Common Method Bias in Marketing: Causes, Mechanisms, and Procedural Remedies

doi:10.1016/j.jretai.2012.08.001

Journal of Retailing

Volume 88, Issue 4, December 2012, Pages 542-555

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretai.2012.08.001 Get rights and content

Abstract

There is a great deal of evidence that method bias influences item validities, item reliabilities, and the covariation between latent constructs. In this paper, we identify a series of factors that may cause method bias by undermining the capabilities of the respondent, making the task of responding accurately more difficult, decreasing the motivation to respond accurately, and making it easier for respondents to satisfice. In addition, we discuss the psychological mechanisms through which these factors produce their biasing effects and propose several procedural remedies that counterbalance or offset each of these specific effects. We hope that this discussion will help researchers anticipate when method bias is likely to be a problem and provide ideas about how to avoid it through the careful design of a study.

Graphical abstract

Highlights

► We identify factors that cause method bias. ► We discuss the psychological mechanisms through which they produce their biasing effects. ► We propose procedural remedies to counterbalance or offset these effects.

Section snippets

When is method bias likely to be a problem?

Several researchers (Krosnick, 1991, Krosnick, 1999, Sudman et al., 1996, Tourangeau et al., 2000) have speculated that, because the cognitive effort required to generate an optimal answer to a long series of questions on a wide range of topics is often substantial, respondents cope with these demands by seeking easier ways to generate their answers. More specifically, when the difficulty of the task of generating an optimal answer is high, and a respondent's ability, natural predisposition, or

Conclusion

The purpose of this article has been to discuss the causes of method biases, the mechanisms through which they produce their biasing effects, and how to minimize or prevent these effects by implementing appropriate procedural controls. More specifically, we identified a series of factors that may cause method biases by undermining the capabilities of the respondent, making the task of responding accurately more difficult, decreasing the motivation to respond accurately, and making it easier for

A final cautionary note

That being said, it is important to note that all research involves inevitable tradeoffs and it is impossible to design a study that completely rules out all possibility of method bias. This implies that the procedural remedies discussed in this research should be viewed as a much needed complement to – but not a substitute for – the statistical remedies that have already been developed (Bagozzi, 1984, Baumgartner and Steenkamp, 2001, Podsakoff et al., 2003, Podsakoff et al., 2012, Weijters et

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Common Method Bias in Marketing: Causes, Mechanisms, and Procedural Remedies

Abstract

Graphical abstract

Highlights

Section snippets

When is method bias likely to be a problem?

Conclusion

A final cautionary note

Journal of Retailing

Journal of Retailing

Journal of Business Research

Journal of Retailing

Journal of Management

Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes

Journal of Retailing

Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes

International Journal of Marketing Research

Response Bias, Yea-Saying, and the Double Negative

Journal of Marketing Research

Causal Models in Marketing

A Prospectus for Theory Construction in Marketing

Journal of Marketing

Response Styles in Marketing Research: A Cross-National Investigation

Journal of Marketing Research

Structural Equations with Latent Variables

Mode of Questionnaire Administration Can Have Serious Effects on Data Quality

Journal of Public Health

Asking Questions: The Definitive Guide to Questionnaire Design – For Market Research, Political Polls, and Social and Health Questionnaires

What Is Method Variance and How Can We Cope with It? A Panel Discussion

Organizational Research Methods

A Theory of Psychological Reactance

Measurement Errors in the Behavioral Sciences: The Case of Personality Attitude Research

Educational and Psychological Measurement

The Need for Cognition

Journal of Personality and Social Psychology

Convergent and Discriminant Validation by the Multitrait–Multimethod Matrix

Psychological Bulletin

Research on Interviewing Techniques

Heuristic and Systematic Processing Within and Beyond the Persuasion Context

Positional Effects in Shared-Cost Surveys

Public Opinion Quarterly

Yeasayers and Naysayers: Agreeing Response Set as a Personality Variable

Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology

NEO PI-R Professional Manual

Estimating Trait, Method, and Error Variance: Generalizing Across 70 Construct Validation Studies

Journal of Marketing Research

Measurement Error and Theory Testing in Consumer Research: An Illustration of the Importance of Construct Validation

Journal of Consumer Research

Common Methods Bias: Does Common Methods Variance Really Bias Results?

Organizational Research Methods

Effects of Item Construction and Respondent Aptitude on Response Acquiescence

Educational and Psychological Measurement

Verbal Reports as Data

Psychological Review

Self-Generated Validity and Other Effects of Measurement on Belief, Attitude, Intention, and Behavior

Journal of Applied Psychology

Item Nonresponse in a Consumer Survey

Public Opinion Quarterly

Convergent-Discriminant Validation in Measurements and Research Strategies

Involvement, Expertise, and Schema Use: Evidence from Political Cognition

What We Don’t Know About ‘I Don’t Knows’

Public Opinion Quarterly

Improving Rating Scale Measures by Detecting and Correcting Bias Components in Some Response Styles

Journal of Marketing Research

Personality Attributes Associated with Extreme Response Style

Psychological Bulletin

A Self-Perception Interpretation of the Effect of Monetary and Nonmonetary Incentives on Mail Survey Respondent Behavior

Journal of Marketing Research

Effects of Questionnaire Length on Response Quality

Public Opinion Quarterly

Cognitive Energy Level, Acquiescence, and Authoritarianism

Journal of Social Psychology