The Antecedents and Moderators of Offline Information Search: A Meta-Analysis

•We synthesize previous empirical studies on offline information search literature.•We provide and test a framework identifying categories of antecedents.•Several antecedents have inverted-U shaped relationships with information search.•Multivariate analyses validate the findings of the meta-analysis.•Moderator analyses identify boundary conditions for specific theories.

An examination of consumer information search literature reveals that the effects of several antecedents (cost, price dispersion, knowledge, prior experience) on offline information search vary greatly in terms of the directions and magnitudes of the determinants’ effect sizes, particularly indicating the possibility of inverted-U shaped relationships. Also, despite a wide range of studies undertaken, there remains a need for identifying an overarching framework for consumer information search. This article synthesizes previous empirical studies on offline information search literature, and attempts to provide and test a framework that advances our understanding of the current state of this literature. The review identifies significant antecedents to offline information search, and also tests the moderating effects of demographic variables and study conditions on the direct effects. In the context of the main effects, findings suggest that the nature of relationships of several antecedents with the central construct is indeed inverted-U shaped. Further, moderator analyses identify the boundary conditions under which specific theories hold. The closing section provides future research directions.

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