Cash or Card: Consumer Perceptions of Payment Modes - Scholarly ...

Euro across European countries and they conclude that opposition to the common Euro
currency does not come from the perceived economic personal benefits, but originates from
emotional feelings towards national currency.
An aspect that is connected to the physicality factor is the assumption that paying via cash is
associated with experiencing pain (Prelec and Lowenstein, 1998; Soman, 2003; Thomas et
al., 2011). However the basis for this assumption is weak as only Thomas et al. (2011),
examine the degree of pain experienced in relation to the payment mode used; the others only
assume the cash- pain relationship. Zellermayer examines the degree of pain-pleasure
experienced with the purchase type and the association with payment mode selection and he
found that pleasurable purchases are just as likely to be paid for by cash or credit card. Also,
although Zellermayer argues for the term ‘pain’, his understanding and application of the
word is confusing. For example, in his thesis abstract, he defines ‘pain of paying’ as ‘the
notion that a consumer who pays for a product or service experiences emotions associated
with the act of paying’, what he later acknowledges is that both pain and pleasure can be
experienced. Thomas et al 2011 did test for response to happy - sad faces, but their scale has
validity issues (see Section 2.5.2.1).
If the physicality of the payment mode is a factor, then we need to understand the nature of
the physicality; we need to identify the cognitive and emotional factors that the physicality
generates and we need to determine how they relate to payment mode choice. To address
these gaps in our knowledge this study addresses the following questions:
Do the cognitive and emotional elements that people associate with a cash based
payment mode differ from those associated with a debit card based payment mode? Is
there a link between the cognitive and emotional associations that people have with
specific payment modes and their payment mode choice?
This emphasis on the physicality of the payment mode indicates that a familiarity with the
embodied cognition literature is useful. Embodied cognition theory emphasizes the formative
role the environment plays in the development of cognitive processes. Underpinning the
theory is the notion that our cognitions and emotions are shaped by the body’s interaction
with the world. In the context of this study, the premise is, that our historical and cultural use
of the tokens used to represent money value, shaped and continue to shape our cognitions and
emotions, determining our perceptions and influencing our judgement.
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