the Quality of the Relationship with that Brand  
The results relating to the last research hypothesis show that the anthropomorphism of the brand advertised by  
the consumer improves the quality of their relationship with that brand. This result is consistent with the findings  
in the literature.  
Indeed, existing research suggests that for a brand to acquire the status of a legitimate partner in a relationship,  
consumers must perceive it as having human characteristics (Aggarwal and McGill, 2012; Fournier, 1998;  
Puzakova et al, 2009). Furthermore, consumers who think of a brand/product in anthropomorphic terms ( ) are  
less willing to replace it (Chandler and Schwarz 2010). This suggests that brand anthropomorphism affects the  
construction of the consumer-brand relationship (Kim et al., 2020). According to Hudson et al (2015), consumers  
who are cognitively prepared to anthropomorphize the brand as a relational partner are more motivated to  
interpret their interaction with that brand as interpersonal and thus improve their perception of the quality of  
their relationship with that brand. Thus, the higher the consumer's anthropomorphism of the brand, the more  
likely it is that interactions will be positively associated with the quality of the relationship with that brand  
(Hudson et al., 2015).  
Theoretical and managerial contributions  
Theoretical contributions  
This study makes innovative theoretical contributions to the literature on advertising and its effectiveness in two  
main areas. First, it goes beyond the simple physical assimilation of brands to humans to explore mental,  
intentional, and social anthropomorphization, where the brand is perceived as an empathetic and intentional  
agent capable of managing consumers' emotional states. This reinforces the idea that the consumer-brand  
relationship can be compared to an interpersonal relationship. Second, it reverses the dominant perspective in  
previous research on empathy in advertising: instead of focusing on consumers' empathetic responses to  
advertising, this research examines advertising itself as a non-interpersonal empathetic agent, capable of  
projecting itself onto the consumer to share and respond to their emotional state.  
Managerial contributions  
This research highlights the strategic role of artificial intelligence (AI) in the design and dissemination of  
advertising messages based on consumer emotions. Current technological advances allow companies to go  
beyond traditional segmentation criteria (age, gender, marital status) and rely on accurate affective data, thus  
promoting highly personalized advertising campaigns. Integrated technologies, such as smartphone cameras,  
smartwatches, and biometric sensors, offer unprecedented opportunities to analyze consumers' emotional states  
in real time. By measuring parameters such as facial expressions, heart rate variations, and voice tones, these  
tools make it possible to tailor advertising content to match the user's mood and emotional context.  
This study contributes to the development of new advertising strategies that integrate emotional technologies to  
create more engaging, relevant, and tailored interactions for modern consumers. It is part of the current trend  
toward humanizing customer relationships throughAI and paves the way for hyper-personalized and emotionally  
intelligent advertising.  
Limitations and future research directions  
The limitations of this research include the duration of the online experiment. Although the survey took only 15  
minutes to complete, some participants found the questions too long. However, as each question was linked to a  
specific measurement scale, it was impossible to reduce the length without compromising the validity of the data  
prior to factor analysis. Another limitation concerns the translation of measurement scales, which can introduce  
cultural biases, affecting respondents' interpretation of items and, consequently, the validity of the results.  
Future research should expand the investigation of empathetic advertising's regulatory effects to negative mood  
states (e.g., stress, anxiety), which would provide a more complete picture of its potential across the emotional  
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spectrum. A particularly valuable avenue would be to examine how this effect is moderated by product type.  
Specifically, studies could compare the efficacy of emotional appeals for hedonic versus utilitarian products,  
considering the perceived appropriateness of the emotion to the product category. Relatedly, it would be  
insightful to test whether individual differences, such as the need for affiliation, or brand perceptions, such as  
brand anthropomorphism, vary in their influence depending on this hedonic-utilitarian distinction.  
Furthermore, the arousal level of the mood being regulated merits attention. Research could contrast the impact  
of empathetic advertising on low-arousal (e.g., sadness) versus high-arousal (e.g., anxiety) negative states to  
determine if regulatory efficacy is arousal-dependent.  
