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Systematic review article, a systematic literature review of consumers' cognitive-affective needs in product design from 1999 to 2019.

• 1 Industrial and Systems Engineering Graduate Program (PPGEPS), Polytechnic School at Pontifical Catholic University of Paraná, Curitiba, Brazil
• 2 Production Engineering Graduate Program (PPGEP), Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil

Understanding consumer cognitive and affective needs is a complex and tricky challenge for consumer studies. Creating and defining product attributes that meet the consumers' personal wishes and needs in different contexts is a challenge that demands new perspectives because there are mismatches between the objective of companies and the consumer's objective, which indicates the need for products to become increasingly consumer-oriented. Product design approaches aim to bring the product and consumer closer together. The objective of this study is to investigate the application of the cognitive and affective needs of the consumer in product design through a systematic review of the literature of publications carried out in the last 20 years. This article selects research carried out in the specific area of cognitive and affective product design and defines the state of the art of the main areas, challenges, and trends. The conclusion that was reached is that cognitive approaches have been updated, are more associated with technology, and so are focused and oriented toward the ease and friendliness of the product. In contrast, affective approaches are older and focus on the quality of life, satisfaction, pleasure, and friendliness of the product. This review indicates that the emotional focus of change for cognitive complexity is due to an understanding of the affective and emotional subjectivity of the consumers and how they can translate these requirements into product attributes. These approaches seem to lose their strength or preference in the areas of design and engineering for more rational and logical cognitive applications, and therefore are more statistically verifiable. Advances in neuroscience are focused on applications in marketing and consumer psychology and some cognitive and affective product designs.

Introduction

Cognitive and affective product design is strategic for companies who wish to create deep connections with consumers through meaningful associations ( Orth and Thurgood, 2018 ). These connections are valued for having intrinsic links with their beliefs, experiences, memories, people, places, or even personal values ( Noble and Kumar, 2008 ). Thus, the Product Design (PD) and New Product Development (NPD) teams seek to understand which main cognitive and affective elements exist in the subjective product experience, relevant to consumer purchase intention and choice ( Homburg et al., 2015 ).

The fact is that some products can be both comfortable and pleasant to use and consume, and thus promote both functional and “cognitive” as well as hedonic and “affective” experiences ( Crilly et al., 2004 ; Khalid and Helander, 2004 , 2006 ; Khalid, 2006 ; Seva and Helander, 2009 ; Wrigley, 2013 ). In previous reviews, these authors emphasize that such characteristics lead consumers to achieve their personal goals through functional, aesthetic, symbolic, semantic, formal, appearance, and status products, among many others. The design of the product aims to conceive and develop products that meet the needs and preferences of the consumer whether by better usability or functionality ( Li and Gunal, 2012 ; Greggianin et al., 2018 ). They create not only a product more pleasant and accessible to use and consume but also products that accommodate for style and aesthetic beauty, hedonic pleasure, sympathy, and other interests ( González-Sánchez and Gil-Iranzo, 2013 ). Through the evaluation and translation of opinions, the engineers and designers seek, to some extent, to produce happiness in the consumers' mind ( Demirbilek and Sener, 2003 ). However, the opinions are individual and subjective, resulting from the use or consumption experience, or product experience ( Schifferstein and Spence, 2008 ).

There were significant advances in product design before 1999, considering the processes of evaluation and the translation of consumers' cognitive and affective aspects. Among the relevant approaches found, Frijda (1986) deepened the research on emotions in products, focusing initially on facial expressions. For Frijda, emotions would tend to engage in behaviors influenced by the person's needs. Norman (1988) sought to include consumer accessibility in product design through resources with intense affective and emotional impact, popularizing the term user-centered design and simplifying the product's usability through greater functionality. Hauser and Clausing (1988) addressed quality as an essential requirement to meet consumer needs. The basis of the quality house was created so that product design activities could be carried out based on the wishes and needs of consumers. Another featured application was the kansei engineering methodology, as according to Nagamachi (1989) , this methodology aims to implement the feelings and demands of consumers in the operation and design of the product. This author proposed a methodology to measure psychological aspects, understood as the consumer's kansei.

In the field of product design, Desmet (2003) , Norman (1988) , Jordan (1998) , and Green and Jordan (1999) were pioneers in delving deeper into the product's affective and cognitive characteristics and in associating this information with the consumer's different cognitive and emotional levels. Since then, different research fields have studied ways of meeting consumers' subjective needs and preferences at different psychological levels ( Hong et al., 2008 ). The objective is to attract the consumer with products that provide innovative experiences with intense cognitive and affective impacts ( Kumar Ranganathan et al., 2013 ).

Ellsworth and Scherer (2003) highlight that, while affection refers to sentimental responses, cognition is used to interpret, comprehend, and understand the experience. Cognition understands and comprehends what is perceived, while affection promotes the learning and experience feeling in the interaction with the product. Norman (2004) argues that the cognitive system gives meaning to the world while the affective one is critical to it. Both complement each other and each system influences the other, with cognition providing affection and being affected by it ( Ashby et al., 1999 ; Coates, 2003 ; Crilly et al., 2004 ). However, the strategy of many designers is not clear on the importance of associating cognitive and affective needs of the consumer with the cognitive and affective attributes of the product, which creates a problem for the research field in product design ( Crilly et al., 2004 ; Khalid and Helander, 2004 ; Kumar Ranganathan et al., 2013 ; Zhou et al., 2013 ; Gómez-Corona et al., 2017 ; Hsu, 2017 ; Jiao et al., 2017 ). Khalid and Helander (2006) state that the consumer perceives reality in an affective (intuitive and experiential) and cognitive (analytical and rational) way, and separating emotion from cognition is a major deficiency of psychology and cognitive science in general. Emotions are not the cause of rational thinking, but they can motivate an interest in objectivity. Rational thinking affects feelings and affective thinking influences cognition. Therefore, the phenomena are inseparable.

Nevertheless, few integrated applications of cognitive and affective needs in product design are found in the literature. Although the opinion among researchers is that the cognitive and affective human systems belong to a single source of informational processing, the understanding and evaluation of the functioning of these systems are considered essentially “closed,” a “minefield” ( Khalid, 2006 ; Khalid and Helander, 2006 ), or a real “black box” ( Zhou et al., 2013 ; Diego-Mas and Alcaide-Marzal, 2016 ; Jiao et al., 2017 ). Although there have been significant advances in the understanding of the combination of cognitive and affective systems ( Damasio, 2001 ; Damasio and Adolphs, 2001 ), areas of engineering and product design still face difficulties in uniting the two mental processes in the same applications. The justification for this research is to investigate the importance of advancing the study of consumers' cognitive and affective needs in the manner of product characteristics and attributes which is considered an essential path for product design ( Kumar Ranganathan et al., 2013 ).

In this sense, this article seeks to select the research carried out in the specific field of cognitive and affective product design and to identify the main areas, challenges, and trends of the applications as well as to advance the investigation of the problems which justify this research. From this, what would be the main research carried out in the last 20 years on the application of cognitive and affective needs regarding the characteristics and attributes of product design that can contribute to the advancement of consumer research?

Methods and Materials

Systematic literature review (slr).

Through the studies presented so far, Figure 1 shows the starting point for the beginning of the research. This focuses on the cognitive and affective aspects derived from the product and the consumer. On the consumer side it involves senses of sensory perception, cognitive, and affective mental systems, and subjectivity experience when interacting with the product. On the product side, it generally involves cognitive attributes (functionality, usability, etc.) and affective attributes (pleasure, hedonism, pleasantness, etc.). This information is usually captured, evaluated, translated, and applied to product design.

Figure 1 . Conceptual framework of the cognitive and affective aspects in product design.

The practical applications of cognitive and affective aspects in the product design are summarized in the conceptual framework. To identify the most relevant literature related to the topics covered, this study conducted a systematic literature review (SLR) based on data from Cambridge Journals Online, Emerald Insight, IEEE Xplore, Scopus Science, Springer Link, Taylor and Francis, and other databases such as Google Scholar.

The SLR procedure is a research method that achieves results through information already described and published, which minimizes distortions and errors ( Jesson and Lacey, 2006 ; Mattioda et al., 2015 ; Randhawa et al., 2016 ). The study selected only articles that were: (i) peer-reviewed; (ii) written in the English language; and (iii) published in the last 20 years (from 1999 to 2019). The 20-year period aims to meet analysis robustness and the synthesis of the topics covered by considering the largest possible number of approaches that define the research object.

The search keywords are derived from the framework presented, and the selection of the articles was defined based on the following terms: cognitive, affective, or emotional aspects, and product and new products design. Based on these terms, the study searched the following keywords in the databases based on the crossing of the two groups of words: (i) cognitive aspects (“cognition” or “cognitive,” “cognitive design”) and affective aspects (“affect” or “affective,” “affective design,” “emotion,” or “emotional” and “emotion/emotional design”); and (ii) product design: “product design” (PD), “product development process” (PDP), “new product development” (NPD).

The PRISMA Flow Diagram

The PRISMA flow diagram ( Moher et al., 2009 ) was used to organize the SLR ( Figure 2 ).

Figure 2 . Flow diagram of systematic review process (based on the generic diagram in Moher et al., 2009 ).

In the first stage , the research was based on the crosschecking of the keywords. The search result for any subject in the databases included 60,940 articles. After directing the research to only specific subjects considering only the keywords, the result included 187 articles. The research made among Google Scholar's open and available databases resulted in 608 articles.

After identification , in the second stage , the research pre-selected the articles. From the 187 articles, among those that contained in their keywords the terms defined in the preliminary research, 47 of them were excluded because they were duplicated in the sample. After the exclusion of duplicate articles, in a language other than English, and from publications in books and congresses, only 23 articles met the research prerequisites from the 608 found in the open database of Google Scholar. Another exclusion criterion was the removal of articles published in journals not included in the ranking of JCR (Journal Citation Ranking) and SJR (Scimago Journal Ranking) impact factor, a requirement considered important for the next SLR stage. The result was a gross portfolio of 143 base articles for the selection by relevance.

After screening , for the third stage for the eligibility of articles, a qualitative synthesis was initiated.

Qualitative Synthesis

The selection criterion was defined by applying the Methodi Ordinatio ( Pagani et al., 2015 ) that uses the InOrdinatio index, the result of an equation that considers the “impact factor” relevance of the journal where the article is published, the “number of citations” and the importance of more “recent” works that have not yet obtained many citations from peers. In summary, the equation consists of adding the journal's impact factor, the number of citations the article received by its peers to a factor that considers the relevance of how recent the article is when considering its publication year, according to Equation (1):

where: (i) “IF” is the impact factor of the publication, (ii) “α” is a weighting factor that varies from 1 to 10, normally assigned by the researcher; (iii) “ResearchYear” is the year in which the research was developed; (iv) “PublishYear” is the year in which the article was published; and (v) “Σ Ci” is the number of times the article has been cited.

To identify the number of citations by peers, this study considered Google Scholar. The reason for this is the fact that several articles were not included in the main scientific databases that conduct bibliometric analyzes, and that calculate the number of citations by peers, such as Scopus, Proquest, or Elsevier. These databases did not show all articles selected in the initial search. Google Scholar presented all selected items in the gross portfolio after verification.

The “α” criterion was defined by the following formulation that takes into account the current publication status: “10” for publications made in the last 4 years; “8” for publications in the last 5–8 years; “6” for publications in the last 9–12 years; “4” for publications in the last 13–16 years; “2” for publications in the last 17–20 years; and “0” if there were any classic and relevant articles published more than 20 years ago and later inserted in the sample.

After the application of Equation 1 and data handling, the study obtained the InOrdinatio index of each article, for classification according to its scientific relevance for the research. The higher the value of the InOrdinatio index, the more relevant the article was considered. However, articles with more citations stood out in relation to the others and could leave some important studies out of the content analysis.

To solve this deficiency, the study developed a new criterion using the Ordinatio Method and applied it to reinforce the search for the most relevant articles for the research. The new criterion was configured through bibliometric analysis. The objective was to highlight the analysis through the articles initially selected by the research, considering the impact factor of the publication, the number of citations by the peers, and as a complementary addition verify the strength of the keywords chosen for the SLR, both in the occurrences of citation and in the total strength of the correlation links with other works in the gross portfolio.

Quantitative Synthesis

To improve the eligibility of the chosen papers the study considered and calculated all terms available in the title and keywords of the 143 articles in the gross portfolio. The objective was to compensate for the difference in the volume of citations by peers found in the oldest articles compared to the most recent and, therefore, little cited. To achieve this, the study developed a new adherence factor in order to verify the importance of articles that were not included in the previous selection. It also considered the article's proximity to the main topics covered, as presented at the beginning of this review, which justified further research.

The software Vosviewer 1.6.11 , designed for bibliometric network analysis ( Van Eck and Waltman, 2017 ), was used to identify the keywords with the highest occurrence and full strength of links among the main terms addressed by peers from the 143 articles in the gross portfolio. In the software application, the examples were obtained as a result of bibliographic coupling links among publications, co-authoring links among researchers, and occurrence links among terms or keywords. Among the options for a search item, there were links between different terms that point to the number of links between keywords. The total strength of the links between the keywords showed more than one link and the co-occurrence between the terms, which pointed to the number of publications in which the terms occurred together. The higher the numerical value displayed, the stronger the link or the strength of the link between the terms or keywords.

The articles containing the highlighted keywords (considered here with only four or more occurrences— Table 1 ) received the sum of the occurrences volume and the total strength of the links for each keyword. Subsequently, the sum of the volumes of each keyword was added to the value of their InOrdinatio, as shown in Equation (2):

With the application of Equation 2 as a determinant for the selection of articles, articles not considered in the initial qualitative verification (Equation 1) were included in the sample.

Table 1 . Terms or keywords with an occurrence equal to or greater than four.

Table 2 shows the result of the SLR (70 articles). These articles compose the sample for the analysis and discussion of the results. It presents the main authors and topics covered highlighted in the research field. It is possible to verify the results of the qualitative synthesis (Equation 1) and the quantitative synthesis (Equation 2) in detail. The volume of citations and the impact factor of each paper, the year outlining the topicality of the subject, as well as the number of occurrences and strength of the links between the titles and the keywords of the research. The methodology used can be easily replicated in future research.

Table 2 . Classification of the final selection by relevance and impact in the research.

The applications occurred in two large areas, as shown in Table 3 . The detailed bibliometric analysis of the applications made it possible to organize the approaches in order of relevance: affective/emotional approach and cognitive approach.

Table 3 . Occurrence of affective/emotional and cognitive product approaches.

Cognitive and Affective Design Approach

The networked view considers the overlapping data of information about the publication year and presents the timeliness of approaches. Figure 3 presents clusters of evident keywords in the articles. They are organized ranging from the “darkest” and oldest, to the “lightest” and most current, and show an important trend in the types of applications and topicality of the topics covered.

Figure 3 . Network view of the application areas, with information from the publication year overlapped.

Applications in “usability” ( Seva et al., 2011 ; Hill and Bohil, 2016 ), “cognitive ergonomics” ( Chang and Chen, 2016 ; Montewka et al., 2017 ), and “cognitive engineering” ( Li and Gunal, 2012 ) appear to be more current than applications in “affective design” ( Jiao et al., 2006 ; Lu and Petiot, 2014 ; Jiang et al., 2015a ), “kansei engineering” ( Nagamachi, 2002 ; Xu et al., 2012 ; Mele and Campana, 2018 ), and “emotional design” ( Guo et al., 2014 ). All cognitive and affective need applications are interconnected to the product design and indicate cognitive approaches more focused on product usability and functionality, while affective and emotional approaches are more focused on pleasure and consumption.

On one hand, there are approaches to ergonomics and cognitive engineering that direct them to usability and product quality ( Seva et al., 2011 ), as well as learning and training aspects ( Yang and Shieh, 2010 ; Hsu, 2017 ), or interaction design ( Langdon et al., 2007 ; Faiola and Matei, 2010 ; Nam and Kim, 2011 ; Mieczakowski et al., 2013 ). On the other hand, there are approaches that seek to meet the consumer's most affective and emotional needs and preferences and, thereby, improve quality of life. These approaches focus on the affective design ( Guo et al., 2016 ; Gilal et al., 2018 ) and emotional design ( Félix and Duarte, 2018 ). The kansei engineering (KE) method is featured among the affective approaches and seeks to evaluate and translate the consumer subjective requirements into product attributes, as shown in Figure 4 in the density view of terms or keywords. The greater the occurrence of the terms, the greater the size of the letters and the more intense the colors presented (for example, warm, red). In addition, the closer a word is to the other, the greater the link strength between the terms, which shows the intensity of research in different types of approaches.

Figure 4 . Visualization map of terms or keywords by density.

Cognitive Design

Among the most current approaches ( Figure 3 ), it is possible to mention the cognitive design application. Inclusive design ( Langdon et al., 2007 , 2010 ), education ( Faiola and Matei, 2010 ; Lu, 2017 ; Kiernan et al., 2019 ), and learning and creativity approaches ( Spendlove, 2008 ) are the most explored by researchers. They seek to evaluate and translate the product's usability and functionality attributes, making the interaction easier for the consumer, as for example when understanding the color effect (blue or red) on the performance of the user's cognitive tasks ( Mehta and Zhu, 2009 ). According to Murphy (2015) , there is an understanding that color should be used with a different code in the world of human-computer interactions, such as form or pattern fillings, in order to make the content accessible to everyone, including those with color vision deficits.

Some approaches aim to gather the perception of the consumer's image with the product form ( Lin et al., 2012 ; Chen et al., 2016 ). Others aim to investigate the “noise” influences on visual cognitive responses to the design of human-oriented products ( Cho et al., 2011 ).

There is strong evidence that a good design is important in the creation of products for intuitive use ( Blackler et al., 2010 ). This makes it possible to assist in the inclusive interaction design, through a better understanding of the cognitive representations or through processes of producing mental images of designers and users ( Mieczakowski et al., 2013 ). Inclusive design is relevant by differentiating the effects of easy-to-use consumer products from those difficult to use ( Langdon et al., 2007 ). These data corroborate the growing demographic demand of an increasingly aging population, which should be included in product design ( Lewis and Neider, 2017 ).

In many approaches, the cognitive application mixes with the affective application ( Hsu et al., 2018 ), as there is still no clear or deeper explanation about the separation between the psychological functions and processes involved in the subjective experience of interaction between the consumer and the product ( Khalid and Helander, 2004 ; Zhou et al., 2013 ). This problem is considered the true “black box” of content or substance knowledge that composes the internal and subjective processes of the functioning of cognitive and affective systems.

Affective/Emotional Design

The approaches on affective/emotional product design are quite varied ( Kumar Ranganathan et al., 2013 ). The affective and emotional satisfaction are objectives of most approaches on affective product design ( Chan et al., 2018 ). These ones mix with emotional approaches and are synonymous in most applications. According to Chen and Chu (2012) , consumers often make their purchasing decisions based on the product price, quality, and functionality. However, in many situations the perceived value influences the decision, which is always subjective and motivated by emotions. It is important to predict the perceived value of design alternatives based on the common language that target consumers and designers understand.

Other approaches seek to measure affective responses to consumer-oriented product design ( Camargo and Henson, 2011 ). There are also approaches that measure the responses to the affective aspects applied to product design in order to improve the consumer's affective satisfaction ( Hong et al., 2008 ; Zhai et al., 2009 ). Still others measure the reactions of the effects of product attributes on personal interactions, for which Lo and Chu (2014) propose a concept of socio-affective product design. The focus of affective approaches is always the consumer, their desires, personal interaction, quality of life, and satisfaction.

In relation to affective design, one of the most important tasks is to evoke specific affective responses through the manipulation of product form ( Yang and Shieh, 2010 ; Yang, 2011 ; Diego-Mas and Alcaide-Marzal, 2016 ). The main objective of these approaches is to provoke positive affective and emotional responses in the consumer. Hsiao and Chen (2006) investigate the structure of the relationship between the product forms and consumer's affective responses. The product shape is increasingly important to provoke affective responses. By applying an evolutionary approach, Miesler (2011) examines affective responses in relation to facial features. When combining facial electromyography with assessments of a “baby's facial shapes” in order to assess innate emotional responses in the consumer, he discovered that, in this case, the participants presented more positive and affective responses. The results confirm that the resources acquired in an evolutionary manner affect the consumer's affective responses to the products' visual forms.

The emotional design and related approaches meet the vision of designers and manufacturers who understand consumption as the main objective of a product. They seek to generate and add value to the product through emotional design, trying to find a lasting connection between the product and consumer ( Aftab and Rusli, 2017 ). The inclusion of aesthetic and functional attributes causes positive emotional experiences ( Seva and Helander, 2009 ), which provide pleasantness and pleasure to the consumer, for example, in bra design ( Greggianin et al., 2018 ).

Digital technology is also presented to apply to the consumer's emotional aspects in product engineering and design. In relation to the digital world, Nam and Kim (2011) seek to help designers to create meaningful products for the digital world while preserving the technology benefits. There is a great opportunity for design to increase the extra experiential value of products in a world with digital technologies. The approaches aim to add value to the product through important emotional attributes for the consumer. Sophisticated applications with smart neural networks and optimization methods are also used to meet emotional needs ( Guo et al., 2016 ) and increase the consumer's quality of life ( Félix and Duarte, 2018 ).

In summary, measuring and evaluating affective and emotional responses and projecting design elements or attributes ( Camargo and Henson, 2011 ), attributes that provoke essentially positive affective and emotional reactions, are the focus of most approaches for a product's affective/emotional design.

Analysis and Discussion

Different areas of product design seek to understand the relationship between product and consumer. Affective product design explores the most affective aspects between the product and consumer, as proposed by Khalid and Helander (2004) , Khalid (2006) , Khalid and Helander (2006) , Seva and Helander (2009) , Seva et al. (2011) , and Diego-Mas and Alcaide-Marzal (2016) . Cognitive-emotional product design proposes a more sentimental, visceral, and hedonic approach, as suggested by Crilly et al. (2004) , Wrigley (2013) , and Karim et al. (2017) . Other approaches (e.g., Rindova and Petkova, 2007 ; Artacho-Ramírez et al., 2008 ; Li et al., 2014 ) mix innovation elements and cognitive and emotional aspects in the cognitive design. There is also the design approach of affective-cognitive experience product design with user's experience bias (e.g., Zhou et al., 2013 ; Jiao et al., 2017 ). These studies share common challenges, such as the complexity of understanding and evaluating the consumers' subjective cognitive and affective needs ( Table 4 ), or understanding the interaction experience between the product and consumer, or even the product experience ( Schifferstein and Hekker, 2011 ).

Table 4 . Challenges in applications of consumer's cognitive and affective needs in product design.

The main challenges in applications define the current state of cognitive and affective approaches to product design.

State of the Art of Applying Consumer's Cognitive and Affective Needs in Product Design

For Wrigley (2013) , 80% of an individual's life is consumed by their emotions, while the other 20% is controlled by their intellect. Emotions directly influence a variety of cognitive responses, and research on emotional effects on consumer choice is an important field which is little studied by designers and developers ( Hirschman and Stern, 1999 ). At this point the state of the art is structured, where the status of applications and common challenges are summarized and presented in five stages that integrate a cognitive and affective product design cycle as illustrated in Figure 5 .

