HOW PACKAGE RIGIDITY AND POLITICAL IDENTITY INFLUENCE PURCHASE INTENTION

Abstract

This research intends to discover the effects of packaging rigidity and political identity on consumer behavior. Four experiments are conducted and reported. The results show that although products in more flexible packages may be perceived as more innovative and environmentally friendly, they may nevertheless be less preferred because of reduced ease of handling. Moreover, I show that political identity moderates these results, such that politically liberal, more so than politically conservative, consumers are those who respond more negatively to flexible packaging. I investigate whether specific individual traits, openness to experience (one of the big five personality traits) and/or sensory sensitivity, help to explain the political identity moderator. Finally, I test whether the findings can be applied via marketplace targeting on the basis of political affiliation using voting data as a geographic proxy measure.