Utilitarian Consumption Research Articles

The Relevance of Demographic Similarity and Factuality in Social Influencer Communication Culture – A Comparison Between Hedonic and Utilitarian Conditions

This work identifies differences in the success factors of influencers given consumers’ consumption goals (hedonic vs. utilitarian). Although practitioners have complained about the lack of know-how regarding this issue, research on the topic remains scarce. Hypotheses on the differing relevance of the demographic similarity of influencers and consumers and of the factuality of influencers’ communication are verified through an empirical investigation. The scenario is consumers’ selection of a hotel for (1) a holiday (hedonic consumption goal) or (2) a professional/university seminar (utilitarian consumption goal). The results are analyzed by structural equation modeling and multigroup analysis. We generate some surprising results. Counterintuitively, demographic similarity is more important under utilitarian than hedonic conditions. Factuality seems equally important in both conditions. Explanations and implications of these findings are provided.

Psychophysiological Investigation of the Effects of Virtual Reality, the New Dimension of Retail Shopping, on Generation Z

Virtual reality has begun to show itself in many areas of our lives as its accessibility becomes easier. Especially in recent years, it has been observed that investments have been made in this field in the retail sector and many brands have created virtual reality stores. The research emphasizes the need for new studies on consumer behavior in virtual reality stores, the new interface of the retail sector, in order to shed light on future investments. The attitude of Generation Z, who grew up with technology and is open to innovation, towards the virtual reality store is important because they are the consumers of today and the future. Given this situation, in the current study, the attitude of Generation Z towards the virtual reality store is examined psychophysiologically. The physiological outcomes of university students (n = 40) between the ages of 18–29 during the shopping experience in a virtual reality store were analyzed with electrodermal activity (EDA) and photoplethysmography (PPG) research techniques. Physiological data were analyzed by comparing them with the data obtained from the Socio-Demographic characteristics and the Hedonic and Utilitarian Consumption Behaviors Scale. In line with the findings in the study, the psychophysiological effects of the virtual reality store on Generation Z participants did not show significant differences in terms of demographic characteristics and hedonic and utilitarian consumption behaviors. However, the increase in the heart rate averages of the majority of the participants during the experience was significant. This is attributed to the fact that virtual reality adresses both hedonic and utilitarian consumption.

Does logo complexity impact souvenir authenticity perception? When complex is authentic

ABSTRACT People crave authenticity in tourism. However, empirical research on the effect of logo design elements on souvenirs’ perceived authenticity has mainly been ignored in the existing literature. We fill this gap by focusing on logo complexity and examining its impact on souvenir authenticity. Across four studies (N = 1037), we demonstrate that complex logos lead to higher perceived authenticity, with the explanatory mechanism behind this being perceived oldness. The consumption type moderates this effect. We find that the impact of logo complexity is mitigated for utilitarian consumption. Our findings contribute to the literature on perceived authenticity and provide practical advice for local souvenir marketers when designing brand logos.

Would the blind box be more effective? The role of uncertainty in consumers’ post-recovery satisfaction

The tourism and hospitality industries are notably highly likely to experience service failures due to frequent contact with service personnel. These industries actively seek innovative strategies to enhance consumers’ post-recovery satisfaction without increasing costs. Drawing on social exchange theory and regulatory focus theory, this study examines whether uncertainty can be an effective recovery method for service failures through four experiments. Findings indicate that uncertainty can enhance perceived fun and post-recovery satisfaction in situations of low-severe failure severity and hedonic consumption. However, in cases of high-severity failures and utilitarian consumption, uncertainty can lead to perceived insincerity and reduce post-recovery satisfaction. We also investigate the moderating role of customer inoculation and find that customer inoculation is effective in amplifying the positive impact of the uncertainty effect and mitigating its negative impact. This paper expands the literature on uncertainty utilization and service recovery strategies by determining whether and when uncertainty is appropriate in service recovery.

