Affective Shifts: Emotion, Identity, and Consumer Behavior in a Changing Digital World
A special issue of Behavioral Sciences (ISSN 2076-328X). This special issue belongs to the section "Behavioral Economics".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2026 | Viewed by 4
Special Issue Editors
Interests: marketing strategy and management; branding strategy; consumer psychology; the psychology of decision making
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Emerging technologies such as AI, social robots, and immersive virtual environments are creating new emotional interfaces between humans, brands, and machines. Consumers increasingly interact with digital agents and virtual worlds, where emotions are simulated, mirrored, or co-constructed through algorithmic cues. From emotionally responsive chatbots to the affective experiences embedded in video games, augmented reality, or virtual reality, technology is both shaping and reflecting the emotional fabric of consumption. These interactions raise important questions around authenticity, trust, wellbeing, affect sensitivity, and how various emotions shape decision making when filtered through artificial or hybrid agents.
At the same time, the emotional lives of consumers are evolving in a world where cultural boundaries are blurred through global content ecosystems. Platforms such as Netflix, TikTok, and YouTube have accelerated cross-cultural emotional exchanges, enabling viewers to feel, interpret, and express emotion across languages and contexts. These global affective flows are amplified by the ways in which the digital-native generation engages with content and brands, often through highly interactive, personalized, and emotionally resonant formats. In fact, the mere ubiquitous presence of such technologies may have influenced how we experience, regulate, and even define emotions in ways that differ markedly from previous generations.
For this Special Issue of Behavioral Sciences, we invite research that centers on emotion as a driver of consumer behavior in this new reality—not just mediated through technology but fundamentally reshaped by its presence. We welcome empirical and theoretical contributions exploring affect in responses to AI and virtual interfaces, in cross-cultural contexts, and among digitally native consumers. Together, these works will advance our understanding of how emotions continue to guide, disrupt, and define consumer experiences in today’s marketplace.
Prof. Dr. Tamar Avnet
Dr. Travis Tae Oh
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- emotions and affect
- technology
- online culture
- social identity
- consumer behavior
- consumer digital journey
- social and digital media
- consumer wellbeing
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