The Effect of Packaging Perceptual Cues on Consumer Disposal Behavior of Partially Consumed Products

This article finds that aesthetic packaging perceptual cues influence consumer premature disposal behavior of partially consumed products. Specifically, in the context of bottled water, we find that the visual contrast between the label placement and the unfinished remaining product impacts consumer disposal intentions: the larger the contrast, the greater the likelihood that the consumer will throw away the partially consumed product. Drawing on the reference-dependent perception literature, we find that perceptual bias induced by the juxtaposition between label placement and remaining water drives the effect.