Pain (and pleasure) in marketing and consumption: An integrative literature review and directions for future research

Abstract

This study provides a first-of-its-kind interdisciplinary integrative literature review on pain, including several potential manifestations of relevance to everyday life and consumption. Importantly, it explores pain’s symbiotic relationship to pleasure, especially in the context of various marketing and consumption experiences. This research draws from a vast array of disciplines, including psychology, sociology, biology, neuroscience, medicine, business, and marketing, to identify definitional issues of pain, uncover the processes and underlying sources and determinants, and explore various forms in which consumers approach, consume, and experience pain. The study offers novel theoretical insights and concludes with future research directions, as well as relevant managerially important lessons, on the intersection of pain, pleasure, and consumption.