Two Routes to Luxury: A Dual-Route Model of Attitude Formation Integrating Cognitive and Emotional Appeals with the Theory of Planned Behaviour

Luxury consumption research has produced a rich but structurally incomplete account of how consumers come to evaluate luxury products favourably. Value-based traditions have enumerated the dimensions along which luxury is perceived, and behavioural-intention traditions have modelled the path from attitude to purchase, yet the two literatures have developed in parallel. The outcome is a work that explains what consumers value in luxury and how intention converts into behaviour, but leaves a gap in explaining how different market appeals form different attitudes. This paper develops a dual-route model of luxury attitude formation that addresses this gap by proposing the two distinct routes to luxury attitude: a cognitive route, in which attitude is constructed from belief-based rational evaluations of brand image, perceived quality, perceived value and utilitarian benefit; and an emotional route, in which attitude is constructed from affect-based, experiential and symbolic responses including brand love, hedonic motivation, self-expressiveness and affectively-framed communication. The dual-route architecture has extended the Theory of Planned Behavior by incorporating attitude as a dual-origin construct and by proposing ten propositions. The paper contributes a process-level theory of luxury attitude formation, extends the Theory of Planned Behaviour by disaggregating its most predictive antecedent, and offers a testable research agenda with operationalisation guidance.

Luxury Consumption, Cognitive Appeal, Emotional Appeal, Attitude, Theory Of Planned Behaviour, Emerging Markets

1. Ajzen, I. (1991). The theory of planned behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50(2), 179–211. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

2. Ajzen, I. (2011). The theory of planned behaviour: Reactions and reflections. Psychology & Health, 26(9), 1113–1127. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

3. Akarsu, T. N., Shaikh, S., & Maity, M. (2025). Luxury value perceptions and consumer outcomes: A meta-analysis. Psychology & Marketing, 42(1), 193–213. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

4. Amatulli, C., De Angelis, M., & Donato, C. (2020). An investigation on the effectiveness of hedonic versus utilitarian message appeals in luxury product communication. Psychology & Marketing, 37(4), 523–534. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

5. Amatulli, C., & Guido, G. (2012). Externalised vs. internalised consumption of luxury goods: Propositions and implications for luxury retail marketing. The International Review of Retail, Distribution and Consumer Research, 22(2), 189–207. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

6. Athwal, N., Wells, V. K., Carrigan, M., & Henninger, C. E. (2019). Sustainable luxury marketing: A synthesis and research agenda. International Journal of Management Reviews, 21(4), 405–426. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

7. Batra, R., Ahuvia, A., & Bagozzi, R. P. (2012). Brand love. Journal of Marketing, 76(2), 1–16. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

8. Carroll, B. A., & Ahuvia, A. C. (2006). Some antecedents and outcomes of brand love. Marketing Letters, 17(2), 79–89. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

9. Conner, M., & Armitage, C. J. (1998). Extending the theory of planned behavior: A review and avenues for further research. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 28(15), 1429–1464. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

10. Crites, S. L., Fabrigar, L. R., & Petty, R. E. (1994). Measuring the affective and cognitive properties of attitudes: Conceptual and methodological issues. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 20(6), 619–634. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

11. Dubois, D., Jung, S., & Ordabayeva, N. (2021). The psychology of luxury consumption. Current Opinion in Psychology, 39, 82–87. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

12. Edwards, K. (1990). The interplay of affect and cognition in attitude formation and change. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 59(2), 202–216. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

13. Fabrigar, L. R., & Petty, R. E. (1999). The role of the affective and cognitive bases of attitudes in susceptibility to affectively and cognitively based persuasion. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 25(3), 363–381. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

14. Fishbein, M., & Ajzen, I. (2010). Predicting and changing behavior: The reasoned action approach. Psychology Press. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

15. Han, Y. J., Nunes, J. C., & Drèze, X. (2010). Signaling status with luxury goods: The role of brand prominence. Journal of Marketing, 74(4), 15–30. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

16. Henseler, J., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2015). A new criterion for assessing discriminant validity in variance-based structural equation modeling. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 43(1), 115–135. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

17. Holmqvist, J., Diaz Ruiz, C., & Peñaloza, L. (2020). Moments of luxury: Hedonic escapism as a luxury experience. Journal of Business Research, 116, 503–513. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

18. Jain, S., & Khan, M. N. (2017). Measuring the impact of beliefs on luxury buying behavior in an emerging market: Empirical evidence from India. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, 21(3), 341–360. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