Critically, investigating these nuanced questions would benefit greatly from employing objective neurological  
measures (e.g., fMRI, EEG). Such methodologies could move beyond self-report to uncover the neural  
mechanisms that underlie these proposed effects, offering a more robust and mechanistic understanding  
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APPENDICES  
Appendix I: Normality Analysis  
Variables  
Items  
Skewness coefficient  
-0.145  
Kurtosis coefficients  
-1.318  
Percepub1  
Percepub2  
Percepub3  
Percepub4  
Percepub5  
Percepub6  
Percepub7  
Percepub8  
Perceivex1  
Perceivexp2  
-0.462  
-1.048  
0.148  
-1.288  
-0.105  
-1.178  
Perception  
Advertising  
of  
Empathetic  
-0.137  
-1.351  
0.200  
-1.104  
0.141  
-1.304  
0.286  
-1.088  
0.107  
-1.413  
Perceived Shared Experience  
0.150  
-1.403  
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Perceived exp3  
Perceived exp4  
Anthropomo1  
Anthropomo2  
Anthropomo3  
QRM1  
0.178  
-1.270  
-1.478  
-1.125  
-0.996  
-0.924  
-1.288  
-0.728  
-0.800  
-1.117  
-1.150  
-0.952  
-1.215  
-0.771  
-1.022  
-1.541  
-1.401  
-1.373  
-1.682  
-1.398  
-1.078  
-1.242  
-1.327  
-1.077  
-1.111  
0.511  
0.173  
-0.493  
-0.549  
-0.631  
-0.341  
-0.679  
-0.600  
-0.355  
-0.352  
-0.364  
-0.176  
-0.685  
-0.591  
-0.090  
-0.064  
0.204  
Brand Anthropomorphism  
QRM2  
QRM3  
QRM4  
QRM5  
Brand Relationship Quality  
QRM6  
QRM7  
QRM8  
QRM9  
Humposit1  
Humposit2  
Humposit3  
Humposit4  
Humposit5  
Humposit6  
Humposit7  
Humposit8  
Humposit9  
Humposi10  
Social Affiliation2  
Social Affiliation 2  
Social affiliation 3  
Social affiliation 4  
-0.153  
0.304  
Consumer Sentiment  
-0.409  
-0.177  
-0.003  
-0.630  
-0.453  
-1.196  
-1.247  
-1.038  
-0.744  
0.312  
Need for social affiliation (2)  
0.324  
-0.312  
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Social affiliation 5  
Social affiliation 6  
Social affiliation 7  
Social affiliation 8  
Social affiliation 9  
Social Affiliation 10  
Social affiliation 11  
Social affiliation 12  
-1.052  
-0.872  
0.094  
0.454  
-0.181  
-1.435  
-1.410  
-1.118  
-0.623  
0.678  
6.703  
0.025  
-0.242  
-0.820  
-1.177  
-2.304  
Appendix II: Results of exploratory factor analysis  
Appendix I1: Results of the EFA of the consumer positive mood measurement scale (after purification)  
Factorial contributions (after  
Quality  
representation (before  
purification)  
of  
rotation)  
Fact3  
0.738  
Items  
Fact4  
Strong  
0.610  
0.748  
0.694  
0.631  
0.839  
Enthusiastic/Passionate  
Proud  
0.809  
0.822  
Vigilant (alert)  
Attentive  
0.734  
0.899  
Eigenvalue  
λ=2.198  
16.908  
0.748  
λ=1.614  
12.419%  
0.675  
Explained variance  
Reliability  
KMO  
0.718  
Bartlett's sphericity test  
325.837; p=0.000  
Appendix I2: CFA results for the consumer "need for affiliation" measurement scale in a positive mood  
after exposure to empathetic advertising (after purification)  
Factor  
rotation)  
contributions  
Fact2  
(after  
Quality  
representation  
(before purification)  
of  
Items  
Fact1  
Fact3  
Supporting and encouraging friends  
0.863  
0.904  
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Helping others  
0.868  
0.657  
0.737  
0.692  
0.562  
0.913  
0.639  
0.884  
0.652  
Interacting/communicating with friends  
Enjoying the moment  
Receiving support from friends  
Focus on maintaining relationships  
Clean up  
0.854  
0.774  
0.643  
0.916  
Becoming absorbed in tasks  
Eigenvalue  
0.695  
λ=2.361  
29.512  
0.871  
λ=2.172  
27.246  
0.758  
λ=1.397  
17.465  
0.571  
Explained variance  
Reliability  
KMO  
0.694  
Bartlett's sphericity test  
244.700; p=0.000  
Appendix I3: Results of exploratory factor analysis for the "Perception of Empathetic Advertising"  
measurement scale  
Items  
Quality of representation  
This advertisement reflects my current feelings  
This advertisement really understood my feelings about my current situation  
I feel like I'm on the same wavelength as this ad  
This advertisement has a lot of insight into how I should make decisions.  
