The Role of Attachment in the Switching Dynamics of Liquid Consumption

This dissertation examines how consumers’ feelings of attachment and psychological ownership impacts their switching behavior in the fast-paced digitalized world. Digitalization is an organic part of consumers’ lives and infuses their daily routine. Many of us start the day by scrolling through digital content on Instagram, checking the weather forecast right before getting out of bed. One uses a digital app to unlock a shared bike going to work. Others work simultaneously with the colleagues on a cloud server, order meals on the Foodora platform for the lunch break, book some tickets online for our weekend program with friends, and watch Netflix before sleeping after a busy day. By providing access almost to any good and service regardless of space or time, digitalization has left its imprint on consumers: consumers seem conditioned to get whatever, whenever and wherever their actual preference demands. Preferably immediately. Digitalization has also changed the consumption landscape. It has transformed supply by easing market entry practically for everybody (see prosumers’ appearance) and resulted in the proliferation of competition. Alternatives come and go in one click, as consumers have a low switching cost and an infinite number of choices to satisfy their needs. Decisions have never before been so easy to change and lasted so short-term. These circumstances led to liquid consumption, an ephemeral, dematerialized and access-based form of consumption (Bardhi & Eckhardt, 2017), where consumers’ relationships to possession have liquefied, attachment has weakened and temporary access over possession gained ground. Literature suggests that the relationship between consumers and alternatives has become loose and lacks the feeling of attachment, or even ownership (Bardhi & Eckhardt, 2017). But are consumers really not attached to their favorite video-on-demand service, where the library is tailored to our preferences? Do they really not feel their profile as their own possession? Is their dampening indeed linked to the emergence of liquid consumption and the acceleration of switching? This dissertation suggests that – consumers still feel attachment and ownership over digital services, – thus, attachment does not hinder consumers from switching, – while psychological ownership significantly impacts their switching behavior.

Name dc:type.qualificationname

phd

Level dc:type.qualificationlevel

doctoral

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

Budapesti Corvinus Egyetem

Year dc:date.issued

2025

Author dc:creator

• Kisfürjesi, Nóra

• Marketing

Language dc:language

en