Individual determinants of brand affect: the role of the personality traits of extraversion and openness to experience

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship among two personality traits (extraversion and openness), hedonic value, brand affect and loyalty. It argues that individual differences account for differences in the values sought by the consumer and in the formation of brand affect and loyalty. Design/methodology/approach – Two samples are drawn (running shoes and mobile phone users) and the effect of personality traits on the other constructs have been tested using the Partial Least Squares approach (PLS) to structural equation modeling. Findings – It was found that extraversion and openness are positively related to hedonic product value and that the personality traits directly (openness) and indirectly (extraversion, via hedonic value) influence brand affect which in turn drives attitudinal and purchase loyalty. Research limitations/implications – The paper introduces personality as determinants of perceived value and brand affect. Future studies should aim at including the other personality traits of the Big‐Five (Neuroticism, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness) as possible determinants and utilitarian value as dependent variables. Practical implications – Combined with lifestyle segmentation approaches, personality variables can be useful to determine which market segments seek hedonic values and which tend more to experience high levels of brand affect, which in turn leads to higher loyalty. The results suggest that customers who score high on extraversion and openness respond stronger to affective stimuli. As a consequence, these findings are of relevance to market segmentation and targeting. Originality/value – Affective responses to brands are of central importance to brand management as they strongly drive brand loyalty. In this study we investigate the role of two personality traits (extraversion and openness) as antecedents of hedonic value sought by the consumer and brand affect, which have been neglected so far.