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Retail Return Policy, Endowment Effect, and Consumption Propensity: An Experimental Study

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  • Wang Xianghong

    (Renmin University of China)

Abstract

The impact of retail return policy on consumer behavior has not drawn enough attention from researchers. Lenient return policies insure consumers against having regret after purchasing, so they may increase consumers' likelihood of purchasing. The behavioral theory of endowment effect suggests that consumers may then have a harder time returning purchased goods because people value objects more highly once they own them. We conducted a test of our hypotheses on how return policy and endowment effect influence purchasing tendency and return rate. This experiment proved that endowment effect did affect the returning behavior of consumers. It showed that lenient return policies significantly increased initial purchasing tendency but did not increase return rate. This suggests a potential to increase consumption by adopting lenient return policies.

Suggested Citation

  • Wang Xianghong, 2009. "Retail Return Policy, Endowment Effect, and Consumption Propensity: An Experimental Study," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 9(1), pages 1-29, September.
  • Handle: RePEc:bpj:bejeap:v:9:y:2009:i:1:n:38
    DOI: 10.2202/1935-1682.2288
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Lauren Skinner Beitelspacher & Thomas L. Baker & Adam Rapp & Dhruv Grewal, 2018. "Understanding the long-term implications of retailer returns in business-to-business relationships," Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Springer, vol. 46(2), pages 252-272, March.
    2. Ratchford, Brian & Soysal, Gonca & Zentner, Alejandro & Gauri, Dinesh K., 2022. "Online and offline retailing: What we know and directions for future research," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 98(1), pages 152-177.
    3. Janakiraman, Narayan & Syrdal, Holly A. & Freling, Ryan, 2016. "The Effect of Return Policy Leniency on Consumer Purchase and Return Decisions: A Meta-analytic Review," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 92(2), pages 226-235.
    4. Khouja, Moutaz & Ajjan, Haya & Liu, Xin, 2019. "The effect of return and price adjustment policies on a retailer’s performance," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 276(2), pages 466-482.
    5. Feess, Eberhard & Sarel, Roee, 2022. "Optimal fine reductions for self-reporting: The impact of loss aversion," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    6. Kateryna Lysenko-Ryba & Dominik Zimon, 2021. "Customer Behavioral Reactions to Negative Experiences during the Product Return," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(2), pages 1-14, January.
    7. Colucci, Domenico & Franco, Chiara & Valori, Vincenzo, 2024. "The endowment effect with different possession times and types of items," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 110(C).

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