The magic of books - emotional response to books and consumers' self-concept

The purpose of this research is to examine consumers’ emotional response to books and links with the theory of self-concept. The UK book publishing industry is an important part of the UK economy, with 184,000 new and... [ view full abstract ]

The purpose of this research is to examine consumers’ emotional response to books and links with the theory of self-concept. The UK book publishing industry is an important part of the UK economy, with 184,000 new and revised titles, published in 2013. Yet the industry, its products and consumers are under-researched, with little academic evidence to support industry figures and market research reports. Emotional response and self-concept are well described in the marketing literature with regard to other product categories.

The research uses an interpretivist, qualitative approach to obtain deep insights. Phase 1 semi-structured interviews are underway and Phase 2 data collection and analysis using the theory of deep metaphors are scheduled for summer and autumn 2015.

Preliminary results show that participants have strong emotional attachment to, and involvement in, books that are special to them. A ‘fantasy self’ is emerging as a new construct that will be further tested in phase 2. Conclusions are not yet possible.

Insights from this research will be useful to publishers and booksellers in a fiercely competitive industry. The work will extend theory in consumers’ emotional response and self-concept in a new product category.

Phase 1 results will be available for the AOM conference.