The 'IKEA Effect': When Labor Leads to Love

By Michael I. Norton, Daniel Mochon, Dan Ariely. 2012

1,042 citations recorded by the source corpus.

In a series of studies in which consumers assembled IKEA boxes, folded origami, and built sets of Legos, we demonstrate and investigate the boundary conditions for what we term the “IKEA effect” – the increase in valuation of self-made products. Participants saw their amateurish creations – of both utilitarian and hedonic products – as similar in value to the creations of experts, and expected others to share their opinions. Our account suggests that labor leads to increased valuation only when labor results in successful completion of tasks; thus when participants built and then destroyed their creations, or failed to complete them, the IKEA effect dissipated. Finally, we show that labor increases valuation of completed products not just for consumers who profess an interest in “do-it-yourself” projects, but even for those who are relatively uninterested. We discuss the implications of the IKEA effect for marketing managers and organizations more generally.

Subfields: Experimental and Cognitive Psychology, Marketing

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/6a53b28b15105176e011ad36bbfc0e11b849ad0c

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In Experimental and Cognitive Psychology

In Marketing

Citations in the corpus

A psychological ownership approach to designing object attachment (2015, background): “…and Hekkert 2007; Krippendorff 2005; Norman 2005; Ortíz Nicolás, Aurisicchio, and Desmet 2013; Schifferstein 2009, 2010) and attachment (Franke, Schreier, and Kaiser 2010; Mugge, Schifferstein, and Schoormans 2006, 2010; Mugge, Schoormans, and Schifferstein 2009; Norton, Mochon, and Ariely 2011).”
Consumer Participation in Cause-Related Marketing: An Examination of Effort Demands and Defensive Denial (2018, result): “This would complement past research on coproducing, and the ‘‘Ikea Effect,’’ that asserts consumers’ use of personal time and effort can be advantageous (Norton et al. 2010).”
Understanding the do-it-yourself consumer: DIY motivations and outcomes (2011, background): “Individuals may value their own products more highly than traditional marketplace offerings due to the effort required to build them (cf., Festinger 1957; Norton et al. 2011).”
When environmental messages should be assertive: examining the moderating role of effort investment (2015, background): “On the other hand, the ‘IKEA’ effect showcases the possibility that individuals who expend more effort in completing the task are generally committed to it; infusing products with their own labor evokes greater valuation that greatly strengthen commitment (Norton, Mochon, and Ariely 2012).”
The Endowment Effect (2014, neutral): “Rick (2011) reviews the neuroeconomic literature on loss aversion; here we focus on endowment effect–related paradigms.”
Evolution of Consumption: A Psychological Ownership Framework (2020, background): “That investment is likely to foster a feeling of psychological ownership for digital consumption objects (e.g., avatars, virtual cities; Karahanna et al. 2015; Norton et al. 2012), which have considerable value for firms as means to lock-in consumers to their platforms (Molesworth et al.”
Why Customers Value Mass-customized Products: The Importance of Process Effort and Enjoyment (2010, neutral): “…increment of self-designed products (Franke, Keinz, and Steger, 2009), recent research has added more subtle psychological factors including, for example, pride feelings of having made it oneself (Deng and Hutchinson, 2009; Franke, Schreier, and Kaiser, 2010; Moreau and Herd, 2010; Norton, 2009).”
Ten years of value cocreation: An integrative review (2016, background): “This higher perceived quality enhances customer loyalty, purchase intentions, and the willingness-to-pay (Fuchs et al., 2013; Norton et al., 2012; Schreier et al., 2012; Thompson and Malaviya, 2013).”
Making a Difference Matters: Impact Unlocks the Emotional Benefits of Prosocial Spending (2013, neutral): “Research on self-efficacy demonstrates the importance of successfully completing actions – from personal goals to assembling furniture – to derive well-being through feelings of competence and control (Bandura, 1977; Deci & Ryan, 2000; Norton, Mochon, & Ariely, 2012; Ryan & Deci, 2000; White, 1959).”