The Happiness of Customer Cocreation

In postmodern world, customers are not satisfied with passively receiving products or services; on the contrary, they show more and more interests on actively cocreating the products with firms. However, marketing literature still lacks powerful explanations to understand why customers enjoy the cocreation process although they need to input much of their time and effort in it. This study builds a framework of customer cocreation based on eudaimonic (the pleasure of self-actualization) vs. hedonic (the pleasure of needs fulfillment) theory, and further tests the relevant hypotheses by using real DIY products as experiment stimuli. Results show that eudaimnoic happiness and hedonic happiness have powerful explanation to the customer perception of cocreation process and the type of firm's facilitation can moderate the effect of customer cocreation on eudaimonic happiness, hedonic happiness and customer satisfaction. Theory contributions and managerial implications are discussed in the end.