How psychological distance shapes hedonic consumption: The moderating role of the need to justify

Abstract

Psychological distance is pervasive in consumers’ minds and affects their hedonic consumption patterns. However, the literature regarding the effects of psychological distance on hedonic consumption is inconsistent. Three experiments demonstrate that the need to justify is an important moderator. Experiments 1 and 2 show that when the need to justify is not salient, psychological distance negatively impacts hedonic consumption. However, when the need to justify is salient, the effect of psychological distance disappears statistically. Experiment 3 shows that when the need to justify is not salient, the effect of psychological distance on hedonic consumption is explained by two conflicting mechanisms (i.e., positive emotional intensity and the difficulty in justifying) which respectively represent the indirect negative and positive effect. Nevertheless, when the need to justify is salient, the effect of psychological distance can only be explained by the difficulty in justifying the hedonic option, resulting in an indirect positive effect.