We are honored to serve as Editors of the Journal of Consumer Psychology (JCP), accepting the baton from Lauren Block, Jennifer Argo, and Tom Kramer and continuing down the path of excellence that they and their predecessors have forged for the journal. Prior editors sought to define the journal's scope (e.g., Block et al., 2020; Wyer & Shavitt, 2002), improve its operational efficiency (e.g., Maheswaran, 2006; Wyer & Shavitt, 2003), and introduce impact initiatives (e.g., Maheswaran, 2006), including alternative formats that support diverse research contributions (Mukhopadhyay et al., 2018). Their efforts, as well as those of prior editors, associate editors, reviewers, and authors, have helped make JCP the journal that it is today – a premier outlet for research that advances knowledge of consumer psychology.
In our initial editorial, we share our thoughts about where the journal is now and the direction we plan to follow, acknowledging the need for us to address other important issues in future editorials. Because this initial editorial builds on the ideas and efforts of the incredible scholars who preceded us as editors, or describes distinctive features of the journal that we plan to continue, we borrow words and phrases from past editorials or the journal website, believing there are limited ways to describe similar perspectives and practices.
We embrace the notion articulated most recently by our immediate predecessors that consumer psychology involves an understanding of the science underlying consumer behavior (Block et al., 2020). It encapsulates understanding consumers' thoughts, feelings, or behaviors as they interact with products, services, or ideas in the marketplace and beyond (Hoyer & MacInnis, 2007; Peter & Olson, 2017; Schiffman & Kanuk, 2000). We share previous editors' inclusive perspective of consumer psychology and echo their sentiments that while consumer psychological research needs to provide insights about consumers and consumption, it does not have to be constrained to the marketplace alone or be limited in terms of its relevance to a narrow set of stakeholders. While consumers make important decisions in retail settings, not all consumer decisions or consumption activities take place in stores. For example, how consumers process information could be of importance even if it does not directly translate into an observable outcome. In other contexts, the decision may occur at home, but could have downstream marketplace consequences. Ultimately, as long as the research provides insights about the psychology of consumption, whether or not these insights inform managerial practice, consumer welfare, or public policy, we believe it may be appropriate for JCP.
Consistent with the journal's focus on consumers and the psychology of consumption, issues t