Keeping the Body in Mind: The Influence of Body Esteem and Body Boundary Aberration on Consumer Beliefs and Purchase Intentions

This research explores the influence of consumers’ body-related information on beliefs and purchase intentions toward products for which the consumption experience is significantly and directly determined by body-related information (e.g., feel, fit, sense of safety) when the products are bought in body-absent purchase environments such as the Internet. We examine the effects of consumers’ body esteem (i.e., like or dislike of one's body) and body boundary aberration (variation in the perceived location of the edges of one's body) in the context of apparel purchases that are made on the Internet. Body esteem had a positive influence on involvement with apparel, and body boundary aberration had a negative influence on consumers’ overall concern with the fit of apparel. Involvement with apparel and overall concern with fit, in turn, significantly influenced consumers’ intentions to purchase apparel online. Consequently, consumers with high body esteem were less likely to buy on the Internet and those with high body boundary aberration were more likely to buy.