Abstract
Although numerous studies have demonstrated the hedonic benefits of spending money on life experiences instead of material
possessions, there has been no attempt to determine how different motivations for experiential consumption relate to psychological
need satisfaction and well-being. Across five studies (N = 931), guided by self-determination theory, we developed a reliable and valid measure of motivation for experiential consumption—the
Motivation for Experiential Buying Scale—to test these relations. Those who spend money on life experience for autonomous
reasons (e.g., “because they are an integral part of my life”) report more autonomy, competence, relatedness, flourishing,
and vitality; however, those who spend money on life experiences for controlled (e.g., “for the recognition I’ll get from
others”) or amotivated reasons (e.g., “I don’t really know”) reported less autonomy, competence, and relatedness. These results
demonstrated that the benefits of experiential consumption depend on why one buys life experiences.
possessions, there has been no attempt to determine how different motivations for experiential consumption relate to psychological
need satisfaction and well-being. Across five studies (N = 931), guided by self-determination theory, we developed a reliable and valid measure of motivation for experiential consumption—the
Motivation for Experiential Buying Scale—to test these relations. Those who spend money on life experience for autonomous
reasons (e.g., “because they are an integral part of my life”) report more autonomy, competence, relatedness, flourishing,
and vitality; however, those who spend money on life experiences for controlled (e.g., “for the recognition I’ll get from
others”) or amotivated reasons (e.g., “I don’t really know”) reported less autonomy, competence, and relatedness. These results
demonstrated that the benefits of experiential consumption depend on why one buys life experiences.
- Content Type Journal Article
- Category Research Paper
- Pages 1-26
- DOI 10.1007/s10902-012-9357-z
- Authors
- Jia Wei Zhang, Department of Psychology, San Francisco State University, 1600 Holloway Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94132, USA
- Ryan T. Howell, Department of Psychology, San Francisco State University, 1600 Holloway Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94132, USA
- Peter A. Caprariello, Department of Clinical and Social Sciences in Psychology, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY, USA
- Journal Journal of Happiness Studies
- Online ISSN 1573-7780
- Print ISSN 1389-4978