Some “Thing” to Talk About? Differential Story Utility From Experiential and Material Purchases

Psychological research has shown that experiential purchases (a hike in the woods,a trip to rome) bring more happiness than material purchases (a designer shirt,a flat-screen television). the research presented in this article investigates one cause and consequence of this difference: people talk more about their experiences than their possessions and derive more value from doing so. a series of eight studies demonstrate that taking away the ability to talk about experiences (but not material goods) would diminish the enjoyment they bring; that people believe they derive more happiness from talking about experiential purchases; that when given a choice about which of their purchases to talk about,people are more likely to talk about experiential rather than material consumption; and that people report being more inclined to talk about their experiences than their material purchases and derive more hedonic benefits as a result—both in prospect and in retrospect. © 2015,© 2015 by the society for personality and social psychology,inc.