This advertisement seems to sense what I need right now.  
This ad always understands my needs  
KMO = 0.875  
0.672  
0.758  
0.604  
0.603  
0.731  
0.736  
Bartlett's sphericity test: 642.654; p=0.000  
Reliability: α= 0.889  
Eigenvalue: λ =4.105  
Explained variance = 68.417%  
Appendix I4: Results of exploratory factor analysis for the "Brand Anthropomorphism" measurement  
scale  
Items  
Quality of representation  
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This advertised product brand is thoughtful  
0.737  
0.763  
0.571  
This advertised product brand is caring  
This advertised product brand is friendly  
KMO = 0.666  
Bartlett's sphericity test: 144.871; p=0.000  
Reliability: α= 0.771  
Eigenvalue: λ =2.072  
Explained variance = 69.058%  
Appendix I5: Results of exploratory factor analysis for the "Brand Relationship Quality" measurement  
scale  
Items  
Quality of representation  
She/he would play an important role in my life  
She/he would treat me well  
0.761  
0.659  
0.696  
0.696  
0.597  
0.756  
0.700  
0.667  
0.713  
She/he would do her/his job well  
I could count on him/her  
I would know a lot about him/her  
We would be close friends  
I would have strong feelings for him/her  
I would understand her/him and be willing to understand her/his thoughts  
I would want him/her to keep me company when I feel lonely.  
KMO = 0.937  
Bartlett's sphericity test:2=1182.999; p=0.000  
Reliability: α= 0.945  
Eigenvalue: λ =6.243  
Explained variance =69.37%  
Appendix II: Results of exploratory factor analysis  
Appendix II1: Results of the CFA of the consumer positive mood measurement scale (before and after  
respecification)  
Before respecification  
ML estimation  
After respecification  
ML estimate  
Items  
Bootstrap estimate  
Bootstrap estimate  
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Contrib  
fact  
Contrib  
fact  
Contrib  
factor  
Contrib  
fact  
SMC  
0.354  
0.500  
Bias  
SMC  
Bias  
Strong  
0.595  
0.707  
0.590  
0.707  
-0.005  
0.000  
Retired  
0.844  
Enthusiastic/Pas  
sionate  
0.712  
0.885  
0.041  
Proud  
0.671  
0.789  
0.767  
0.674  
0.795  
0.775  
0.003  
0.006  
0.007  
0.585  
0.754  
0.803  
0.342  
0.568  
0.645  
0.585  
0.759  
0.816  
0.000  
0.005  
0.013  
0.450  
0.623  
0.589  
Vigilant (alert)  
Attentive  
Chi-square = 129.189; df = 59; p = 0.000; GFI Chi-square = 38.748; df = 29; p = 0.107; GFI  
= 0.899; AGFI = 0.845; RMR = 0.309; = 0.959; AGFI = 0.923; RMR = 0.213;  
Absolute  
Adjustment  
Indices  
RMSEA = 0.082  
RMSEA = 0.044  
Incremental  
Fit Indices  
NFI=0.817; TLI=0.852; CFI=0.888  
NFI=0.923; TLI=0.967; CFI=0.979  
Standardized  
PCFI=0.631  
chi-square=1.336;  
Parsimony Fit  
Indices  
Standardized chi-square=2.190; PCFI=0.672  
Reliability: Joreskog's Rho  
Positive mood  
Mood_posit2  
0.700  
0.434  
0.745  
0.755  
Appendix II2: Results of convergent and discriminant validity tests for the consumer mood measurement  
scale  
Before respecification  
After respecification  
Dimensions  
Valid  
conv  
Valid  
disc  
Valid  
conv  
Valid  
disc  
VME  
Corrél²  
VME  
Correl²  
Positive mood  
Positive mood  
0.435  
0.608  
0.185  
0.185  
No  
Yes  
Yes  
0.521  
0.601  
0.194  
0.194  
Yes  
Yes  
Yes  
Yes  
Yes  
Appendix II3: CFA results for the empathy-based advertising perception scale before and after  
respecification  
Before respecification  
After respecification  
ML estimation  
Bootstrapping  
Bootstrapping  
estimate  
ML estimation  
Items  
estimate  
Contrib  
fact  
Contrib  
fact  
Contrib  
SMC  
Contrib  
fact  
SMC  
Bias  
Bias  
factor  
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This  
reflects  
feelings  
advertisement  
my current 0.744  
0.552  
0.591  
0.743  
0.768  
0.001  
0.675  
0.713  
0.455  
0.508  
0.675  
0.711  
0.000  
This  
advertisement  
really understood my  
feelings about my  
current situation.  