Figure 5 . State of the art of applying consumer's cognitive and affective needs in product design.

In the first stage ( Figure 5 —Detail 1), most applications' cognitive and affective needs in product design take place in the context of experience between the product and the consumer ( Kumar and Garg, 2010 ; Zhou et al., 2013 ; Jiao et al., 2017 ; Hsu et al., 2018 ). Product input attributes can be perceived sensibly as “positive” or “negative.” In the initial communication stage, rational preferences, analytical, intuitive, and experimental (beliefs, memories, and others) should be encouraged by the product attributes that can be functional, cognitive, hedonic, or affective ( Blackler et al., 2010 ; Wrigley, 2013 ).

In the second stage ( Figure 5 —Detail 2), the functional and hedonic attributes of the product are processed by the “cognitive and affective systems” of the consumer on a single integrated mental process ( Khalid and Helander, 2004 , 2006 ; Khalid, 2006 ). This is understood by most researchers as a “black box” complex and a difficult to understand assessment ( Zhou et al., 2013 ; Diego-Mas and Alcaide-Marzal, 2016 ; Jiao et al., 2017 ). At this point, what happens is the subjective product experience, in which the bias is not known. However, the systems link different weights and measures which account for the decision-making process ( Kahneman and Tversky, 1979 ; Jiao et al., 2017 ). The emotional system is higher (80%) compared to the cognitive system (20%) ( Wrigley, 2013 ). The result of subjective product experience can be expressed in intentions ( Giese et al., 2014 ; Yang et al., 2016 ; Wang et al., 2018 ), quality judgments ( Page and Herr, 2002 ; Hsu, 2017 ), decisions ( Dogu and Albayrak, 2018 ), opinions, and attitudes. The expressions shown in the third step ( Figure 5 —Detail 3) represent the reactions and cognitive and affective responses (positive and negative outputs) and are intended by the design team and product engineering to result in response requirements of subjective product experience ( Figure 5 —Detail 4).

The outputs are understood as necessary entry requirements for the fourth stage ( Figure 5 —Detail 4). The requirement can be a cognitive response, functional ( Khalid and Helander, 2004 ; Rindova and Petkova, 2007 ; Seva et al., 2011 ; Homburg et al., 2015 ), aesthetic ( Artacho-Ramírez et al., 2008 ; Kumar and Garg, 2010 ; Carbon and Jakesch, 2013 ; Greggianin et al., 2018 ; Wiecek et al., 2019 ), symbolic semantics ( Demirbilek and Sener, 2003 ; Crilly et al., 2004 ; Rindova and Petkova, 2007 ; Artacho-Ramírez et al., 2008 ; Setchi and Asikhia, 2019 ), usability ( Seva et al., 2011 ; Li and Gunal, 2012 ), emotional ( Demirbilek and Sener, 2003 ; Kumar and Garg, 2010 ), visceral ( Wrigley, 2013 ; Aftab and Rusli, 2017 ), and others. At this time, these requirements must be evaluated and translated by engineering and product design teams ( Li et al., 2014 ).

Finally, in the fifth step ( Figure 5 —Detail 5), the product design teams must evaluate the consumer response requirements through models, methods, and tools for evaluation and translation such as kansei engineering, quality function deployment, among others ( Huang et al., 2012 ; Li et al., 2014 ; Yuen, 2014 ; Shen and Wang, 2016 ).

Figure 5 provides designers with reasonable guidelines for comprehensively capturing, evaluating, and translating customer requirements. In this sense, it seeks to convert subjective consumer information into product design demands and processes and select the technical requirements for functional, usability, hedonic, and holistic improvements in the product. The product is then designed and developed in a targeted way for the cognitive and affective subjective satisfaction of consumers, helping designers in search of “cognitive” and “affective” solutions for the product. At this point, the product design application cycle, usually oriented toward the consumer, starts again in a cyclical manner.

Advances in Neuroscience

Neuroscience addresses the importance of multidisciplinary knowledge in order to understand the opinions and consumer responses to cognitive and affective product design. Can a model potentially influence decision processes including price, choice strategy, context, experience, and memory; and also provide new insights into individual differences in consumer behavior and brand preferences? The fundamental question, still little evidenced, is how to apply these neuroscience advances in product design, making the product more accessible, more comfortable, and more enjoyable to use and consume.

According to Maturana and Varela (1987) , if the goal is to understand any human activity, then it is necessary to consider the emotion that defines the field of action in which this activity takes place and in the process, learn to observe what actions the emotion you want. Intentions start from the subjective, emotional, and affective internal processes that are expressed. It is essential to understand in-depth the phenomenon of subjective experience. Wrigley (2011 , 2013) attested that the response elements of “emotional cognition” are not presented as objective qualities of a product. However, these elements are a cognitive interpretation of the qualities of an object, driven both by the perception of real stimuli and by facts evoked by the consumer's memory and emotion. It affects the facial muscles and the musculoskeletal structure, also the visceral and internal environment of the body as well as the neurochemical responses in the brain and are part of how emotions modify the internal state of the body. Damasio (2001) described it similarly as in their exploration noted that the instinctive, visceral, and immediate response to sensory information strongly influenced the secondary information acquired when cognitive-behavioral interaction and reflection occurred later. There is a hierarchy of internal processes in operation, for although the affection and cognition are, to some extent, different neuroanatomically systems, they are deeply interconnected, influencing each other ( Ashby et al., 1999 ; Crilly et al., 2004 ; Norman, 2004 ).

Traditional assessment methods rarely present a complete understanding of user's cognitive and affective experience evoked by the product, which plays a decisive role in intention and purchase decision. Regarding product design, Ding et al. (2016) present a method of accurate measurement of user perception during product experience. The results of the application revealed a neural mechanism in the initial stage of the consumer experience, allowing for an accurate analysis of the time course of neural events when the behavioral intention is forming. Such advances can provide a basis for discovering the cognition and decision process when users perceive product design, and even provide help for the designer to hold the user's attention. Modica et al. (2018) stated that evaluation of a product considers the simultaneous cerebral and emotional evaluation of different qualities of the product, all belonging to the product experience. They investigate reactions by electroencephalographic (EEG) of the influence of brand, familiarity, and hedonic value, and results show more significant mental effort during an interaction with foreign products which demonstrates the importance of the perceived ease of a product. Also, concerning the use of neurophysiological and traditional measures to evaluate the responses of the participants through an EEG index (EEG), Martinez-Levy et al. (2017) pointed out that the change in EEG frontal cortical asymmetry is related to the general appraisal perceived during an observation of a charity campaign focusing on gender differences. Results show higher values for women than men for neurophysiological indices. Therefore, the declared taste of women is statistically significantly higher than the declared taste of men. Results suggest the presence of gender differences in cognitive and emotional responses to charity ads with emotional appeal. By providing a new way of establishing mappings between cognitive processes and traditional marketing data, Venkatraman et al. (2012) point out that a better understanding of neural decision-making mechanisms will increase the ability of marketers to market their products more effectively.

Neuroscience applied to the product market and psychology has brought significant advances in the last 20 years to the understanding that cognitive and emotional aspects generate greater consumer involvement. The objective is to further reduce the gap between product and consumer. New insights into individual differences in consumption behavior and specific preferences are presented. It also contributes to advances in the area of cognitive and affective product design, however still firmly positioned in areas of marketing and psychology.

Research Gaps in Literature

Cognitive design approaches have been proven to be a less discussed topic by the leading authors in the field, while affective/emotional design approaches are the most applied. The reason for this is that cognitive design is more associated with the product functionality and usability, the focus on ergonomics and systems engineering, in addition to interfaces and systems aimed at product use and not necessarily at consumption. Therefore, cognitive design approaches are slightly different from affective/emotional design approaches. These are more oriented to the design, form, and impact of the product attributes on the consumer's feelings and emotions. This way, they are mainly directed to product pleasure and pleasantness.

The areas of product design, engineering, and ergonomics are mixed in applications that focused on product design and on how functional and “cognitive” attributes, as well as hedonic and “affective” ones, affects the consumer's reactions and responses. The results of the SLR indicate that researchers paid predominant attention to areas of how cognitive and affective aspects can be applied in product design, and concentrated at the beginning of the PD and NPD cycle, that is, when evaluating and translating the consumer's reactions and responses when using or consuming the product.

In short, cognitive approaches are more up-to-date and associated with technology, and are therefore aimed at the ease and friendliness of the product. In contrast, affective approaches are older and aimed at quality of life, satisfaction, pleasure, and the pleasantness of the product. Due to the complexity of understanding the affective and emotional subjectivity of the consumer, and in how to translate these requirements into product attributes, these approaches seem to lose their preference in the areas of design and engineering for cognitive applications.

Some approaches identify the importance of an integrated application framework that considers all consumer's cognitive and affective aspects. However, they do not deepen the study on the intrinsic phenomenon of the subjective experience resulting from cognitive and affective systems, inherent to “mental” processes, which opens an essential gap for research ( Khalid and Helander, 2006 ; Zhou et al., 2013 ; Jiao et al., 2017 ). The trends point to the need to decipher the complexity of the “black box” of human subjectivity and, thus, influence consumer behavior.

Future Directions and Research

The main trends in the research field refer to: (i) studies on the consumer's sensory, cognitive, and affective perception ( Wrigley, 2013 ) concerning the product's functional and hedonic attributes and characteristics ( Khalid and Helander, 2004 , 2006 ); (ii) studies on the consumer's subjective cognitive and affective experience about the product ( Jiao et al., 2017 ); and (iii) studies on capturing, measuring, and translating consumers' cognitive and affective responses and opinions ( Crilly et al., 2004 ; Hsu et al., 2018 ).

Therefore, from the individual approaches in each article, it is possible to observe the researchers' acceptance that the consumer's subjective experience begins through sensory and cognitive perception. When it is perceiving and processing the inputs from the product (functional and hedonic characteristics and attributes, for example); then, by the psychological processing of the cognitive (slow) and affective (fast) systems ( Kahneman and Tversky, 1979 ; Kahneman, 2011 ) it brings memories of previous experiences, beliefs, images, and emotions; and finally ends with responses and opinions, with cognitive and affective elements ( Crilly et al., 2004 ; Khalid and Helander, 2004 ; Kumar Ranganathan et al., 2013 ; Zhou et al., 2013 ; Jiao et al., 2017 ; Hsu et al., 2018 ).

Among the topics and questions to be considered in future research, we suggest: what are the psychological relationships between the cognitive and affective needs of the consumer in the use or consumption of products? What characteristics and attributes of the product have a positive cognitive and affective impact on the consumer? Through product design and new products, is it possible to produce pleasure and happiness in the consumer's mind? Can an inclusive product design facilitate use in populations with increasing cognitive difficulties? Can we develop better predictive models to anticipate the consumer's intention and decision when choosing products?

Conclusions

The aim of this study was to investigate the cognitive and affective needs of the consumer applied to product design through a systematic literature review of the literature published in the last 20 years. In this regard, this article selected the main research carried out in the field of cognitive and affective product design and identified the main approaches, challenges, and trends in applications.

Among the different approaches analyzed, there were research fields that seek to understand the consumer's behavior, emotions, affections, and reflections on the product. Cognitive and affective product design follows this path and seeks to narrow the space between the product and the consuming public. However, cognitive approaches were less discussed than affective ones. The possibility of cognitive design was more associated with the product's functionality and usability, interfaces, and systems—usually the focus of ergonomics and systems engineering—and not necessarily consumption, which was clearly the focus of affective design and marketing. The areas of product design, engineering, and ergonomics mix with applications that focus their efforts on how functional and “more cognitive” attributes and characteristics, as well as hedonic and “more affective” attributes and characteristics, affect the consumer's reactions and responses. They indicate that applications that are both cognitive and affective open an important path for future research on consumer-oriented product design. The goal is always to improve the interaction or the consumption experience by facilitating the information flow, thus improving communication between consumer and product, positively affecting them.

As a synthesis for the approaches, it is possible to conclude that applications in “usability,” “cognitive ergonomics,” and “cognitive engineering” are more current than applications in “affective design,” “kansei engineering,” and “emotional design.” All the applications analyzed are interconnected to product design and indicate that cognitive approaches are more focused on product usability and functionality, while the affective/emotional approaches are more focused on pleasure and consumption. These characteristics are important for the consumer study, as it applies to product design that is still in the conceptualization phase, exactly where the approaches are oriented to the evaluation and translation of the consumer's subjective responses.

In short, cognitive approaches are more up-to-date and associated with technology, therefore aimed at the ease and friendliness of the product. While affective approaches are older and aimed at quality of life, satisfaction, pleasure, and the pleasantness of the product. This review indicates that this shift in focus from the affective to the cognitive is due to the complexity of understanding the affective and emotional subjectivity of the consumer and how to translate these requirements into product attributes, these approaches seem to lose their preference in the areas of design and engineering for more rational and logical cognitive applications, making them therefore more statistically verifiable.

Finally, this study recommends that, in future research, the objective should be to create analytical methods and tools ( Zhou et al., 2013 ; Jiao et al., 2017 ), with multidisciplinary approaches ( Jiang et al., 2015a ; Chan et al., 2018 ) from different areas of consumer study such as engineering and design ( Jiang et al., 2015b ; Shen and Wang, 2016 ), marketing ( Seva et al., 2007 ; Bloch, 2011 ; Mu, 2015 ), neuroscience, and cognitive sciences ( Damasio and Adolphs, 2001 ; Turner and Laird, 2012 ), while seeking to evaluate and translate the consumer's subjective experience into product elements and attributes. The objective is to improve the relationship between the consumer and the product, making it lighter and with a better information flow.

We conclude that it is necessary that approaches to cognitive and affective product design be incorporated into research about the consumer, so that no need, be it more functional and cognitive or more pleasurable and affective, is left unattended. Thus, it will be possible to bring the consumer closer to the product, meeting their subjective needs, and to open the “black box” of subjective experience that only the consumer themselves have access to. In this way, it will become possible to meet the cognitive and affective needs of the consumer and produce happiness in their mind, something essentially subjective and understood as difficult to evaluate and translate. The cognitive design must be mixed with affective design, as in a high-tech world, the product's facilities and usability are producing affective pleasure in the consumer through the economy of cognitive effort.

Research Limitations

There are limitations to this research. The next step in the research should focus on finding new methods and models for evaluating and translating the cognitive and affective product experience, with combined psychological and physiological measures, according to what Zhou et al. (2013) previously suggested. The present study only focused on two dimensions of cognitive and affective product design: the cognitive and affective/emotional attributes and characteristics. However, the authors suggest that the symbolic dimension presents significant differences when compared to the cognitive and affective aspects, following the studies carried out by Bloch (2011) , Kumar Ranganathan et al. (2013) , and Homburg et al. (2015) .

The path of opportunities lies in multidisciplinary approaches that consider neuroscience and cognitive sciences, together with cognitive and affective product design, as well as their current understandings on the themes highlighted in this research. The deepening of these questions is a limitation of this research. The authors understand the need to continue research on analytical methods and models capable of improving the understanding of the affective and cognitive decision-making process regarding product design. New analytical tools must be oriented toward the consumer and their subjective experiences. These can translate opinions and responses from the “black box” or the subjective experience of the product.

Data Availability Statement

The original contributions presented in the study are included in the article/supplementary material, further inquiries can be directed to the corresponding author/s.

Author Contributions

All authors listed have made a substantial, direct and intellectual contribution to the work, and approved it for publication.

This research was financially supported by the Coordination of Improvement of Higher Education Personal (CAPES), the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq), and Pontifical Catholic University of Parana (PUCPR).

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the Industrial and Systems Engineering Graduate Program at Pontifical Catholic University of Parana (PPGEPS/PUCPR), the Coordination of Improvement of Higher Education Personal (CAPES), and the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) for their financial support of this research.

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Keywords: cognitive, affective, consumer, product design, systematic review, state of the art

Citation: Tavares DR, Canciglieri Junior O, Guimarães LBdM and Rudek M (2021) A Systematic Literature Review of Consumers' Cognitive-Affective Needs in Product Design From 1999 to 2019. Front. Neuroergon. 1:617799. doi: 10.3389/fnrgo.2020.617799

Received: 15 October 2020; Accepted: 23 December 2020; Published: 03 February 2021.

Reviewed by:

Copyright © 2021 Tavares, Canciglieri Junior, Guimarães and Rudek. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) . The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

*Correspondence: David Ribeiro Tavares, economicdavid@hotmail.com

This article is part of the Research Topic

Advances in Affective Neuroergonomics

A consumer engagement systematic review: synthesis and research agenda

Spanish Journal of Marketing - ESIC

ISSN : 2444-9695

Article publication date: 12 August 2020

Issue publication date: 16 December 2020

This paper aims to review the existing literature about consumer engagement, provide an accurate mapping of this research field, propose a consumer engagement typology and a conceptual framework and offer a research agenda for this domain.

Design/methodology/approach

A systematic literature review using several quality filters was performed, producing a top-quality pool of 41 papers. After that, a text mining analysis was conducted, and five major research streams emerged.

This paper proposes five distinct research streams based on the text mining analysis, namely, consumer engagement, online brand community engagement, consumer-brand engagement, consumer engagement behaviours and media engagement. Based on this, a consumer engagement typology and a conceptual framework are suggested and a research agenda is proposed.

Originality/value

This paper presents scientific value and originality because of the new character of the topic and the research methods used. This research is the first study to perform a systematic review and using a text-mining approach to examine the literature on consumer engagement. Based on this, the authors define consumer engagement typology. A research agenda underlining emerging future research topics for this domain is also proposed.

El presente artículo tiene por objeto revisar la bibliografía existente sobre el engagement de los consumidores, proporcionar una descripción precisa de este campo de investigación, proponer una tipología del engagement de los consumidores y un marco conceptual, y ofrecer una agenda de investigación.

Diseño/metodología/enfoque

Se realizó una revisión sistemática de la literatura utilizando varios filtros, lo que permitió seleccionar 41 trabajos de alta calidad. Después, se realizó un análisis de minería de textos y surgieron cinco corrientes principales de investigación.

Este documento propone cinco corrientes de investigación distintas basadas en el análisis de minería de textos: i) Participación del consumidor; ii) Participación de la comunidad de marcas en línea; iii) Engagement del consumidor-marca; iv) Comportamientos de engagement del consumidor; v) y engagement de los medios de comunicación. Sobre esta base, proponemos una tipología de engagement del consumidor y un marco conceptual y proponemos una agenda de investigación.

Originalidad/valor

Este documento presenta el valor científico y la originalidad debido al nuevo carácter del tema y los métodos de investigación empleados. Esta investigación es el primer estudio que realiza una revisión sistemática y utiliza un enfoque de minería de textos para examinar la literatura sobre engagement de los consumidores. Sobre esta base, los autores definen la tipología de engagement del consumidor. También se propone un programa de investigación que subraya los temas de investigación futuros emergentes para este ámbito.

• Text mining
• Systematic literature review
• Consumer engagement
• Consumer-brand engagement
• Consumer engagement typology
• Online brand community engagement
• Engagement del consumidor
• Engagement del consumidor-marca
• Engagement de la comunidad de marcas en línea
• Revisión sistemática de la literatura
• Minería de textos
• Tipología de engagement del consumidor

Bilro, R.G. and Loureiro, S.M.C. (2020), "A consumer engagement systematic review: synthesis and research agenda", Spanish Journal of Marketing - ESIC , Vol. 24 No. 3, pp. 283-307. https://doi.org/10.1108/SJME-01-2020-0021

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2020, Ricardo Godinho Bilro and Sandra Maria Correia Loureiro.

Published in Spanish Journal of Marketing - ESIC . Published by Emerald Publishing Limited. This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) licence. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this licence may be seen at http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode

1. Introduction

Studies on engagement emerge in scientific research connected to distinct fields of study such as education and learning (Kearsley and Shneiderman, 1998 ), sociology (Jennings and Stoker, 2004 ), psychology (Achterberg et al. , 2003 ) or psychology and management (Csikszentmihalyi, 1997 ). In management, engagement emerges in several studies on individuals’ application to workplace tasks and environment, which can be perceived as an experiential state that conveys personal, engaging behaviours (Billett, 2001 ; Schaufeli and Bakker, 2004 ). In the marketing field, Algesheimer et al. (2005) develop some seminal work on community engagement, highlighting the role of brand community commitment in consumers’ attitudinal loyalty and repurchase intentions, claiming that consumers’ motivation to interact with others will positively influence engagement with the brand community itself. Other authors propose engagement as a customer’s level of physical, cognitive and emotional presence in their relationship with a service organisation (Patterson et al. , 2006 ).

More extensive literature appears around 2010. This new research suggests innovative perspectives connecting engagement with its behavioural dimensions (van Doorn et al. , 2010 ; Kumar et al. , 2010 ; Verhoef et al. , 2010 ), psychological processes (Bowden, 2009 ) or even multi-dimensional perspectives of consumer engagement (Brodie et al. , 2011 ; Brodie and Hollebeek, 2011 ; Hollebeek , 2011a, 2011b ). From this moment onward, a myriad of research arises about this topic. Calls for further research – as a priority research area – are made by distinct organisations, such as the Marketing Science Institute (MSI , 2014, 2016 ), leading the scientific community to devote their time and attention to this subject. Fast-forward to nowadays, with extensive literature on consumer engagement, which by itself justifies a literature review and serves as the basis for the aim of this research. This paper aims to understand the state-of-the-art of the conceptualisation of consumer engagement in the marketing area and to propose a consumer engagement typology and a conceptual framework. Finally, a research agenda for this domain is suggested.

Academics are still struggling to define the influence of the consumer engagement construct despite the valuable contributions of past research (Brodie et al. , 2011 ; van Doorn et al. , 2010 ; Hollebeek et al. , 2014 ). This provides fertile ground for our research question, which is: what are the major research streams of consumer engagement? By answering this question (using a systematic literature review and text mining approach) we claim that it is possible to go further and propose a consumer engagement typology and a conceptual framework, which the authors assume as a relevant output for this paper.

consumer engagement;

online brand community engagement;

consumer-brand engagement (CBE);

consumer engagement behaviours; and

and media engagement.

Based on this analysis, we suggest a framework for consumer engagement.

The remainder of this paper is organised as follows. The next section describes the method used to collect and analyse the data and proposes a framework. We continue with an overview of the significant research streams on consumer engagement and the conceptual findings are discussed. Finally, we present a section dealing with the emerging research topics and a proposed research agenda, followed by the conclusions of this paper.

2. Systematic literature review

Following previous studies (Ceipek, 2019 ; Crossan and Apaydin, 2010 ; Galvagno and Dalli, 2014 ), we adopt a systematic approach to the literature review to make the results reliable, verifiable and reproducible. The process may be defined as a literature review method performed through an automated search to collect relevant information and identify, substantiate and conceptualise all fundamental research streams on the topic under study (Moher et al. , 2009 ).

