This study explores consumer behavior during the pandemic through the lens of social cognitive theory (SCT). Using the SCT framework and assessing the pandemic as an environmental set, this study strives to fill the gaps in the underexplored impacts of the personal processes of consumer vulnerability, resilience, and adaptability on the behavioral processes of purchase satisfaction and repurchase. The research results show that consumers are self‐efficacious to a degree when it comes to purchase decision making in the context of pandemics. Vulnerability and resilience directly influence the purchase satisfaction and indirectly influence the repurchase intention via satisfaction. Furthermore, purchase satisfaction positively affects the repurchase intention. In addition, research results show that consumer adaptability to online shopping moderates the relationship between consumer resilience and purchase satisfaction. These findings have practical implications in terms of marketers’ communication strategy development.

Purpose: With the rapid growth of the Internet and the wide acceptance of e-commerce, online impulse buying is rising; however, the consumer motivation to buy impulsively within the digital setting calls for continuous exploration. Through the lens of cognitive appraisal theory, the authors aim to explore the relevance of web quality factors (cognitive processes) and hedonism (emotional response) for online impulse buying in the cross-cultural context of India and Croatia. The study also attempts to investigate the varying effects of sales promotion and payment options (cognitive processes) on the relationship between hedonism and online impulse buying.Design/methodology/approach: The researchers in the present study have adapted the refined eTailQ scale along with factors like hedonism, sales promotion and payment options determining impulse buying—the measurement instrument comprised of a highly structured questionnaire covering consumers' attitudes and opinions regarding the explored concepts. A total of 526 responses were generated in the data collection process, wherein 264 were from India and 262 were from Croatia.Findings: The results reveal that not all web quality determinants affect impulse buying similarly. Web informativeness significantly, but negatively, impacts impulse buying only regarding Croatian consumers, while customer service influences impulse buying in the Indian market. Web layout and privacy do not influence impulse buying. However, besides hedonism's direct impact on impulse buying in both countries, the results show that the influences of web layout and privacy on impulse buying are mediated via hedonism. Given the varying effects, this study shows that, unlike the payment options, only sales promotion represents a significant moderator that enhances the relationship between hedonism and impulse buying in both countries.Originality/value: This study utilises cognitive appraisal theory to compare the effects in two countries through cognitive appraisals, emotional responses, and situational factors for explaining online impulse buying behaviour. The study also offers practical managerial implications.

Shopping enjoyment represents an important research concept within the consumer behaviour and marketing communication field. The purpose of this research is to explore direct influences of personal factors (attitudes toward the advertising, the need for individuality/uniqueness, price sensitivity) on shopping enjoyment, its impact on the word of mouth communication (WOM) and the moderating effects of demographic variables (gender and education) on these relationships. The research was conducted on the representative sample of 1000 Croatian respondents. The variety of statistical techniques, including SEM, was employed for data analysis. The results show that personal factors positively influence shopping enjoyment, which is positively related to WOM communication. Furthermore, the results confirm the moderating effects of gender and education on the relationship between the shopping enjoyment and WOM. These research findings contribute to the scientific knowledge enrichment and offer some practical marketing implications. Namely, the marketing experts can better understand the consumer’s factors impacting shopping enjoyment, which can enable them to adequately assess the necessary appeals and to create an effective and persuasive marketing communication. At the end, the paper addresses the research limitations and offers some future research directions.

Purpose: By drawing on protection motivation theory, this study explores consumers' motivation to engage in adaptive behaviour envisioned through a transition from offline to online clothing purchasing during the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, this paper explores the conditioning effects of consumer resilience and satisfaction with retailers' assistive intent through the consumer well-being framework.Design/methodology/approach: A total of 363 useable surveys were obtained from Croatian consumers. Data were analysed with confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling.Findings: Coping appraisal positively impacts adaptive behaviour by increasing online clothing purchase intention, while threat appraisal has no direct effect on adaptive behaviour. The relationship between threat appraisal and adaptive behaviour is negatively moderated by consumer resilience and satisfaction with the retailer's assistive intent.Research limitations/implications: Limitations include the convenience sampling method and data collection at one point as well as the focus on consumers from one country.Practical implications: This study provides a blueprint for designing marketing actions that retail managers should consider to respond to a crisis effectively while maintaining satisfactory buying experiences during health crises and other challenging events.Originality/value: Given the unique research context, i.e. the COVID-19 pandemic, this study is one of the few and the first in Croatia to unfold the importance of protection motivation theory in providing a greater understanding of consumer's adaptive behaviour (transition from offline to online) in online clothing retail channels during the period of the global health-related crisis. Benefits from understanding consumers' coping and threat appraisal mechanisms while addressing their buying needs in adverse circumstances are revealed. In addition, the theoretical implications regarding the conditional effects of consumer resilience and consumer satisfaction with retailers' assistive intent during a pandemic are also provided.

The purpose of this study is to explore the impact of various antecedents and behavioural consequences of consumers’ perceptions of time spent on shopping for clothing products. Examined antecedent variables are gender, age, income, fashion consciousness and visual merchandising, while outcomes include the number of clothing items purchased. The data, collected by consumer survey in Croatia, was analysed using exploratory and confi rmatory factor analyses, and structural equation modelling (SEM). The major fi ndings indicate that visual merchandising has the greatest and positive effect on time spent shopping. As expected, women and younger consumers spend more time shopping than men and older consumers. As for the outcomes, shopping time is positively related to consumer purchases. The study was conducted at a single point in time and was carried out while there was still crisis in Croatia, in a situation where consumers spend less on fashion products. The present study provides the insights into the determinantsand consequences of time expenditure and might help fashion retailers design more successfully retailing strategies to encourage consumers to spend more time on shopping in fashion stores, which in turn leads to higher sales.