Aesthetic Consumption



Aesthetics and Consumption

HENRIK HAGTVEDT

VANESSA M. PATRICK*

*Henrik Hagtvedt is a doctoral candidate in marketing at the Terry College of Business, University of Georgia (132 Brooks Hall, Terry College of Business, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602; Phone: (706) 254-6456; Fax: (706) 542-3738; Email: hhagtvedt@). Vanessa M. Patrick is an Assistant Professor of Marketing at the Terry College of Business, University of Georgia (127 Brooks Hall, Terry College of Business, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602; Phone: (706) 542-3765; Fax: (706) 542-3738; Email: vpatrick@uga.edu).

Abstract

Aesthetics is increasingly becoming an important criterion by which consumers evaluate and differentiate between product offerings and make purchasing decisions. Recognizing this growing trend in the marketplace, a number of consumer researchers have begun focusing on this area. However, there exists no comprehensive, overarching, or integrative theoretical framework for aesthetics research in the consumption domain. Moreover, researchers have no unified view on methodologies or vocabulary, or on how research in the area should advance. Taking the initial step to develop such a common understanding amongst leading researchers in the area forms the central motivation for this roundtable.

Roundtable Proposal for ACR 2008: Aesthetics and Consumption

Henrik Hagtvedt & Vanessa Patrick

University of Georgia

Design and aesthetics of products and services has long been recognized as a key determinant of sales success (Bloch 1995; Simonson and Schmitt 1997). In a marketplace where consumers can take high product quality and competitive pricing for granted, aesthetics has become an important criterion by which consumers evaluate and differentiate between product/service offerings and make purchasing decisions (Postrel 2003). Indeed, the importance of aesthetics is no longer applicable only to the arts or to product categories where aesthetics has traditionally been a central product benefit.

Why this topic? Objectives for the Roundtable Discussion:

Recognizing this growing trend in the marketplace, a number of consumer researchers have begun focusing on research that deals with the aesthetics of advertising, product design, servicescapes, websites, etc. (for a review of the academic research on the non-trivial influence of aesthetics on consumer preferences and evaluations see Hoegg and Alba 2008). Notably however, these scholars base their theoretical frameworks on extant research in areas as diverse as art theory, sensory perception, and neuroscience. There exists no comprehensive, overarching, or integrative theoretical framework for aesthetics research in the consumption domain. Moreover, researchers in the area have no unified view on the best methodologies, little or no common vocabulary, and most importantly, no agreed-upon direction in which the area of research should advance. Taking the initial step to develop such a common understanding amongst the leading researchers in the area forms the central motivation for the roundtable discussion proposed here.

Who will attend? Roundtable participants:

We have invited a set of eminent scholars who investigate issues pertaining to aesthetics in the consumption domain. The following scholars have confirmed attendance:

Faculty

Wes Hutchinson, University of Pennsylvania

George Zinkhan, University of Georgia

Joan Meyers-Levy, University of Minnesota

JoAndrea Hoegg, University of British Columbia

Aradhna Krishna, University of Michigan

Darren Dahl, University of British Columbia

Raj Raghunathan, University of Texas at Austin

Juliet Zhu, University of British Columbia

Rolf Reber, University of Bergen

Page Moreau, University of Colorado at Boulder

Frederic Brunel, Boston University

Annamma Joy, University of British Columbia

Jonathan Schroeder, University of Exeter

Ravi Chitturi, Lehigh University

Joseph Alba, University of Florida (tentative)

PhD students

Michael Luchs, University of Texas at Austin

Xiaoyan Deng, University of Pennsylvania

Rishtee Batra, Boston University

We will plan to have a pre-ACR discussion forum on the ACR website’s Knowledge Exchange.

What will we talk about? Key topic areas for discussion:

What is aesthetics, especially as it pertains to consumer behavior and marketing? A useful starting point is to discuss what constitutes aesthetics. Myriad definitions exist, most of them emphasizing art and/or beauty (Charters 2006; Dickie 1997). However, various other concepts are often introduced, such that even ugliness may be viewed as having aesthetic value. Consequently, we have no unified understanding of the main construct under investigation in this area. Perhaps it will not be possible to attain consensus on this matter, but it would seem useful to discuss the merits of different approaches.

Are there some common principles/themes/elements that underlie aesthetics, regardless of consumption domain? Aesthetic elements are involved in product design, retail environments, and advertising. However, it is not clear whether the same basic principles of aesthetics apply to the various areas, or whether certain aspects of aesthetics are more or less relevant to these areas.

What are the cognitive and affective components of processing aesthetic stimuli? It is unclear how consumers process aesthetic stimuli and whether they process them in the same manner as other stimuli. In general, consumers’ processing mode for aesthetic stimuli, including both conscious and unconscious processes, merits further discussion.

What is the interplay between aesthetics and hedonics? Or, are all aesthetic experiences hedonic and vice versa? An observation from the extant literature is that aesthetic appreciation is an experience enjoyed purely for its own sake (Holbrook and Zirlin 1983). While there is much controversy about the exact definition of aesthetics, there appears to be much consensus that aesthetic properties are intrinsically enjoyable, valued for their own sake rather than for some other utility. This distinction from function seems almost paradoxical in a marketing context. In advertising, how does this principle coincide with the marketers’ persuasive efforts? In product design, how does it coincide with the function of the object? In the retail environment, how does it coincide with the goal of making sales? How can we draw on the growing literature on hedonic consumption to inform aesthetics?

What is the role of different sensory input in an aesthetic experience? The current topic may suggest an emphasis on the visual element of aesthetics. However, auditory, gustatory, tactile, and olfactory stimuli may also include salient aesthetic properties. Neuroscience research demonstrates that the different senses work together to form an overall experience. Understanding how the different sensory elements combine in an aesthetic experience is important for consumer researchers. Further, articulated thoughts on the possible integration of research focused on different sensory stimuli would benefit the field and possibly open up new avenues for research.

Where should we go from here? Future Research Directions:

A central focus of the roundtable discussion is to develop a research agenda for the future that is informed by the combined input of various scholars. We hope that the roundtable discussion will result in a better understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the current research approaches as well as gaps in our current knowledge. In sum, we expect that this roundtable would be an ideal forum to discuss and evaluate future research opportunities, and to identify the major contributions that research in aesthetics can make to our understanding of consumer behavior.

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