EXPRESS: Who Will I Be With(out) You? Consequences of Perceived Romantic Relationship Status Stability on Product Rentals

The current research identifies perceived romantic relationship status stability (RSS)—the degree to which one anticipates their current relationship status to remain unchanged in the foreseeable future—as a significant factor that impacts consumers’ likelihood of renting products. Analyses of field data and experimental studies reveal that low (vs. high) RSS increases consumers’ preference for renting, but not purchasing, products. The effect holds both for low-risk products consumed individually (i.e., when a romantic partner or relationship status is less likely to matter in the acquisition decision) and for high-risk acquisitions such as owning vs. renting a home across representative samples of the US population. The effect occurs because low RSS, an indicator of lower perceived self-concept continuity, heightens the motivation for self-expansion. In contrast to purchasing, renting is a flexible and low-commitment acquisition method that helps consumers self-expand by exploring new products while not inhibiting future explorations. As such, the heightened motivation for self-expansion caused by low RSS increases consumers’ preference for renting but does not influence their preference for purchasing. Managerially, our findings present marketers with insights on to whom and/or when to provide rental versus purchase options, and how to communicate these options to different consumer segments.