• Asia Marketing Journal
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.83-105
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• 2013

During recent decades, the number of mixed attribute products (henceforth mixed products), which have both utilitarian and hedonic benefits, has increased dramatically. Despite these products' growing popularity, academic research has paid little attention to them, and there remains a gap between theory and the real world. Hence, our study was undertaken to understand consumers' perceptions about and behaviors toward mixed products, as well as factors affecting the evaluation and choice of these products. We divided mixed attribute products into two categories: mixed utilitarian products (utilitarian products adding hedonic attributes) and mixed hedonic products (hedonic products adding utilitarian attributes). We then showed how adding different attributes affects consumers' perception, willingness to pay (WTP), and the choice of mixed attribute products compared to pure utilitarian or pure hedonic products. We conducted an experiment using a within-subject design. A total of 160 office workers and college students participated in the study. The pure utilitarian product used in the study was orange juice, and the mixed utilitarian product was carbonated orange juice. The pure hedonic product was chocolate, and the mixed hedonic product was polyphenol enriched chocolate. Results showed that consumers perceived a mixed utilitarian product to be less utilitarian, less pleasurable and more guilty than a pure utilitarian product. On the other hand, a mixed hedonic product was perceived to be more utilitarian, less pleasurable and less guilty than a pure hedonic product. Also, WTP for a mixed hedonic product was higher than WTP for a pure hedonic product, but WTP was lower for a mixed utilitarian product than for a pure utilitarian product. Furthermore, mixed hedonic products were likely to be evaluated more favorably when they were presented together with pure hedonic products, more so than when they were presented alone. Finally, when compared to low self-control participants, high self-control participants chose mixed hedonic products more frequently. The present study contributes to the existing literature on utilitarian and hedonic consumption by adding to the sparse literature on the consumption of products that have both utilitarian and hedonic purposes. Also, our research findings provide several useful implications for practitioners in related fields. First, the current study provides marketers with a useful guide for understanding consumers' perceptions of these types of products, and helps to predict how adding different attributes influences these products. Second, this study has examined the conditions that may moderate the evaluation and choice of hedonic base products and this finding will serve as a good reference for marketers of mixed hedonic products in marketing communication strategy, in-store marketing and targeting. Specifically, comparative advertising with a pure hedonic product will be beneficial for a mixed hedonic product. Also, displaying mixed hedonic products near pure hedonic products may enhance the effectiveness of in-store marketing of mixed hedonic products.

• Journal of Global Scholars of Marketing Science
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.123-134
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• 2010

Considering the benefits for both consumers and suppliers, firms are taking advantage of the Internet as a medium to communicate with and sell products to their consumers. This trend makes the online shopping environment a growing field for both researchers and practitioners. This paper contributes by testing a model of online consumer behavior with websites varying in levels of hedonism. Unlike past studies, we included all three types of emotions (arousal, pleasure, and dominance) and flow into the model. In this study, we assumed that website interfaces, such as background colors, music, and fonts impact the three types of emotions at the initial exposure to the site (Mazaheri, Richard, and Laroche, 2011). In turn, these emotions influence flow and consumers' perceptions of the site atmospherics-perception of site informativeness, effectiveness, and entertainment. This assumption is consistent with Zajonc (1980) who argued that affective reactions are independent of perceptual and cognitive operations and can influence responses. We, then, propose that the perceptions of site atmospherics along with flow, influence customers' attitudes toward the website and toward the product, site involvement, and purchase intentions. In addition, we studied the moderating impact of the level of hedonism of websites on all the relationship in the model. Thus, the path coefficients were compared between "high" and "low" hedonic websites. We used 39 real websites from 12 product categories (8 services and 4 physical goods) to test the model. Among them, 20 were perceived as high hedonic and 19 as low hedonic by the respondents. The result of EQS 6.1 support the overall model: $\chi^2$=1787 (df=504), CFI=.994; RMSEA=.031. All the hypotheses were significant. In addition, the results of multi-groups analyses reveal several non-invariant structural paths between high and low hedonic website groups. The findings supported the model regarding the influence of the three types of emotions on customers' perceptions of site atmospherics, flow, and other customer behavior variables. It was found that pleasure strongly influenced site attitudes and perceptions of site entertainment. Arousal positively impacted the other two types of emotions, perceptions of site informativeness, and site involvement. Additionally, the influence of arousal on flow was found to be highly significant. The results suggested a strong association between dominance and customers' perceptions of site effectiveness. Dominance was also found to be associated with site attitudes and flow. Moreover, the findings suggested that site involvement and attitudes toward the product are the most important antecedents of purchase intentions. Site informativeness and flow also significantly influenced purchase intentions. The results of multi-group analysis supported the moderating impacts of hedonism of the websites. Compared to low (high) hedonic sites, the impacts of utilitarian (hedonic) attributes on other variables were stronger in high (low) hedonic websites. Among the three types of emotions, dominance (controlling feelings) effects were stronger in high hedonic sites and pleasure effects were stronger in low hedonic sites. Moreover, the impact of site informativeness was stronger for high hedonic websites compared to their low-hedonic counterparts. On the other hand, the influence of effectiveness of information on perceptions of site informativeness and the impact of site involvement on product attitudes were stronger for low hedonic websites than for high hedonic ones.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.38 no.6
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• pp.857-872
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• 2014