19. Jain, S., Khan, M. N., & Mishra, S. (2017). Understanding consumer behavior regarding luxury fashion goods in India based on the theory of planned behavior. Journal of Asia Business Studies, 11(1), 4–21. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

20. Kapferer, J.-N., & Michaut-Denizeau, A. (2020). Are millennials really more sensitive to sustainable luxury? A cross-generational international comparison of sustainability consciousness when buying luxury. Journal of Brand Management, 27(1), 35–47. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

21. Kapferer, J.-N., & Valette-Florence, P. (2019). How self-success drives luxury demand: An integrated model of luxury growth and country comparisons. Journal of Business Research, 102, 273–287. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

22. Kapferer, J.-N., & Valette-Florence, P. (2021). Which consumers believe luxury must be expensive and why? A cross-cultural comparison of motivations. Journal of Business Research, 132, 301–313. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

23. Keller, K. L. (1993). Conceptualizing, measuring, and managing customer-based brand equity. Journal of Marketing, 57(1), 1–22. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

24. Ohanian, R. (1990). Construction and validation of a scale to measure celebrity endorsers’ perceived expertise, trustworthiness, and attractiveness. Journal of Advertising, 19(3), 39–52. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

25. Okada, E. M. (2005). Justification effects on consumer choice of hedonic and utilitarian goods. Journal of Marketing Research, 42(1), 43–53. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

26. Perugini, M., & Bagozzi, R. P. (2001). The role of desires and anticipated emotions in goal-directed behaviours: Broadening and deepening the theory of planned behaviour. British Journal of Social Psychology, 40(1), 79–98. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

27. Petty, R. E., & Cacioppo, J. T. (1986). The elaboration likelihood model of persuasion. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 19, 123–205. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

28. Puntoni, S., Reczek, R. W., Giesler, M., & Botti, S. (2021). Consumers and artificial intelligence: An experiential perspective. Journal of Marketing, 85(1), 131–151. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

29. Samson, A., & Voyer, B. G. (2012). Two minds, three ways: Dual system and dual process models in consumer psychology. AMS Review, 2(2–4), 48–71. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

30. Shiv, B., & Fedorikhin, A. (1999). Heart and mind in conflict: The interplay of affect and cognition in consumer decision making. Journal of Consumer Research, 26(3), 278–292. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

31. Shukla, P. (2012). The influence of value perceptions on luxury purchase intentions in developed and emerging markets. International Marketing Review, 29(6), 574–596. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

32. Shukla, P., & Purani, K. (2012). Comparing the importance of luxury value perceptions in cross-national contexts. Journal of Business Research, 65(10), 1417–1424. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

33. Shukla, P., & Rosendo-Rios, V. (2021). Intra and inter-country comparative effects of symbolic motivations on luxury purchase intentions in emerging markets. International Business Review, 30(1), 101768. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

34. Sweeney, J. C., & Soutar, G. N. (2001). Consumer perceived value: The development of a multiple item scale. Journal of Retailing, 77(2), 203–220. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

35. Vigneron, F., & Johnson, L. W. (2004). Measuring perceptions of brand luxury. Journal of Brand Management, 11(6), 484–506. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

36. Voss, K. E., Spangenberg, E. R., & Grohmann, B. (2003). Measuring the hedonic and utilitarian dimensions of consumer attitude. Journal of Marketing Research, 40(3), 310–320. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

37. Wiedmann, K.-P., Hennigs, N., & Siebels, A. (2009). Value-based segmentation of luxury consumption behavior. Psychology & Marketing, 26(7), 625–651. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

38. Zhang, B., & Kim, J.-H. (2013). Luxury fashion consumption in China: Factors affecting attitude and purchase intention. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 20(1), 68–79. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

• Assessment of the Role of Artificial Intelligence in Repositioning TVET for Economic Development in Nigeria
• Teachers’ Use of Assure Model Instructional Design on Learners’ Problem Solving Efficacy in Secondary Schools in Bungoma County, Kenya
• “E-Booksan Ang Kaalaman”: Development, Validation, and Utilization of Electronic Book in Academic Performance of Grade 9 Students in Social Studies
• Analyzing EFL University Students’ Academic Speaking Skills Through Self-Recorded Video Presentation
• Major Findings of The Study on Total Quality Management in Teachers’ Education Institutions (TEIs) In Assam – An Evaluative Study