A collection of the relevant literature addressing consumer engagement is extracted based on two distinct database aggregators that are Web of Science (WOS) and Scopus online libraries. This procedure ensures the presence of the most relevant papers published in top journals, also comprising the most relevant publishers, such as Emerald, Elsevier, IEEE, Springer, Sage, Taylor and Francis or Wiley. The same search terms are used in these two databases. The selection and definition of the terms to be used is of foremost importance. The authors define the five different research terms from the existing literature to cover, as much of possible, all the relevant topics in this field of research. The terms used are, namely, “consumer engagement”; “customer engagement”; “customer brand engagement”; “brand engagement”; “online engagement”. Table 1 shows the final set of search terms.

full-text papers;

peer-reviewed papers; and

scholarly journals.

Secondly, we adopt a selection of quality journals. We use the “journal quality list – 64 edition”, compiled and edited by Professor Anne-Wil Harzing (Anne-Wil, 2019 ). From this list, we apply the WIE 2008 Rating – WU Wien Journal Rating May 2008 List. The list includes only A and A+ journals, and from that list, we consider only the journals inside the scope of the study. Thirdly, we select journals devoted to the topic of marketing, general management and strategy and international business. With this option, we intend to cover as many different areas of research as possible that could address this topic. Concerning the period to be examined by the systematic literature review, we search for all publications available until June 2019.

Does the paper address our well-defined scope of study?

Does the paper contribute to developing the engagement construct (or one of its variations, such as customer engagement, consumer engagement, brand engagement, customer-brand engagement or theory of engagement)? The flow chart presented in Figure 1 illustrates the steps undertaken in this systematic literature review.

Figure 2 presents the results of the aggregate outcome of the search strategies, showing the aggregate results of all the screening processes. From the final list of results – before full-text reading – 6 papers are found to be repeated, and therefore, withdrawn, reaching the final number of 61. After the last screening process (full-text reading), a final group of 41 papers emerges ( Figure 2 ).

Finally, to achieve consistency and reduce subjectivity, the final aggregated result of this systematic literature review is checked and rechecked separately by the researchers, as suggested by the relevant literature in this domain (Moher et al. , 2009 ). Table 2 shows the final list of papers by authors, year of publication, journal title and number of citations on WOS and Scopus.

2.2 Data extraction form

document the selected research;

reduce the possibility of human error;

decrease the use of subjective-driven data selection criteria;

reflect on the differences and compare the similarities of the main ideas of each paper; and

support other researchers’ work that may be of interest in this research field (Athanasopoulou, 2009 ).

The data extraction form comprises eight categories. These categories summarise the core information of each study analysed: authorship and year of publication, journal of publication, the base theory of the study or construct(s), adopted methodology and sample (with characteristics), main conclusions, limitations and future research and managerial implications. The systematised data made available in this extraction form allow us not only to clarify the distinct concepts but also show the major research streams of consumer engagement.

2.3 Text-mining analysis and clustering

Based on the data extraction form, a text-mining procedure is performed to find the latent topics in the literature review, a widely used procedure to reveal latent topics in scholarly literature (Abbas et al. , 2014 ; Loureiro et al. , 2019 ; Moro et al. , 2015 ). A text clustering technique – based on the MeaningCloud text mining tool – has the potential to process and aggregate a large amount of unstructured text to extract relevant information (Fan et al. , 2006 ). This technique can create groups (clusters) by analysing the text of each paper (Fan et al. , 2006 ; Srivastava and Sahami, 2009 ). Hence, texts in the same group (clusters) are more similar to each other than to texts in other clusters (Spinakis and Chatzimakri, 2005 ).

The text-mining system classification for cluster sizes is used to select the appropriate number of clusters (Punj and Stewart, 1983 ), and no new clusters are accepted when their size is too small (Milligan and Cooper, 1985 ), which leads us to consider the five largest clusters (cut-off value: 200). The clusters are labelled as follows: consumer engagement (score = 497.82), CBE (score = 373.36), online brand community engagement (score = 291.22), consumer engagement behaviours (size = 239.55) and media engagement (score = 216.04). Based on these clusters, a consumer engagement typology and conceptual framework are proposed ( Figure 3 ).

3. Consumer engagement typology and conceptual framework

The consumer engagement construct has evolved and has been redefined over time, generating considerably different definitions, concepts and arguments used to define the construct. However, to date no unifying conceptualisation exists in the literature. Consequently, and based on the clusters mentioned above, this study presents a consumer engagement typology. By integrating the distinct concepts, the authors propose a definition for consumer engagement typology, as the aggregation process of different concepts and dimensions of engagement that acts as intra-interaction causes towards a focal object (i.e. product/brand), which all together or separately, lead consumers’ interactivity, which will foster different benefits for the focal object. Accordingly, we develop a conceptual framework for consumer engagement and its key consequences for consumer-interactivity and benefits ( Figure 3 ).

The framework is read as follows. Based on a consumer engagement typology, consumers’ interactivity efforts, such as buying (direct effort), referring, influencing and giving feedback (indirect effort) experience the influence of the distinct forms of consumer engagement (i.e. consumer engagement, CBE, consumer engagement behaviours, media engagement and online brand community engagement) to create effects, described here as benefits. These benefits can be of two types, tangible, such as a firm’s performance (e.g. sales, profits or market share) or intangible (e.g. opt-in. privacy sharing or relevant marketing activities). Additionally, the proposed framework should not be a static representation connecting parts, but rather a dynamic tool with several variations and contexts. For instance, consumers with a specific type of interaction based on a functional motive (such as buying) can find themselves enjoying the content created by the focal engagement object (i.e. product/brand), leading to a higher expression of their behavioural engagement than those who act solely for a functional motive (Kim et al. , 2016 ).

Interacting with the focal object prompts a particular level of consumer engagement (Schamari and Schaefers, 2015 ). Thus, the consumer engagement typology acts as an intra-interaction process that will, in turn, foster-related benefits. For example, consumers interacting with a specific brand (and brand content) will invest their resources in those interactions (efforts), which, in turn, develops brand-related sense-making (Hollebeek and Macky, 2019 ). Consumers’ brand-related sense-making will then drive the development of consumer engagement consequences of tangible and intangible benefits, as shown in Figure 3 .

By analysing the five consumer engagement concepts that are core in our framework, one can argue that consumer engagement can overlay on various shapes. Firms are focussing on the quality of the relationship that they set up with consumers and maximising the benefits beyond purchases that consumers can provide to their brands (Badenes et al. , 2019 ; Prentice and Loureiro, 2018 ; Rather et al. , 2018 ). Consumers are willing to contribute to the firm when they feel connected to the brand (CBE), which is a central component of the consumer engagement construct (Pansari and Kumar, 2017 ). This idea notes that during an interaction, partners may create products for each other or they communicate with each other (media engagement). This idea is becoming clear in the online interactive environment where consumers provide feedback to the company, for the development of new products or improvements to existing ones (online brand community engagement) (Orús et al. , 2019 ; Rather et al. , 2018 ; Rosado-Pinto et al. , 2020 ). The value of the association between consumers and brands depends on the level of satisfaction resulting from the customer’s level of emotional connectedness and the motivations towards this relationship (Brodie et al. , 2011 ; van Doorn et al. , 2010 ). When a brand achieves an emotional relationship with the consumer, we may say that the firm and the customer are engaged with each other (consumer engagement behaviours). Therefore, we argue that it is of foremost importance to understand and further explore the construct of consumer engagement, as engaged consumers can create several direct and indirect benefits (Kumar and Pansari, 2016 ).

Overall, the proposed framework outlines the process by which consumer engagement creates value through a series of consumer-based efforts and effects. While these concepts will sequentially interact, other antecedents may continue to co-exist with their respective consequences. So, in-depth research, including further conceptual development and empirical testing, is required to assess and validate our proposed framework.

Taking all the perspectives provided by past research, we may claim that the concept of engagement is multi-dimensional, having two major theoretical foundations, namely, service-dominance (S-D) logic and relationship marketing. As a unifying conceptualisation of consumer engagement, we argue this is a motivational and relational state (comprising cognitive, emotional and behavioural aspects) that may occur between two agents, one being the consumer(s) and the other a brand, firm or organisation, which can operate online, offline or both.

4. Major clusters and key research streams

A growing stream of research continues to contribute to the consumer engagement construct (Bowden, 2009 ; van Doorn et al. , 2010 ; Kumar, 2013 ; Loureiro et al. , 2019 ; Rather et al. , 2018 ; Vivek et al. , 2012 ), creating a valuable amount of knowledge on this topic but also generating considerably different definitions, concepts and arguments used to define the construct. This paper gives an overview of the engagement concepts ( Table 3 ), providing a clear contribution to this research field.

4.1 Consumer engagement

Despite no consensus on defining the concept (Barger et al. , 2016 ), some aspects appear constant throughout the literature. The first is that consumer engagement is as an attempt to distinguish consumer attitudes and behaviours that go beyond purchase behaviours (van Doorn et al. , 2010 ; Vivek et al. , 2012 ). The second relates to the consumer’s role in the concept, which is taken to be active, involved and co-creational, as opposed to being a mere recipient of initiatives from firms (Brodie et al. , 2011 ; Gambetti et al. , 2016 ; Hollebeek et al. , 2019 ; Kumar et al. , 2010 ).

Researchers also tend to use different perspectives to conceptualise the consumer engagement construct (Schultz and Peltier, 2013 ). Focussing on an attitudinal perspective, Brodie et al. (2011) discuss the role of interactive consumer experience and co-created value as the basis for the construct ( Table 4 ), addressing the nature of consumers’ interactive engagement experiences across contexts, the value of consumers’ dynamic and interactive co-creation role in service fields and the multi-dimensional essence, through its cognitive, emotional and behavioural dimensions. So, they define consumer engagement as a psychological state that occurs by interactive, co-creative customer experiences with a focal agent/object (e.g. a brand) in focal service relationships (Brodie et al. , 2011 ).

In the same line, other researchers also propose three dimensions of consumer engagement (Hollebeek et al. , 2014 ), which correspond to the generic cognitive, emotional and behavioural nature of “engagement”. The terms that designate each dimension are cognitive processing (consumer’s level of relationship with a brand through processing and elaboration in a particular consumer/brand interaction), affection (degree of positive affective-relation with a brand) and activation (level of energy, effort and time spent on a brand). Vivek et al. (2012) draw attention to the importance of individuals’ interactions and connections with the brand or product, regardless of whether they are in “buyer-mode” or not. These authors propose a broader vision of multi-dimensional consumer engagement through the cognitive, emotional, behavioural and social dimensions. The cognitive and emotional components incorporate consumers’ experiences and feelings, and the behavioural and social elements include consumers’ participation in the brand or product. Thus, they define customer engagement as the intensity of an individual’s participation in and connection with an organisation’s offerings or organisational activities, which either the customer or the organisation initiates (Vivek et al. , 2012 ). This research path has grown in importance in the digital world as customers become increasingly active co-producers or destroyers of value for companies (Beckers et al. , 2014 ; van Doorn et al. , 2010 ; Leeflang et al. , 2014 ; Verhoef et al. , 2010 ).

The research related to customer engagement has evolved into several complementary pathways. Some authors focus on how firms can benefit from customer engagement (Alvarez-Milán et al. , 2018 ; Pansari and Kumar, 2017 ), others on how to measure customer engagement (Brodie et al. , 2013 ; Calder et al. , 2016 ; Hollebeek et al. , 2014 ; Kumar et al. , 2019 ) or even on distinct aspects of customer engagement value, such as customer purchasing behaviour, customer referral behaviour, customer influencer behaviour and customer knowledge behaviour (Harrigan et al. , 2018 ; Kumar et al. , 2010 , 2013 ).

4.2 Consumer-brand engagement

CBE emerges in the domain of relationship marketing (Palmatier et al. , 2006 ) and, more firmly established, in consumer-brand relationships (Fournier, 1998 ). Different authors have made efforts to reach a single definition of CBE ( Gambetti and Graffigna, 2010 ; Brodie et al. , 2011 ), but a common and inclusive explanation of CBE still needs to be settled. Some authors argue that the meaning behind the expression represents the brand’s effort to get close to the consumer in an expressive and meaningful way (Graffigna and Gambetti, 2015 ).

Different definitions of CBE generally regard engagement as a multi-dimensional concept, typifying a consumer’s interactive state based on cognitive, affective and behavioural components. Hollebeek’s definition includes those components when she defines customer-brand engagement as the level of a customer’s cognitive, emotional and behavioural investment in specific brand interactions (Hollebeek, 2011b ). Nevertheless, not all authors consider the three components. Some of them (Goldsmith et al. (2010) and Wang (2006) ) focus only on the cognitive components of CBE. Indeed, Wang proposes that engagement in the advertising environment may be a measure of contextual relevance, where a brand message is enclosed and presented based on its surrounding context. Other studies underline the affective component of CBE. Heath (2009) suggests CBE as the amount of subconscious feeling going on when an advertisement is being processed. This author presents an emotional engagement model that highlights how strong brands can be built via emotional creativity rather than using rational messages, and without the high levels of attention that advertising usually needs.

Various academics contribute to this discussion with their perspectives of behavioural dimensions, which appear particularly diversified in their extent. Kumar et al. (2010) , for instance, have drawn three fundamental behavioural components of customer engagement with a firm, namely, customer’s purchase behaviour, customer referral and customer’s influencing behaviour towards other customers. Verhoef et al. (2010) , for their part, have defined customer-brand engagement as a consumer’s behavioural manifestation towards a brand or firm that goes beyond transactions. In a more diversified approach, other authors conceptualise CBE dimensions from a more dynamic viewpoint, underlying the process-based nature of the concept. Thus, Bijmolt et al. (2010) suggest that several expressions of customer engagement may be generated in different stages of the customer lifecycle. Bowden (2009) defines customer engagement as a psychological process that forms the subjacent mechanisms by which customer loyalty is created in new customers and the mechanisms by which loyalty may be maintained for consumers’ repurchase of a service brand. Bowden (2009) also proposes a conceptual model of the customer engagement process, which highlights the sequential development of loyalty, as customers evolve from being new consumers to re-purchasers.

Considering the articles published until 2010, we find that they propose conceptual models and conceptualisations (deductive approach) based on previous literature, and little empirical research has been conducted to gain new insights leading to supporting or rejecting the proposed theories and conceptualisations. Even so, this theoretical discussion has been essential in starting to describe a more realistic conceptual framework. The study by Gambetti et al. (2012) is one of the first to go further in trying to shed light on the meaning of engagement based on the practitioner perspective. They use the grounded theory approach to understand the CBE construct in an exploratory qualitative study. Gambetti et al. (2012) interview practitioners to understand how they conceptualise and perform this construct in day-to-day marketing activities. From this first study, they find out that practitioners see CBE as a dynamic, process-based concept, growing in intensity according to the brand’s ability to increasingly understand consumers’ desires and expectations, using all possible physical and virtual points of contact between brands and consumers. They also introduce this expression as a comprehensive marketing concept containing several consumer decision-making dimensions, from brand preference to brand purchase.

CBE is now regarded as a multi-dimensional construct – composed of cognitive, emotional and/or behavioural dimensions – representing a psychological state that occurs through the features of interactive and co-creative consumer involvement with a specific brand (Brodie et al. , 2011 ; Machado et al. , 2019 ; Vivek et al. , 2012 ). The CBE construct is also broadly recognised as a dynamic relational process presenting multiple phases (Bowden, 2009 ; Brodie et al. , 2011 ; Hollebeek, 2011a ), covering physical proximity and based on the progressive value of the brand for its consumers (Gambetti et al. , 2012 ).

In this evolutionary process, several other studies have taken academic research on CBE to a new level, leading to unexplored territories. The research of Hollebeek, Glynn and Brodie (2014) regard customer-brand engagement as a consumer’s positively valenced brand-related cognitive, emotional and behavioural activity during or related to focal consumer/brand interactions (Hollebeek et al. , 2014 ). These authors point out that the CBE construct has relevance in a theoretical, interactive, consumer-brand relationship (which includes consumer culture theory, S-D logic and relationship marketing) ( Table 4 ). They contribute to the development of enhanced insight into consumers’ specific cognitions, emotions and behaviours during brand interactions, which may be used to rethink or redesign the nature of specific consumer/brand interfaces to increase effectiveness. They also highlight that this concept appears to be very useful for both scholars and practitioners when looking to predict specific consumer behaviour results and that CBE represents a promising and under-explored concept in the literature.

Other types of contributions also arise. De Villiers (2015) proposes a new perspective on CBE by offering an expanded typology of brand fans or advocates, which includes negatively engaged, disenfranchised or even alienated consumers. In this study, the author presents a scale of CBE to measure a multi-dimensional model of engagement. He suggests a model, which contributes with an asymmetrical, configurational view of CBE that considers multiple paths to consumer enmeshment (more confluent to reality). Indeed, this work proposes the development of a more predictive (and at the same time more comprehensive) model, for configuration of the necessary or sufficient antecedent conditions that may cause high levels of CBE (and enmeshment).

Gambetti et al. (2016) , in turn, find that much of this engagement process is being experienced in a different dynamic relationship, with less focus on consumers and far more focus on brands. Indeed, these authors encourage firms and brands to reverse their perspective, adopting a pure logic of co-creation in the consumer-brand dyad and replacing the univocal perspective that still exists, which treats consumers as the ultimate static receiver of their initiatives. Thus, we can underline the engagement construct as a flexible, interactive space where consumers are recognised as central in the consumer-brand encounter. Kim et al. (2016) develop the theory and practice of advertising effectiveness through surfacing and decoding brand-consumer engagement over narrative transportation. These authors argue that consumers from different countries and cultures create similar narrative themes for the same luxury brands and are just as likely to engage in co-creation of advertisement narratives. Consequently, they suggest that powerful messages to consumers can provide a valid route for co-creation and brand engagement, mainly if these messages can project consumers into the storylines.

4.2.1 Brand engagement in self-concept.

a substantial variation among consumers in their level of engagement with their favourite brands;

that firms may benefit from understanding whether – in addition to other relevant criteria – a brand’s current target segments are lower or higher in BESC; and

that managers should adapt their brand communication strategies accordingly.

4.3 Online brand community engagement

Baldus et al. (2015) attempt to conceptualise online brand community engagement as the compelling, intrinsic motivations to continue interacting with an online brand community. They propose a scale, which includes 11 dimensions based on previous studies, namely, brand influence, brand passion, connecting, helping, like-minded discussion, rewards (hedonic), rewards (utilitarian), seeking assistance, self-expression, up-to-date information and validation. However, the manifestation of particular cognitive, emotional and behavioural dimensions depends, to a great extent, on the engagement actors – engagement subjects/objects – and contexts (Brodie et al. , 2011 ), including media contexts (new online media in contrast to traditional advertising media) (Calder et al. , 2009 ). Raïes et al. (2015) claim that intensive engagement in the community does not lead directly to brand loyalty behaviour and that higher levels of commitment combined with active engagement in the community are sufficient but not necessary for brand-loyal intentions. The commitment patterns of highly brand-loyal newcomers and longstanding members are also distinguished (calculative, affective and normative commitments differ in the length of membership) and a strong commitment to a consumption community can lead to high brand loyalty behaviour with or without intensive engagement in community activities. Raïes et al. (2015) also highlight the differences between own-brand communities and online brand communities created by consumers.

Other studies underline the interactive, experiential process, based on consumers’ engagement with specific products or brands and other brand community members (Baldus et al. , 2015 ; Brodie et al. , 2013 ; Gambetti et al. , 2016 ; Hanson et al. , 2019 ; Hollebeek and Macky, 2019 ; Monferrer et al. , 2019 ). These authors also discuss how members engage in specific online brand communities. Schivinski et al. (2016) demonstrate that consumers engage in higher levels of online brand-related activities as a result of the learning process. They identify the consuming dimension as an antecedent of consumers’ engagement in the contribution of brand-related content on social media, and this contributing dimension acts as an antecedent of user-generated content. For non-communities’ online engagement, Hollebeek et al. (2014) devote attention to the social media context, underlining the need to rethink or redesign the nature of specific consumer/brand interfaces to increase online engagement and not online brand communities.

4.4 Consumer engagement behaviours

Some authors consider the consumer engagement concept from a more behavioural perspective (van Doorn et al. , 2010 ; Kumar and Pansari, 2014 ; Kumar and Reinartz, 2016 ). Indeed, van Doorn et al. (2010) introduce the consumer engagement behaviour concept, defined as the customer’s behavioural manifestation towards a brand or firm, beyond purchase, resulting from motivational drivers. These authors highlight that consumer engagement behaviours result from motivational drivers, including word-of-mouth activity, customer-to-customer interactions (C2C) and/or blogging activity. They propose five dimensions for customer engagement behaviour, namely, valence, the form of modality, scope, nature of its impact and customer goals.

In a firm value perspective, studies continue to suggest that consumers can generate value for firms through several behavioural contributions besides purchase (Kumar et al. , 2010 ), such as customer lifetime, referral and influencer value, which lead to the customer engagement value construct (Kumar and Pansari, 2014 ; Kumar and Reinartz, 2016 ). Further research has also emphasised behavioural dimensions. Verhoef et al. (2010) , for instance, regard consumer brand engagement as a consumer’s behavioural manifestation towards a focal object (i.e. brand or company) that goes beyond transactions. This perspective is more aligned with the practitioners’ point of view about engagement, which pays increasing attention to aspects such as C2C interactions (i.e. word-of-mouth, e-word-of-mouth; recommendations, reviews, etc), in an interactive environment (Verhoef et al. , 2010 ).

4.5 Media engagement

Calder and Malthouse (2008) discuss the concept of media engagement. These authors focus on the consumer’s psychological experience while consuming media, and distinguish media engagement from mere liking, implying that engagement is a stronger state of connectedness between the customer and the media than merely liking. Afterwards, the same authors (Calder et al. , 2009 ) discuss the engagement concept linked to the online environment. They suggest two distinct types of engagement, namely, personal engagement and social-interactive engagement, which can be described as taking part in discussions and socialising with peers through a website. In this perspective, online media cover a distinct form of engagement with an impact on advertising effectiveness, and they propose that the principle of engagement can be extended to other media, such as mobile media or social media (Bilro et al. , 2018 ; Brandão et al. , 2019 ; Gligor et al. , 2019 ; Manser Payne et al. , 2017 ). Moreover, engagement is considered as a second-order construct when considering measurement models, the prevailing experience being the first-order construct. This position will be refuted later by several other authors in subsequent research (Baldus et al. , 2015 ; Brodie et al. , 2011 ).

data size, data quality, new types of data;

data ownership, to models –;

complexity of models;

ownership of modelling tools –;

usability of the results; and

integration of customer analytics in organisations’ processes.

5. Emerging future research topics and research agenda

This paper proposes an integrated overview of consumer engagement that can be useful for both practitioners and academics in future endeavours. We now discuss the areas that appear to be gaining attention in relevant literature so far and highlight key areas for future research. A summary of these areas is proposed, providing a research agenda towards better understanding of consumer engagement.

