Broaden-and-build theory in marketing research: a comprehensive systematic literature review using the TCCM framework Open Access

Marketing science is ever-evolving, constantly seeking to understand the causes of consumer behavior (Gilal et al., 2023). Integral to this pursuit, the roots of many prevalent theories in marketing science are deeply embedded in psychology. Theories such as self-determination theory (SDT) (Deci and Ryan, 2000), terror management theory (Rosenblatt et al., 1989) and socioemotional selectivity theory (Carstensen, 1995) illustrate this close relationship. Consequently, the trajectory of marketing has often mirrored developments in psychology.

Initially, traditional psychology focused predominantly on negative emotions due to their salient evolutionary significance (Fredrickson, 2013; Fredrickson et al., 2000). For example, emotions like fear and disgust were essential for survival, helping our ancestors avoid danger and harmful substances (Doherty and Ruehle, 2020). Over time, however, psychological research expanded to include positive emotions. Barbara Fredrickson’s seminal work in 1998 (Fredrickson, 1998), which proposed broaden-and-build theory (BBT) tenets, marked a significant shift. Fredrickson posited that positive emotions broaden cognitive functioning and build personal resources, placing individuals on a positive growth trajectory (Fredrickson et al., 2003, 2008). This perspective shifted the focus toward understanding the long-term benefits of positive emotions, which has gradually permeated marketing research.

Emotions have long been studied in marketing, but the focus, similar to psychology, has traditionally been on negative emotions and their impact on consumption (for a review, see Khatoon and Rehman, 2021; Sharma et al., 2023). This began to change post-2000, with a growing body of research exploring the implications of positive emotions through the lens of BBT (refer to Section 4.1 for a detailed analysis of this trend). The rise of studies on positive emotions in marketing has been facilitated by BBT, which deals exclusively with positive emotions. This new lens has enabled marketers to explore the benefits of positive emotions more thoroughly. Positive emotional experiences are recognized for enhancing sustainable consumption, loyalty and brand perception (Hartmann and Apaolaza-Ibáñez, 2008; Mostafa and Kasamani, 2021). These emotions foster long-term customer retention, stimulate creativity and drive adaptive consumer behavior, providing a competitive edge in the marketplace (Armenta et al., 2017; Langley, 2018).

The popularity of BBT transcends various fields. In 2024 alone, it has been used in numerous diverse contexts, such as learning and motivation (Lv, 2024), interpersonal aggression (Chang and Caino, 2024), willingness to communicate in a foreign and second language (Yu and Ma, 2024), hospitality and tourism (Mehta et al., 2024) and sports management (Roslan and Cho, 2024). Despite the growing recognition of BBT’s significance, its application in marketing remains significantly underexplored. This oversight may be due to marketing scholars’ unfamiliarity with BBT’s concepts or the perceived complexity of its application.

Existing literature reviews explore other theories in the consumer behavior and marketing domain, such as SDT (Gilal et al., 2019), theory of planned behavior (Rozenkowska, 2023), organismic integration theory (Gilal et al., 2022) and basic psychological need theory (Gilal et al., 2023). However, no comprehensive study has presented how BBT has been used to explore consumer behavior within various marketing contexts. Understanding the role of positive emotions as conceptualized by BBT is imperative for developing effective marketing strategies. Therefore, this systematic literature review (SLR) aims to consolidate knowledge on BBT’s application in marketing, uncover new avenues for leveraging positive emotions to enhance consumer engagement and brand loyalty and bridge the theoretical gap in current research.

Against this backdrop, the primary objective of this SLR is to present a detailed analysis of how researchers have used, adapted and extended BBT within the marketing context. Specifically, this review seeks to:

• Assess the current state of research on applying BBT in marketing.

• Identify the theoretical frameworks integrated with BBT in marketing and the methodologies used for these integrations and highlight untapped theoretical perspectives and research methods for future exploration.

• Examine which facets of BBT in marketing have received attention in diverse marketing contexts and identify underexplored domains that necessitate further scholarly inquiry.

By synthesizing and analyzing the extant literature on BBT within marketing, this SLR aims to illuminate the theory’s full potential, encouraging its broader application and understanding in the complex landscape of modern marketing. Theoretically, this review enriches the understanding of BBT within the marketing domain, offering a unique perspective on how positive emotions influence consumer behavior and decision-making. By juxtaposing BBT with other emotional and psychological theories, this paper highlights its distinct contributions and provides a deeper understanding of the emotional underpinnings of marketing strategies. Practically, this SLR offers invaluable insights for marketing practitioners, demonstrating how BBT can be leveraged to enhance consumer engagement, brand loyalty and overall marketing effectiveness.

This review uses the SPAR-4-SLR framework, selected for its comprehensive coverage and methodological rigor (Paul et al., 2021). In addition, we used the TCCM framework proposed by Paul and Rosado-Serrano (2019) to summarize the literature and develop future research directions. The paper is structured as follows: Section 1 introduces the main topic and outlines the research objectives. Section 2 places BBT within the broader theoretical context of emotions in marketing. Section 3 details the methodology used for this SLR. Section 4 provides an in-depth analysis of existing studies on BBT, including their geographical scope and methodologies. Section 5 proposes a future research agenda using the TCCM framework and Section 6 discusses the theoretical and managerial implications. Finally, Section 7 concludes the review.

This section aims to elucidate the prevailing theories used to explore the role of emotions in the marketing literature and to position BBT within this corpus.