This study investigates the effect of service ubiquity perceptions on consumers' responses to virtual stores such as benefit and risk perceptions, shopping value perceptions, and service usage intention. Data were collected via a self-administered online survey from nationwide consumer panels of an online marketing research firm. Questionnaire items were adopted from previous literature and developed by authors via pretesting to measure variables. The results revealed that virtual store service ubiquity affects consumer benefit perceptions as well as risk perceptions. All benefit perceptions (including time effectiveness, user control, and compatibility) had significant mediating effects between service ubiquity and hedonic/utilitarian shopping service value perceptions. The mediating effect of financial risk was significant only in the relationship between service ubiquity and utilitarian value perception. The findings offer retailers and marketers information in regards to consumers' perception of a virtual store usage, which can enhance service and product strategy.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.363-370
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• 2013

Objective: This study investigates the influences of vibrations on hedonic satisfaction based on four kinds of perceptions (perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, perceived enjoyment, cognitive concentration) when mobile gaming. Background: As mobile gaming is becoming more and more popular for smartphone users, they might want to have more hedonic satisfaction instead of focusing on traditional usability criteria such as efficiency, effectiveness, and satisfaction. Method: We conducted a human-factors experiment with 35 male subjects to evaluate hedonic satisfaction in the mobile game configured by 7 vibration types having different levels of intensity and length. Results: The results revealed that the use of vibration significantly increases the perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, and cognitive concentration. In addition, the intensity of vibration makes differences of perceived usefulness and cognitive concentration. Conclusion: Vibration can be effectively used to improve hedonic satisfaction of smartphone users in mobile gaming when they are not allowed to turn the sound effects on. Application: This study helps game designers effectively provide vibration feedback of mobile games for smartphone users.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.37 no.8
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• pp.1139-1154
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• 2013

This study examined the effects of consumers' usefulness and the hedonic perception of their willingness to provide information and cooperation intention in the use of location-context based mobile product recommendation services for fashion stores. We examined the influence of consumers' beliefs regarding marketer's information practices on their perceptions of provided services. In addition, the moderating effects of consumers' epistemic curiosity and information control level were investigated. A total of 400 smartphone users were included as participants for the present study. The results showed that consumers who perceived information services as more hedonic and useful are more likely to provide personal information and cooperate with marketers. The findings of the study suggest that fashion retailers who plan to introduce mobile product recommendation services should pay attention to the hedonic aspects of the services. In addition, the effects of usefulness and hedonic perception of the two dependent variables were different according to the level of epistemic curiosity and information control.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.19 no.9
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• pp.152-161
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• 2019

The purpose of this study was to research the relationships among utilitarian perceptions, hedonic perceptions, perceived usefulness and behavioral intention. Recently, consumers rely heavily on user-generated contents of social media channels to support their purchase decisions, such as electronic word-of-mouth. Electronic word-of-mouth helps consumers to evaluate items before making purchase, to reduce purchase risks and to support their purchase decisions. This study was based on both the analysis derived from a hypothesis and literature reviews and data collected from 255 travelers who had used travel review website at least once. The results of empirical analysis showed as follows. First, Utilitarian perceptions(information quality) has a significant impact on the perceived usefulness of a travel review website. Second, Enjoyment has a significant impact on the perceived usefulness of a travel review website. Third, Curiosity fulfilment has a significant impact on the perceived usefulness of a travel review website. Finally, Perceived usefulness of a travel review website has a significant impact on behavioral intention. Based on these findings, the implications and limitations of the study were presented including some directions for future studies.

