Surge price precision and political ideology

Abstract

Across three studies, we investigate the interaction of political ideology and surge pricing precision on consumer decision making. Our findings suggest when compared to liberals, politically conservative consumers respond to rounded (vs. precise) surge pricing more negatively (Study 1). Furthermore, we show that this effect occurs because rounded (vs. precise) surge pricing exerts greater resentment for politically conservative (vs. liberal) consumers (Studies 2 and 3). The findings offer practical implications for marketers and advance our understanding of surge pricing, such that consumer responses towards surge pricing strategies differ based on their political ideology, and surge pricing precision is associated with perceptions of the status quo. © 2022 Elsevier Inc.