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The results from laboratory research on the effect of purchase type on consumer happiness are highlighted. Using a decision making paradigm, participants were randomly assigned to fictional scenarios where ordinary/extraordinary material purchases and ordinary/extraordinary experiential purchases were experimentally manipulated. Consumer happiness, consumer choice, and consumer attitude were utilized as outcome variables. There was evidence that participants differed in consumer happiness based on the type, magnitude, and valence of the purchase. This research adds to the literature on consumer happiness in a decision making context. Future directions, including strategic marketing applications as well as methodoligcal strengths and limitations, are discussed.

Consumer Behavior, Marketing Research