“Comprendere l’immersione del consumatore nell’esperienza: il potere dell’introspezione"

Today consumption is considered one of the fundamental pillars in the construction of individual identity. As a result, the meaning of life is primarily defined by the various consumption experiences in which individuals immerse themselves. Indeed, the concept of immersion has become an important issue in the literature on consumer behaviour. The present paper seeks to contribute to this stream of research by furthering the understanding of immersion in consumption experiences. First, we present a model detailing the immersion process as a means to access subjective experiences which with other market and non-market experiences contribute to the construction of consumer identity. The main objective of the paper is then to present one of the research methods used to analyse immersion in the consumption experience: subjective introspection. The discussion involves a critical review of the literature and identifies the main decisions necessary in applying this methodology. A case study on introspection in a surfing experience illustrates the approach. Our conclusions show the progressive integration of introspection with other methods, highlighting their advantages and limitations in understanding immersion in the consumption experience.