Firstly, future research needs to get new insights and developments concerning consumer engagement knowledge. Many studies in this research field are devoted to theoretical analyses. This fact renders a need for future empirical research to explore this subject further. For instance, qualitative research may reveal distinct triggers and outcomes of the benefits of consumer engagement, as suggested by our proposed framework ( Figure 3 ). Additionally, quantitative research could focus on the tangible, intangible or both types of benefits.

Secondly, and still building upon the proposed framework, consumers’ interactivity can take distinct roles in the engagement process, such as buying, referring, influencing or giving feedback. These distinct roles may result in successful engagement that firms can transform into an advantage. For example, further understanding of consumer interactivity motivations and the driving of those motivations towards consumer engagement with the focal object (i.e. product/brand) can be explored. Thirdly, research about consumer engagement processes needs to consider the existence of several types of antecedents of a different nature. These antecedents involve consumers, firms and contextual factors that may influence consumer engagement directly. However, some antecedents can also have a moderating effect on other antecedents. Additionally, other factors can ease interactions, such as personal affinity between stakeholders and should be considered. So, further research endeavours should also focus on these latter domains.

Fourthly, the interactive nature of consumer engagement recommends adopting new approaches to future research. We recommend that authors should devote their efforts to studying consumers interacting with several distinct products/services from the same product category simultaneously. Could a firm’s engagement efforts directly/indirectly influence the level of consumer engagement with a competing product? Further developments are needed to provide a more accurate vision of the engagement processes in a competitive atomised market.

Fifthly, a possible line of research can be to perform longitudinal studies on consumer engagement. The engagement concept in Marketing is relatively new and academic research on this topic is still in its early stages, meaning that academics lack understanding of how the construct evolves. So, future research could focus on assessing consumer engagement evolution: do consumers react to distinct marketing efforts over time? Do these efforts influence the level of engagement? Does consumer engagement also have a life cycle? Future research could also address the dynamic aspects of consumer engagement that assess the potential impact of initiatives on the consumer lifecycle relationship, how these changes depending on the consumer’s life and the degree to which engagement effects decrease over time.

Sixthly, the literature devotes considerable attention to the positive views of brand-related engagement constructs. However, consumers can also have negative emotional states towards a brand. Future research should address negative engagement not only to have new insights into the unengaged consumer but also to contribute tools and frameworks that managers can use. Seventhly, another fertile area for research could be to explore the role and effectiveness of online brand community engagement platforms that enable consumers to contribute to the focal object (i.e. the product or service). This is a less explored research area and investigation can target either firm-created platforms or existing third-party platforms such as YouTube, Instagram or Facebook.

How can consumers’ interactivity endeavours, such as buying, referring, influencing or giving feedback, interact to produce focal consumer engagement and firm-based benefits?

What is the relative importance of consumer-based interactivity efforts in particular consumer engagement contexts?

Will consumer and firm-based engagement always develop through the sequential process outlined in the framework or may relevant framework-based concepts have less (or heightened) importance in some contexts?

Under what conditions will consumer engagement generate optimal consumer behaviours?

How can consumer engagement’s contribution to consumer/firm relationship development be expedited?

How can consumer engagement be leveraged to increase existing customers’ brand loyalty and attract new consumers?

What are the benefits of consumer engagement for brand equity and brand attitude and how can these relate to one another?

Does the negative impact of consumer engagement vary according to the product category and prior relationship experience that is according to whether consumer and brands/firms’ engagement efforts are applied?

How does firm-initiated content through firm-created social networks drive user-generated-content?

6. Conclusion

This paper reviews a decade of research on consumer engagement, regarding how the literature has evolved and the major research streams on this topic. Our aims are to review the existing literature on consumer engagement, provide an accurate mapping of this research field, propose a framework for consumer engagement and offer a future research agenda. To achieve our aims, we conduct a systematic literature review ( Table 2 ) leading to an integrated overview of prior research findings that can help to summarise and discuss the major research streams in this field ( Table 3 ). This approach means we can answer our research question and provide different perspectives on the conceptualisation of consumer engagement ( Table 4 ).

Consumer engagement (Brodie et al. , 2011 , 2013 ; Sashi, 2012 ).

CBE (Hollebeek, 2011b ; Hollebeek et al. , 2014 ; de Villiers, 2015 ).

Online brand community engagement (Baldus et al. , 2015 ; Raïes et al. , 2015 ).

Consumer engagement behaviours (van Doorn et al. , 2010 ; Jaakkola and Alexander, 2014 ; Verleye et al. , 2014 ).

Media engagement (Calder et al. , 2009 ).

Based on these, we propose a consumer engagement typology and a conceptual framework ( Figure 3 ) that intends to organise these concepts visually. Further conceptual development and empirical testing are required to assess and validate this proposal, which is highlighted in the emerging future research topics and research agenda.

In the diverse research streams highlighted, several dimensions are suggested depending on the context. Although some research points to a uni-dimensional perspective (Sprott et al. , 2009 ), most studies tend to suggest consumer engagement as a multi-dimensional construct (Baldus et al. , 2015 ; Brodie et al. , 2011 , 2013 ; Hollebeek et al. , 2014 ; Jaakkola and Alexander, 2014 ), where cognitive (Brodie et al. , 2011 ; Harmeling et al. , 2017 ; Hollebeek, 2011b ; Hollebeek et al. , 2014 ; de Villiers, 2015 ; Vivek et al. , 2012 ) and behavioural dimensions (Brodie et al. , 2013 ; Groeger et al. , 2016 ; Hollebeek , 2011a, 2011b ; Hollebeek et al. , 2014 ; Jaakkola and Alexander, 2014 ; Vivek et al. , 2012 ) seem to be two of the most important.

This paper also underlines the emerging future research topics and research agenda, discussing the areas that appear to be gaining attention in relevant literature and highlighting key areas for future research. Several research streams are underlined, some of them based on the proposed framework. Here we suggest that researchers should focus their attention on empirical research on the benefits of consumer engagement, on consumer interactivity motivations and the drivers of those motivations towards consumer engagement with the focal object or on the antecedents of consumer engagement that involve consumers, firms and contextual factors that may influence consumer engagement directly, etc. Several research questions are also suggested for further development, with some emerging from our framework. Finally, we outline the main research streams, building on important existing conceptual and empirical work and providing support for the advancement of research on the topic of consumer engagement.

SLR methodological procedure flow chart

SLR aggregated search outcome

Framework for consumer engagement

SLR search terms identification

Final list of papers in the systematic literature review

Key theories for consumer engagement

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Acknowledgements

Funding : This research was supported by Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, grant UIDB/00315/2020.

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Article Contents

Definitions of practical relevance.

FIVE DIMENSIONS OF PRACTICAL RELEVANCE IN CONSUMER RESEARCH

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR ENHANCING PRACTICAL RELEVANCE

General discussion, practical relevance in consumer research.

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Wayne D Hoyer, Echo Wen Wan, Keith Wilcox, Practical Relevance in Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research , 2024;, ucae023, https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucae023

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There has been a continuing and growing concern over the relevance of the articles published in the Journal of Consumer Research ( JCR ). “Relevance” has been addressed in a number of editorials over time: Mick (2003) , Deighton (2007) , Dahl et al. (2014) , Inman et al. (2018) , and Schmitt et al. (2002) . There is an opinion that, over many years, the articles in JCR have trended toward the interests of academics and do not address the actual problems faced by consumers, firms, and public policy-makers ( Inman et al. 2018 ). Also, there has been concern that much of what appears in JCR is narrow in scope, both in terms of theory and the empirical methods employed. Further, the dependent variables investigated are often lacking in real-world significance.

These concerns have led to calls to increase relevance in consumer research. For example, Wells (1993) argued that “any given piece of research should be designed from the start with a consideration of how it will be useful to audiences it seeks to address” ( Dahl et al. 2014 , iii). According to Dahl et al. (2014) , a single mantra for JCR should be to “make it meaningful” to its audience. The audience includes academics from the founding fields as well as scholars in other fields, consumers, marketing managers, and public policy-makers. Nevertheless, despite these calls, JCR was recently rated the lowest of the premier academic marketing journals on one measure of practical relevance ( Jedidi et al. 2021 ).

In light of this long-lasting dialogue, it is not clear to us that JCR stakeholders possess a good understanding of what “relevance” actually means. For example, Dahl et al. (2014 , iv) argued “there is no single formula or paradigm for producing meaningful consumer research, and we therefore encourage a wide variety of approaches across papers.” Later, Inman et al. (2018 , 955) claimed “Despite long-lasting and heartful ambitions to create a big tent for impactful, consumer-relevant research, we are still far from obtaining that goal.” Finally, according to the current editorial team ( Schmitt et al. 2002 , 753), “the mere fact that it [ relevance ] is revisited with such frequency makes us wonder if speaking about the need for consumer research to be relevant has not been enough. What more can be said?” Moreover, Schmitt et al. (2002 , 754) state “As a field, we need to push ourselves to see how the areas we find personally fascinating link to real-world problems or serious important decisions that people have to make in the marketplace.”

The goal of this article is to introduce a framework for increasing practical relevance in consumer research and illustrate it with recent articles published in JCR . We see this as a necessary (and long overdue) first step in gaining clarity on this issue and advancing the debate. Our framework focuses primarily on experimental research with empirical data. However, we believe it can also be applied to qualitative research. To accomplish this, we begin with a review of the literature on practical relevance. We then present our framework, explain its key dimensions, and identify representative examples from recently published articles. Finally, we close with several recommendations for marketing scholars keen on improving the relevance of their work.

What is practical relevance? The answer to this question is not an easy one as there are numerous views on the topic. Jedidi et al. (2021) recently proposed “an objective and easy-to-use measure of practical relevance” (22) of articles, which they call the Relevance to Marketing Index. Their measure assesses practical relevance in terms of topicality: “the degree of the topical relation between the topics contained in an academic article and topics of marketing practice at a given time” (23). Their perspective hinges on the belief that topical connection (or relation) between academic research and marketing issues, which is context and time dependent, is critical to practical applicability. One can see how topicality is useful, as it simplifies indexing and classification, which is the goal in their paper. Their view is consistent with information science’s objective take on relevance as being “on the topic” (Harter 1992) and the Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary’s definition of relevance as being in “relation to the matter at hand” ( https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/relevance ).

Although topicality is a necessary component of practical relevance, many definitions of relevance used by business scholars also focus on whether the information can be utilized as a basis for action. For example, in the marketing literature, Jaworski (2011) defines managerial relevance as “the degree to which a specific manager in an organization perceives academic knowledge to aid his or her job-related thoughts or actions in the pursuit of organizational goals” (212). Similarly, in the management literature, Keiser et al. (2015) argue that research results can be considered practically relevant “if they influence management practice; that is, if they lead to the change, modification, or confirmation of how managers think, talk, or act” (144). The notion that relevance should facilitate action is also discussed in the accounting literature where research is considered relevant if it can be used to either guide practice or set accounting standards ( Leisenring and Johnson 1994 ).

Kohli and Haenlein (2021) suggest that, while relevance matters, importance plays a more significant role in whether research is used by managers. They argue that while most academic research in marketing can be considered “relevant” to the profession, the importance of the research issue determines whether the research will influence practice. Like Jedidi et al. (2021) , they define relevance in terms of topicality (i.e., whether it is connected to an issue). They consider importance to be the number of stakeholders the research affects and the magnitude of the expected change ( Jaworski 2011 ; Kohli and Haenlein 2021 ). They suggest that academics’ extensive focus on relevance, rather than importance, has contributed to the observed decline in the usefulness of academic research in recent years. We agree with these authors that importance matters. We believe that the importance of the issue is a factor that contributes to topicality.

Consistent with these perspectives, we view topicality as being necessary for research to be “relevant” to its audience which, as we will discuss, includes marketers, consumers, or policy-makers. However, for research to be deemed “practical” it must also be useful. Therefore, we consider research to be practically relevant when the findings can, and will, be used as a basis for action by its intended audience. We included “will” in our definition because although the intended audience of a research study may be able to implement its findings, they must also find the insights meaningful enough for taking action. Our framework takes a holistic view to propose that practical relevance in consumer research is shaped by every facet of the research process; from the research problem formulation to how the studies are executed and communicated to the audience. Next, we introduce our framework that focuses on five dimensions of practical relevance.

A number of articles have examined different dimensions of practical relevance. For instance, Benbasat and Zmud (1999) characterize relevance along the dimensions of “interesting,” “applicable,” “current,” and “accessible.” Klein, Jiang, and Saunders (2006) conducted a comprehensive examination of the literature on relevance to propose three dimensions of practical relevance: “importance,” “applicability,” and “accessibility” (see also Rosemann and Vessey 2008 ). We developed our framework ( figure 1 ) using Klein et al.’s as a starting point. However, our model incorporates different stages of the research process (i.e., the research question, study design, and manuscript preparation) since practical relevance is often determined by the way the research is executed.

The first dimension of practical relevance is targeted . As mentioned, while practitioners are the primary audience for most academic research in business fields, the audience for consumer research is broader, encompassing practitioners, policy-makers, and consumers. Since these groups have distinct motivations, interests, and goals, practically relevant research should consider the needs of a specific audience. As illustrated in our model, the extent to which the target audience will use research as a basis for action depends on whether they believe they can apply the findings (i.e., “can I take action?”) and whether the insights are meaningful enough to encourage them to act (i.e., “should I take action?”). Therefore, being targeted not only facilitates action but also motivates action.

The second dimension is topical , which is consistent with Klein et al.’s conceptualization of “importance.” Topical research addresses important issues that its intended audience currently cares about. Thus, this dimension builds off Jedidi et al.’s (2021) definition of topical by incorporating Kohli and Haenlein’s (2021) definition of importance. The more topical the audience finds the research the more motivated they will be to apply the findings. Practically relevant research often begins with the formulation of a topical research question.

The third dimension, actionable , is based on Klein et al.’s dimension called “applicability.” Actionable research makes it easy for its intended audience to apply the findings by offering tangible insights that can be directly translated into a set of actions. Although there are numerous ways to make research more actionable, our framework considers study design to be a particularly relevant aspect of the research process for actionability.

The fourth dimension is consequential , which refers to research that has a meaningful influence on consumer behavior in the real world. If the audience believes the research will have a consequential impact, they will be more motivated to implement the findings. Thus, dependent measures with real-world significance enhance practical relevance. We view study design to also be important for consequential research.

The fifth dimension is interpretable , which Klein et al. refer to as “accessible.” Interpretable research presents every facet of the research, from the definition of the key constructs to the findings, in a manner that can be easily understood by its intended audience. Making research interpretable not only helps the audience understand the findings but also motives them to take action. As such, the manuscript preparation stage of the research process is crucial for making research interpretable.

In the sections that follow, we highlight recent papers that are representative of each dimension. Some papers are discussed multiple times because they are a good illustration of more than one dimension. Table 1 provides a summary of each dimension and the representative papers for each dimension.

REPRESENTATIVE ARTICLES FOR EACH DIMENSION

Targeted research involves clearly identifying a specific group which has special needs or interests related to the research being conducted. A key aspect is that the more specific the audience, the more relevant the research findings will be. Targeting general or multiple audiences will dilute the impact of the research. The target audience must first be ascertained before a discussion of the other four criteria becomes meaningful.

As mentioned previously, there are three main audiences for JCR . These include consumers, marketers/retailers, and corporate responsibility/public policy-makers. In the case of consumers, research has relevance when it can improve consumer welfare or consumers’ lives. In other words, does the research help consumers make better decisions, improve their consumption experience of certain products or services, or improve the quality of how they live their lives? In terms of marketers/retailers, do the findings of the study inform them and help them to make improved decisions and develop more effective marketing strategies? Finally, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)/public policy involves companies who wish to make a positive impact on societal issues. It also deals with public policy-makers who want to develop policies and initiate legislation that will protect consumers and improve their lives. In the current section, we will discuss a sample of recent JCR articles which are particularly strong on the targeted dimension for each of the target markets.

In terms of consumers, a particularly critical issue relates to obesity and food consumption. It has been estimated that in the US alone, approximately 42% of the population would be considered obese ( Trust for America’s Health 2022 ). This is a critical issue because obesity can cause long-term health problems and cause economic pressures in society. In light of this, a number of these consumers have the desire to lose weight and become healthier. However, this is often found to be a very difficult task and these consumers are always looking for new and better ways to accomplish this. Van de Veer, Van Herpen, and Van Trijp (2018) propose and find support for one such method which involves mindfulness. This involves an enhanced attention state which enhances consumers’ focus on physiological cues. This is an excellent example of targeted research because mindfulness training can be very useful for consumers who wish to effectively lose weight.

A second target group is that of marketers and retailers. Consumer research has practical relevance when it can help inform or improve marketing strategies which attempt to influence consumer behavior. For example, improving customer satisfaction is a key goal for marketers and retailers. An interesting study by Packard and Berger (2021) offers a prime example of targeted research. The authors demonstrate that a simple shift in the language used by employees can have a positive impact on satisfaction. They found that using more concrete language can improve customer satisfaction and increase willingness to purchase. This finding has clear implications for retailer employee training programs.

Finally, donation behavior or charitable giving and corporate social responsibility have been areas of research with targeted audiences. As one example, companies often engage in CSR efforts by supporting and donating to important causes. A critical question in this regard concerns the type of donation to make. Essentially, companies can make either monetary donations or in-kind contributions (goods or services other than money). An interesting study by Hildebrand, Demotta, Sen, and Valenzuela (2017) is an especially good example of targeted research. The authors find the effectiveness of CSR strategies depends on the type of issue. In-kind contributions are more effective (in terms of consumer evaluations of the company) when the CSR issue is less controllable. Monetary donations lead to more positive consumer evaluations for issues that are more controllable. Again, this information provides useful guidance for any company engaging in CSR activities.

Topical is defined by Cambridge Dictionary as “of interest at the present time; relating to things that are happening at present” ( https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/topical ). Topical research for JCR examines consumer behavior that is situated in the present social and economic environment, relates to the current consumption modes, and is shaped by technological advancement. Topical research also examines current consumer behavior to shape marketing practice and consumer welfare. As mentioned, we view the importance of the issue as playing a role in determining how topical the audience perceives the research to be.

In this vein, Bardhi and Eckhardt (2017) introduced the concept of liquid consumption to help explain consumer behavior in the fast-growing sharing economy enabled by digital revolution. The past decade has witnessed the proliferation of sharing economy across a wide range of products and services. While sharing economy is transforming business, it also raises the question about consumer preference when consumption is through temporary access in the sharing economy which differs from the traditional economy’s consumption through permanent ownership. The authors defined liquid consumption as ephemeral, access based, and dematerialized, and solid consumption as enduring, ownership based, and material. Their conceptualization of ownership along a continuum facilitates understanding consumers’ preference shift in the digital economy, such as shifting from constructing a linear and durable identity to a liquid self in fluid and dispersed social networks, shifting toward fluid attachment to objects, and putting more weights on the usage value (vs. identify value) of the products. Moreover, the authors alert consumers about the potential negative impact of liquid consumption on consumer welfare and propose solutions to address these challenges.

Another excellent example of topical consumer research is Melumad and Pham (2020) that examine consumers’ relationship with the smartphone, a technology device that has gradually become indispensable in consumers’ lives. Early research has mostly accounted people’s attachment to smartphones as a behavioral addition that leads to negative consequences such as disruption at work and degrading interpersonal interactions ( Bianchi and Phillips 2005 ; Vahedi and Saiphoo 2017 ). However, the literature was silent on the psychological mechanism of consumers’ dependence on smartphones. Moreover, as the mobile internet technology evolves (e.g., 5G network debuted in 2019), consumers’ relationship with smartphones also evolves.

Melumad and Pham (2020) identify the unique features of smartphone, in comparison to other technology devices such as laptop, tablet, and voice speaker. First, smartphones are portable. Users can access the vast array of functions on smartphones virtually anytime and anywhere, which makes smartphones highly dependable and reliable. Second, a smartphone offers a sense of privacy. The small screen of the device enables users to engage in activities of their own choosing in a private manner. Third, smartphones are highly personal. People use their smartphones for personal activities, customize the apps according to their personal interests, and keep their own smartphones as personal possessions throughout the day. Fourth, smartphones provide haptic benefits. The ergonomic design and the touching interface make it easy and pleasant to use smartphones. Drawing on the unique combination of these properties, the authors document that smartphones offer psychological comfort to consumers and actually can help relieve stress. Thus, Melumad and Pham (2020) not only offer an explanation for consumers’ seemingly obsessive behavior with their smartphones but also offer a timely update on consumers’ knowledge about the emotional and psychological benefits they can derive by using the device.

Actionable research refers to research that can be directly applied in real-world contexts ( Pearce and Huang 2012 ). It offers tangible insights and provides specific recommendations to guide the actions of the audience. The way the independent variable is presented and operationalized is particularly important for producing actionable research because it is the process of translating the independent variable into a set of actions that allows the audience to influence consumer behavior in the real world. Therefore, research is actionable when the independent variable is presented in an accessible manner and the operationalization of the independent variable is grounded in realism.

An article by Thomas and Kyung (2019) offers a particularly strong example of actionable research because it presents the independent variable in an accessible manner. The authors examine how payment responses elicited through slider scales differ from those elicited through open-ended text boxes. The authors propose that when consumers are asked to provide payment responses on slider scales, they display an end point assimilation effect such that payment responses biased by the visual end points of the scales. As a result, slider scales are shown to elicit higher willingness-to-pay (WTP) responses than text boxes when the scales are in an ascending format (i.e., $0 to a $500 end point). When the scales are in a descending format (i.e., $500 to a $0 end point), however, they elicit lower WTP responses.

The nature of the independent variable makes it accessible since marketing managers (and academics) are familiar with slider scales and text boxes. Yet, it is the way the authors provided evidence for the end point assimilation effect that illustrates how to ensure accessibility. The authors’ theory suggests that if consumers are biased by the visual end points of slider scales, extending the response range should enhance the bias. To test this prediction, the authors had participants engage in an auction for a bottle of wine. Approximately half of participants were asked to bid between $20 and $1,000 on either a slider scale or via a text box. The remaining participants were asked to bid between $20 and $500 on either a slider scale or via a text box. As expected, respondents’ bids on the slider scales were higher compared to those in the text box conditions. Importantly, the difference was larger when the end point was $1,000 compared to when it was $500. These findings not only provide evidence for the authors’ theory but do so in a manner that makes it easy for managers to implement the findings in the real world.

Many studies examining consumer behavior operationalize their independent variable using stylized, artificial scenarios that do not involve actual behavior. Therefore, it is not surprising that audiences of consumer research may ask themselves whether the insights are true ( Morales, Amir, and Lee 2017 ). If the audience doubts the findings will have the desired effect on consumers in the real world, they are unlikely to rely on them, which reduces the practical relevance of the research. Consequently, research becomes actionable when the operationalization of the independent variable is grounded in realism to closely match an actual consumption experience.

The most realistic way to operationalize the independent variable is to conduct a field experiment where the independent variable is manipulated in a real-world setting and participants are unaware that they are taking part in a study during the manipulation. There are times, however, where conducting a field experiment is neither possible nor appropriate. In such situations, researchers can take steps to increase the realism of their study, even if it is conducted in a behavioral lab.