Customer Engagement in Utilitarian vs. Hedonic Service Contexts

In the last decade, customer engagement has become a key concept in service research. While the customer engagement literature has gained significant traction and is maturing, studies have predominantly focused on hedonic consumption contexts, such as social media platforms or brand communities. We argue that hedonic and utilitarian service services are fundamentally different. Therefore, existing research knowledge on customer engagement does not necessarily hold in more utilitarian contexts, such as healthcare or financial services, where greater customer engagement could increase societal and individual well-being. By synthesizing insights from the customer engagement literature and the literature on hedonic versus utilitarian consumption, we identify assumptions in customer engagement research that need revising. We extract five fundamental features that differ between hedonic and utilitarian services (affectivity, motivational focus, perception of necessity, role of risk, and relational focus). Based on these features, we derive propositions that describe the role of context for the drivers and outcomes of customer engagement, as well as their interrelationships, and provide guidelines for future research to augment the scope of customer engagement research. As its main contribution, this article problematizes the current premises of customer engagement research and demonstrates that assumptions held about customer engagement are not necessarily generalizable across contexts.

Pairing up with anthropomorphized artificial agents: Leveraging employee creativity in service encounters

Even as artificial agents (AAs) become more prevalent in service encounters, customers continue to express generally unfavorable views of their creativity, which can lead to negative service evaluations. Drawing on anthropomorphism and group stereotyping literature, the authors propose a trait transference effect from human employees to AAs in dyadic service teams. The results of five studies confirm that an anthropomorphized (vs. nonanthropomorphized) AA paired with a creative employee boosts service evaluations, both attitudinal and behavioral. Anthropomorphism induces greater perceived entitativity of the AA–employee dyad, prompting customers to transfer the creativity exhibited by the employee to the AA and perceive the AA as more creative. This transference effect is attenuated when the temporal stability of the dyad is low, customers’ lay beliefs about group entitativity are challenged, or customers have utilitarian consumption goals. These results contribute novel insights about AAs in service teams, with compelling practical implications.

Are you a hedonistic or utilitarian? Understanding the role of consumer mood in the relationship between e-commerce attributes and customer motivations

Purpose: This study aims to determine the factors influencing consumer motivation (hedonistic or utilitarian) which ultimately affects consumer impulsivity in shopping.
 Design/Methodology/Approach: This study uses a survey method in the form of a questionnaire to collect data. The study has six variables which are represented by various indicators. Variable measurements were carried out using a Likert-six scale. The collected data was tested for validity and reliability and then put into hypothesis testing using SEM with the help of Amos 24.0.
 Finding: The sample of respondents consisted of 410 students from Universitas Negeri Jakarta. After processing the data, we concluded that e-commerce attributes influence consumer motivation in shopping both utilitarian and hedonistic. The relationship between website personality, store motivating actions and utilitarian customers is not influenced only by mood. Utilitarian consumers will focus more on the promotions and website quality than on their emotional state.
 Conclusion: External factors completely influence consumer motivation for online impulsive shopping. Meanwhile, the utilitarian consumer type is not completely influenced by internal factors.
 Research Limitation: Only a few variables were examined in this study in order to allow for the testing of additional variables and their potential impact on consumer impulsivity in further research. In addition, this study only took a sample of students aged 18-30 years. The scope of respondents can be expanded not only to Generation Z but to other types of professions with an older age (up to 45 years) because there is a greater possibility of impulsive shopping for consumers who are already working and adults.

Intermediate Role of Rational Spending in The Effect of Responsibility Consciousness on Utility Consumption Style

Within the scope of this research, it was revealed whether rational spending (with and without credit cards) has a mediating role in the effect of responsibility consciousness on utilitarian consumption style. In addition, it was determined whether the level of responsibility consciousness affects utilitarian consumption style and rational spending and whether rational spending affects utilitarian consumption. Research data were collected using the questionnaire technique. Data were collected from 479 students, 129 academics and 71 administrative staff. The collected data were analysed using SPSS 26 and PROCESS v4.2 plugin. In the research, first of all, the dimensions of responsibility consciousness, utilitarian consumption style and rational spending scales were determined with the help of explanatory factor analysis. As a consequence of the factor analysis, responsibility awareness and utilitarian consumption are one dimension; the rational spending scale was determined to have two dimensions: rational spending habit without credit cards and rational use of credit cards. As a consequence of the intermediation analysis, it was concluded that the consciousness of responsibility affects rational spending without credit cards, rational use of credit cards and utilitarian consumption. In addition, it was supposed that rational spending without credit cards and rational use of credit cards affect utilitarian consumption, and rational spending without credit cards affects rational use of credit cards. The serial mediation analysis using Model 6 determined that the consciousness of responsibility affects utilitarian consumption serially (one after the other) through rational spending (rational use of credit cards and rational spending habits without credit cards).

