Are AR shopping services valued the same way throughout Europe? A four-country Q-investigation

Augmented reality creates new affordances for shopping-related interactions because it allows consumers to experience a product within the context of their choice and in a customized way before making a purchasing decision. There is a need to evaluate the potential of this technology and its features in order to integrate it strategically into e- and m-commerce activities. Given that technologies are now developing on a global scale, research should take a multiple country approach. The present study provides qualitative cross-country insights into four European nations and provides guidelines on how to conduct Q-investigations within comparative settings. The results suggest that both divergence and convergence phenomena occur calling for a differentiated approach to target users and to the development of applications.