Earning the right to indulge: Effort as a determinant of customer preferences toward frequency program rewards
Kivetz and Simonson, Journal of Marketing Research 39(2), 2002, 155-170. Across roughly 3,100 consumers, higher requirements to earn a reward shifted preferences toward luxury rewards, including when consumers proposed their own rewards. The authors propose that effort reduces guilt over luxuries. The effect was stronger for consumers prone to luxury-related guilt and when the effort was work-related. The shift persisted when personal effort was higher with programme requirements held constant, and higher monetary cost reduced preference for luxuries.
Kivetz and Simonson, Journal of Marketing Research 39(2), 2002, 155-170. Across roughly 3,100 consumers, higher requirements to earn a reward shifted preferences toward luxury rewards, including when consumers proposed their own rewards. The authors propose that effort reduces guilt over luxuries. The effect was stronger for consumers prone to luxury-related guilt and when the effort was work-related. The shift persisted when personal effort was higher with programme requirements held constant, and higher monetary cost reduced preference for luxuries.
Written from the abstract, 2026-11-07.
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Kivetz, R., & Simonson, I. (2002). Earning the right to indulge: Effort as a determinant of customer preferences toward frequency program rewards. Journal of Marketing Research, 39(2), 155-170. doi:10.1509/jmkr.39.2.155.19084 https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkr.39.2.155.19084