The Role of Brand Experience in the Effect of Individuals' Utilitarian Consumption Tendency on Impulse Buying Behavior

Bu çalışmada, faydacı tüketimin plansız satın alma davranışı üzerindeki etkisi ve bu etkide marka deneyiminin aracı rolünün tespit edilmesi amaçlanmıştır. Araştırmada, Türkiye’deki iki özel üniversiteden kolayda örneklem metoduyla seçilen 421 öğrenciden anket verisi elde edilmiştir. Bu verilerle tanımlayıcı istatistiksel analizler gerçekleştirilmiş ve araştırmada kullanılan ölçeklerin geçerlilik ve güvenirlikleri test edilmiştir. Değişkenler arasındaki ilişkinin tespitine yönelik korelasyon analizi yapılmıştır. Araştırma hipotezlerinin testi için “process macro” kullanılmıştır. Çalışmada elde edilen bulgulara göre; faydacı tüketimin plansız satın alma davranışını anlamlı ve pozitif yönde etkilediği ve marka deneyiminin bu ilişkide aracı rolü olduğu belirlenmiştir. Çalışmada elde edilen bulguların plansız satın almaya ilişkin literatüre katkı sağlayacağı, müşteri/tüketici odaklı faaliyet gösteren işletmelerin ilgisini çekeceği değerlendirilmektedir.

Analysis of Hedonic and Utilitarian Consumer Values Affecting the Retail Store Image in India

Analysis of Hedonic and Utilitarian Consumer Values Affecting the Retail Store Image in India

Who Prefers Legal Wood: Consumers with Utilitarian or Hedonic Shopping Values?

Although certification is perceived to be beneficial for enhancing forest sustainability and open access to green markets, certification practices in Indonesia face controversy, particularly in its wood-based industry. We aim to approach this issue from the end-user perspective. Drawing on the theories of value-belief-norm and planned behavior, we examine the psychological aspects of consumers toward legal wood consumption. A survey of 515 consumers showed that individuals with hedonic values tended to have a high perception of green values toward legal wood. Also, when consumers’ hedonic values dominated over their utilitarian consumption, their perception of green values toward legal wood tends to be higher. Based on these results, wood marketers could benefit from directing their communication efforts toward emphasizing the hedonic worth of the product, as opposed to its utilitarian values. It is imperative for distributors and promoters of wood products to carefully deliberate on strategies to effectively elicit the hedonic shopping values that are inherently linked to the utilization of such green products. An illustration can be represented by the case of IKEA in Indonesia. Consumers are probably attracted to IKEA’s neuromarketing strategy, such as their attractive display and labyrinth effect, without realizing that IKEA also applies green marketing and supports green products.

The Effect of Death Anxiety on Hedonistic and Utilitarian Consumer Behaviours During the Covid-19 Pandemic

The aim of the research is to determine how the death anxiety felt by individuals during the Covid-19 process affects hedonic consumption and utilitarian consumption.. The original aspect of this research is that it covers the period of the Covid-19 epidemic processively and includes psychology,socioalology,religion and marketing of sciences. Death anxiety, which has been widely reported to have an effect on consumer behavior in the literature, has generally been interpreted later or examined retrospectively in disaster studies. This research was carried out during the Covid-19 pandemic process. Although there are many studies in the literature affecting utilitarian and hedonic consumption, it is thought that its contribution to the literature is to focus on the effect of death anxiety. E-survey with Google forms was used as the research method. Three different measurement tools were used for the data, namely “Hedonistic Consumption Scale”, “Utilitarian Consumption Scale”, and “Death Anxiety Scale” with demographic variables. In the research, an electronic questionnaire was applied to 403 people in the 18-64 age group residing in Istanbul using the "Snowball Sampling Method" and the data obtained were analyzed and interpreted with licensed SPSS 24 and AMOS 27 statistical programs. According to the results of the structural equation modeling used in the research, the 1st dimension of death anxiety affects (Uncertainty of Death) the 5 dimensions of hedonic consumption( hedonic effect, hedonic adaptation, passiveness, impulsive tendency and the reflection of identity) negatively, and the 2nd dimension affects(Thinking of and Witnessing Death) the 5 dimensions of hedonic consumption (hedonic effect, hedonic adaptation, passiveness, impulsive tendency and the reflection of identity) in a positive way. On the other hand, while the 1st dimension of death anxiety (Uncertainty of Death) is ineffective in 2 dimensions of utilitarian consumption(goal orientation and control orientation), the 2nd dimension( Thinking of and Witnessing Death) negatively affects 2 dimensions of utilitarian consumption (goal orientation and control orientation).

