Xiajing Zhu

Abstract
Individual donors are crucial in financing political candidates, yet little is known about what contexts motivate their donations. This research explores how political ideology (conservative or liberal), power dynamics (minority or majority), and polarization (high or low) affect individual political donations. Analyzing over 90 million records of individual donations over 22 years from the Federal Election Commission, the authors find that liberals donate more when in the political majority, while conservatives donate more when in the minority. Additionally, increasing polarization intensifies the differences in political donations between liberals and conservatives. This research provides valuable insights for political candidates, brands, and nonprofit groups aiming to market to political consumers.

Conference Presentation
Zhu, Xiajing & Pechmann, Connie, (2025), “Group size matters: Liberals donate more in large groups, conservatives in small groups,” Association for Consumer Research (ACR) 2025 Conference, DC, U.S. Won ACR Best Competitive Paper Award – Politics & Governance.

Zhu, Xiajing & Pechmann, Connie. (2024), “Blue Money, Red Money: The Impact of Political Ideology, Power Status, and Polarization on Political Donations,” The Association for Consumer Research (ACR) 2024 Conference, Paris, France

Top 3 Poster, Merage School PhD Research Fest, 2024

Conference Presentation
Zhu, Xiajing, Lin, Jinan & Pechmann, Connie, (2025), “When AI Refuses to Talk Politics: How Conservatives and Liberals React to AI Political Content Avoidance,” ACR 2025, DC, U.S.

Abstract
Should brands correct positive misinformation that favors them? While most research focuses on responses to negative misinformation, this study examines the effects of correcting positive and negative misinformation by brands and third parties on consumer perceptions and purchase intentions. Combining one secondary dataset and four lab experiments, this research reveals that when brands proactively correct positive (vs. negative) misinformation, it enhances perceived brand authenticity and purchase intention. Conversely, corrections by third parties have the opposite effect. The impact is further influenced by the brand’s CSR reputation and the correction strategy (factual elaboration vs. simple rebuttal). This research adds to the brand misinformation literature and offers actionable insights for brand managers.

Conference Presentations
Zhu, Xiajing, Wang, Xinran, & Teng, Lefa. (2023), “Does Good or Bad Fake News Matter? The Impact of Brand Misinformation Valence and Correction Source on Consumer Behavior,” The Association for Consumer Research (ACR) 2023 Conference, Seattle, U.S.

Abstract
Conservatives are often blamed for spreading misinformation, but it is unclear whether certain situations trigger them and, if so, why. The authors examine situations that are politically polarized, meaning the topic and/or its framing conveys conflict, discord, or disagreement between the two main political parties: conservatives and liberals. The authors study whether conservatives react to polarized situations by spreading ingroup-skewed political misinformation that is objectively inaccurate but not necessarily understood to be false; and whether liberals are less reactive. Using a multi-method approach, six studies are conducted, including analyses of statements by public figures and speeches by U.S. presidents, and also controlled experiments. The results indicate that in polarized situations, conservatives’ need for ingroup dominance is elevated, so they convey more misinformation than liberals. In less polarized situations, conservatives’ need for ingroup dominance is tempered, reducing their misinformation conveyance. These findings suggest misinformation should not be blamed solely on the individual trait of conservativism, as polarized situations exaggerate conservative motives and behaviors. While news media, social media, political figures, and others may be incentivized to emphasize political polarization to bolster audiences and engagement, the resulting misinformation harms truth, trust, and democracy. Possible remedies include improved fact-checking and media literacy education.

Conference Presentations
Zhu, Xiajing & Pechmann, Connie. (2022), “Motivated Fake News: Understanding How Ideology and Competitive Context Influence Misinformative Posts on Social Media,” The Association for Consumer Research (ACR) 2022 Conference, Denver, U.S.
Zhu, Xiajing & Pechmann, Connie. (2021), “Party Competition: When Democrats and Republicans Are Motivated to Post Misinformation on Social Media?,” The Association for Consumer Research (ACR) 2021 Conference, Virtual, U.S.

Abstract
Consumer-generated messaging through narrowcasting and broadcasting platforms has become more accessible and influential. Previous studies have examined why consumers generate messages on different social media platforms from the sender’s perspective. This study presents how affective and cognitive message framing influences message persuasiveness from the receiver’s perspective. The findings of Study 1 confirm that cognitive messaging is more persuasive on a broadcasting platform while affective framing is more persuasive on a narrowcasting platform. The mechanism that underlies this effect is identified in Study 2, suggesting that the interaction between message framing and medium platform ultimately affects the consumers’ attitude by influencing their perception of message-platform fit. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Abstract
While a substantial body of research suggests that congruence between a brand’s image and the consumer’s self-image strongly impacts their attitude towards the brand, our research sheds new light on Chinese consumers and the self-congruence theory related to brand type (functional and symbolic brands that originate from Western countries) and celebrity endorser type (Western and Chinese). The findings confirm that both the functional brand and the symbolic brand not only appeal to the consumer’s actual self, but also appeal to the consumer’s ideal self. The current research is the first to show that a Chinese celebrity will lead to a higher perception of actual self-congruity and a stronger attitude towards a functional brand compared to Western equivalents among Chinese consumers. It also shows that a Western celebrity will lead to a higher perceived ideal self-congruity among Chinese consumers when endorsing a symbolic brand. From these findings, the authors derive important theoretical and managerial implications.

Conference Presentation
Laroche, Michel, Teng, Lefa, Richard, Marie-Odile, Liu, Lu, & Zhu, Xiajing*. (2015). “Chinese Consumer Perception of Celebrity Endorsers: A Social Identity Perspective,” The 10th Royal Bank International Marketing Conference, Montreal, Canada.

Abstract
Although important to business and economic development, entrepreneurship education has offered its customers (i.e., students) mixed experiences. While some prior studies find entrepreneurship education to have a positive effect on entrepreneurial attitude or activities, others report the opposite, suggesting the need to consider environmental factors. Drawing on the nascent research on customer experience management, this study treats entrepreneurship education as a service product and advocates that service providers take a “touchpoint journey view” in that the providers should manage or influence all touchpoints in the environment—some touchpoints are internal to the providers, while others may be external. This perspective leads to a comprehensive conceptual model that identifies ten student-resource touchpoints across three areas: a) curricular b) regulatory environment, and c) social environment resources. With a unique sample of students who are systematically exposed to all three types of resources through a pilot entrepreneurship program, this study finds empirical evidence to support the proposed model. These findings offer pertinent implications to entrepreneurship education design (e.g., totality of various touchpoints). In addition, with the rising influence of the Chinese economy, this study also represents a meaningful step toward a better understanding of consumers’ service goods experience in this strategically important market.

Conference Presentation
Dou, Xinhua. & Zhu, Xiajing. (2016). “The Role of Different Sources on the Innovative Entrepreneurial Development,” The 11th Royal Bank International Marketing Conference, Wuxi, China.