E‐tail emotion regulation: examining online hedonic product purchases

Purpose – This research examines how hedonic shopping experiences for online music impact emotion regulation processes and how feelings regarding previous online music purchases influence repeat purchase behaviour. The paper aims to introduce a model that explains and examines the meditating role of consumers' attitudes, emotion regulation and subjective norms in the shopping experience for online music. Design/methodology/approach – Structural equation analysis based on AMOS 17.0 techniques, using the maximum likelihood estimation method, was used to assess the measurement and structural model. Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to determine construct and discriminant validity before testing hypotheses of the structural model. Findings – Results indicate that shopping for music online involves an emotional and hedonic component. Specifically, consumer attitudes, emotion regulation as well as subjective norms influence repeat purchase intentions. Research limitations/implications – Emotion regulation in traditional retailing environments has been heavily studied, however, limited research exists to examine emotion regulation in the online retailing environment. With the proliferation of online retailing, this study makes important contributions to understanding online shopping behaviour for hedonic products. Practical implications – Based on the findings of this research, online music retailers should consider developing applicable customer‐valued alternatives to positively influence the overall online shopping experience. Originality/value – This paper models consumer emotion regulation beyond the traditional retailing environment and examines it in a virtual retailing environment. Results prove to be important as emotion regulation impacts consumer behaviour beyond previously known traditional settings.