eCommons will be migrating to an upgraded instance of the DSpace repository platform from 12 p.m. on January 20, 2026, until 9 a.m. on January 29, 2026. During this migration, eCommons will be available for viewing and downloading only; any material submitted after 12 pm on 1/20 will be lost and no administrative edits will be made until January 29th.
Library

eCommons

 

Scarcity Effects on Desirability: Mediated by Assumed Expensiveness?

Simple item page
dc.contributor.authorLynn, Michael
dc.date.accessioned2020-09-12T21:08:01Z
dc.date.available2020-09-12T21:08:01Z
dc.date.issued1989-01-01
dc.description.abstractTraditional micro-economic theory assumes that consumer preferences are independent of market forces like supply, demand, and price. However, this assumption is inconsistent with psychological research on commodity theory (Brock 1968). This research has found that scarcity enhances the desirability of experiences and objects. Two studies were conducted to test the possibility that these scarcity effects on desirability are due to a tendency for people to assume that scarce things cost more. Consistent with this hypothesis, study 1 found that scarcity increased the desirability of art prints only when subjects had been primed to think about the expensiveness of art prints in general. Study 2 further supported the hypothesis by finding that scarcity enhanced the desirability of wine only when subjects did not know how much the wine cost. The economic, marketing and research implications of these results are discussed.
dc.description.legacydownloadsLynn63_Scarcity_effects_on_desirability.pdf: 3332 downloads, before Aug. 1, 2020.
dc.identifier.other5004296
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/1813/72078
dc.language.isoen_US
dc.relation.doihttps://doi.org/10.1016/0167-4870(89)90023-8
dc.rightsRequired Publisher Statement: © Elsevier. Final version published as: Lynn, M. (1989). Scarcity effects on desirability: Mediated by assumed expensiveness? Journal of Economic Psychology, 10(2), 257-274. Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.
dc.subjectscarcity
dc.subjectcommodity theory
dc.subjectconsumer preferences
dc.subjectdesirability
dc.subjectmarketing analysis
dc.subjectprice
dc.titleScarcity Effects on Desirability: Mediated by Assumed Expensiveness?
dc.typearticle
local.authorAffiliationLynn, Michael: wml3@cornell.edu Cornell University School of Hotel Administration

Files

Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Thumbnail Image
Name:
Lynn63_Scarcity_effects_on_desirability.pdf
Size:
221.42 KB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Download

Collections

SHA Articles and Chapters