I Join, So I Enjoy: How Customer Participation Increases Wellbeing

Abstract

Much of the existing literature on customer participation has focused on the performance outcomes from the standpoint of companies, ignoring the benefits of customers as the critical participants. Drawing from work on meaning and self-determination theory, the paper examines the influence of customer participation on two components of customer well-being: affective states and meaning of participation. Two studies show that customer participation significantly improved customers’ affective states and meaning of participation, and psychological ownership was one of the underlying mechanisms. Product type further moderated the relationship between customer participation and psychological ownership, and between customer participation and well-being. Specifically, the effect of customer participation on psychological ownership was stronger for participants in physical product condition, while it became attenuated albeit significant for participants in the intangible service condition. The relationship between customer participation and customer well-being also became weaker in intangible service condition. Our findings contribute to theories of customer participation and customer well-being, and also suggest direct implications for marketing strategy.