When atmospherics lead to inferences of manipulative intent: Its effects on trust and attitude

The atmosphere of a retail store is a powerful marketing tool for influencing consumer behavior to the benefit of the retailer. This article explores the case where consumers perceive the store environment as a manipulative tool in use by the retailer. This article hypothesizes that incongruent store environments urge consumers to make inferences of manipulative intent (IMI) from the retailers, and that those inferences negatively influence consumer's perception of the retailers' integrity, and attitudes toward the atmosphere and the retailers. Empirical results from an experiment confirm the hypotheses. ► We posit that cognitive responses are crucial in explaining consumer behavior to atmospherics. ► We show that atmospherics can lead to inferences of manipulative intent (IMI). ► IMI decrease attitude toward the retailer and the store environment.