To be precise (imprecise) in utilitarian (hedonic) contexts: Examining the influence of numerical precision on consumer reactions to artificial intelligence‐based recommendations

AbstractThe precision of artificial intelligence (AI)‐generated information has been suggested in the past as a method of nudging consumers' evaluations and intentions, but little is known about whether such effects are also context‐sensitive. Based on four studies, we find a matched condition under which consumers are more likely to make a positive response when precise (imprecise) numbers presented by AI recommenders are used in a utilitarian (hedonic) consumption context (Study 1). Additionally, we show that consumer conceptual fluency also mediates this matching effect on consumer purchase decision‐making (Studies 2). We further show the matching effect is moderated by the recommender type (Study 3) and consumer lay beliefs about the AI and human recommenders (Study 4). This study shows that when consumers' lay belief changes from “AI performs objective tasks well” and “Human performs subjective tasks well” to “AI performs subjective tasks well” and “Human performs objective tasks well,” it can change the difference in the matching relationship between human and AI recommenders.

Tourist subsequent responses to promotion framing

Promotions not only facilitate the purchase of the primary product; they also have the potential to promote subsequent purchase behavior. Four experiments examine the effects of two different promotion framing practices (cashback vs. discount) on tourists' subsequent responses. The results indicate that a cashback has a more positive effect on tourist responses. This effect is serially mediated by emotional state and impulsive buying tendency. This research further finds that there are two moderators—consumption timing and consumption type and that the main effect is alleviated for utilitarian consumption, or until tourists receive the cashback. The findings add to the tourism literature on price promotions, cashbacks, and mental accounting, and will guide tourism marketers in the design of effective promotions.

The Examination of Cultural Consumerism in the Internet Age

The cultural consumerism in the network era has the realistic representation of utilitarian consumption consciousness, vulgarization of consumption spirit, entertainment of consumption content and symbolization of consumer products. The promotion of capital, the power of media and the psychological drive cause the prevalence of the social ideological trend in the network space. This trend of thought induces some irrational cultural consumption behaviors on the Internet. In order to solve the dilemma brought by cultural consumerism in the Internet era, it is necessary to regulate capital, strengthen media management, cultivate a healthy consumption mentality, and guide and promote the public's consumption behavior to be reasonable, healthy and positive.

The effect of consumption goals on review helpfulness: Behavioral and eye-tracking research

Through utilizing behavioral methodology and integrating eye-tracking technology, we investigate the effect of consumption goals on review helpfulness during online shopping. Behaviorally, consumption goals (hedonic vs. utilitarian) can influence relative review (attribute-based vs. experience-based) helpfulness and this effect is mediated by review-goal congruity. Compared with those with hedonic consumption goals, consumers with utilitarian consumption goals perceive attribute-based reviews (vs. experience-based reviews) as more consistent with expectations, which makes the former of reviews more helpful for shopping decisions. In the study of eye-tracking, we found the attention-based cognitive process underlying the behavioral effect of consumption goals. Consumers have longer fixation duration and more fixation counts for attribute-based reviews when they have utilitarian consumption goals rather than hedonic consumption goals. These results show that by different types of consumption goals, consumers evaluate the review helpfulness and meantime allocate attentional resources. This research extends our current understanding of the relationship between consumption goals and online review helpfulness, and provides guidelines on the utilization of online reviews to facilitate the development of the marketing strategy for online retailers.