Another excellent example of actionable research is offered by Cian, Krishna, and Elder (2015) because of how the authors enhanced the realism of a lab experiment. The authors examine how warning signs (e.g., “school crossing,” “caution children”) that differ in dynamism influence consumers’ vigilance. The authors show that consumers are more vigilant (e.g., faster to slow down their car) when warning signs (e.g., “caution children”) are designed with dynamic imagery that implies motion compared to similar signs that use static imagery. This occurs because dynamic images indicate more perceived risk to oneself and others.

The topic of the research made it difficult for the authors to test their findings in a real-world setting. A field experiment involving signs that could have different effects on public safety would have a hard time getting approval from most Institutional Review Boards (IRB). Moreover, even if the study received IRB approval, it would require additional approvals from stakeholders, such as government agencies or local businesses, and would require overcoming numerous logistical issues. Therefore, the authors tested their theory in a lab setting, while ensuring the operationalization of their independent variable was grounded in realism. For instance, in one study (study 2), they designed a realistic driving simulation that showed respondents a video from a first-person driving perspective to mimic what people see out of the windshield of a moving car. As participants were “driving,” the simulation presented warning signs and informative signs (e.g., “lodging,” “food”) on the side of the road. Respondents were instructed to press the “w” key anytime they saw a warning sign and the “i” key anytime they saw an informative sign. The time it took respondents to push the correct button after seeing a sign was the dependent measure. Consistent with their theory, respondents’ reaction times were faster when they saw dynamic warning signs compared to static warning signs or informational signs. Thus, even though the study was not conducted in the field, the realism embedded in the operationalization of the independent variable makes this research actionable.

Consequential

Consequential research offers findings that allow the audience to make a meaningful impact on consumer behavior in the real world. Research can be considered consequential when it focuses on demonstrating external valid findings with tangible outcomes that allow for the assessment of its effectiveness and impact. Therefore, the nature of the dependent variable and how it is presented to the audience are important for research to be considered consequential since it is the change in the dependent variable that allows the audience to determine whether the insights will have a meaningful impact.

Research is consequential when the outcomes assessed in the studies are representative of behavior in the real world ( Morales et al. 2017 ). These outcomes frequently involve behaviors that have actual costs (e.g., financial, social) instead of self-reports that do not carry any consequences ( Klein and Hilbig 2019 ). This may involve observing consumer behavior in a field setting or having participants perform a task involving actual behavior in the lab. However, simply because an outcome examined in a study involves actual behavior does not mean it is representative of behavior in the real world. For instance, researchers often use the Stroop task as an outcome variable in studies on self-control ( Chae and Zhu 2014 ). Performance on the Stroop task involves actual behavior (e.g., reaction times) and it is an effective way to provide evidence for a reduction in inhibitory control ( West and Alain 2000 ). However, Stroop task performance is an outcome that has limited practical relevance since the task is not representative of many real-world behaviors.

Van den Bergh et al. (2016) offer a great illustration of consequential research because the outcomes assessed in their studies were representative of real-world behavior. The research examined how changing the flooring in retail spaces influences the pace of in-store traffic. The authors propose and demonstrate that the number, nature, and relative salience of progress markers along a path (e.g., an aisle in a store) can communicate goal progress to consumers and therefore increase their motivation to reach their destination. Consistent with their account they show that customers walk faster when fewer (vs. more) markers are placed in a path because fewer (vs. more) markers give consumers a greater sense of goal progress as they are walking down the path. This research is a great example of consequential research because in the studies, which were conducted in both field and lab settings, actual markers were placed on pathways and participants’ walking speed was observed and recorded. The use of an unobtrusive measure of actual behavior (i.e., walking speed) illustrates how researchers can examine outcomes that are representative of real-world behaviors, even if the study is conducted in the lab. This method was similar to that used by Melumad and Pham (2020) who unobtrusively measured participants’ cellphone interactions in a lab setting.

Consequential research also focuses on outcomes that allow the audience to easily assess its impact. In most experimental studies of consumer behavior, the dependent variable is measured by having respondents indicate a numerical response on a scale. This allows researchers to quantify the impact of the independent variable on the dependent variable. However, it is often difficult to translate responses on many of these scales (e.g., a “5” on a 7-point scale) to outcomes in the real world. Therefore, when the measurement of the dependent variable is directly related to a tangible, real-world outcome, research becomes more consequential.

A study by Yang and Hsee (2022) offers an excellent illustration of consequential research that focuses on a tangible outcome. In their research, the authors examine how consumers respond to charitable campaigns that allow donors to publicly communicate their charitable acts (e.g., displaying a donor pin). In a series of studies, they show that obligatory publicity campaigns (e.g., requiring the display of a donor pin) are more effective at getting consumers to participate than voluntary publicity campaigns (i.e., only encouraging the display of a donor pin). This occurs because requiring consumers to publicly display their charitable acts allows them to overcome their concerns about the negative dispositional inferences that others may make about them for engaging in self-promotion.

In one study (study 2), the authors provided evidence for their theory in a field setting on a university campus involving an actual blood drive. Part of the campus was exposed to messages promoting the blood drive that included language indicating that wearing a donor stamp was voluntary. The other part of the campus was exposed to a similar message indicating that wearing the stamp was obligatory. The researchers recorded the number of blood donations received each day. They then constructed the donation rate from the different promotional campaigns by dividing the number of students who participated in the blood drive by the total number of students in each population. This study was consequential not only because the dependent variable (i.e., donation rate) involved actual behavior but also because the measure was directly related to a tangible outcome in the real world. The audience for this research (i.e., charities) can easily determine that the insights will have a meaningful impact in their own charitable campaigns.

Interpretable

Research output cannot have practical relevance if the target audience fails to understand or interpret it. This requirement applies to all the components of a typical scientific article: the core construct, the empirical methods used to tackle the objective, the research findings, and so on. For an article to be interpretable by the intended audience, the authors often must employ language that is less technical (without sacrificing accuracy) and add explanations and examples to help the audience make sense of what they are reading.

Packard and Berger (2021) offer a good illustration of research that is interpretable. As mentioned, the authors examine how linguistic concreteness influences consumer attitudes and behavior. The authors made their insights more interpretable for their target audience (i.e., marketing managers) in several ways. First, they clearly explain that “concreteness describes how much a word refers to an actual, tangible, or ‘real’ entity.” They support their definition with examples that contrast concrete language (e.g., kiss or home ) with abstract language (e.g., love or anywhere ). Additionally, in one experiment (study 4), they manipulate multiple levels of concreteness to illustrate that as language becomes more concrete this increases consumers’ satisfaction and willingness to purchase. Importantly, their description of this study is supported by a table and a figure that clearly displays the language used to manipulate each level of concreteness. Finally, in the General Discussion, they provide a table that provides clear examples of how to make language more concrete. This allows the audience to translate a somewhat ambiguous concept (i.e., linguistic concreteness) into a specific course of action. Cian et al. (2015) offer another example of how to make an ambiguous concept (i.e., dynamic imagery) easy to interpret through their use of images and figures.

Research findings in many articles in JCR can be difficult for the audience to interpret because authors frequently employ complex experimental designs to effectively test their theory and explore boundary conditions. Such designs may provide theoretical richness to the empirical package, but this often comes at the expense of practical relevance since it may be difficult for the audience to understand how the findings can be applied in the real world. To enhance the practical relevance of their findings, authors frequently begin their empirical package with a study that provides illustrative evidence of their theory.

Cai, Bagchi, and Gauri (2016) provide an excellent example of this in their study on boomerang effects for low price discounts. The authors propose that while low price discounts (e.g., 5% off) tend to be effective at promoting sales for essential purchases, low price discounts are less effective than offering no discount for nonessential purchases, which they refer to as a boomerang effect.

They initially tested their theory using illustrative evidence based on scanner data from essential (e.g., cereal) and nonessential (e.g., canned soup) product categories. The authors examined the volume of purchases within each category at different levels of price discount. Consistent with their theory, the results show that in the essential categories, the volume of purchases increased as the price discount increased. However, in the nonessential categories, volume decreased, relative to offering no discount, sales decreased when price discounts were low (i.e., less than 5% off), but then increased once the discounts reached a certain threshold (e.g., over 5% off). One could argue that the findings of this study are open to multiple interpretations (e.g., it could be unique to the categories examined). Yet, their choice to begin the empirical package with evidence from scanner data makes it easier for marketing managers to interpret their findings. They then supported this study with a series of controlled experiments to test their theory and explore boundary conditions.

Implicit in our discussion of the five dimensions are suggestions for improving the practical relevance in consumer behavior research. In this section, we provide more specific and actionable recommendations for doing so (see table 2 for a summary). These include: (1) define the intended audience upfront, (2) start with the problem, (3) clearly identify the relevant consumer sample, (4) select independent variables that are realistic, (5) employ dependent variables that have impact, and (6) make the findings easy to interpret.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR MAKING CONSUMER RESEARCH MORE PRACTICALLY RELEVANT

Define the Intended Audience Upfront

Before conducting the research, the authors should clearly delineate who the intended audience for this research is to be. Is it a study that will inform consumers on key issues or consumption problems they are facing? Or can this research provide important insights that help consumers to live more fulfilling lives? Alternatively, is the topic of this research something that will provide useful information to marketing or retailing managers? Could specific meaningful and implementable suggestions for strategy be developed for this research? Or is the audience individuals or companies interested in corporate social responsibility or public policy issues? If so, can the research help to improve the effectiveness of CSR or public policy initiatives?

The key point is that defining the intended audience upfront provides the research with an important sense of direction which can provide guidance for the research process. This, in turn, will help to increase the practical relevance of the research.

Start with the Problem

The most typical way in which research on consumer behavior has been conducted over the years is to begin with a theoretical perspective or potentially interesting phenomenon and then conduct empirical research to test this theory or examine the phenomenon. Then, at the conclusion of writing the paper, there is an attempt (and sometimes struggle) to come up with implications for either managers, consumers, or public policy.

An alternative approach would be to start with a key problem facing one of these constituencies. These should be issues or topics that the targeted audience truly cares about. From a managerial perspective, there are a variety of ways to identify key issues facing managers, including attending industry conferences, inviting managers to classes, and reading key business and marketing industry publications. In doing so, consumer behavior researchers should evaluate these sources from the perspective of how consumer behavior research can inform or provide useful information on these problems.

A similar process can be applied to the other audiences as well. Researchers can conduct Google searches, regularly read consumer-related publications, or the Wall Street Journal and similar publications to identify key consumer problems that can benefit from input from consumer behavior research. Likewise, researchers can conduct searches to ascertain key areas or initiatives which could be potential avenues for corporate responsibility efforts. Further, important public policy issues could be identified by attending public policy conferences or conducting internet searches.

The key point here is that researchers need to start with the problem and then apply consumer behavior theory and research to inform these issues rather than vice versa. By doing so, the probability that the research is relevant and meaningful increases greatly.

Clearly Identify the Relevant Consumer Sample

For many years, consumer (and psychology) research was mockingly referred to as the “study of college sophomores.” This was because academic researchers were often short of funds to conduct their research and college students represented a readily available, convenient, and cost-effective pool of research subjects. Despite these advantages, the use of these subjects has been heavily criticized over the years.

The purpose of the present treatise is not to revisit this extensive debate; rather to state that to increase practical relevance, researchers need to employ samples of “actual” consumers to whom researchers wish to generalize findings. This first involves providing a clear definition of the relevant population and then developing a sampling plan to collect data from these consumers. Fortunately, in today’s world, there are a number of research services which enable data to be collected on “real” consumers such as MTurk, Prolific, and Clickstream. While there have been critical debates about problems associated with these samples which would not be discussed here, the key point is that these services allow researchers to acquire more real-world samples and data in an efficient and cost-effective manner.

This is not to say that college students should never be employed as subjects. The general consensus is that these subjects are a relatively homogenous group, and they can be very useful in establishing cause–effect relationships (i.e., internal validity) which can then be tested on more realistic samples. Moreover, since many products’ target customers are people at college age (e.g., 18–22), college students can represent some types of real-world consumers.

Select Independent Variables That Are Realistic

As mentioned previously, many studies examining consumer behavior operationalize their independent variable using stylized, artificial scenarios that do not involve actual behavior. When this is the case, the relevant audience may fail to see how the research will change consumers’ behavior and the findings are not informative of the key issues at hand. Consequently, research becomes practically relevant when the operationalization of the independent variable is grounded in realism to closely match an actual consumption experience. Essentially, this involves translating the independent variable into a set of actions that allows the audience to influence consumer behavior in the real world.

As mentioned earlier, one of the most effective ways to implement this suggestion is to conduct field experiments. By conducting the research in real-world contexts, actual consumer responses to real stimuli can be observed in a realistic setting. In particular, actual behavior can be observed and this helps increase the audience’s understanding of how the findings can meaningfully impact their target consumers.

Admittedly, there are critical issues concerning field experiments. They can be expensive and difficult to implement. Further, strong internal validity is more difficult to achieve than in lab experiments. In other words, internal validity is sacrificed for external validity. However, in recent years, there has been an increasing trend toward conducting lab studies first to establish internal validity and then conducting a field experiment which is more externally valid.

In addition, advances in technology and software now enable the development of independent variable stimuli which are impressively realistic. Realistic advertisements, packages, and any other type of marketing communication can be easily and cheaply produced to present to consumers. Visual simulations can also be produced which closely resemble real-world contexts. Further, these stimuli can be manipulated and changed very quickly and effectively when using online surveys.

Select Dependent Variables That Have Impact

In many consumer behavior studies, researchers rely on self-report measures such as attitudes, behavioral intentions, or reported choice as dependent variables. This has occurred because they are rather easy to measure and they have demonstrated moderate predictability or explanation of consumers’ behavior. However, it is common knowledge among consumer researchers that “people don’t always do what they say they do” for a variety of reasons. They might not want to reveal to the researcher what they really do or perhaps they are not really sure.

To be practically relevant, it is important to employ dependent variables that have real consequences. In other words, the dependent variables should be directly related to real-world outcomes. These types of dependent variables are more representative of behavior in the actual consumer decision-making situations. For example, rather than asking consumers what they would choose, a more practically relevant dependent variable would be to measure actual choice with real costs involved. This could be done in a field study by observing actual choice behavior or in a lab study where there are actual consequences for making a choice. A key point is that the closer the dependent variable is to actual behavior in the decision funnel, the stronger the practical relevance.

Another possibility is to employ unobtrusive measures which are based on data that are collected without the participation or knowledge of the people or groups that generated the data. These can involve simple observation, archival data, content analysis, or physical traces. A key advantage of these measures is that they involve observations of human behavior in their natural context without any interference from researchers and are therefore indicative of real-world outcomes.

Make the Findings Easy to Interpret

The final recommendation involves the communication of the findings. The key principle is that in order to have practical relevance, the research needs to be reported in a manner that is easy for the target audience to understand. This involves using less technical language and concrete examples. In a sense, this reflects a well-known marketing principle to “speak the customer’s language.” Fortunately, JCR and other marketing journals have recognized this and have authors develop simple summaries of their research that can be directed toward journalists and the relevant audiences. In the case of JCR , this is called “The Pitch.”

We believe that, despite the continuing call to increase relevance in consumer research, JCR stakeholders still lack a clear understanding of what “relevance” actually means. As such, in the present article, we propose a framework that defines five dimensions of practical relevance in consumer research: targeted, topical, actionable, consequential, and interpretable. We illustrate the framework with recently published JCR articles. Importantly, this framework takes a holistic view that practical relevance is shaped at each facet of the research process, ranging from formulating the research questions, to designing and conducting the research studies, and to communicating the research to the audience. We then reviewed all articles published in JCR during 2015 and 2022 and identified 11 representative articles to illustrate how consumer research can achieve practical relevance by focusing on the five dimensions at different facets of the research process. Based on this holistic perspective, we develop six recommendations for enhancing practical relevance of consumer research.

Consumer researchers may find that the utmost challenge in enhancing practical relevance is attaining the dimensions of “targeted” and “topical.” Without identifying the research questions that the targeted audiences truly care about currently, the research findings cannot be important enough to be “actionable” or “consequential” to them. We do see that many papers published at JCR introduce the research question in a consumer, managerial, or policy-relevant way. However, a critical question to ask is how many of these publications have become the basis for action for real-world consumers, marketers, and policy-makers. Being “targeted” and “topical” is more than framing the research question in a practically relevant way. It requires the researchers to understand the prominent issues in the real-world consumption, marketing, and policy practice. As illustrated in the recommendation of “Start with the Problem,” interacting with the consumption and business world, in one way or the other, is the key to learn what truly matters to the audiences.

We would also like to particularly emphasize three aspects of our framework. First , practical relevance of consumer research does not mean managerial relevance only. JCR has a broad audience that encompasses consumers, practitioners, and policy-makers. Thus, practical relevance of consumer research is relevance to consumer welfare, managerial practice, or general public’s welfare. Second , we believe that enhancing practical relevance by focusing on the five dimensions does not compromise the academic rigor of the research. Studies with actionable and consequential design still need to ensure the methodological rigor. Third , the framework of practical relevance we have proposed applies to all types of JCR papers, including conceptual papers, theory-driven empirical papers, substantive phenomena papers, consumer culture research papers, and (multi-)methods and empirical quant papers. To illustrate how practical relevance is shaped by each facet of the research process, we have reviewed mostly empirical papers and only one conceptual paper. However, we believe that any types of consumer research could enhance the practical relevance by focusing on the five dimensions when these dimensions fit into the entire research process. Taking all this together, consumer behavior researchers are encouraged to move forward and “make it meaningful” ( Dahl et al. 2014 ).

Wayne D. Hoyer ( [email protected] ) is the James L. Bayless/William S. Farrish Fund Chair for Free Enterprise at the McCombs School of Business, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA.

Echo Wen Wan ( [email protected] ) is a professor of marketing at the Faculty of Business and Economics, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.

Keith Wilcox ( [email protected] ) is the Macy’s Foundation Professor at the Mays Business School, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA.

All authors contributed equally and are listed in alphabetical order. They would like to thank Bernd Schmitt and Marco Bertini for their helpful comments and assistance.

This research curation was invited by editors Bernd Schmitt, June Cotte, Markus Giesler, Andrew Stephen, and Stacy Wood.

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Consumer loneliness: A systematic review and research agenda

Associated data.

The raw data supporting the conclusions of this article will be made available by the authors, without undue reservation.

Treading on the heels of the spread of the coronavirus, the “loneliness virus” has been capturing territories globally. Consumers are not immune to loneliness. Although academics and the general public have recognized the devastating effects of loneliness, the academic attention given to consumer loneliness (CL) is scattered and fragmentary. The purpose of this article is to systematically review the antecedents (predictors and alleviators) and consequences (consumer behaviors, emotions, preferences, attitudes, and cognition) of CL in various consumption contexts. This review also presents findings on CL as a mediator and moderator in consumer studies. This work adds to the growing body of CL literature by synthesizing the existing findings and knowledge. More importantly, we present a future research agenda by linking CL to significant research lines and detailed implications for practitioners in the marketplace.

1. Introduction

Loneliness was a global issue even before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic ( Fumagalli et al., 2022 ). People in modern societies worldwide have explicitly reported their loneliness, which is increasingly prevalent ( Pieters, 2013 ; Kim and Jang, 2017 ; Wang et al., 2021 ). Loneliness has been acknowledged as a phenomenon resulting from global societal shifts and changing demographics, including reduced family sizes, fragmented family structures, increased relocation frequencies, growing metropolitan cities, more technology use, and aging populations ( Mittal and Silvera, 2018 ). Prior research has related loneliness to a range of negative health outcomes (heart disease, suicide, mortality, etc.) and psychological outcomes (depression, anxiety, anger, etc.) across life spans and cultures ( Heinrich and Gullone, 2006 ; Cacioppo and Cacioppo, 2018 ; Chen et al., 2021 ). Therefore, loneliness has been viewed as “part and parcel of human” and needs to be alleviated for physical and psychological functioning ( Hawkley and Cacioppo, 2010 ).

Consumers are not immune to loneliness ( Rippé et al., 2018 ; Dalman et al., 2021 ). Increasing research attention has been paid to the phenomenon of consumer loneliness (CL) in various contexts ( Pieters, 2013 ; Pittman and Reich, 2016 ; Tan and Lu, 2019 ; Odekerken-Schröder et al., 2020 ; Loh et al., 2021 ). Despite the proliferation of research on CL, the literature is neither coherent nor explanatory and has provided an inadequate understanding of CL. Furthermore, little research has investigated the main issues and provided a holistic view of the research evidence to understand CL.

This review makes four major contributions. First, to the best of our knowledge, this study provides the first overview of CL research. We develop a systematic understanding of CL by integrating the extant knowledge of the CL phenomenon. This study clarifies the content, boundaries, and core subjects of CL studies. Second, this paper presents an in-depth examination of the role of CLs in consumer research and sheds light on empirical studies by identifying the antecedents and consequences of CL and its role as a mediating and moderating variable. Third, this review provides a theoretical basis for the future development of CL research. Based on the current state of knowledge, this study presents a roadmap for future CL research by identifying critical gaps and provides a unique perspective that enriches and broadens consumer research. Finally, this study goes beyond synthesizing existing research by elaborating on several practical implications that constitute a basis for future marketing programs.

2. Background literature

Loneliness has been defined as “subjective feelings of social isolation” ( Hawkley and Cacioppo, 2010 ). By its very nature, loneliness is a unique and intensive unpleasant emotional experience characterized by social connection deficits. The current literature has conceptualized this construct in two main ways ( Sinha and Wang, 2013 ). The first approach views loneliness as a unidimensional construct that remains constant across various contexts ( Russell, 1996 ). The other conceptualizes loneliness as a multidimensional construct composed of two main subdimensions [i.e., social loneliness (SL) and emotional loneliness (EL)] ( DiTommaso and Spinner, 1997 ; Heinrich and Gullone, 2006 ). EL results from deficits in emotional attachment to significantly intimate others (e.g., family members, romantic partners), whereas SL derives from a shortage of desired social networks or groups (e.g., friends and colleagues) ( Russell, 1996 ). At the heart of a set of socio-emotional states, loneliness has garnered increasing attention from academia and public authorities during the past two decades. Research on CL has a relatively short history ( Kim et al., 2005 ; Hu and Jasper, 2006 ; Arpin et al., 2015 ). The literature has examined the influences of loneliness in consumption contexts, such as the type of purchase ( Pagan, 2020 ; Yang et al., 2021 ), consumption behavior ( Yang, 2016 ), social experience and interaction ( Kim et al., 2005 ; Her and Seo, 2018 ). Previous studies have also explored the role of loneliness in consumer experiences ( Loh et al., 2021 ), attitudes ( Yii et al., 2020 ), affects ( Chen et al., 2021 ), preferences ( Reid and Reid, 2007 ), and behaviors ( Arpin et al., 2015 ; Liu et al., 2020 ). Moreover, CL has been investigated as a mediator or moderator in explaining consumer behaviors ( Berezan et al., 2020 ; Pade and Feurer, 2022 ). Studies on CL are driven by the idea that relationship deficits in consumers’ daily lives play important roles in their attitudes, cognitions, affects, and behaviors ( Mead et al., 2010 ; Lee and Hyun, 2015 ). Thus, the marketing literature has recently begun to shed light on CLs and pay increasing attention to the distinctiveness of lonely consumers ( Rippé et al., 2018 ; Berezan et al., 2020 ; Wang et al., 2021 ). However, work on CLs remains scattered among various research fields, thus providing an inadequate understanding of the role of loneliness in the consumer journey.

