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The Psychophysics of Price: A Critique of the Weber-Fechner Approach in Consumer Behavior

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Proceedings of the 1986 Academy of Marketing Science (AMS) Annual Conference

Abstract

The present paper reviews the application of Fechnerian psychophysics to the study of consumer perceptual response to price. Because Weber’s Law and Fechner’s Law apply only to sensory dimensions, and are predicated upon the concepts of sensory thresholds, they cannot be applied to the study of price perception, since price is a nonsensory dimension. An alternative approach to the study of the psychophysics of price is presented which depends upon direct consumer estimates of subjective magnitude. The implications of this approach for future research are discussed.

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© 2015 Academy of Marketing Science

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White, J.D., Vilmain, J.A. (2015). The Psychophysics of Price: A Critique of the Weber-Fechner Approach in Consumer Behavior. In: Malhotra, N. (eds) Proceedings of the 1986 Academy of Marketing Science (AMS) Annual Conference. Developments in Marketing Science: Proceedings of the Academy of Marketing Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-11101-8_7

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