What makes a self-deprecating advertisement more persuasive? The role of self-uncertainty

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the interesting but largely unexamined impact of self-uncertainty on the persuasiveness of self-deprecating advertisement.Design/methodology/approachIn the present research, the experimental design and survey methods are used to collect data. Furthermore, the ANOVA and bootstrap analysis methods are adopted to verify whether a self-deprecating advertisement is more persuasive for consumers experiencing self-uncertainty and explore the mediating role of self-verification.FindingsStudy 1 indicates that people experiencing self-uncertainty are more likely to engage in actual self-verification. Study 2 demonstrates that consumers experiencing self-uncertainty are more likely to purchase products in a self-deprecating advertisement (vs. self-enhancing advertisement), and actual self-verification motive underlies this effect. In Study 3, a novel boundary condition for the main effect–product type (hedonic vs. utilitarian) is found, and it further reveals that the impact of self-uncertainty on the persuasiveness of self-deprecating advertisement will attenuate when the advertised product is utilitarian.Practical implicationsThis research reveals that self-deprecating advertising is more desirable for consumers who experience self-uncertainty. Based on the conclusions in this paper, the self-deprecating advertising is more attractive and desirable for consumers who are reminded about their personal uncertainties. Thus, marketers could employ self-deprecating (vs. self-enhancing) advertisement to promote products. For example, in order to promote the waterproof function of iPhone 12, Apple China released a self-deprecating advertisement of “Splash proof and water resistant. Don't worry, iPhone.”Originality/valueFirst, this research not only sheds new light on the relationship between self-uncertainty and the persuasiveness of self-deprecating advertisement but also verifies the mediating role of self-verification motive in this relationship. Moreover, this research reveals that self-uncertainty is a significant factor in how people react to the self-deprecating advertisement. It is noteworthy that the self-uncertainty effect is more likely to be found when the advertised product is related to hedonic or experiential consumption as opposed to utilitarian consumption.

Influences of mental accounting on consumption decisions: asymmetric effect of a scarcity mindset.

A scarcity mindset is considered to impact consumer behaviors. Our research aimed to examine the moderating effect of the scarcity mindset on the relationship between mental accounting and hedonic (vs. utilitarian) consumption. We conducted an online experimental design (mental accounting: windfall gains vs. hard-earning gains; consumption: hedonic products vs. utilitarian products) and verified our hypotheses in two distinct samples: a student sample and an adult sample. Our results showed that consumers who received windfall gains tended to use it for hedonic consumption rather than utilitarian consumption. Intriguingly, such an effect was insignificant under a high level of a scarcity mindset but significant under a low level of the scarcity mindset. Moreover, consumers who received hard-earning gains tended to spend the money on utilitarian (vs. hedonic) consumption. However, we did not detect the impact of the scarcity mindset on such effects. Our research suggested an asymmetric effect of the scarcity mindset on hedonic (vs. utilitarian) consumption under two different mental accounts. It highlights the important role of the scarcity mindset in consumer behaviors, which leaves avenues for future research to understand marketing promotion strategies for distinct products.

Shopping Center Design in The Context of Generation Z Consumer Perception

From the Greek Agora, where we saw the first examples of shopping venues, to the present day, human beings' shopping action and the need for a place to perform this action have always been there. The quality of these shopping places has had to change and transform over time with the changing lifestyle, spatial needs, and consumption styles from generation to generation. The consumer society, which has come to the point of purchasing everything, today's shopping centers are not only needed goods; We can say that they consider these as complexes where recreational activities, where they can maintain their social relations and enjoy, are also purchased. When considered in the context of consumption, hedonic consumption, which is the consumption understanding of the new generation, has begun to replace the utilitarian consumption that was dominant in previous generations. It has also been seen in the studies that the Z generation constitutes an important part of today's shopping malls. For this reason, the existing shopping center design parameters were examined and a synthesis shopping center design criteria table was created. On the other hand, the criteria in the current table were examined, and the examples of shopping malls that entered the literature as 'new generation' shopping centers were examined and the priority design criteria sought by the Z generation in shopping centers were reached.

How showing others' ideas influences consumer creativity: The moderating role of participation motivation

Organizations increasingly believe in the value of engaging consumers actively in innovation, and knowledge and creativity are widely recognized as key competitive factors. This study considers consumers' utilitarian and hedonic motivations in a research model based on goal-setting theory and explores the effect of consumer knowledge acquisition on creativity—specifically, the mediating role of knowledge acquisition on consumer creativity in the context of whether or not to show others' ideas—and discusses the moderating role of consumer engagement motivations in the context of the relationship between whether or not to show others' ideas and knowledge acquisition. The results show that consumers reported higher levels of creativity in the context of presenting others' ideas; utilitarian consumers had a higher willingness to acquire knowledge and thus reported higher levels of creativity than hedonistic consumers.