3. Methodology

According to the five-step approach ( Denyer and Tranfield, 2009 ; Vizzoto et al., 2021 ), this study firstly identified focus research questions. Specifically, this review aimed to present the antecedents (i.e., what influences CL?) and consequences (i.e., what does CL produce?) of CLs, and their role in consumer behaviors (i.e., does CLs play mediator/moderator role?). Accordingly, the above four research questions guided the review process.

Second, we began with a bibliographic keyword search of four databases: the Social Science Citation Index, Springer, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar. These databases were chosen because they not only include service and marketing journals but also cover management, psychology, and information technology journals that have published CL studies. Several relevant keywords, such as consumer/customer loneliness and lonely consumer/customer, were used. During the process, loneliness studies that investigated or involved consumption behaviors were included in the review pool. Additionally, we applied backward and forward snowball search techniques to ensure the completeness of the review ( Vizzoto et al., 2021 ). After this step, a total of 127 articles were collected from the focal databases.

In the third step, we evaluated and selected studies based on two key criteria: relatedness to the topic and research quality ( Vizzoto et al., 2021 ). To be included in the review, a paper first had to meet the relatedness criterion; that is, CL or loneliness in the consumption context was one of the key subjects in the article. Accordingly, 58 articles unrelated to CL were eliminated. Moreover, with regard to research quality, an included paper had to be written in English and published in a peer-reviewed academic journal. We also analyzed empirical studies based on their methods, the results, and conclusions ( Vizzoto et al., 2021 ). One article with low clarity and coherence was excluded. Thus, our final sample consisted of 68 research articles.

Fourth, the selected articles were analyzed by year, journal, methodology, research objective, and location. The articles covered the period from 1991 to 2022. Figure 1 details the distribution of CL studies by publication year. Although the number of publications in 2022 is incomplete, there has been an upward trend of publications over time.

Number of articles between 1991 and 2022.

Table 1 presents an overview of the literature on CL. The main sources for these works are Journal of Business Research , Journal of Consumer Research , and Psychology and Marketing . Of the identified articles, 12 are theoretical explorations and 56 are empirical works. Regarding their methodology, 24 articles have employed a cross-sectional survey method (42.9%), 18 studies have used an experimental design (32.1%), and 6 studies have used mixed methods (10.7%). With regard to their research objectives, 12 have examined the antecedents of CL, 27 have investigated the consequences of CL, and 2 articles have explored both of these. Moreover, six articles have examined the mediating role of CL, and five articles have explored the moderating effects of CL. Among these works, only four have been conducted in a cross-cultural context. Based on this literature overview, the next section reports and discusses the extant findings.

Disciplines and publication outlets of consumer loneliness (CL) studies.

4. Findings

4.1. antecedents: what influences consumer loneliness, 4.1.1. predictors of consumer loneliness.

From the social change perspective, the number of lonely consumers is increasing, potentially due to longer life spans, disconnected social networks, increasing social isolation, and single-person households ( Wang et al., 2012 ). As a psychological experience, CL is exacerbated by changing socioenvironmental factors ( Grigoropoulos and Daoultzis, 2022 ).

4.1.1.1. The aging population

In 2050, the proportion of the world’s population aged over 60 years will be close to 22% ( World Health Organization [WHO], 2021 ). Consequently, older consumers represent a rapidly growing segment in the global marketplace. Previous evidence has indicated that decreased social interaction increases older consumers’ loneliness ( Kim et al., 2005 ). In addition, a lack of shopping mobility also contributes to older consumers’ loneliness ( Lim and Kim, 2011 ). Due to their lack of social contacts, older consumers have fewer ways to resolve their loneliness. However, older consumers’ social needs have not been completely met in the marketplace and adequately understood by academics.

4.1.1.2. Decreased social connectedness

Threats to valued social relationships, ranging from social exclusion to divorce, have been found to elevate CL ( Jiao and Wang, 2018 ). Preliminary research has shown that affiliation deficits result in CL ( Lastovicka and Sirianni, 2011 ). In addition, a meta-analysis of social media has indicated that a lack of social support results in loneliness ( Song et al., 2014 ). Socially excluded consumers tend to devalue social relationships and thus experience greater loneliness ( Mead et al., 2010 ). Similarly, a lack of psychological attachment to others has been identified as a significant antecedent of CL ( Loh et al., 2021 ). Although prior studies have indicated that perceived solitude and social disconnectedness, rather than the actual amount of social contact, drive the sense of loneliness ( Henkel et al., 2020 ), insufficient physical, and social activity play a role in facilitating CL ( Han et al., 2022 ).

4.1.1.3. Technology- and pandemic-induced alienation

The prevalence of CL has been accelerated by the development of information technologies and digitalized social networks ( Yang et al., 2021 ). For example, Instagram broadcasting behaviors increase users’ loneliness ( Yang, 2016 ). Moreover, social media users’ exchange relationship orientation enhances their perceived SL ( Matook et al., 2015 ). After the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, social distancing measures have been widely used, leading to even higher levels of social isolation. Prolonged lockdowns have further amplified the deleterious effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Previous research has reported that the pandemic crisis increases older people’s loneliness ( Wong et al., 2020 ). Furthermore, COVID-19-related fear increases CL and alcohol consumption ( Grigoropoulos and Daoultzis, 2022 ).

4.1.1.4. Consumer characteristics

Research using the personality approach has suggested that introverted consumers reduce their loneliness by interacting with service frontliners ( Kim et al., 2005 ; Pettigrew, 2007 ; Rippé et al., 2018 ). Moreover, a meta-analysis has indicated that Facebook users’ shyness results in loneliness ( Song et al., 2014 ). Insecure attachment has also been verified to increase EL ( Rippé et al., 2021 ). In addition, consumers who engage in more consumer-ethnocentric activities (i.e., buying domestic products) feel lonelier ( Yii et al., 2020 ). Demographic variables such as socioeconomic status, the quantity and quality of interpersonal interaction ( Kim et al., 2005 ), age ( Rokach and Neto, 2005 ), and gender ( Salimi, 2011 ) have also been related to differences in the severity of CL.

4.1.1.5. Culture and norms

Loneliness always emerges within the context of a culture with normative values and practices. Culture significantly affects the causes of loneliness ( Rokach and Neto, 2005 ). For instance, individuals in collectivistic societies report higher loneliness than those in individualistic societies ( Lykes and Kemmelmeier, 2013 ). Chinese cultural values are generally collectivistic and center on family orientation and kinship; thus, to address their loneliness, older Chinese consumers rely on interactions with family members to address their CL more than on social interactions with others in service or consumption settings ( Song et al., 2018 ).

4.1.2. Alleviators of consumer loneliness

4.1.2.1. consumption behaviors.

The research has underscored that consumption is an effective tactic to ameliorate CL ( Liu et al., 2020 ). Lonely consumers may consider acquiring possessions to show their status to others ( Mandel et al., 2017 ). Although this “possession effect” recedes over time, it temporarily reduces CL ( Pieters, 2013 ). Purchasing products that reflect a group affiliation (e.g., majority-endorsed sneakers) or consuming peer-recommended services (e.g., restaurants) helps achieve the assurance of consumers’ social self. Moreover, products/services that foster a sense of belongingness help consumers attenuate their loneliness perceptions ( Yii et al., 2020 ). For instance, Pettigrew (2007) contended that consumption behaviors help senior consumers decrease loneliness while enhancing their affiliation. Recently, Wang et al. (2021) found that rituals in product consumption (e.g., eating Oreo cookies by following the twist-lick-dunk ritual) can reduce CL.

As a social experience, shopping is a feasible coping strategy that can play a key role in reducing CL ( Smith et al., 2018 ). Lonely consumers go to retail stores and interact with salespeople to satisfy their need for social support ( Rippé et al., 2018 ; Smith et al., 2018 ). For them, going shopping becomes a social activity to receive complementary social resources rather than an activity to acquire desired products and services ( Kim et al., 2005 ). Thus, service establishments offer an ideal outlet for social activities and participation, thereby alleviating consumers’ perceived isolation and loneliness. Moreover, relative to material purchases, experiential purchases exert a greater impact on CL alleviation ( Yang et al., 2021 ). For example, shopping malls have been identified as an important “third place” for lonely consumers to alleviate loneliness ( Kim et al., 2005 ). In the restaurant service context, employees’ service manner exhibits a significantly positive effect on CL reduction ( Song et al., 2018 ). Similarly, participation in consumption communities ( Sullivan and Richardson, 2020 ) and holiday trips ( Pagan, 2020 ) has been identified as effective alleviators of CL.

4.1.2.2. Technology-facilitated connectedness

Currently, online social activities play a critical role in consumers’ daily lives. Adolescents use social media as a primary source of social relations to cope with pandemic-induced loneliness ( Cauberghe et al., 2021 ). Uram and Skalski (2020) indicated that social media users’ life satisfaction significantly decreases their loneliness. Moreover, technology use (e.g., e-mail, social networks) predicts lower loneliness and benefits older consumers’ mental and physical health ( Chopik, 2016 ). Virtual interactions on social media (e.g., Facebook) help users achieve interactivity, develop social skills, and facilitate a sense of belongingness ( Berezan et al., 2020 ), thus combating their loneliness. Yang (2016) reported that Instagram browsing decreases users’ loneliness, while Instagram interaction exhibits a similar effect only on users with a low social comparison orientation. Moreover, in contrast to text-based social media (e.g., Twitter), image-based social media (e.g., Instagram) have a greater therapeutic effect on CL ( Pittman and Reich, 2016 ). Even sounds in mobile apps can satisfy lonely consumers’ needs for belonging by creating a sense of social presence ( Poupis et al., 2021 ).

4.2. Outcomes: What does consumer loneliness produce?

4.2.1. consumer behaviors.

As a signal that individuals’ perceived social connections are not at their desired levels, loneliness spurs people’s efforts to escape from and change this painful state ( Cacioppo et al., 2006 ). Thus, when consumers are plagued by loneliness, they go to great lengths to fulfill their need for others ( Heinrich and Gullone, 2006 ).

4.2.1.1. Shopping as a social experience

By considering shopping a social activity, lonely consumers can form personal bonds with others in the marketplace as substitutes for other social contacts ( Rippé et al., 2018 ). These social contacts help consumers forge social connections ( Lastovicka and Sirianni, 2011 ; Wang et al., 2021 ), fill their social voids, and blend in rather than stand out ( Mead et al., 2010 ). Therefore, CL enhances not only consumption-oriented motivations (e.g., dining out) but also experiential-oriented motivations (e.g., traveling) ( Lim and Kim, 2011 ). Furthermore, shopping-related experiences facilitate social reconnection and affiliation ( Mandel et al., 2017 ). Lonely consumers tend to consider new sources of social relationships in an optimistic way and are eager to interact with others in consumption contexts ( Liu et al., 2020 ). They purchase more domestic-choice products, which can affirm their social identity ( Yii et al., 2020 ). Furthermore, spending and purchasing are strategically utilized by lonely consumers as affiliation tools in the service of forging social connections ( Mead et al., 2010 ). Finally, consumption functions as a form of compensation. Compensatory consumption refers to “the desire for, purchase, or use of products/services to satisfy a psychological need” ( Loh et al., 2021 ) and has been used by people feeling lonely to establish a sense of social connectedness ( Mead et al., 2010 ; Yan and Sengupta, 2020 ). The therapeutic value of compensatory consumption has also been established ( Kim and Jang, 2017 ). More specifically, consumers feeling lonely participate in compensatory consumption to fulfill their needs for belonging, affiliation, and self-esteem ( Mead et al., 2010 ; Lim and Kim, 2011 ; Mandel et al., 2017 ).

4.2.1.2. Online social activities

According to the social compensation model ( Sirola et al., 2019 ) and the social augmentation hypothesis ( Song et al., 2014 ), loneliness motivates consumers to engage in online social activities to enhance their social world. Online social resources (e.g., social networking sites, social media platforms) are often readily available, representing an accessible medium to compensate for relationship deficits. Lonely consumers spend more time web surfing and on social networking platforms as a substitute for real interpersonal interactions ( Berezan et al., 2020 ). They benefit more from social applications, such as Facebook, than non-lonely consumers do ( Song et al., 2014 ). Moreover, the use of online travel communities for social and emotional loneliness (OTS-SEL) stimulates users’ peer communication in online communities ( Lee and Hyun, 2015 ). In tourism contexts, social CLs positively influence tourists’ smartphone application use ( Tan and Lu, 2019 ). In addition, tourists may engage in online peer-to-peer accommodations (e.g., Airbnb) to escape loneliness ( Farmaki and Stergiou, 2019 ).

4.2.1.3. Parasocial interaction

Lonely consumers seek out parasocial relationships with media personalities, pets, or commercial relationships in “the third place” ( Song et al., 2018 ). For instance, loneliness increases older consumers’ parasocial interactions ( Lim and Kim, 2011 ). CL also facilitates consumers’ efforts to develop a sense of connectedness with non-human agents (e.g., pets, products, brands) ( Liu et al., 2022 ). Lonely consumers tend to humanize brands and products/services ( Dalman et al., 2021 ). CL may be a key driver of anthropomorphism in online and offline consumption contexts ( Chen et al., 2017 ). A recent study on celebrity-following behaviors demonstrated that CL predicts followers’ parasocial interactions with celebrities’ social media (i.e., visiting frequency and following behaviors) ( Kim et al., 2019 ).

4.2.1.4. Impulsive and self-focused consumption

Loneliness impairs self-regulation, logical reasoning, and time perception ( Wang et al., 2021 ). Thwarted belongingness makes consumers consume, even in personally unfavorable ways, for social affiliation ( Mead et al., 2010 ). Thus, CL has been associated with impulsive, unhealthy, and problematic consumption ( Atalay and Meloy, 2011 ; Rippé et al., 2021 ). Mead et al. (2010) contended that socially excluded consumers may exhibit distinct spending and consumption strategies. Consumers who experience essential relationship deficits, relative to consumers who experience inessential relationship deficits, engage more often in impulsive consumption ( Sinha and Wang, 2013 ). Moreover, CL increases solitary consumption (e.g., alcohol consumption) while decreasing social consumption (spending time with others) ( Arpin et al., 2015 ). Loneliness-induced coping strategies are significantly associated with adolescents’ unethical consumption behaviors (e.g., underage smoking) ( Gentina et al., 2018 ). In addition, CL signals a priority for self-focused or self-oriented consumption (e.g., self-gifting) for hedonic rewards or a carpe diem mentality ( Rippé et al., 2018 ; Fumagalli et al., 2022 ). Hence, loneliness has been considered the most significant predictor of problematic internet use ( Ceyhan and Ceyhan, 2008 ), conspicuous consumption ( Liu et al., 2020 ), and the consumption of sugar-containing foods and beverages ( Doan et al., 2022 ).

4.2.2. Consumer emotions

Loneliness influences the entirety of consumers’ daily lives ( Rippé et al., 2021 ). Hence, CL has been linked to different consumer emotions. CL encourages consumers to reflect on and become attached to product/service consumption that represents their social ties ( Lim and Kim, 2011 ; Mittal and Silvera, 2018 ). As a threat to one’s social self, CL triggers consumers’ purchase attachment tendency in terms of reaffirming social relationships. More specifically, lonely female (male) consumers become attached to material (experiential) purchases ( Mittal and Silvera, 2018 ). Lonely consumers attach nostalgia to socially important purchases to bridge a perceived gap between their ideal and actual social bonds ( Mittal and Silvera, 2018 ), yielding the perception of social connection ( Loh et al., 2021 ). With regard to positive consumer outcomes, CL exerts a positive effect on consumer enjoyment in online social media ( Kim et al., 2019 ) and offline retailing ( Smith et al., 2018 ). Thus, satisfaction for lonely consumers stems from not only consumption itself but also the consumption experience ( Kim et al., 2005 ). CL has also been related to negative consumer emotions. For example, loneliness devastates consumers’ wellbeing ( Berezan et al., 2020 ). SL accelerates tourists’ leisure boredom at destinations ( Tan and Lu, 2019 ). Furthermore, vulnerable consumers (e.g., consumers in late adolescence) are more heavily impacted by loneliness ( Pagan, 2020 ; Loh et al., 2021 ). Among them, loneliness has been associated with several psychological issues ( Sirola et al., 2019 ). Relative to anxiety, loneliness exhibited a greater impact on feelings of happiness during COVID-19 lockdowns ( Cauberghe et al., 2021 ).

4.2.3. Consumer preferences

Lonely consumers perceive themselves as different from others ( Wang et al., 2012 ) and exhibit different consumption orientations and expenditure patterns ( Kim et al., 2005 ). For instance, they prefer talking on cell phones and consider texting as a less intimate method of contact ( Reid and Reid, 2007 ). Moreover, they prefer online social interactions for greater control over their self-presentation and anonymity. They demonstrate a preference for material consumption, even though it ultimately aggravates their loneliness ( Pieters, 2013 ). Lonely consumers prefer domestic choices in food consumption settings ( Yii et al., 2020 ). Moreover, they prefer minority-endorsed products that present a natural fit with their loneliness in private consumption contexts, but conform to majority-endorsed products to display their affiliation in public consumption contexts. Researchers have also found that lonely consumers prefer angular shapes over circular shapes only in private consumption contexts ( Chen et al., 2021 ) and prefer products/services characterized as “warm” more those characterized as “cold” to satisfy their need for social connectivity ( Chen et al., 2017 ). In addition, temporary CL makes consumers prefer various objects (e.g., products and prices) accompanied by divisible numbers ( Yan and Sengupta, 2020 ).

4.2.4. Consumer attitudes

For lonely consumers, a common coping strategy to relieve their loneliness is embracing materialism ( Pieters, 2013 ; Gentina et al., 2018 ; Loh et al., 2021 ). EL increases consumer materialism ( Rippé et al., 2021 ), which further enhances self-brand connections ( Loh et al., 2021 ). However, loneliness and materialism reciprocally influence each other over time ( Pieters, 2013 ). Although socially excluded consumers attach more importance to their possessions while experiencing greater loneliness ( Mead et al., 2010 ), increasing evidence supports the phenomenon that CL contributes to materialism by crowding out social relationships ( Pieters, 2013 ; Fumagalli et al., 2022 ). Moreover, the predictive role of CL in consumer ethnocentrism has also been established ( Yii et al., 2020 ). In addition, lonely consumers report a negative attitude toward depersonalized retailing and service experiences ( Kim et al., 2005 ; Hu and Jasper, 2006 ) and evaluate them more negatively than non-lonely consumers do ( Forman and Sriram, 1991 ).

4.2.5. Cognition and cognitive assessment

Consumers allocate more attention to social cues in consumption environments when they are lonely ( Mead et al., 2010 ; Liu et al., 2020 ). Hence, scholars have examined the relationship between CL and product evaluation ( Wang et al., 2012 ). For example, OTS-SEL increases users’ identification with peer groups ( Lee and Hyun, 2015 ). Moreover, lonely female (male) consumers perceive material (experiential) purchases to have higher social value than experiential (material) purchases ( Mittal and Silvera, 2018 ). In addition, SL positively influences tourists’ esthetic scope during their trips ( Tan and Lu, 2019 ).

4.3. Consumer loneliness as a mediator

Loneliness helps explain the relationship between consumers’ interpersonal relationship deficits and possessive love ( Lastovicka and Sirianni, 2011 ). Moreover, consumers who encounter group consumers (rather than mostly solo consumers) in restaurants experience greater loneliness, undermining their solo dining intentions ( Her and Seo, 2018 ). Scholars have also shown that EL intervenes with the positive effect of insecure attachment on consumer self-gifting motivations ( Rippé et al., 2021 ). In addition, Pade and Feurer (2022) identified CL as a mediator linking disadvantageous personalized pricing and perceived price fairness. CL also transmits the positive effect of the fear of COVID-19 on alcohol consumption behavior ( Grigoropoulos and Daoultzis, 2022 ). When loneliness is considered a negative mediator, reduced loneliness mediates the relationship between technology use and physical and mental health among older consumers ( Chopik, 2016 ).

4.4. Customer loneliness as a moderator

When modeled as a moderator, CL has been found to enhance the relationship between excessive gambling and participation in online gambling communities among adolescents and young adults ( Sirola et al., 2019 ). CL also promotes the positive effect of affectionate gestures (e.g., hugging) on attitudes toward a target product imbued with anthropomorphic traits ( Hadi and Valenzuela, 2014 ). Moreover, for Facebook users with high loneliness, psychological needs (e.g., belonging) contribute more to their Facebook usage than to the usage of those with low loneliness ( Berezan et al., 2020 ). When product failure occurs, lonely consumers (relative to less lonely consumers) make fewer negative judgments about the focal brand ( Dalman et al., 2021 ). In addition, empathy exhibits a significantly positive effect on moral identity and subsequent moral behaviors only among consumers who report greater loneliness ( Jiao and Wang, 2018 ).

5. Future research agenda and implications for theory

5.1. profiling lonely consumers.

Generally, research on the antecedents of CL is relatively limited. There is little knowledge of loneliness-provoking factors in the consumption context. Although previous works have explored the role of demographic characteristics in CL, their findings have remained inconclusive. For example, some researchers have reported a non-significant gender effect, while others have not ( Fumagalli et al., 2022 ). More attempts should be made to examine demographic effects and provide a clear profile of lonely consumers ( Loh et al., 2021 ). Moreover, additional consumer traits should be integrated to explore the antecedents of CL ( Yang et al., 2021 ). Consumer predispositions such as self-efficacy, innovativeness, empathy, and ethical identity should be examined as precedents of CL ( Heinrich and Gullone, 2006 ; Mandel et al., 2017 ). This topic is of particular importance because personal traits interact with consumers’ feelings and often mold their behaviors ( Li and Huang, 2022 ).

Cultural values usually set different baselines for the fulfillment of social needs while shaping consumer reactions ( Song et al., 2018 ). For example, family interactions may be important for people from collectivistic societies to counteract loneliness, while interactions with friends are important for people in individualistic societies to alleviate loneliness ( Lykes and Kemmelmeier, 2013 ). Thus, culture and social norms influence how CL is interpreted ( Sirola et al., 2019 ). However, some researchers have found no significant group difference (e.g., between the U.S. and India) in CL-induced consumer reactions ( Rippé et al., 2021 ). That is, the role of culture-related factors in loneliness has not yet been adequately understood. Cultural differences, in terms of power distance, uncertainty avoidance, or long-term orientation, have not yet been employed to explain the CL phenomenon ( Rippé et al., 2021 ). Future research could more strongly address the relationship between cultural differences and CL and the effect of their interplay on consumer outcomes to present a picture of how consumers from different backgrounds feel loneliness.

