Brand Dislike: Representing the Negative Side of Consumer Preferences

There has been a recent increase in consumer research on the topic of brand dislike: it can be defined as the negative judgment expressed by the consumer and/or implied in the choice not to buy. The sparse literature in this field is fragmented into different streams of research that will be reviewed in this paper: a)consumer criticism and resistance b)dislike as a means of communicating and constructing self image, and c)consumer/brand relationship. After the literature review, the method and results from fieldwork will be presented. The data converge towards a unitary and consistent framework, in which various levels and factors can be interpreted in the light of the theoretical perspectives outlined above.