Title: How media crisis drives cognitive brand dissonance and consumer caution toward similar products:
Authors: The case of Kera vegetable candy in Vietnam
Volume: 10
Issue: 6
Pages: 154-168
Publication Date: 2026/06/28
Abstract:
The rapid spread of negative information through digital media has increased the impact of media crises on consumer perceptions and behavior. This study examines how different dimensions of media crisis influence consumers' cognitive brand dissonance and subsequent caution toward similar products in the context of the Kera Vegetable Candy controversy in Vietnam. Drawing upon the Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) framework and Cognitive Dissonance Theory, the study conceptualizes media crisis through five dimensions as perceived media scandal severity, perceived advertising deceptiveness, influencer endorsement credibility crisis, regulatory concern awareness, and social media amplification. Data of 307 valid respondents were collected from consumers familiar with the Kera Vegetable Candy incident and analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The findings reveal that perceived media scandal severity, perceived advertising deceptiveness, influencer endorsement credibility crisis, and social media amplification positively influence cognitive brand dissonance, whereas regulatory concern awareness negatively affects cognitive brand dissonance. Furthermore, cognitive brand dissonance significantly increases consumer caution toward similar products and mediates the relationships between media crisis dimensions and consumer behavioral responses. The study contributes to the literature on media crises, cognitive dissonance, and consumer behavior by demonstrating how crisis-related perceptions shape psychological conflict and spill over to influence evaluations of similar products in digital marketplaces.