The role of ownership type in consumer reactions to reputational damage

Abstract

Family firms enjoy increased consumer trust due to their perceived integrity and long-term orientation. However, whether this trust advantage holds or makes them more vulnerable to reputational damage remains unclear. This thesis investigates how reputational harm affects consumer trust, brand attitude, and purchase intention and whether these effects differ between family-owned and non-family-owned businesses. The thesis uses an experimental design with 160 participants across four conditions and combines a two-way ANOVA and moderated mediation analysis (PROCESS Model 7 by Hayes) to test the hypothesized relationships. Results show that reputational damage significantly reduces consumer trust and purchasing intention, regardless of ownership type. Trust was found to partially mediate this relationship, however the mediation was not significantly stronger for family-owned firms. These findings challenge assumptions taken from Socioemotional Wealth Theory and Attribution Theory, and suggest that reputational issues may create equally strong consumer reactions no matter the firm type. Limitations and future research directions are discussed with a call for broader cross-industry studies.

Date of Award	1 Jul 2025
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Liliana Brioso Martins de Andrade Dinis (Supervisor)