Touching the Untouchable: Exploring Multi-Sensory Augmented Reality in the Context of Online Retailing

Jonas Heller; Mathew Chylinski; Ko de Ruyter; Dominik Mahr; Debbie I. Keeling

doi:10.1016/j.jretai.2019.10.008

Touching the Untouchable: Exploring Multi-Sensory Augmented Reality in the Context of Online Retailing

Jonas Heller^*, Mathew Chylinski, Ko de Ruyter, Dominik Mahr, Debbie I. Keeling

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review

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Abstract

Mental intangibility during product evaluation remains one of the greatest drawbacks for online purchasing. However, emerging multi-sensory Augmented Reality (m-AR) applications offer a potential solution for this online retailing problem. Drawing on active inference theory, this article proposes a conceptual framework to assess how sensory control and feedback modalities affect consumer value judgements by reducing mental intangibility. We show how touch control, compared to voice control, positively affects consumers' willingness-to-pay. The underlying mechanism is a sequential process of reduced mental intangibility and increased feeling of decision comfort. In addition, we highlight a positive moderating effect of congruent auditory feedback on decision comfort. We also demonstrate a novel consumer boundary condition. Consumers high in assessment orientation experience a stronger reduction in mental intangibility. The results are consistently replicated across three experiments implying theoretical and managerial contributions for m-AR in the context of online retailing. (C) 2019 New York University. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	219-234
Number of pages	16
Journal	Journal of Retailing
Volume	95
Issue number	4
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretai.2019.10.008
Publication status	Published - Dec 2019

Keywords

Multi-sensory Augmented Reality
Active inference
Mental intangibility
decision comfort
Assessment orientation
PERCEIVED RISK
REGULATORY FIT
INTANGIBILITY
LOCOMOTION
SIZE
INFERENCE
SECURITY
PRIVACY
IMPACT

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10.1016/j.jretai.2019.10.008

Full TextFinal published version, 1.1 MBLicence: Taverne

Cite this

@article{525865e61a8f4ee0a92b02086dc9e281,

title = "Touching the Untouchable: Exploring Multi-Sensory Augmented Reality in the Context of Online Retailing",

abstract = "Mental intangibility during product evaluation remains one of the greatest drawbacks for online purchasing. However, emerging multi-sensory Augmented Reality (m-AR) applications offer a potential solution for this online retailing problem. Drawing on active inference theory, this article proposes a conceptual framework to assess how sensory control and feedback modalities affect consumer value judgements by reducing mental intangibility. We show how touch control, compared to voice control, positively affects consumers' willingness-to-pay. The underlying mechanism is a sequential process of reduced mental intangibility and increased feeling of decision comfort. In addition, we highlight a positive moderating effect of congruent auditory feedback on decision comfort. We also demonstrate a novel consumer boundary condition. Consumers high in assessment orientation experience a stronger reduction in mental intangibility. The results are consistently replicated across three experiments implying theoretical and managerial contributions for m-AR in the context of online retailing. (C) 2019 New York University. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.",

keywords = "Multi-sensory Augmented Reality, Active inference, Mental intangibility, decision comfort, Assessment orientation, PERCEIVED RISK, REGULATORY FIT, INTANGIBILITY, LOCOMOTION, SIZE, INFERENCE, SECURITY, PRIVACY, IMPACT",

author = "Jonas Heller and Mathew Chylinski and {de Ruyter}, Ko and Dominik Mahr and Keeling, {Debbie I.}",

note = "data source: experimental data",

year = "2019",

month = dec,

doi = "10.1016/j.jretai.2019.10.008",

language = "English",

volume = "95",

pages = "219--234",

journal = "Journal of Retailing",

issn = "0022-4359",

publisher = "Elsevier Science",

number = "4",

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T1 - Touching the Untouchable

T2 - Exploring Multi-Sensory Augmented Reality in the Context of Online Retailing

AU - Heller, Jonas

AU - Chylinski, Mathew

AU - de Ruyter, Ko

AU - Mahr, Dominik

AU - Keeling, Debbie I.

N1 - data source: experimental data

PY - 2019/12

Y1 - 2019/12

N2 - Mental intangibility during product evaluation remains one of the greatest drawbacks for online purchasing. However, emerging multi-sensory Augmented Reality (m-AR) applications offer a potential solution for this online retailing problem. Drawing on active inference theory, this article proposes a conceptual framework to assess how sensory control and feedback modalities affect consumer value judgements by reducing mental intangibility. We show how touch control, compared to voice control, positively affects consumers' willingness-to-pay. The underlying mechanism is a sequential process of reduced mental intangibility and increased feeling of decision comfort. In addition, we highlight a positive moderating effect of congruent auditory feedback on decision comfort. We also demonstrate a novel consumer boundary condition. Consumers high in assessment orientation experience a stronger reduction in mental intangibility. The results are consistently replicated across three experiments implying theoretical and managerial contributions for m-AR in the context of online retailing. (C) 2019 New York University. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

AB - Mental intangibility during product evaluation remains one of the greatest drawbacks for online purchasing. However, emerging multi-sensory Augmented Reality (m-AR) applications offer a potential solution for this online retailing problem. Drawing on active inference theory, this article proposes a conceptual framework to assess how sensory control and feedback modalities affect consumer value judgements by reducing mental intangibility. We show how touch control, compared to voice control, positively affects consumers' willingness-to-pay. The underlying mechanism is a sequential process of reduced mental intangibility and increased feeling of decision comfort. In addition, we highlight a positive moderating effect of congruent auditory feedback on decision comfort. We also demonstrate a novel consumer boundary condition. Consumers high in assessment orientation experience a stronger reduction in mental intangibility. The results are consistently replicated across three experiments implying theoretical and managerial contributions for m-AR in the context of online retailing. (C) 2019 New York University. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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KW - Active inference

KW - Mental intangibility

KW - decision comfort

KW - Assessment orientation

KW - PERCEIVED RISK

KW - REGULATORY FIT

KW - INTANGIBILITY

KW - LOCOMOTION

KW - SIZE

KW - INFERENCE

KW - SECURITY

KW - PRIVACY

KW - IMPACT

U2 - 10.1016/j.jretai.2019.10.008

DO - 10.1016/j.jretai.2019.10.008

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JO - Journal of Retailing

JF - Journal of Retailing

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