• Journal of the Korean Home Economics Association
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• v.45 no.5
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• pp.95-119
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• 2007

The purpose of this study was to investigate the shopping values(utilitarian and hedonic values) sought and the risks(economic, functional, socio-psychological, and privacy) perceived by consumers who participate in Internet auctions by determining the factors that affect their shopping values and risk perceptions. Empirical data were collected by an Internet survey of netizens who were interested in and had experience in Internet auctions. Questionnaires were distributed to the subjects through an Internet survey site and at an Internet auction cafe. A total of 300 questionnaires were analyzed. The results showed that consumers showed a slightly greater pursuit of a utilitarian value than a hedonic outcome in their Internet auction practices; however the outcomes pursued by consumers in their teens and twenties tended to be more hedonic than utilitarian. Consumers with a higher level of innovation, self-confidence in purchase, and need for information searching showed a greater pursuit of utilitarian and hedonic outcomes. The group of consumers with a higher expectation for legal protection pursued a more utilitarian outcome, whereas the group of consumers with higher influence from the reference group pursued a more hedonic outcome. The consumers showed that they perceived functional risk as boing most serious, followed by privacy risk, economic risk, and socio-psychological risk. Subjects with higher degrees of innovation, self-confidence in purchase and self-control perceived economic risk as critical. Functional risk was perceived to be highest in the group of consumers with self-control and a need for information searching, whereas socio-psychological risk was perceived to be highest in the group of consumers showing more self-control. Privacy risk was perceived to be highest in the group of consumers with a higher degree of innovation and lowest in both groups of higher and lower affection. Both economic and privacy risks were perceived to be lower in the group of lower pursuit of a hedonic outcome.

• Korean journal of food and cookery science
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.285-298
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• 2012

This study was undertaken to understand the interrelationships among customer's perceptions of service encounters, customer value, and behavioral intent in a family restaurant. Based on 331 samples obtained from empirical research, we reviewed the reliability and fitness of a research model and verified three hypotheses using a structural equation model. The results showed that physical environment (${\beta}$ = .418) and a customer interaction with the service provider (${\beta}$ = .265) had a significant effect on the customer's hedonic value. Additionally, physical environment (${\beta}$ = .126) and customer interaction with service providers (${\beta}$ = .264) had a significant effect on customer utilitarian value. Customer's hedonic (${\beta}$ = .538) and utilitarian value (${\beta}$ = .382) triggered by service encounters had a significant effect on their behavioral intent. Limitations and future research directions are discussed.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.20 no.8
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• pp.186-198
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• 2020

The current study examines how product type and attitudes toward the webtoon - a digital comic that originated in Korea - affect consumer responses to webtoon product placement (PPL). Specifically, it examines the following responses: the perception of PPL intrusiveness, attitudes toward the PPL, attitudes toward the brand, word-of-mouth intention, and purchase intention. It further investigates how PPL type interacts with product type and attitudes toward the webtoon on consumer responses to the PPL. The findings from a 2 (product type: functional vs. hedonic) × 2 (attitudes toward the webtoon: negative vs. positive) × 2 (PPL type: creative placement vs. on-set placement) between-subject experimental study suggest the following: consumer responses to PPL in webtoon is more positive when the product is hedonic (vs. functional) and when attitudes toward the webtoon are positive (vs. negative). This study further suggests when subjects felt favorably toward the webtoon, the creative placement produced weaker perceptions of PPL intrusiveness and more favorable attitudes toward the PPL than the on-set placement. On the other hand, when subjects felt negatively toward the webtoon, the on-set placement evoked weaker perceptions of intrusiveness and more favorable attitudes toward the PPL than did the creative placement.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.37 no.6
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• pp.772-785
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• 2013

This study investigated the effects of fashion consumer's browsing motives and risk perception on impulse buying and purchase intention in social commerce. The online survey results of 317 customers who experienced using fashion products via social commerce were used for the final analysis. Exploratory factor analysis, reliability analysis, and frequency analysis were conducted using SPSS 18.0, and confirmatory factor analysis and path analysis were performed with AMOS 18.0. Three browsing motives (hedonic motive, rational motive, and informational motive) and three risk perceptions (products-related risk, customer service risk, and opportunity loss risk) were identified. The results from the structure equation model were as follows. 1) It was deducted that the browsing motive did not have a significant effect on risk perception due to the rejection of most of the hypotheses in regards to the browsing motive influence on risk perception. 2) Product-related risk and customer service risk had a significantly negative effect on purchase intention. Opportunity loss risk had significantly positive effect on impulse buying and purchase intention. 3) Hedonic browsing motive had a significant effect on impulse buying, and rational motive had a significant effect on impulse buying and purchase intention. The informational browsing motive had a significant effect only on purchase intention.