5.2. Loneliness and consumer outcomes

5.2.1. quality of life.

Quality of life (QOL) research is gaining momentum in the marketing and management literature ( Sirgy et al., 2007 ; Li et al., 2022 ). QOL marketing refers to practices developed to enhance the wellbeing of consumers as well as firms’ other stakeholders ( Li et al., 2022 ). Previous research has indicated that loneliness is associated with life satisfaction ( Heinrich and Gullone, 2006 ). However, evidence supporting the relationship between CL and QOL is still lacking. The evolving service-dominant (S-D) logic suggests that all exchanges in the marketplace aim to improve the wellbeing of all stakeholders ( Vargo and Lusch, 2017 ). Future studies should examine whether QOL marketing practices that aim to improve consumer welfare help to alleviate CL. This study also opens new areas for transformative service research (TSR) ( Henkel et al., 2020 ). TSR centers on research that seeks to create uplifting changes in the wellbeing of all service entities. Lonely consumers tend to engage in more mood-regulation activities to repair their negative moods that accompany loneliness ( Atalay and Meloy, 2011 ). Hence, researchers could explore the link between CLs and transformative services and their integrative effects on consumer outcomes. The marketing literature emphasizes positive long-term customer-firm relationships ( Li and Huang, 2022 ). However, the literature offers little knowledge of the linkage between CL and customer-firm relationship ( Lee and Hyun, 2015 ; Loh et al., 2021 ). For example, an increasing number of firms have adopted contactless services to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic ( Li and Huang, 2022 ). However, these practices decrease in-person interactions between customers and service providers, which are emphasized in traditional relationship marketing. Lonely consumers are sensitive to a depersonalized service environment ( Hu and Jasper, 2006 ). Researchers could further explore the potential effect of CL in the relationship between technology-enabled services (e.g., AI-powered services) and customer satisfaction. In terms of the customer-firm relationship, the distinction between SEL needs to be further addressed ( Heinrich and Gullone, 2006 ). Belongingness arises when an individual has frequent interactions with the same person in an enduring context of caring and concern ( Baumeister and Leary, 1995 ). It is difficult for short-term social interactions to foster the close social relationships that emotionally lonely consumers need. That is, SL may be addressed by short-term consumption experiences and linked to positive consumer outcomes, while EL is more likely to be effectively alleviated by long-term customer-firm relationships. Furthermore, organizational behavior research has indicated that workplace loneliness weakens employees’ attachment and affective commitment toward their organization ( Kloutsiniotis et al., 2022 ). Consumers are often viewed as “partial employees” in service firms ( Li and Huang, 2022 ; Li et al., 2022 ). It is reasonable to postulate that the loneliness that emerges during the service process may frustrate consumers’ need for relatedness and undermine service relationships. In addition, because of the fear of loss and social anxiety ( Baumeister and Leary, 1995 ), the relationship between service outcomes and customer loyalty may vary with the level of CL. Counterintuitively, a possible benefit of CL may be a stable customer-firm relationship. More specifically, when a firm develops loyalty among lonely consumers, those consumers will exhibit higher loyalty and associate more lifetime value with the firm than do non-lonely consumers. Hence, more work needs to be done to highlight the potential value of CLs in relationship marketing.

5.2.2. Consumer behaviors

5.2.2.1. value co-creation behavior.

Value co-creation has an inherently social nature; it facilitates a process that is conducive to promoting interactions and relationships among consumers and service providers ( Li et al., 2022 ). Surprisingly, CL has rarely been related to customer value co-creation behaviors [i.e., customer participation, customer citizenship, customer-to-customer interaction (CCI), and customer-employee interaction]. The social motivations resulting from CLs may facilitate more service interactions during value co-creation ( Li et al., 2022 ). Lonely consumers may engage in value co-creation as an outlet to seek social connectedness ( Rippé et al., 2018 ). Furthermore, prior research has asserted that positive and lasting social relationships are important in helping people combat loneliness ( Baumeister and Leary, 1995 ). Social interactions alone cannot help individuals combat loneliness, so the quality of the interactions should also be taken into account ( Heinrich and Gullone, 2006 ). From this perspective, it is presumable that the effects of the co-creation experience on CL vary with service interaction quality ( Li et al., 2022 ). Future research should focus on the links among CL, service experience, interaction quality, and other factors (e.g., S-D orientation) that enhance the therapeutic effects of value co-creation ( Li et al., 2022 ). In addition, CCI has been found to significantly influence consumers’ social wellbeing ( Altinay et al., 2019 ). Older consumers view fellow customers as a source of social contact and actively engage in CCI to combat loneliness. However, some studies have questioned the value of CCI ( Nicholls and Gad Mohsen, 2015 ). The presence of other customers and lonely consumers’ anticipated evaluations also influence their choices and behaviors during public consumption ( Wang et al., 2012 ). These mixed findings imply that there may be conditions under which the effect of CCI changes. For instance, introverted consumers may not benefit from interactions with unfamiliar fellow consumers because of their social anxiety ( Her and Seo, 2018 ). In addition, loneliness has been related to a perceived lack of control over outcomes ( Gierveld and Tilburg, 2006 ). Thus, lonely consumers are more likely to have an external service locus of control, which influences their value co-creation performance and service outcomes evaluation ( Li et al., 2022 ).

5.2.2.2. Consumption behavior

In terms of social functions, CL alerts consumers to engage in various consumption behaviors to alleviate loneliness ( Fumagalli et al., 2022 ). CL has been operationalized as a chronic personality trait or a set of incident-induced temporary perceptions ( Mead et al., 2010 ). However, the majority of CL research has focused on chronic loneliness, and very little is known about whether transient loneliness has similar effects in terms of consumer behaviors ( Arpin et al., 2015 ). Thus, an interesting research question arises: do the social relationships established while shopping/purchasing help counteract chronic CL? If so, how long does this effect persist? Scholars should clearly articulate the definition of CL (as a situational or trait variable) in future studies and elaborate their differences. Moreover, whether and how different types of consumption reduce CL have yet to be examined ( Song et al., 2018 ). For example, social interactions in retailing contexts may help reduce consumers’ SL but are less likely to alleviate their EL. Demonstrating the distinction between the different types of consumption is important for deepening our understanding of lonely consumers’ behaviors ( Sinha and Wang, 2013 ). Another route for future research relates to the impacts of different types of CLs on consumption behaviors. Previous research has not distinguished SL from EL ( Loh et al., 2021 ). Future research should consider CL as a multifaceted concept and investigate the effects of the type of loneliness on the service experience and prospective consumption. In addition, lonely consumers have a greater preference for services or products characterized by social attributes ( Yang et al., 2021 ). However, not all social experiences are equally effective in reducing loneliness ( Lykes and Kemmelmeier, 2013 ). Relative to material-based consumption, experience-based consumption leads to higher levels of social wellbeing ( Kim and Jang, 2017 ). More specifically, experiential purchases (e.g., travel and sightseeing) can effectively enhance the social connections among consumers and others ( Pagan, 2020 ; Yang et al., 2021 ). Moreover, hedonic consumption (e.g., leisure activities), relative to instrumental consumption (e.g., buying shampoo), may exert a greater influence on CL reduction. Limited research has examined the effects of specific consumption experiences on CL, providing an additional direction for future research.

5.2.2.3. Consumer loneliness in the new era

The literature has paid little attention to how loneliness affects consumers and how consumers react in the new era ( Sirola et al., 2019 ; Loh et al., 2021 ). For example, the development of intelligent technologies [e.g., service robots and intelligent personal assistants (IPAs)] facilitates the establishment of two-way parasocial relationships among consumers and service entities ( Henkel et al., 2020 ). It has also been postulated that social robot services (e.g., communication and entertainment) have the potential to support lonely consumers ( Henkel et al., 2020 ). Companion robots can ameliorate users’ loneliness through emotional support ( Odekerken-Schröder et al., 2020 ). Therefore, service robots (e.g., Pepper by SoftBank) and IPAs (e.g., Amazon’s Echo Alexa) have the potential to offset the negative impacts of the pandemic while building rapport with consumers ( Henkel et al., 2020 ). However, no empirical work has examined the above effects. Furthermore, intelligent technologies are increasingly considered emotional connectors, and the effects of social/emotional CL on consumer behavior toward intelligent technologies (and vice versa ) should be investigated in emerging consumption contexts.

According to social surrogacy theory ( Poupis et al., 2021 ), consumers seek out social surrogates to combat loneliness (e.g., pets, favored TV programs). Consumers’ identification with anthropomorphized objects helps facilitate a sense of connection ( Loh et al., 2021 ). Odekerken-Schröder et al. (2020) proposed that intelligent technologies, from IPAs to humanized robots, can play three different roles (e.g., personal assistants, relational peers, and intimate buddies) in counteracting CLs. Thus, it is reasonable to suggest that each role offers specific social relations and contributes differently to CL alleviation, especially among adolescent consumers who are heavy users of smart digital devices and internet-based services. In addition, research has noted that online social networking cannot compensate for offline social deficits to adequately counteract loneliness ( Sirola et al., 2019 ). The displacement hypothesis explains that time spent on a particular social medium (e.g., Facebook or online games) replaces time spent on other social mediums (e.g., family and friends) ( Song et al., 2014 ). Heavy usage provides “leaner and less satisfying” social interactions, exacerbates social isolation, and worsens users’ psychological wellbeing ( Yii et al., 2020 ). That is, CL may explain the dynamic link between changing social situations and social media behaviors. Future CL research could further clarify the paradox of social networking and the conditions under which these relationships vary.

Impacted by the coronavirus, human service delivery has been considered harmful and even lethal to both sides of the service dyad ( Henkel et al., 2020 ). Service industries have had to adopt more technology-enabled services (e.g., contactless service) to increase their business. However, these pandemic-induced consumer experiences may also evoke CL ( Rippé et al., 2021 ). The elevated loneliness caused by the pandemic quarantine may amplify and intensify vulnerable consumers’ negative psychological reactions to the pandemic crisis ( Grigoropoulos and Daoultzis, 2022 ). Even amid the easing of pandemic-induced service measures, lonely consumers may continue to live under restricted social contact and suffer negative psychological outcomes ( Henkel et al., 2020 ; Li and Huang, 2022 ). Thus, understanding what and how service practices are effective in alleviating CL during, and even after, the COVID-19 pandemic is essential to the service literature.

5.2.2.4. Consumer loneliness changes over time

Loneliness can be a fleeting mood or a persistent experience that changes over time ( Berezan et al., 2020 ). It motivates consumers to purchase products/services to achieve social connectivity ( Mead et al., 2010 ; Pieters, 2013 ). However, consumption practices have been found to decrease while increasing CL. For example, shopping can be a coping mechanism to mitigate CL, even if only temporarily ( Forman and Sriram, 1991 ; Rippé et al., 2018 ). Consumers can cheer themselves up by self-gifting, which has been proven to reduce negative moods while reinforcing positive moods ( Rippé et al., 2021 ). Short-term consumption behaviors can assuage CL while enhancing consumers’ perceptions of social connection ( Fumagalli et al., 2022 ), but a long-term reliance on consumption may undermine the high-quality social resources that are essential to dispelling loneliness ( Sinha and Wang, 2013 ). A basic premise underlying CL studies is that the sense of loneliness motivates consumer behaviors that aim to alleviate it. Thus, loneliness should first be considered an antecedent of consumption behaviors and then be cured. More empirical attempts should further examine the reciprocal relationships between consumer behaviors and CL over time.

5.3. Implications for the theoretical lens and methodology

5.3.1. theories to explain the phenomenon of cl.

Different theoretical lenses have been employed to explain the CL phenomenon, including the need to belong theory ( Mead et al., 2010 ; Kim and Jang, 2017 ), theory of attachment ( Gentina et al., 2018 ; Rippé et al., 2021 ; Pade and Feurer, 2022 ), and self-discrepancy theory ( Mandel et al., 2017 ). Further work on CL could leverage alternative theoretical frameworks to capture the dynamic and multidimensional conceptualization of CL. Positive psychology research focuses on pursuing QOL via positive subjective experiences, which may provide new perspectives ( Seligman, 2004 ). According to self-determination theory ( Li et al., 2022 ), lonely consumers tend to seek substitutes when their basic needs for relatedness are frustrated. Social support, connectedness, and relatedness are vital to forming consumers’ wellbeing ( Berezan et al., 2020 ). Similar to social baseline theory ( Doan et al., 2022 ), social connections with others are not only an essential characteristic but also an important innate need of consumers. Lonely consumers tend to seek various substitutes when their basic need for relatedness is frustrated. Companion service robots have the potential to ameliorate CL via perceived social connections ( Odekerken-Schröder et al., 2020 ). Following social exchange theory, trust and support from other beings can combat the negative influence of CL. Future research could examine the potential therapeutic effects of robotic services on CL across more contexts (e.g., restaurants and hotels) via these perspectives. In addition, the absence of meaningful interactions could predict CL perceptions ( Grigoropoulos and Daoultzis, 2022 ). Relational theory suggests that healthy psychological development is facilitated by the context of authentic relational connection and mutual affirmation ( Rippé et al., 2018 ), providing new insights for understanding CL.

5.3.2. Research design for consumer loneliness studies

With regard to the conceptualization of CL, only four of the reviewed works use the term “CL.” The majority of the body of CL literature uses the more general terms “loneliness.” It is critical to further clarify the conceptualization of CL, especially for empirical studies. With regard to operationalization, CL has been measured in a variety of different ways and in various settings. For studies employing an experimental design, CL can be manipulated as a temporary emotional state ( Cacioppo et al., 2006 ). Given the difficulty and possible ethical issues of the experimental manipulation of loneliness, much of the research on CL has used cross-sectional methods. For studies using the survey method, CL is measured by scales, such as the UCLA Loneliness Scale ( Russell, 1996 ), the social, family and romantic loneliness scale ( DiTommaso and Spinner, 1997 ), the De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale ( Gierveld and Tilburg, 2006 ), and the three-item overall loneliness scale ( Hughes et al., 2004 ). One exception is the OTS-SEL scale developed in online community settings ( Lee and Hyun, 2015 ). Although previous works have yielded theoretically meaningful findings, we call for more domain-specific measures to assess CL accurately. Establishing a reliable, valid, and parsimonious measurement of CL can help the consumer literature obtain fruitful findings in the near future.

This study also calls for more research designs in future CL research. Several works have shown a reciprocal process of CL and consumer outcomes ( Pieters, 2013 ; Yii et al., 2020 ). However, the methodologies used in previous studies have difficulty capturing the fluctuating experience of loneliness ( Arpin et al., 2015 ). Thus, longitudinal designs should be introduced in CL studies, especially in those exploring chronic CL predictors and impacts on consumer outcomes. Moreover, CL fluctuates daily and over time. Hence, the diary methodology, which can help capture a consumer’s life as “it is lived,” can precisely delineate the intrapersonal variation in CL ( Arpin et al., 2015 ). In addition, because consumers increasingly rely on online social resources (e.g., social media and online communities), emerging techniques (e.g., data mining and web mining) can also be employed to detect variations in CL and provide compelling results ( Aria and Cuccurullo, 2017 ; Correa et al., 2019 ; Teichert et al., 2020 ).

6. Implications for practice

As a growing segment, lonely consumers’ needs remain unfulfilled in the marketplace ( Fumagalli et al., 2022 ). Although every consumer’s experience of loneliness is unique, CL is not an untreatable condition. Researchers in clinical psychology have observed four categories of responses when people suffer loneliness: active solitude, spending money, social contact, and sad passivity ( Heinrich and Gullone, 2006 ; Arpin et al., 2015 ). Accordingly, we provide practical implications for practitioners.

6.1. Lonely consumers who choose active solitude

Currently, the emergence of solo consumers is a significant trend in the global marketplace. Education, occupation, and lifestyles continue to expedite the growth of solo consumption (e.g., solo travel, solo dinning). Cacioppo et al. (2014) have suggested that “solitude expresses the glory of being alone.” Evidence from psychology and consumer research has affirmed that consumers who are alone are not equivalent to lonely consumers. The former spend more time alone and prefer solitary or solo consumption. Because they voluntarily choose to be solo consumers, marketers should keep in mind that some consumers who enjoy solitude are not lonely ( Wang et al., 2012 ). Thus, in terms of service provision, proactive service practices with these customers may not be suitable and may even result in refusal because they may enjoy their consumption process alone.

6.2. Lonely consumers who choose to spend money

Consumption behaviors have been deemed a useful means to mitigate CL ( Yang et al., 2021 ). Accordingly, more products/services with specific social benefits (e.g., belongingness and affiliation) should be developed to cater to this segment. For these consumers, spending money is a way to achieve social connectedness while mitigating CL, but it is not the end of the story. Second, this review has indicated that experiential purchases precede material purchases in attempts to reduce CL. Thus, when marketers in service industries promote their offerings, more information on therapeutic experiences for CL should be taken into account. Third, firms should create an organizational climate that facilitates social interactions and contacts with customers. For example, service establishments (e.g., coffee shops, banks, and shopping malls) could design a hospitable experience to initiate these practices. By addressing consumers’ enjoyment of socializing and communicating with others, marketing activities can help them fulfill their social affiliation needs.

6.3. Lonely consumers who seek out social contacts

When firms encounter lonely consumers who seek out social contacts, the following practices are suggested. First, marketers should provide an ideal platform for them to initiate social contacts and facilitate a sense of belonging. Managerial practices that aim to facilitate social interactions should be adopted, such as customer participation strategies that engage lonely consumers in interactions to enhance social connectedness ( Li et al., 2022 ). Second, firms should provide more avenues to interact with these consumers. Some mediums are designed to enhance social connectedness (e.g., social media and instant communication apps). Firms can capitalize on these online social resources to meet the social needs of lonely consumers. Moreover, marketing practices that aim to create and maintain positive connections with consumers should be developed and implemented to dispel CL, such as practices guided by the service climate and S-D logic. Value co-creation (co-design, co-producing, etc.) can also be a promising strategy to engage consumers in interactive activities. Third, it is worthwhile to consider whether social media alleviates CL as expected. Marketers should remain cognizant of the trade-off between the benefits facilitated by intelligent technologies and lonely consumers’ desire for in-person interactions. When service settings lack social stimulation and a lively atmosphere, CL occurs as a negative outcome.

6.4. Lonely consumers who choose sad passivity

Consumers who employ sad passivity (e.g., overeating and drinking alcohol) to counteract loneliness are more likely to be at risk for poorer psychological and physical health ( Arpin et al., 2015 ). Therefore, QOL and consumer education programs (e.g., social skill training and social support networks) can be integrated into marketing practices. These practices cannot only satisfy these consumers’ social needs but also foster consolidated customer-firm relationships so that firms can benefit in the long run. Moreover, more practices aimed at enhancing belongingness should be implemented. Firms could develop consumer communities to establish relationships and identification among consumers, service providers, and other customers. Consumer communities have been considered a cost-effective marketing tactic to enhance consumer attachment while combating CL. In addition, social technologies could be adopted to supplement these consumers’ social resources. Social technologies (e.g., social robots) provide significant psychological benefits (e.g., companion, friendship, and social identity) to lonely consumers. They “interact with humans in socially meaningful ways,” helping these consumers deal with loneliness regularly and every day ( Odekerken-Schröder et al., 2020 ).

7. Conclusion

The steadily increasing segment of lonely consumers is worthy of attention in its own right. However, no attempt has been made to provide a comprehensive picture of CL research. In this review, we demonstrate how CL, as an emerging research topic, has received increasing attention from academia and practice. By bringing together its disparate research findings and integrating the literature’s extant knowledge on CL, this study not only facilitates future research by offering some promising avenues but also provides several practical implications. Nevertheless, this study is subject to several limitations. Although the development of the CL literature is at the beginning stage, we encourage future studies to employ more cutting-edging review research techniques to present a more precise science map, as recommended by Correa et al. (2022) . The restricted search keywords may have excluded some related works that were not directly related to CL. Future review studies should include additional studies that examine CL-related phenomena in more contexts. Moreover, this review emphasizes empirical evidence from CL research; thus, some insights from conceptual studies may not be fully articulated. By integrating some insightfully theoretical and anecdotal evidence, future studies could present a better understanding of the growing CL phenomenon.

Data availability statement

Author contributions.

Both authors contributed equally to the work and approved it for publication.

Funding Statement

This work was supported by the Science and Technology Research Project of Hubei Provincial Department of Education (Major Project, Grant number: D20211902; Talent Project, Grant number: Q20211901), the Action Plan Project of Science and Technology Support for University Serving Rural Revitalization of Hubei Provincial Department of Education (Grant number: BXLBX0595), the On-campus Development Projects for High-level Scientific Research Achievements of Hubei Minzu University in 2022 (Grant number: PY22013), and the Social Science Research Project of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of China in 2022 (Grant number: 22DY27).

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Publisher’s note

All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, or claim that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

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Dietary Supplements for Immune Function and Infectious Diseases

This is a general overview. For more in-depth information, see our health professional fact sheet .

How does your immune system work?

Your immune system is made up of cells , tissues , and organs that help fight viruses , bacteria , and other germs that cause infections and other diseases. For example, your skin helps prevent germs from getting inside your body. Cells that line your digestive tract also help protect against harmful germs that cause diseases. White blood cells try to destroy substances they recognize as foreign to your body. Some white blood cells also recognize germs they have been exposed to before and develop antibodies to defend against them in the future.

What do we know about specific dietary supplement ingredients and immune function?

Your immune system needs certain vitamins and minerals to work properly. These include vitamin C , vitamin D , and zinc . Herbal supplements , probiotics, and other dietary supplement ingredients might also affect your immune system.

Eating a variety of nutritious foods can give you enough vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients for a healthy immune system. However, you might wonder whether taking certain dietary supplements can improve your body’s immune system and its ability to fight infections.

This fact sheet describes what we know about the effectiveness and safety of common vitamins, minerals, and other dietary supplement ingredients that might affect immune function .

Dietary supplement ingredients are presented in each section in alphabetical order.

The health professional version of this fact sheet includes more details and references to the scientific literature .

Vitamins and Minerals

Getting enough vitamins and minerals through the foods and beverages you consume is important for a healthy immune system. It’s especially important to get enough of vitamins A, B6, B12, C, D, E, and K as well as folate , copper , iodine , iron , magnesium , selenium , and zinc.

If your diet doesn’t include adequate amounts of certain vitamins and minerals, your immune system will not be able to function as well as it could, you might be more likely to get infections, and you might not recover as well. If your health care provider determines that you are not getting enough of a specific nutrient, vitamin and mineral supplements can help increase intakes to recommended amounts. In most cases, however, if you don’t have a deficiency , increasing your intake of vitamins and minerals through dietary supplements doesn’t help prevent infections or help you recover from them any faster.

Vitamin A is an essential nutrient found in many foods. It exists in two different forms:

• Preformed vitamin A is found in fish, organ meats (such as liver ), dairy products, and eggs.
• Provitamin A carotenoids are turned into vitamin A by your body. They are found in fruits, vegetables, and other plant-based products. The most common provitamin A carotenoid in foods and dietary supplements is beta-carotene .

