Biophilic Sounds: Enhancing Healthy Food and Beverage Selection
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Phillips, Megan
Rech, Eduardo
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Emerald
Abstract
Purpose
Retailers and service providers are increasingly adopting biophilic design elements to enhance the shopping experience and shape customers emotions. While the use of biophilic sounds such as natural soundscapes or nature-inspired auditory cues has been suggested to promote relaxation and boost sales of healthy foods, actual effects remain underexplored. This research investigates how biophilic soundscapes (symbolic, indirect nature-inspired sounds) influence healthy food and beverage choices, and sales outcomes.
Design/methodology/approach
We conduct three experimental studies, a field experiment in an actual supermarket, a laboratory experiment using a virtual store and an online experiment.
Findings
Our findings advance biophilic servicescape literature by highlighting the role of biophilic symbolic sound in utilitarian environments such as supermarkets. Using the stress recovery theory and regulatory depletion theory as our theoretical lens, we demonstrate that biophilic sounds, on their own, have a calming effect (increased relaxation), which in turn encourages consumer choices toward healthier options.
Originality/value
We offer new insights for service managers on how to create value for consumers by supporting their health and well-being while also achieving positive managerial outcomes, such as designing and delivering more relaxing customer experiences.
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Keywords
35 Commerce, Management, Tourism and Services, 3503 Business Systems In Context, 3506 Marketing, 3.1 Primary prevention interventions to modify behaviours or promote wellbeing, 1503 Business and Management, 1505 Marketing, 1506 Tourism, Marketing, 3507 Strategy, management and organisational behaviour
Source
Journal of Service Management, ISSN: 1757-5818 (Print); 1757-5826 (Online), Emerald, 37(6), 249-270. doi: 10.1108/josm-10-2025-0530
Rights statement
Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0)
© Megan Phillips and Eduardo Rech. Published by Emerald Publishing Limited. Open access.
© Megan Phillips and Eduardo Rech. Published by Emerald Publishing Limited. Open access.
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Creative Commons license
Except where otherwise noted, this item's license is described as Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0)