ABSTRACT
The search for new paradigms has been a major source of methodological and theoretical opportunities within the marketing discipline over the years (Arndt 1983; Bagozzi 1975; Day and Montgomery 1999; Deshpande 1983; Howard and Sheth 1969; Kohli and Jaworski 1990; Kotler and Levy 1969; Sheth 2004; Venkatesh 1985). Researchers such as Belk (1991) and McCracken (1988) ushered in the interpretive, humanistic approach to research in marketing. Recently, in an important development that has captured our thinking, Vargo and Lusch (2004) have worked to refashion the field into a new “dominant logic,” the basis of which is service orientation (see also Lusch and Vargo 2006). Current trends in global commerce have spurred some serious thinking on how firms can be competitive and stay afloat in this fast-paced environment (Sheth and Sisodia 2002). Years ago, in an ironic anticipation of contemporary global order, Dholakia, Firat, and Bagozzi (1980) proposed a global vision of marketing by referring to their approach as one of “de-Americanization of marketing thought” (p. 75).
