From E-Commerce to the Metaverse: A Neuroscientific Analysis of Digital Consumer Behavior

Area of Science:

• Consumer neuroscience
• Digital marketing
• Human-computer interaction

Background:

• Growing interest in digital consumer behavior, particularly in immersive platforms like the metaverse.
• Consumer neuroscience offers a unique lens to study emotions and cognitions in digital environments.
• Need to understand the differences between metaverse and traditional e-commerce shopping experiences.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the emotional and cognitive aspects of shopping in the metaverse versus traditional e-commerce.
• To investigate neurophysiological and self-report differences between these platforms.
• To provide insights for improving metaverse shopping experiences.

Main Methods:

• Utilized neuroscience techniques: electroencephalography (EEG), skin conductance (SC), and blood volume pulse (BVP).
• Participants completed identical purchase tasks on a metaverse platform (Second Life) and an e-commerce website.
• Post-task questionnaires assessed perceived enjoyment, informativeness, ease of use, cognitive effort, and flow.

Main Results:

• Metaverse shopping (Second Life) showed greater cognitive engagement but was more mentally demanding, involving higher workload and memorization.
• No significant positive emotional response was elicited in the metaverse, leading to a poorer overall shopping experience compared to e-commerce.
• Differences were observed at both neurophysiological and self-report levels across different stages of the purchase process.

Conclusions:

• The metaverse offers higher cognitive engagement but requires significant mental effort, potentially hindering positive emotional outcomes in shopping.
• Companies should analyze and enhance cognitive and emotional aspects to improve the metaverse consumer experience.
• This pilot study highlights the potential of consumer neuroscience for metaverse research and development.