Human factors in retail environments: a review

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to present a comprehensive review of the body of literature concerning human factors in retail environments and their influence on consumers. Additionally, the authors identify the research gaps in the literature and suggest directions for future research.Desig...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of retail & distribution management 2012-10, Vol.40 (11), p.818-841
Main Authors: Kim, Jae-Eun, Kim, Jieun
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Customer services
Dependent variables
Electronic commerce
Emotions
Influence
Marketing
Patronage
Retail stores
Retailing industry
Shopping
Studies
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Summary:Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to present a comprehensive review of the body of literature concerning human factors in retail environments and their influence on consumers. Additionally, the authors identify the research gaps in the literature and suggest directions for future research.Design methodology approach - This study uses qualitative approaches to provide a comprehensive review of human factors in retail environments.Findings - The review is synthesised based on two main categories: the effects of other customers and the effects of sales associates. The influence of other customers, including the number of customers and social relations, is a significant source of human-related environmental cues. In addition, existing studies support the importance of the number of sales associates, sales associates' physical attributes, and their behavioural characteristics observed in stores.Practical implications - This study suggests that retailers need to effectively manage, control and manipulate human-related environmental factors in order to generate a positive influence on consumers' perceptions towards stores and their behaviours.Originality value - This study provides a conceptual framework that integrates various human-related factors in retail environments and their significant insights in the effective management of these factors identified for researchers and retailers.
ISSN:0959-0552
1758-6690
DOI:10.1108/09590551211267593