Goods Feel not as Good as Good Experiences

Abstract

Past research suggests that experiential purchases tend to make people happier than material purchases for several reasons. But, none of them made a direct comparison of affective experiences from two purchase types. The present study proposes that what one feels from experiential and material purchases would essentially differ from each other. Supporting evidence was obtained through four studies. It was found that experiential purchases produced more intense positive affects than material purchases (Study 1). Two moderators further influenced this difference; with whom and when factor. Experiential purchases were likely to lead to increase positive affects and decrease negative affects when accompanied by a friend (Study 2A). Furthermore, the social nature of experiences was highly valued to the extent that people found it worth sacrificing ones own preferences to pursue social bonds. This was, however, not the case for material purchases (Study 2B). Lastly, Study 3 confirmed that the distant future (i.e., 1 year later) experiential purchases induced equally strong positive affects as the near future (i.e., tomorrow) experiential purchases. Material possessions were, however, contingent upon temporal distance and thus future material purchases no longer produced strong anticipation.