Lighting in retail environments: Atmosphere perception in the real world

Abstract

Although ambient lighting and atmosphere are intuitively related, there is a paucity of empirical, naturalistic data supporting such a relation. The objective of this study was to investigate the contribution of lighting in evoking an atmosphere in the real world, amongst the extensive set of other cues available there. In a field study involving 57 clothing stores, lighting attributes (e.g. brightness, contrast, glare and sparkle) and context (i.e. the shop’s interior) were assessed and quantified independently. These data were then used to predict four dimensions of perceived atmosphere in hierarchical regression analyses. Lighting attributes and interior qualities were both related to perceived atmosphere. This indicated that, even given the substantial contribution of design elements in retail environments, lighting plays a role in evoking atmosphere.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Fleischer S. , Krueger H. , Schierz C. Effect of brightness distribution and light colours on office staff : Proceedings of the 9th European Lighting Conference Lux Europa , Reykjavik, Iceland, 2001 .

Knez I. Effects of indoor lighting on mood and cognition. Journal of Environmental Psychology 1995; 15: 39-51.

Hygge S. , Knez I. Effects of noise, heat and indoor lighting on affect and cognitive performance . Journal of Environmental Psychology 2001 ; 21: 291-299.

Knez I. , Enmarker I. Effects of office lighting on mood and cognitive performance and a gender effect in work-related judgment. Environment and Behavior 1998; 4: 580-594.

Hawkes RJ , Loe DL , Rowlands E. A note towards the understanding of lighting quality. Journal of the Illuminating Engineering Society 1979; 8: 111-120.

Flynn JE , Spencer TJ , Martyniuk O. , Hendrick C. Interim study of procedures for investigating the effect of light on impression and behavior. Journal of the Illuminating Engineering Society 1973; 3: 87-94.

Veitch JA , Newsham GR Lighting quality and energy-efficiency effects on task performance, mood, health, satisfaction and comfort. Journal of the Illuminating Engineering Society 1998; 27: 107-129.

Flynn JE Lighting-design decisions as interventions in human visual space. In: Nasar JL , editor. Environmental Aesthetics: Theory, Research and Applications. New York : Cambridge University Press, 1992 : 156-170.

Houser KW , Tiller DK , Bernecker CA , Mistrick RG The subjective response to linear fluorescent direct/indirect lighting systems . Lighting Research and Technology 2002; 34: 243-264.

10.

Bitner MJ Servicescapes: the impact of physical surroundings on customers and employees . Journal of Marketing 1992; 56: 57-71.

11.

Donovan RJ , Rossiter JR Store atmosphere: an experimental psychology approach. Journal of Retailing 1982; 58: 34-57.

12.

Bitner MJ Evaluating service encounters: the effects of physical surroundings and employee responses. Journal of Marketing 1990; 54: 69-82.

13.

Donovan RJ , Rossiter JR , Marcoolyn G. , Nesdale A. Store atmosphere and purchasing behavior. Journal of Retailing 1994; 70: 283-294.

14.

Berman B. , Evans JR Retail Management : A Strategic Approach, 6th Edition. NJ: Prentice Hall International. 1995.

15.

Turley LW , Milliman RE Atmospheric effects on shopping behaviour: A review of the experimental evidence . Journal of Business Research 2000 ; 49: 193-211.

16.

Baker J. , Parasuraman A. , Grewal D. , Vos GB The influence of multiple store environment cues on perceived merchandise value and patronage intentions. Journal of Marketing 2002; 66: 120-141.

17.

Mattila AS , Wirtz J. Congruency of scent and music as a driver of in-store evaluations and behaviour . Journal of Retailing 2001 ; 77: 273-289.

18.

Russell JA , Mehrabian A. Environmental variables in consumer research. Journal of Consumer Research 1976; 3: 62-63.

19.

Kaplan S. Aesthetics, affect and cognition. Environment and Behavior 1987; 19: 3-32.

20.

Nasar JL The evaluative image of places. In: Walsh WB , Craik KH , Price RH , editors. Person-Environment Psychology. 2nd Edition. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2000: 117-168.

21.

Berlyne DE Aesthetics and Psychobiology. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts, 1971.

22.

Ulrich RS Aesthetics and affective response to natural environment. In: Altman I , Wohlwill JF , editors. Behavior and the Natural Environment. Human Behavior and the Environment, Advances in Theory and Research. Vol. 6, New York: Plenum, 1983: 85-125.

23.

Nasar JL New developments in aesthetics for urban design. In: Moore GT , Marans RW , editors. Advances in Environment, Behavior and Design. Vol. 4, New York: Plenum Press , 1997: 149-193.

24.

Gilboa S. , Rafaeli A. Store environment, emotions and approach behavior: applying environmental aesthetics to retailing. The International Review of Retail, Distribution and Consumer Research 2003; 13: 195-211.

25.

Black MB On formal ethnographic procedures. American Anthropologist 1963; 65: 1347-1351.

26.

Abdi H. , Valentin D. Multiple correspondence analysis. In: Salkind NJ , editor. Encyclopedia of Measurement and Statistics . Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 2007: 651-657.

27.

Greenacre M. From simple to multiple correspondence analysis. In: Greenacre M , Blasius J , editors. Multiple Correspondence Analysis and Related Methods. London: Chapman and Hall/ CRC , 2006: 41-75.

28.

Greenacre MJ Theory and Applications of Correspondence Analysis. London : Academic Press, 1984.

29.

Coxon APM. Sorting Data: Collection and Analysis. Quantitative Applications in the Social Sciences. Vol. 127, California : Sage Publications, 1999.

30.

Tullis T. , Wood L.

How many users are enough for a card-sorting study?

Proceedings of the UPA’2004, Minneapolis, MN, 2004.

31.

Kidwell DK , Martin S. A case study in cluster analysis for intranet organization. In Ambler A , Graham K , Jenson P , editors. Proceedings of the 2nd International Workshop on Engineering Management for Applied Technology. Los Alamitos, CA: IEEE Computer Society, 2001: 57-64.

32.

Boyce PR Human Factors in Lighting, 2nd Edition. London: Taylor and Francis, 2003 .

33.

Craik KH , Feimer NR Environmental assessment. In: Stokols D , Altman I , editors. Handbook of Environmental Psychology. New York: Wiley, 1987: 891-918.

34.

Küller R. Environmental assessment from a neuropsychological perspective. In: Gärling T , Evans GW , editors. Environment, Cognition, and Action: An Integrated Approach. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991: 111-147.

35.

Vogels Imlc. Atmospheric metrics: development of a tool to quantify experienced atmosphere . In: Westerink JHDH , Ouwerkerk M , Overbeek TJM , Pasveer WF , Ruyter B , editors. Probing Experiences: From Assessment of User Emotions and Behavior to Development of Products. Dordrecht: Springer , 2008: 25-41.