The role of product schema in consumer decision making processes.

PurposeThe purpose of the study is to investigate how mental imagery evoked from sensory in-store experience influences consumer anticipatory emotion, perceived ownership and decision satisfaction which eventually impact positive consumer responses such as behavioural intent. In this study, gender difference is proposed as a moderator to completely understand the role of mental imagery in the in-store decision-making process.Design/methodology/approachUsing a market research agency in South Korea, an online survey was employed to collect data. A total of 455 useable respondents (men = 224 and women = 231) largely living in the two most populous provinces in South Korea (i.e. Seoul and Gyeonggi provinces) completed the survey. A number of path analyses were conducted to test hypotheses.FindingsThe results of the study showed that mental imagery evoked from sensory product experience played a critical part in facilitating the consumer decision-making process by influencing anticipatory emotion and perceived ownership. The relationship among anticipatory emotion, perceived ownership, decision satisfaction and behavioural intent was significant except for the relationship between perceived ownership and behavioural intent. This study further indicated that the way mental imagery influences the in-store decision-making process differs between men and women.Originality/valueThe effect of mental imagery in a physical retail context is largely ignored. This study addressed the crucial role of mental imagery in a physical apparel retail setting and examined its impact on consumer decision-making processes. By exploring how to enhance consumers' in-store sensory shopping experiences through mental imagery to influence their positive shopping outcomes, this study offers vital insights into how retailers operating physical stores can successfully utilize their stores.

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Interactivity and Amusement in Electronic Commerce

Encyclopedia of Information Science and Technology, First Edition ◽

10.4018/978-1-59140-553-5.ch283 ◽

2005 ◽

pp. 1607-1611 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Yuan Gao

Keyword(s):

Decision Making ◽

Electronic Commerce ◽

Web Sites ◽

Experimental Studies ◽

Structural Features ◽

Consumer Attitude ◽

Consumer Decision Making ◽

Consumer Decision ◽

Decision Making Processes ◽

Video And Audio

The use of structural features such as text size, font, graphics, color, animation, video and audio has been widely explored in the traditional media. Similar uses of such features have also been found in the online environment (Rodgers & Thorson, 2000). Factors related to consumer’s behavior, attitude, and perceptions regarding Web sites have been examined in academic literature (Chen & Wells, 1999; Coyle & Thorson, 2001; Ducoffe, 1996; Eighmey, 1997; Koufaris, 2002; Koufaris, Kambil, & Labarbera, 2001; Vijayasarathy, 2003). They include the investigation of effects of interactive features on Web site appeal (Ghose & Dou, 1998), and e-store characteristics on site traffic and sales (Lohse & Spiller, 1998). Some experimental studies examined the effects of animation and image maps on perceived telepresence and consumer attitude (e.g., Coyle & Thorson, 2001), and the use of pop-up windows on consumer decision-making processes (Xia & Sudharshan, 2000).

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