Amid A Blizzard Of Discounts, ‘The Thrill Of The Hunt’ : NPR
Economists have a name for the thrill of the deal that spurs many people on, sometimes obsessively. They call it “transaction utility.”
There’s often a pleasure from getting a good deal over and above just getting the product.
“There’s often a pleasure from getting a good deal over and above just getting the product,” says Lars Perner, an assistant professor of clinical marketing at the University of Southern California. “It almost gives us a license to buy things we would not have otherwise bought.”
Cynthia Jasper, a consumer science professor at the University of Wisconsin, warns that for a certain segment of customers, playing the discount game can cross the line into addiction.