Blending Culture, Bending Time: How Culturally Mixed Brand Cues Shape Customer Engagement
(A2026-132436)

AUTHORS

Qianying Huang, Sun Yat-sen University

ABSTRACT

Brands increasingly embed diverse cultural elements into their products and communications, yet research has primarily explained consumer responses in spatial terms (local vs. global, home vs. foreign). This paper develops a temporal-symbolic account, proposing that such culturally mixed brand cues activate a cyclical time perspective, fostering self-expansion and customer engagement. Seven studies (two pilots and five main studies) test this framework. Study 1 shows that mixed brand cues enhance voluntary engagement through a cyclical time perspective. Study 2 validates the mediation pathway linking mixed cues, cyclical time, and self-expansion. Study 3 experimentally induces cyclical time perspective to verify its causal role. Study 4 identifies a cross-cultural boundary, with the effect stronger among Chinese consumers than Americans. Study 5 shows that cultural co-creation invitations restore the weakened effect in Western contexts. This research integrates temporal cognition into culture-mixing studies and offers guidance for global brand strategies.