The Impact of Live Broadcast Content Inconsistency on Consumer Forgiveness Behavior

In the context of Live streaming eCommerce, false publicity problems occur frequently. However, in the face of merchant fraud, some consumers will choose to forgive the merchant. The underlying mechanisms that generate this forgiving behavior when the content of the live broadcast does not match the actual product have not been fully explored. The focus of this study is on informational content inconsistency in Live streaming eCommerce context-product attributes content inconsistency and price promotion content inconsistency. Based on the Rational Behavior Theory (TRA) model, we propose a conceptual framework to understand whether, how, and when live broadcast content inconsistency affects consumer forgiveness behavior. Among them, the higher the degree of inconsistency of live broadcast content, the less forgiving consumers will be, and this effect is realized through the chain mediation of satisfaction and tolerance. In addition, these effects vary by product type. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of these findings and identify several aspects for future research.