Effect of effort and deadlines on consumer product returns

Journal of Consumer Psychology · 2012 · Volume 22 · Issue 2

DOI: 10.1016/j.jcps.2011.05.002

Abstract

While extant research has examined return policies as a combination of time and effort, we investigate both the independent and interactive impacts of time and effort on consumer decisions to return or retain products. We find that decreasing return deadlines can have the counterintuitive effect of increasing return rates under some conditions. Using construal level theory, we propose that perceived effort (both physical and cognitive) mediates the effect of return policy on return rates leading to suppressed returns. Further, when deadlines are framed as durations between store visits, overall product returns are exacerbated except when perceived effort is high.

Keywords

Product Returns, Procrastination, Deadlines, Effort, Return Policy

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