Abstract
Informed by consumer behaviour theories, this study aims to provide a quantitative review of the effect of four selected design atmospherics – colour, lighting, store-layout, and product display – on three shopping outcomes – approach behaviour, behavioural intentions, and emotional states in retail, service, and online settings. Methodologically, 76-independent articles were analysed using both subgroup and meta-analytic regression analyses from 1980–2019. Results showed that product display yields the highest ratings on shopping outcomes (r = 0.28), followed by colour (r = 0.24), layout (r = 0.23), and lighting (r = 0.22). Moreover, findings divulged that the aggregate effect of design atmospherics on behavioural intentions (r = 0.32) is larger than on approach behaviour (r = 0.22) and on emotional states (r = 0.21). The moderator analysis unveiled that shopping setting, experimental design, store format, and study design significantly account for between-study variance. These results offer useful insights regarding future research avenues and underline relevant managerial implications for designing and managing physical stores, services, and e-commerce websites.