구매 목적이 대안애착에 미치는 영향:지각된 브랜드간 유사성의 조절적 역할을 중심으로

Abstract

Consumers who consider their options closely are often struck by a feeling of discomfort as soon as they have chosen one alternative over the others (deliberating makes choosing feel like losing). This is accompanied by a sense that the forgone options are more desirable than they had seemed before the choice. Thus, many consumers experience the option attachment, that is, the attachment to multiple choice options before selecting among them, as a driver of postchoice discomfort and of an increase in the appeal of forgone options. The option attachment can be a decisive factor that influences the postchoice satisfaction and subsequent purchases.This study examines the option attachment by comparing utilitarian versus hedonic purchasing goals in the context of high versus low perceived similarity of brands. We adopted a 2 x 2 between-subjects factorial design using purchase goal (hedonic vs. utilitarian) and perceived similarity between brands (high vs. low) as independent variables. The result revealed that consumers experience higher level of option attachment (1) when they have hedonic rather than utilitarian purchasing goals, (2)when they have to choose between brands with high perceived similarity. More importantly, an interaction effect between the purchase goal and the perceived similarity among brands emerged: When consumers had utilitarian purchasing goals, they experienced greater attachment to the foregone option in the choice between highly similar brands, but they experienced lower level of attachment in the choice between dissimilar brands. In contrast, the levels of attachment to the foregone option did not differ significantly between the high and low perceived similarity conditions when consumers had hedonic purchase goals. Finally, practical as well as theoretical implications of the findings were discussed.