The Negative Handmade Effect: How and Why Control Deprivation Thwarts Desire for Handmade Products

Jiaqi Song, Dongjin He, Yuwei Jiang

Research output: Journal article publicationJournal articleAcademic researchpeer-review

7 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

This research examines consumer reactions to handcrafted products under control deprivation. Four studies reveal that while a positive handmade effect exists among consumers whose sense of personal control is not threatened, a negative handmade effect appears for those consumers under control deprivation. That is, consumers show less favorable attitudes toward handcrafted products when their sense of personal control is threatened. This effect appears because the lower psychological ownership of handcrafted (vs. regular) products cannot instrumentally help restore consumers' sense of personal control. The negative handmade effect under control deprivation is mitigated when consumers can customize the product based on their own preferences. The current research is among the first to show how the handcrafted nature of products can backfire and lead to negative reactions among consumers (i.e., a negative handmade effect). Our findings also shed light on the antecedents and consequences of psychological product ownership and add to the current knowledge of personal control in the consumption domain.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1431-1445
Number of pages15
JournalPsychology and Marketing
Volume40
Issue number7
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jul 2023

Keywords

  • consumer judgments
  • control deprivation
  • customization
  • handmade
  • psychological ownership

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Applied Psychology
  • Marketing

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'The Negative Handmade Effect: How and Why Control Deprivation Thwarts Desire for Handmade Products'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this