Limited-time scarcity and competitive arousal in E-commerce
Peter Broeder and Eileen Wentink study how limited-time promotions affect purchase intention in online retail. They test perceived scarcity and competitive arousal as mediators, and consumers' cultural background as a moderator. In an experimental survey, 208 Europeans from Italy and the Netherlands saw a product offer in an online shop marked either as limited-time or as non-limited (in stock). The limited-time notice did not directly produce a higher purchase intention. It did so indirectly: the notice raised perceived scarcity, which raised competitive arousal, which raised purchase intention. That indirect path appeared among the Italian participants and not among the Dutch ones. The outcome is intention in a survey, not a purchase.
Peter Broeder and Eileen Wentink study how limited-time promotions affect purchase intention in online retail. They test perceived scarcity and competitive arousal as mediators, and consumers' cultural background as a moderator. In an experimental survey, 208 Europeans from Italy and the Netherlands saw a product offer in an online shop marked either as limited-time or as non-limited (in stock). The limited-time notice did not directly produce a higher purchase intention. It did so indirectly: the notice raised perceived scarcity, which raised competitive arousal, which raised purchase intention. That indirect path appeared among the Italian participants and not among the Dutch ones. The outcome is intention in a survey, not a purchase.
Written from the openAlex abstract record read 2026-10-22.
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Distribution and Consumer Research, 32(5), 549-567. doi:10.1080/09593969.2022.2098360