Measuring the hedonic and utilitarian dimensions of attitudes toward product categories

Abstract

A bidimensional (hedonic/utilitarian) approach to understanding consumer attitudes was recently introduced by Batra and Ahtola (1991); they reported three construct validation studies and proposed a set of items to measure the construct(s). In the present paper, the Batra and Ahtola (1991) scales are applied to a wide variety of product categories. Results of the present series of measure validation studies suggest that there are hedonic and utilitarian elements comprising attitudes toward product categories and that, although problematic, the Batra and Ahtola (1991) scale items are a useful first step in measuring these components.