Speaker Bio:

Aruna is an Assistant Professor, in the Marketing Group at SOL. In her research she uses behavioural experiments and observational data to study consumer decisions in contexts spanning durable goods ownership and maintenance; online search and reviews; and human-AI interactions.

Abstract:

Despite attention from consumer research on sustainable consumption, little remains known about the external forces encouraging or deterring product repairs. Prolonging product ownership through repairs is an important pathway for sustainable consumption and lifestyle. However, this approach becomes particularly challenging in the backdrop of declining product quality and unexpected breakdowns. When do users prefer to repair their broken products?

In this research we argue that repair intentions are sensitive to the type of failure that a user experiences. We classify failure incidents into two types – sudden vs. gradual and

empirically show (N = 2702, across one survey and six pre-registered studies) that product owners are significantly more inclined to repair their products if they witness a sudden (vs. gradual) failure.

We find that this effect occurs because sudden failures trigger guilt from wasting a product away or leaving it unrepaired. Interestingly, we find that this reaction persists even when users ascribe lower value to the broken product itself.

In addition, two studies examining boundary conditions reveal scenarios in which users may be motivated to repair even their seemingly worn-out, end-of-life products. Policymakers can leverage these specific insights to develop product durability benchmarks and design large-scale public awareness campaigns.

Most importantly, by studying issues of product fragility and usage behaviours, our research brings together conflicting viewpoints from the world of business and policy and underscores the importance of repairs in sustainability goals.