Inés López

Explaining website effectiveness: The hedonic-utilitarian dual mediation hypothesis

In this study, we propose and test a conceptual model, representing the hedonic-utilitarian dual mediation hypothesis, in which both cognition and emotions are combined to help understand individual behavior in an online environment. Beyond what cognitive models offer, our results show that both cognitive and emotional responses play a key role in communication through websites and that the hedonic-utilitarian dual mediation hypothesis is the best fitting model in comparison with the four alternatives tested. Moreover, attitude is treated as a bi-dimensional construct made up of a hedonic and a utilitarian component. Based on this, an additional contribution concerns the correspondence that exists between consumer cognition and the utilitarian dimension of attitude, as well as the emotions expressed by subjects and the hedonic dimension of attitude. The relative importance of each dimension of attitudes can provide marketers in e-commerce settings with insights about whether to introduce more emotional appeals or more cognitive stimuli when communicating through their websites.

When hedonic products help regulate my mood

This paper analyzes how affect mechanisms work when consumers form their attitude toward and intention to purchase a hedonic product. The first of two studies shows that when products have the potential to improve moods, affect regulation dominates affective evaluation in forming purchase intentions. In other words, the need to repair one’s mood overrides mood-congruent reviews. However, the affect regulation mechanism is not very stable, and study two shows that introducing a competing source of information, such as product reviews, overwhelms the effect. Results show that when consumers are in a bad mood, product reviews significantly influence their attitude and purchase intention regarding a hedonic product. However, this effect is not significant for consumers in a positive mood because they generate both arguments and counterarguments that compensate for the information received from a third party.

Sharing co-creation experiences contributes to consumer satisfaction

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyze the effects of sharing co-creation experiences on consumers’ behavioral intentions. Increasingly often, companies interact with consumers and involve them in value co-creation, especially in the virtual environment, while more and more consumers tend to share their experiences and their related emotions socially. However, no research has addressed how the interplay of these two variables influences consumer behavior. Design/methodology/approach The authors conducted a preliminary study and a 2×2 between-subjects experiment where co-creation and sharing of emotions were orthogonally manipulated. A total of 120 participants were randomly assigned to one of the four scenarios. Findings The results show that not only do individuals participate in co-creation activities, but they also tend to share such experiences socially. But more important from a literature contribution perspective, the results confirm a joint effect of co-creation and sharing on satisfaction and repurchase intention. Thus, the effect of co-creation can be bolstered by encouraging participants to share the experience with other people. Originality/value While we can better understand the effects of co-creation in particular contexts effects such as that of sharing, the findings also contribute to the theoretical literature on social sharing of emotions as it has not been related to co-creation activities before. The results are of special relevance for those companies implementing co-creation activities, as they provide clues to increase the outcome of such initiatives in terms of consumers’ responses toward the firm.