Self-improvement or hedonic enjoyment? Effect of romantic experiences on consumer product preferences

Romantic experiences are positive emotional experiences that significantly affect people's lives and consumption behaviors. Extant research merely conceptualizes romantic experiences as intimate relationships between lovers and investigates their impact on the consumption of specific products (e.g., sweets, movies, and tourist destinations). In this study, we extend the concept of romantic experience beyond romantic love and demonstrate how romantic experience influences consumers' preferences for self-improvement products based on the broaden-and-build theory through four experiments. Specifically, we show that romantic experiences (vs. neutral experiences) increase consumers' preference for self-improvement products, even in areas unrelated to the initial romantic stimuli (Study 1). This greater inclination toward self-improvement products is mediated by a heightened sense of meaning in life (Studies 2 and 3). Moreover, the focal effect is moderated by self-construal (Study 4). These findings complement those of previous studies on how romantic experiences influence consumption choices.