Dynamic Expectation–Satisfaction Relationship in Sustainable Experiences with Product: A Comparative Study of Durable Goods, FMCG, and Digital Products

Zhenhua Wu, Kenta Ono and Yuting Wu ()
Additional contact information
Zhenhua Wu: Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Chiba University, Yayoicho 1-33, Inage-ku, Chiba 263-8522, Japan
Kenta Ono: Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Chiba University, Yayoicho 1-33, Inage-ku, Chiba 263-8522, Japan
Yuting Wu: School of Art, Soochow University, No. 199 Ren’ai Road, Suzhou 215123, China

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 15, 1-20

Abstract: This study adopts a dynamic Expectancy–Disconfirmation framework to investigate the evolving nature of user satisfaction across three product categories: durable goods, fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), and digital products. A 25-day longitudinal experiment involving 128 participants was conducted, during which users engaged with their most recently purchased products and provided repeated subjective evaluations over time. The findings reveal dynamic changes in the influence of expectations and perceived performance on satisfaction throughout the product usage cycle. For durable goods and FMCG, both expectations and perceived performance gradually declined, accompanied by a weakening effect of expectations on satisfaction. In contrast, digital products exhibited greater volatility, lacking a stable experiential baseline and resulting in greater fluctuations in satisfaction trajectories. Moreover, external contextual and emotional factors were found to play a more significant role in shaping satisfaction with physical products, beyond the scope of the traditional expectancy–performance model. These insights offer theoretical and managerial implications for sustainable product and experience design. In particular, they highlight the importance of implementing experience-stabilizing strategies in digital consumption contexts to support user well-being and enhance continuous product utilization, thereby maximizing product potential and reducing waste.

Keywords: expectancy–disconfirmation theory; dynamic satisfaction; durable goods; FMCG; digital products; product experience; sustainable consumption behavior (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/15/7045/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/15/7045/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:15:p:7045-:d:1716641

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().