On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak a pandemic. In the following days, media reports showed that consumers increasingly stockpiled groceries and household supplies. Interestingly, behavioral data shows that this stockpiling exhibited considerable heterogeneity across countries. Building on cultural dimension theory, the authors theorize that this heterogeneity can be explained by countries' cultural values: Consumer stockpiling after the WHO's announcement was more pronounced in countries whose residents show high uncertainty avoidance, low long-term orientation, low indulgence, and high individualism. The authors confirm these propositions using global mobility data from Google matched with country-level data on cultural values, pandemic reaction policies, and other key variables. This research note thereby integrates the previously disconnected literature on cultural dimension theory and consumer stockpiling in general, as well as providing new and significant knowledge about cross-cultural consumer behavior in crises. Furthermore, the authors provide actionable insights for international policymakers and business managers who aim to predict or control consumer stockpiling in future global crises, in order to enhance consumer well-being.

Various polyethylene terephthalate (PET)/clay nanocomposites containing a commercial organoclay (organophilic montmorillonite nanoclay [OMMT]) and a monomer-activated OMMT (remodified OMMT) were prepared via in situ interlayer polycondensation of dimethyl terephthalate and ethylene glycol. In order to remodify the commercial OMMT nanoparticles, a diacid chloride monomer was applied. The prepared nanocomposites were characterized by diverse methods, including X-ray diffraction, differential scanning calorimetry, thermogravimetric analysis, and intrinsic viscosity measurements. The results of the study revealed that the PET/(remodified OMMT) nanocomposites possess a better state of clay dispersion as well as significantly better thermal properties as compared with the PET/OMMT nanocomposites. Moreover, the PET/(remodified OMMT) nanocomposites showed higher crystallization temperature, degree of crystallinity, maximum degradation temperature, and lower halftime of crystallization than that of the PET/OMMT nanocomposites. It was found that the remodification process for OMMT led to less of a foaming problem during in situ polymerization. J. VINYL ADDIT. TECHNOL., 21:70-78, 2015.

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