Professor Felicitas Morhart, from the Faculty of Business and Economics of the University of Lausanne, has just been awarded the 2017 Park Award for Best Article of the Year for her article published in volume 25 of the Journal of Consumer Psychology, in 2015. The prize was awarded at the Society for Consumer Psychology conference held in Dallas (United States) from February 15 to 17, 2018. The Faculty congratulates Prof. Morhart for the contribution, which enhances academic research in the marketing field.
The Park Award for Best Article was awarded to Felicitas Morhart for her article entitled “Brand authenticity: An integrative framework and measurement scale”. The article examines brand authenticity by proposing an integrative framework for the concept as well as developing and validating a measurement scale for brand authenticity as perceived by consumers (Perceived Brand Authenticity). It reveals the relevance of the consumer’s perspective on authenticity. Those individuals who value the idea of being authentic, of being true to themselves, and of structuring their lives to enhance that authenticity, are much more likely to value brand authenticity than individuals uninterested in personal authenticity. This suggests that those concerned with promoting brands might benefit from investing resources in promoting consumer interest in the concept of personal authenticity, in order for their brands to benefit from the authenticity effect.
Members of the selection panel for the prize were unanimous in their view that by developing and validating a brand authenticity scale, the researcher’s article improves understanding of the concept but also establishes the basis for an exploration of the field, which has not been possible until now, because of the absence of consensus on the concept.