The Logic of Consumer Forgiveness in Luxury Brand Crises: Dual Perspective of Emotional Attachment and Moral Decoupling

Weilin Su

doi:10.6981/FEM.202607_7(7).0014

Authors

Weilin Su Fujian University of Technology, Fuzhou, Fujian, 350000, China

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.6981/FEM.202607_7(7).0014

Keywords:

Luxury Brands; Emotional Attachment; Moral Decoupling; Consumer Forgiveness; Brand Crisis.

Abstract

In today's consumer market, luxury brands always find themselves in crises. Yet, interestingly, they frequently manage to gain consumer forgiveness. This phenomenon has drawn more and more attention in market research. However, a closer look at past studies shows a clear gap. Prior research has mostly focused on two separate mechanisms. One is the buffering effect of emotional attachment, which protects brands from negative information. The other is moral decoupling, a cognitive strategy that separates brand performance from ethical judgment. For the most part, these mechanisms always studied in isolation. As a result, the underlying logic that links luxury brand crises to consumer forgiveness is still not well understood.Our study adopts a dual-perspective framework. We combine the emotional attachment and moral decoupling. By using both questionnaire surveys and real case studies, we aim to explore how these two ways together shape consumer forgiveness in the luxury market. It not only knows our understanding of consumer psychology but also provides useful guidance for brand crisis management.

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