Desire to Learn in Unfamiliar Categories Sparks Preference for Authenticity

Consumers’ preference for authenticity is recognized as an important aspect of contemporary marketing. Existing research on authenticity has primarily focused on examining cues that determine how consumers perceive authenticity. However, little research has examined when and why consumers prefer authentic options. The present work investigates this question and proposes a novel determinant of consumers’ preference for authenticity—their familiarity with the product category. We propose that consumers have a greater preference for authentic options in unfamiliar categories compared to more familiar categories. Moreover, we hypothesize this effect occurs because consumers often adopt a learning goal in the context of an unfamiliar category. This desire to learn promotes preference for authentic options in the category because authentic options are seen as more typical, and therefore informative, of the category. Across a series of studies, we find evidence supportive of these hypotheses. This research expands our understanding of the psychology of authenticity and provides marketers with insight about when authenticity is important to consumer decision making.