0.769  
-0.001  
-0.002  
I feel like I'm on the  
same wavelength as this 0.715  
ad.  
0.511  
0.444  
0.712  
0.661  
0.003  
0.005  
0.736  
0.697  
0.541  
0.485  
0.734  
0.693  
-0.002  
-0.004  
This advertisement has a  
lot of knowledge about 0.666  
how I make decisions.  
This ad seems to sense  
0.697  
0.485  
0.388  
0.697  
0.620  
0.000  
0.692  
0.611  
0.479  
0.374  
0.694  
0.609  
-0.002  
-0.002  
what I need right now.  
This ad always includes  
0.623  
-0.003  
my needs  
Chi-square = 44.7; df = 9; p = 0.000; GFI Chi-square = 7.325; df = 7; p = 0.396; GFI  
= 0.936; AGFI = 0.851; RMR = 0.148; = 0.990; AGFI = 0.970; RMR = 0.57;  
Absolute  
Indices  
Adjustment  
RMSEA = 0.128  
RMSEA = 0.14  
NFI= 0.923; TLI= 0.894; CFI=0.937  
NFI= 0.987; TLI= 0.999; CFI= 0.999  
Incremental Fit Indices  
Parsimony Fit Indices  
Standardized chi-square= 1.285; PCFI=  
0.466  
Standardized chi-square (2/dl) = 4.96;  
PCFI = 0.562  
Reliability: Joreskog's  
Rho  
0.857  
0.495  
0.871  
0.495  
Convergent  
VME  
validity:  
Appendix II4: PCA results for the "Need for Social Affiliation" measurement scale for consumers induced  
into a positive mood after exposure to advertising  
Results  
Before respecification  
Estimation with ML  
After respecification  
Estimation with  
Bootstrapping  
Bootstrapping  
ML  
Items  
Contribution  
SMC  
Contrib  
Bias  
Contrib  
fact  
Contrib  
fact  
SMC  
0.735  
0.819  
Bias  
factor  
fact  
Support  
friends  
and  
encourage  
-
0.854  
0.894  
0.730 0.852  
0.857  
0.905  
0.861  
0.896  
0.004  
0.002  
-
-
Helping others  
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0.006  
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Interacting/communicating  
with friends  
0.625  
0.677  
0.710  
0.628  
0.681  
0.003  
0.004  
Withdrawn  
0.697  
0.390  
0.458  
Savoring the moment  
0.486  
0.472  
0.709  
0.685  
0.012  
Receiving  
friends  
support  
from  
-
-
0.504 0.705  
0.687  
0.005  
0.002  
Focus  
relationships  
on  
maintaining  
0.613  
0.794  
0.556  
0.613  
0.000  
0.040  
Retired  
0.839  
0.526  
0.375  
Clean  
0.630 0.833  
0.703  
0.277  
0.914  
0.519  
0.076  
-
-
Becoming absorbed in tasks  
0.552  
0.309  
0.004  
0.007  
Chi-square = 65.312; df = 17; p = 0.000; Chi-square=15.437; df=6; p=0.017;  
Absolute  
Indices  
Adjustment  
GFI = 0.930; AGFI = 0.852; RMR = 0.132; GFI=0.977;  
AGFI=0.918;  
RMSEA = 0.137  
RMR=0.075; RMSEA=0.87  
NFI= 0.888; TLI= 0.857; CFI=0.913  
NFI=0.960; TLI=0.937; CFI=0.975  
Incremental Fit Indices  
Parsimony Fit Indices  
Standardized  
PCFI=0.390  
chi-square=2.573;  
Standardized chi-square (2/dl) = 3.842;  
PCFI = 0.555  
Reliability: Joreskog's Rho  
Altruistic Behavior  
0.847  
0.709  
0.641  
0.873  
0.647  
0.657  
Affiliation_with_Others  
Self_Affiliation  
Appendix II5: Results of convergent and discriminant validity tests for the scale measuring consumers'  
need for social affiliation after exposure to advertising  
Before respecification  
After respecification  
Dimensions  
Valid  
converg  
Valid  
discrim  
Valid  
converg  
Valid  
discrim  
VME  
0.633  
Corrél²  
0.410  
VME  
0.784  
Correl²  
0.372  
Altruistic  
behavior  
Yes  
Yes  
Yes  
Yes  
Affiliation_to_  
Others  
0.446  
0.627  
0.410  
0.240  
No  
Yes  
Yes  
0.486  
0.552  
0.372  
0.203  
No  
Yes  
Yes  
Auto_Affiliation  
Yes  
Yes  
Appendix II6: CFA results for the brand anthropomorphism measurement scale before and after  
respecification  
Results  
Items  
ML estimate  
Bootstrapping estimation  
Factor  
contributions  
Factor  
SMC  
Bias  
contributions  
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This advertised product brand is thoughtful  
This advertised product brand is thoughtful.  
