One of the key differentiators in physical retail environments compared to online shopping is the opportunity of using touch to physically evaluate products. Previous studies have ascertained the effect of touch on the evaluation outcome of retail product offerings. What is not known, however, is the type of shopper characteristics associated with the type of touch that shoppers seek. This thesis examines two types of need for touch, one affective and the other cognitive in nature. It argues that these two types of need for touch are likely to be influenced by different sets of factors and have largely different consequences. Key literature is first reviewed and a conceptual framework comprising the various hypotheses is proposed and then empirically tested. Pre-studies are used to test and refine the constructs and to develop the final questionnaire. A total of 318 respondents who shop at physical retail outlets form the sample for this research. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) is used to assess the fit of the measurement components of the model and to further refine the constructs. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) is used to empirically test the proposed hypotheses. The results show how personality, lifestyle traits, consumers’ perceived knowledge and choice goals form a sequential process leading to different tactile inputs that consumers seek in a retail setting. Among the consequences, results show that consumers employing affective touch are likely to purchase impulsively. Results also show that both types of consumers, those employing affective and those employing cognitive touch, find satisfaction with the decision-making process, though consumers who employ cognitive touch also tend to feel outcome regret due to over-consideration. The research also provides valuable information to managers by separating consumers requiring varying forms of touch into identifiable segments. Limitations of the study and suggestions for future research are also provided.
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