Vitamin A is important for healthy immune function as well as vision, reproduction, growth, and development.

Vitamin A deficiency is rare in the United States, but it is common in many low- and middle-income countries.

The recommended daily amount (known as Recommended Dietary Allowance or RDA) ranges from 300 to 1,200 microgram (mcg) retinol activity equivalents (RAE) for infants , children, and teens, depending on age, and from 700 to 1,300 mcg RAE for adults.

Does it work?

Diarrhea in children.

Children with a vitamin A deficiency are more likely to get diarrhea caused by germs. These children also have a higher chance of dying of diarrhea, especially in sub-Saharan Africa and south Asia.

Research suggests that vitamin A supplements lower the risk and severity of diarrhea in children in low- and middle-income countries. However, vitamin A supplementation might not help very young infants in these countries.

HIV infection

HIV infection can decrease your appetite and weaken your body’s ability to use nutrients from food. HIV can also increase the risk of related health problems, such as diarrhea and respiratory diseases.

It’s not clear if vitamin A supplements lower the risk of spreading HIV or keep the disease from getting worse. Some studies in young children with HIV have found that vitamin A supplements help lower the risk of death. However, it’s not clear whether vitamin A supplements affect the risk of diarrhea or respiratory infections in young children with HIV. Other studies in adults with HIV have found that vitamin A supplements do not improve immune function.

Research in pregnant people with HIV has found that vitamin A supplements do not help reduce the chance of passing HIV from mother to infant. However, one study found that pregnant people with HIV who took vitamin A were more likely to carry their babies to full-term.

Measles in children

In low- and middle-income countries where vitamin A deficiency is common, children with measles are more likely to have severe symptoms and may die from the disease. In these children, vitamin A supplements might help prevent measles, but it’s unclear whether they lower the risk of dying from measles.

Pneumonia and other respiratory infections in children

Is it safe.

Preformed vitamin A is safe at daily intakes up to 600 to 2,800 mcg for infants, children, and teens, depending on age, and up to 3,000 mcg for adults. There are no upper limits for beta-carotene and other forms of provitamin A.

Getting too much preformed vitamin A can cause severe headache, blurred vision, nausea , dizziness, muscle aches, and problems with coordination. In severe cases, getting too much preformed vitamin A can even lead to coma and death.

If you are pregnant, taking too much preformed vitamin A can cause birth defects, including abnormal eyes, skull, lungs , and heart. If you are or might be pregnant or breastfeeding, you should not take high-dose supplements of preformed vitamin A.

High intakes of beta-carotene (provitamin A) do not cause the same problems as preformed vitamin A. Consuming high amounts of beta-carotene can turn the skin yellow-orange, but this condition is harmless and goes away when you eat less of it. However, several studies have shown that smokers, former smokers, and people exposed to asbestos who take high-dose beta-carotene supplements have a higher risk of lung cancer and death.

Vitamin A supplements might interact with some medications such as orlistat (used for weight loss), acitretin (used to treat psoriasis ), and bexarotene (used to treat the skin effects of T-cell lymphoma ).

More information about vitamin A is available in the ODS consumer fact sheet on vitamin A .

Vitamin C is an essential nutrient found in citrus fruits and many other fruits and vegetables. Vitamin C is an antioxidant and is important for healthy immune function. The body also needs vitamin C to make collagen .

The RDA ranges from 15 to 115 milligrams (mg) for infants, children, and teens, depending on age, and from 75 to 120 mg for nonsmoking adults. People who smoke need 35 mg more than the RDA per day.

Common cold

Taking vitamin C regularly might help decrease cold symptoms and reduce the number of days a cold lasts. It might also help reduce the risk of getting a cold in people who undergo extreme physical stress, such as marathon runners and soldiers stationed in very cold locations. However, taking vitamin C after coming down with a cold may not be helpful.

Research suggests that vitamin C supplements might be more effective in people who do not get enough vitamin C from foods and beverages.

Sepsis (using intravenous vitamin C, not vitamin C supplements)

Sepsis is a life-threatening complication of an infection that can damage the body’s organs and tissues. It’s not clear whether high-dose intravenous (IV) vitamin C helps treat sepsis, and in some cases it might be harmful. In some studies, IV vitamin C reduced the risk of death, but in other studies it did not affect the risk of death or the amount of organ damage. Other research suggests that IV vitamin C might increase the risk of death or organ damage.

Vitamin C is safe at daily intakes up to 400 to 1,800 mg for children and teens, depending on age, and up to 2,000 mg for adults. Taking higher amounts of vitamin C can cause diarrhea, nausea, and stomach cramps, and it might also cause false readings on blood sugar monitors, which are used by people with diabetes . In people with hemochromatosis (an iron overload disorder ), high amounts of vitamin C might cause iron build-up in the body, which can damage body tissues.

Vitamin C supplements might decrease the effectiveness of radiation therapy and chemotherapy .

More information about vitamin C is available in the ODS consumer fact sheet on vitamin C .

For information about vitamin C and COVID-19, see the ODS consumer fact sheet, Dietary Supplements in the Time of COVID-19 .

Vitamin D is an essential nutrient that is naturally present in fatty fish and fish liver oils and in small amounts in beef liver, egg yolks, and cheese. It’s also added to some foods, such as fortified milk. Your body can also make vitamin D when your skin is exposed to the sun. Vitamin D is important for healthy bones and immune function.

The RDA ranges from 10 to 15 mcg (400 International Units [ IU ] to 600 IU) for infants, children, and teens, depending on age, and from 15 to 20 mcg (600 to 800 IU) for adults.

Flu, pneumonia, and other respiratory infections

People with low vitamin D levels might be more likely to get respiratory infections and might have a higher chance of dying from these infections. Some studies suggest that taking vitamin D supplements regularly might slightly reduce the risk of getting a respiratory infection, especially in people with low vitamin D levels. However, other studies have not found that taking vitamin D supplements reduces the risk of respiratory infections. In addition, vitamin D supplements do not appear to help treat respiratory infections.

People with HIV have a higher risk of vitamin D deficiency partly because many HIV medications cause the body to break down vitamin D faster than normal. Having a vitamin D deficiency might also worsen HIV infection. However, studies haven’t shown that vitamin D supplements improve the health of people with HIV.

Vitamin D is safe at daily intakes up to 25 to 100 mcg (1,000 to 4,000 IU) for infants, children, and teens, depending on age, and up to 100 mcg (4,000 IU) for adults. Taking higher amounts can cause nausea, vomiting, muscle weakness, confusion, pain, loss of appetite, dehydration, excessive urination and thirst, and kidney stones . Extremely high doses can cause kidney failure , damaged blood vessels and heart valves, heart rhythm problems, and death.

Vitamin D supplements might interact with some medications such as orlistat (used for weight loss), statins (used to lower cholesterol levels), thiazide diuretics (used for high blood pressure ), and steroids.

More information about vitamin D is available in the ODS consumer fact sheet on vitamin D .

For information about vitamin D and COVID-19, see the ODS consumer fact sheet, Dietary Supplements in the Time of COVID-19 .

Vitamin E (also called alpha-tocopherol ) is an essential nutrient found in nuts, seeds, vegetable oils, and green leafy vegetables. It acts as an antioxidant and helps your immune system function properly. Vitamin E deficiency is rare.

The RDA is 4 to 15 mg for infants, children, and teens, depending on age, and 15 to 19 mg for adults.

Pneumonia and other respiratory infections

It’s not clear whether vitamin E supplements reduce the risk or severity of respiratory infections. Some studies have found that vitamin E supplements might help but others have not, and the effects might depend on whether someone has low vitamin E levels. One study in people who had normal vitamin E levels found that those who took high-dose vitamin E supplements had worse respiratory symptoms and were sick longer.

Vitamin E from food is safe at any level. In supplements, vitamin E is safe at daily intakes up to 200 to 800 mg for children and teens, depending on age, and up to 1,000 mg for adults. Taking higher amounts can increase the risk of bleeding and stroke .

Vitamin E supplements might interact with blood thinners and might reduce the effectiveness of radiation therapy and chemotherapy.

More information about vitamin E is available in the ODS consumer fact sheet on vitamin E .

For information about vitamin E and COVID-19, see the ODS consumer fact sheet, Dietary Supplements in the Time of COVID-19 .

Selenium is an essential mineral found in many foods, including Brazil nuts, seafood, meat, poultry , eggs, dairy products, bread, cereals, and other grain products. It acts as an antioxidant and is important for reproduction, thyroid gland function, and DNA production.

The RDA ranges from 15 to 70 micrograms (mcg) for infants, children, and teens, depending on age, and from 55 to 70 mcg for adults.

People with HIV have higher risk of selenium deficiency than other people, and this might worsen their infection and increase the risk of death. However, it’s not clear whether taking selenium supplements improves the health of people with HIV. Some studies have found that selenium supplements might improve immune function slightly in people with HIV, but other studies have not.

Selenium is safe at daily intakes up to 45 to 400 mcg for infants, children, and teens, depending on age, and up to 400 mcg for adults. Taking higher amounts can cause a garlic odor in the breath, a metallic taste in the mouth, hair and nail loss or brittleness, skin rash, nausea, diarrhea, fatigue , irritability, and nervous system problems.

Selenium might interact with cisplatin (a drug used in chemotherapy).

More information about selenium is available in the ODS consumer fact sheet on selenium .

For information about selenium and COVID-19, see the ODS consumer fact sheet, Dietary Supplements in the Time of COVID-19 .

Zinc is an essential nutrient found in seafood, meat, beans, nuts, whole grains , and dairy products. It’s important for a healthy immune system, making proteins and DNA, healing wounds, and for proper sense of taste.

The RDA ranges from 2 to 13 mg for infants, children, and teens, depending on age, and from 8 to 12 mg for adults.

Some studies suggest that zinc lozenges and zinc syrup speed recovery from the common cold if you start taking them at the start of a cold. However, these products don’t seem to affect the severity of cold symptoms. More research is needed to determine the best dose and form of zinc for the common cold as well as how often and how long it should be taken.

Pneumonia in children

Some studies in lower income countries show that zinc supplements lower the risk of pneumonia in young children. However, zinc doesn’t seem to speed recovery or reduce the number of deaths from pneumonia.

Studies show that zinc supplements help shorten the duration of diarrhea in children in low-income countries, where zinc deficiency is common. The World Health Organization and UNICEF recommend that children with diarrhea take zinc for 10 to 14 days (20 mg/day, or 10 mg/day for infants under 6 months). However, it’s not clear if zinc supplements help children with diarrhea who already get enough zinc, such as most children in the United States.

Many people with HIV have low zinc levels. This occurs because they have trouble absorbing zinc from food and they often have diarrhea, which increases zinc loss. Some studies have found that supplemental zinc decreases diarrhea and complications of HIV, but other studies have not. Zinc supplements do not appear to reduce the risk of death in people with HIV.

Zinc is safe at daily intakes up to 4 to 34 mg for infants, children, and teens, depending on age, and up to 40 mg for adults. Taking higher amounts can cause nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, stomach cramps, diarrhea, and headaches. High intakes of zinc over a long time can cause low blood levels of copper and impair immune function.

Zinc supplements might interact with antibiotics , penicillamine (used to treat rheumatoid arthritis ), and thiazide diuretics (used to treat high blood pressure).

More information about zinc is available in the ODS consumer fact sheet on zinc .

For information about zinc and COVID-19, see the ODS consumer fact sheet, Dietary Supplements in the Time of COVID-19 .

Andrographis

Andrographis is an herb native to Southeast Asia. It might help your body fight viruses, reduce inflammation , and strengthen your immune system.

Common cold and other respiratory infections

Some studies have found that taking andrographis after getting a cold or other respiratory infection might lessen the severity of symptoms and shorten the length of time symptoms last. However, additional studies are needed to confirm these findings.

No safety concerns have been reported when andrographis is used as directed. Side effects of andrographis can include nausea, vomiting, dizziness, skin rashes, diarrhea, and fatigue.

Andrographis might decrease blood pressure and thin the blood, so it could interact with blood pressure and blood thinning medications.

Andrographis might also decrease the effectiveness of medications that suppress the immune system. Andrographis might affect fertility, so some scientists recommend avoiding it if you are pregnant or planning to have a baby.

For information about andrographis and COVID-19, see the ODS consumer fact sheet, Dietary Supplements in the Time of COVID-19 .

Echinacea is an herb that grows in North America and Europe. It might help stop the growth or spread of some types of viruses and other germs. It might also help strengthen your immune system and reduce inflammation.

Common cold and flu

Studies have found that echinacea might slightly reduce the risk of catching a cold, but it doesn’t reduce the severity of symptoms or shorten the length of time symptoms last.

It’s unclear whether echinacea is helpful for the flu.

Echinacea appears to be safe. Side effects can include stomach upset, diarrhea, trouble sleeping, and skin rashes. In rare cases, echinacea might cause allergic reactions.

Echinacea might reduce the effectiveness of some medications, including medications that suppress the immune system. Scientists don’t know if echinacea is safe to take during pregnancy.

For information about echinacea and COVID-19, see the ODS consumer fact sheet, Dietary Supplements in the Time of COVID-19 .

Elderberry (European Elder)

Elderberry (or elder berry) is the fruit of a tree that grows in North America, Europe, and parts of Africa and Asia. Elderberry might help your body fight viruses and other germs, reduce inflammation, and strengthen your immune system.

Elderberry doesn’t appear to reduce the risk of coming down with the common cold. However, some studies have found that elderberry might help relieve symptoms of colds and flu and help people recover quicker.

Elderberry flowers and ripe fruit appear to be safe to eat. However, the bark, leaves, seeds, and raw or unripe elderberry fruit can be poisonous and can cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and dehydration. Cooked elderberry fruit and properly manufactured supplements do not have this safety concern.

Elderberry might affect insulin and blood sugar levels. It might also reduce the effectiveness of medications that suppress the immune system. Scientists don’t know if elderberry is safe to take during pregnancy.

For information about elderberry and COVID-19, see the ODS consumer fact sheet, Dietary Supplements in the Time of COVID-19 .

Garlic is a vegetable that has been used in cooking throughout history . It is also available as a dietary supplement.

Garlic might help your body fight viruses and other germs.

Only a few studies have looked at whether garlic supplements help prevent the common cold or flu, and it’s not clear if garlic is helpful.

Garlic is considered safe. Side effects can include bad breath, body odor, and skin rash.

Garlic might interact with blood thinners and blood pressure medications.

Ginseng ( Panax ginseng or Panax quinquefolius ) is a plant used in traditional Chinese medicine. It might help your body fight viruses, reduce inflammation, and strengthen your immune system.

Another botanical , eleuthero ( Eleutherococus senticosus ), has sometimes been called Siberian ginseng, but it is not related to true ginseng.

Common cold, flu, and other respiratory infections

Ginseng might reduce the risk of coming down with the common cold, flu, or other respiratory infections. However, it’s unclear whether ginseng helps relieve symptoms or affects the length of time symptoms last.

Ginseng appears to be safe. Side effects can include headache, trouble sleeping, and digestive upset. However, high doses (more than 2.5 grams [g]/day) of ginseng might cause insomnia , rapid heartbeat, high blood pressure, and nervousness.

Ginseng might interact with diabetes medications, stimulants , and medications that suppress the immune system.

For information about ginseng and COVID-19, see the ODS consumer fact sheet, Dietary Supplements in the Time of COVID-19 .

Tea and tea catechins

Tea ( Camellia sinensis ) is a popular beverage that may have health benefits. Tea extracts are also available as dietary supplements.

Green, black, and oolong tea leaves are processed in different ways. Green tea is made from dried and steamed tea leaves, and black and oolong teas are made from fermented tea leaves.

Tea, especially green tea, has high amounts of substances called catechins. Catechins might help fight viruses and other germs.

Flu and other respiratory infections

Based on only a few studies, it’s unclear whether tea or tea catechins are helpful for the flu or other respiratory infections. Some studies have found that tea and tea catechins might reduce the risk of coming down with upper respiratory infections. They might also reduce the length and severity of some symptoms but not other symptoms.

Tea is safe to drink. Side effects of green tea extract can include nausea, constipation , stomach discomfort, and increased blood pressure. Some green tea extracts might damage your liver, especially if you take them on an empty stomach.

Tea also contains caffeine, which can disturb your sleep and cause nervousness, jitteriness, and shakiness. Safe doses of caffeine for healthy adults are up to 400 to 500 mg/day and up to 200 mg/day for people who are pregnant.

Tea might interact with atorvastatin (a cholesterol-lowering drug) and stimulants, such as bitter orange or ephedrine.

Other Ingredients

Glutamine is an amino acid found in many foods including beef, fish, poultry, dried beans, eggs, rice, grains, and dairy products. Your body makes enough glutamine to meet your needs, except under rare conditions (for example, if you are critically ill in an intensive care unit [ICU] or have had major surgery).

Glutamine helps your immune system work properly.

Critical illness (giving glutamine as an IV or tube feeding)

It’s unclear whether glutamine helps people who are critically ill. Some studies in hospitalized patients who were critically ill or had undergone major surgery found that glutamine given as an IV or tube feeding reduced the risk of getting an infection, but it did not reduce the risk of death.

Glutamine is considered safe. Side effects can include nausea, bloating, burping, pain, gas, and vomiting. These side effects are more likely to occur with higher doses of glutamine.

No interactions between glutamine and medications have been reported.

N-acetylcysteine and glutathione

N-acetylcysteine (NAC) is similar to cysteine, an amino acid. It acts as an antioxidant and helps reduce mucus in the respiratory tract .

NAC raises levels in your body of a substance called glutathione, which also acts as an antioxidant. NAC and glutathione might also help your body fight viruses and other germs, reduce inflammation, and strengthen your immune system.

People with HIV may have low levels of glutathione, which might increase the risk of certain diseases including tuberculosis . However, there is very little research on NAC supplements in people with HIV. Therefore, scientists don’t know whether it’s helpful.

NAC appears to be safe. Side effects can include nausea, vomiting, stomach pain, diarrhea, indigestion, and heartburn.

NAC might interact with blood thinners and blood pressure medications. Taking NAC with nitroglycerine (used to treat chest pain) might cause low blood pressure and severe headaches.

For information about NAC and COVID-19, see the ODS consumer fact sheet, Dietary Supplements in the Time of COVID-19 .

Omega-3 fatty acids

Omega-3s are types of fats, including alpha linolenic acid (ALA), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). ALA is found mainly in plant oils, such as flaxseed, soybean , and canola oils. EPA and DHA are found mainly in fatty fish and fish oils.

Omega-3s are important for healthy cell membranes and proper function of the heart, lungs, brain, immune system, and endocrine system .

The recommended amount of omega-3s for infants is 0.5 g per day, and 0.7 to 1.6 g per day of ALA for children, teens, and adults, depending on age. EPA and DHA do not have individual recommendations.

Omega-3s might help your body fight viruses and other germs, reduce inflammation, and strengthen your immune system.

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (giving omega-3s as an IV or tube feeding)

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a serious lung condition that can lead to death. In people who do recover, ARDS often causes long-term physical and mental health problems.

Researchers have studied whether giving omega-3s as an IV or tube feeding is helpful for people with ARDS, but results from these studies are not clear. Some studies have found that omega-3s given in this manner might help the lungs work better, but they don’t appear to lower the risk of dying from ARDS. In addition, it’s not clear whether omega-3s given in this manner affect the length of time people are hospitalized with ARDS and need a ventilator to help them breathe.

Respiratory infections in infants and young children

The immune system continues to develop in babies after birth, and their immune cells contain the omega-3s EPA and DHA. However, it’s not clear whether adding omega-3s to infant formula improves immune function or reduces the risk of getting respiratory infections.

A study in school-age children found that children who consumed milk with added EPA and DHA had fewer upper respiratory infections than those who did not consume omega-3s. In another study, however, using an infant formula containing DHA and another fatty acid had no effect on the risk of respiratory infections in infants.

Omega-3s are considered safe. Side effects can include a bad taste in the mouth, bad breath, heartburn, nausea, digestive discomfort, diarrhea, headache, and smelly sweat. Omega-3s might interact with blood thinners, blood pressure medications, and medications that suppress the immune system.

More information about omega-3s is available in the ODS consumer fact sheet on omega-3 fatty acids .

For information about omega-3s and COVID-19, see the ODS consumer fact sheet, Dietary Supplements in the Time of COVID-19 .

Probiotics are live microorganisms (bacteria and yeasts) that provide health benefits. They are naturally present in certain fermented foods, added to some food products, and available as dietary supplements. Probiotics act mostly in the stomach and intestines . They might improve immune function and help fight viruses.

Acute diarrhea in infants and children

Acute infectious diarrhea in infants and children causes loose or liquid stools and three or more bowel movements within 24 hours. This condition is often caused by a viral infection and can last for up to a week. Some infants and children also develop fever and vomiting. Some studies have shown that probiotics shorten acute diarrhea by about 1 day, but other studies do not.

Some studies have reported that two strains of probiotics— Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG) and Saccharomyces boulardii —were most likely to benefit children with acute infectious diarrhea, but other studies have not.

Probiotics might reduce the risk of some respiratory infections and shorten the length of illness. Some studies in infants, children, and adults have found that probiotics reduce the risk of getting a cold and help relieve some symptoms, such as fever and cough. Other studies in children reported fewer sick days from school and quicker recovery. However, formulations of probiotics vary, and the effects of one product may not be the same as another.

Ventilator-associated pneumonia

It’s not clear whether probiotics help people who are critically ill. Some studies have found that probiotics lower the risk of developing pneumonia in people who are critically ill and need a ventilator to help them breathe, but other studies have not.

Probiotics are considered safe for most people. Side effects can include gas and other digestive symptoms. In people who are very ill or have immune system problems, probiotics might cause severe illness. Probiotics might also cause infections or even life-threatening illness in preterm infants. Although probiotics don’t appear to interact with medications, taking antibiotics or antifungal medications might decrease the effectiveness of some probiotics.

More information about probiotics is available in the ODS consumer fact sheet on probiotics .

For information about probiotics and COVID-19, see the ODS consumer fact sheet, Dietary Supplements in the Time of COVID-19 .

Do dietary supplements interact with medications or other supplements?

Yes, some supplements can interact or interfere with medicines you take.

Tell your doctor, pharmacist , and other health care providers about any dietary supplements and prescription or over-the-counter medicines you take. They can tell you if the dietary supplements might interact with your medicines or if the medicines might interfere with how your body absorbs , uses, or breaks down nutrients.

Where can I find out more about dietary supplements and immune function?

• Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS) Health Professional Fact Sheet on Dietary Supplements for Immune Function and Infectious Diseases

• Herbs at a Glance , National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health
• ODS Frequently Asked Questions: Which brand(s) of dietary supplements should I purchase?

This fact sheet by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS) provides information that should not take the place of medical advice. We encourage you to talk to your health care providers (doctor, registered dietitian, pharmacist, etc.) about your interest in, questions about, or use of dietary supplements and what may be best for your overall health. Any mention in this publication of a specific brand name is not an endorsement of the product.

Updated: November 14, 2023