This advertised product brand is likable  
This advertised product brand is thoughtful.  
0.751  
0.738  
0.800  
0.747  
0.565  
0.545  
0.640  
0.558  
0.750  
0.737  
0.804  
0.746  
-0.001  
-0.001  
0.003  
-0.001  
Chi-square = 4.9; df = 2; p = 0.86; GFI = 0.990; AGFI =  
0.959; RMR = 0.055; RMSEA = 0.076  
Absolute Fit Indices  
NFI= 0.988; TLI= 0.978; CFI=0.993  
Incremental Fit Indices  
Parsimony fit indices  
Standardized chi-square (2/dl) = 2.45; PCFI = 0.331  
Reliability: Joreskog's Rho  
Convergent validity: VME  
0.855  
0.578  
Appendix II7: Results of the CFA of the brand relationship quality measurement scale before and after  
respecification  
Results  
Before respecification  
After respecification  
Estimation  
ML  
by  
ML estimation  
Bootstrapping  
Bootstrapping  
Items  
Cont  
SMC  
fact  
Cont  
fact  
Cont  
fact  
Cont  
Bias  
fact  
Bias  
SMC  
She/he would play an  
important role in my life  
0.751  
0.796  
0.564  
0.633  
0.747  
0.794  
-0.004  
-0.002  
0.767  
0.588  
0.763  
0.829  
-0.004  
She/he would treat me  
well  
0.831  
0.691  
-0.002  
-0.002  
She/he would do her/his  
job well  
0.640  
0.740  
0.566  
0.635  
0.738  
0.566  
-0.005  
-0.002  
0.000  
Retired  
0.711  
0.410  
0.547  
0.320  
I could count on her/him  
0.505  
0.709  
I would know a lot about  
her/him  
Retired  
We  
friends  
would  
be  
close  
0.781  
0.767  
0.610  
0.589  
0.780  
0.769  
-0.001  
0.002  
0.793  
0.748  
0.629  
0.558  
0.792  
0.748  
-0.001  
0.000  
I would express strong  
feelings for her/him  
I
would  
understand  
him/her and be willing to  
0.669  
0.666  
-0.003  
Retired  
0.448  
understand  
thoughts  
his/her  
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I would like her/him to  
keep me company when I 0.710  
feel lonely  
0.504  
0.704  
-0.006  
0.702  
0.493  
0.696  
-0.006  
Chi-square = 81.931; df = 27; p = 0.000; Chi-square = 19.773; df = 9; p = 0.019;  
GFI = 0.931; AGFI = 0.886; RMR = GFI = 0.975; AGFI = 0.942; RMR =  
Absolute  
Indices  
Adjustment  
0.102; RMSEA = 0.088  
0.068; RMSEA = 0.068  
NFI= 0.931; TLI= 0.936; CFI=0.952  
NFI = 0.975; TLI = 0.977; CFI = 0.986  
Incremental Fit Indices  
Parsimony Fit Indices  
Standardized chi-square (2/dl) =3.034; Standardized chi-square (2/dl) = 2.197;  
PCFI=0.714  
PCFI = 0.592  
Reliability: Joreskog's  
Rho  
0.904  
0.860  
Convergent  
VME  
validity:  
0.296  
0.577  
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