It's not mine: Anthropomorphism attenuates the effect of psychological ownership on product-to-self judgment

Previous literature has shown that consumers often see themselves as possessing the characteristics of products they own, referring to product-to-self judgment effect. For example, consumers perceive themselves as more innovative after owning an innovative product. The current research identifies and demonstrates a boundary condition for this effect, showing that product anthropomorphism lowers the tendency for consumers to judge themselves in assimilation with the traits and abilities of the product. We further demonstrate that this moderating effect arises because consumers are less likely to classify anthropomorphized product into the “Self” category, for they see the product as an entity like other people. Three experiments provide supportive evidence for this moderating effect and the underlying mechanism. Overall, our research contributes to the literature by uncovering the process of how product anthropomorphism may hinder consumers from using products to express themselves, thus providing implications for promoting products that focus on enhancing consumer self-expression. © 2023 Wiley Periodicals LLC.