In the field of dynamic marketing, understanding the role of emotions is pivotal. Various theories have been developed to explore how emotions influence consumer behavior, each offering unique insights crucial for effective marketing strategies.

Mood management theory. Mood, a less intense but longer-lasting emotional state than specific emotions, plays a significant role in consumer behavior. The mood management theory, developed by Clark and Isen (1982) and expanded by Zillmann (1988), posits that individuals strive to improve their mood states, leading to specific consumer behaviors. This theory has been instrumental in shaping marketing strategies that manipulate environmental factors, such as music and indoor environmental quality, to influence consumer mood (Ahlbom et al., 2023; Dang et al., 2021).

Feelings as information theory. Introduced by Schwarz and Clore (1983) and expanded by Pham (1998), this theory suggests that individuals use their current emotional states as cues for decision-making. It has informed marketing practices by demonstrating how emotional responses can shape consumer perceptions, behaviors and attitudes toward products and brands (Chiang et al., 2022; Zanger et al., 2022).

Mood congruency theory. Proposed by Blaney (1986), this theory contends that individuals’ judgments align with their current mood states. It has been used to explain how mood congruency influences memory and subsequent behavioral outcomes (Talamini et al., 2022).

Circumplex model of affect. Developed by Russell (1980), this model categorizes emotions on the valence and arousal axes. This model is crucial in the marketing literature for organizing and analyzing consumer emotions, preferences and responses. Researchers apply the circumplex model to assess the impacts of emotions in various contexts, such as social decision-making, goal pursuit, music marketing and employee well-being (Ahlbom et al., 2023).

Appraisal tendencies framework. Developed by Lerner and Keltner (2001), this framework broadens the understanding of emotions by considering the cognitive appraisals associated with each emotional state. A focus on cognitive appraisals is applied in marketing literature to explore language use, emotional appeal and interpersonal relationships in various contexts, such as advertising, public service announcements and discourse analysis (Le et al., 2020; Tian and Li, 2021).

Discrete emotion models. These models, rooted in the work of Ekman (1992a, 1992b), consider emotions as unique states evoked by specific stimuli. Discrete emotion models have been used to study the impact of emotions on advertising effectiveness, brand perception and consumer behavior, providing insights for marketers to create emotionally resonant campaigns tailored to specific emotional triggers (Bartholomeyczik et al., 2022; Orth et al., 2020).

Fredrickson’s (2001) BBT differentiates itself in marketing by emphasizing the enduring impact of positive emotions, contrasting with theories focused on immediate emotional effects (Fredrickson, 2001; Fredrickson and Branigan, 2005). It adds a long-term perspective to the study of emotions in marketing, going beyond the immediate focus of theories such as mood congruency. For a comprehensive analysis, please refer to Table A1 in the Supplementary Material (Web Appendix).

In summary, BBT fills a critical conceptual gap in the marketing literature by offering a layered, temporal framework to study the roles of positive emotions in shaping consumer behavior. This unique perspective is essential for comprehending long-term consumer engagement and loyalty in the ever-evolving marketing landscape.

Literature reviews are crucial to academic research, aiding knowledge growth and idea generation (Rozenkowska, 2023). Following Paul and Criado’s (2020) categorization, systematic reviews can be domain-based, method-based, theory-based, meta-analytical or meta-systematic. Theory-based reviews examine the development of specific theories; recent exemplars of such reviews are SDT (Gilal et al., 2019), the theory of planned behavior (Rozenkowska, 2023) and organismic integration theory (Gilal et al., 2022). Our review adopts a theory-based approach to BBT to pinpoint gaps within the literature on positive emotions, specifically as expounded by the BBT, in marketing.

We have used the SPAR-4-SLR protocol, developed by Paul et al. (2021), as it is a rigorous framework for conducting SLRs. This protocol has been widely adopted by prestigious journals including the International Journal of Consumer Studies, International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management and Psychology & Marketing, underscoring its effectiveness in providing state-of-the-art insights and advancing knowledge in the field (Negi and Jaiswal, 2024; Sharma et al., 2023). Therefore, according to SPAR-4-SLR, this SLR comprises three phases: assembling, arranging and assessing the BBT literature. Figure 1 offers an in-depth visual representation of the application of the SPAR-4-SLR framework in this review. Research articles were sourced from the Scopus database, notable for its extensive multidisciplinary coverage in social science (Khan et al., 2024).

The timeframe spans from 2000 to 2023, covering the entire trajectory of BBT research.

The Scopus search targeted “Broaden-and-Build” in the “title, abstract, and keywords” and was narrowed down to articles in the fields of “business, management, and accounting”, “decision sciences” and “psychology”, all published in English (Juliani and de Oliveira, 2016). Articles that were ABDC ranked (A* or A) and ABS ranked (≥ 2) were only chosen for further consideration (Gilal et al., 2019). Each article was scrutinized based on its title, abstract and keywords to determine its relevance to the research question (Paul et al., 2021). Exceptions were made for two seminal papers, namely, Gibbons et al. (2011) and Whelan and Zelenski (2012), because, despite being in “B” category journals, they had impact factors greater than 1.5 and were highly relevant.

The final data set of 394 papers was rigorously assessed and those not aligned with the topic were excluded. This left us with the final set of 75 articles. This review uses the theory context characteristics method (TCCM) framework to structure the literature. The TCCM framework was selected for its ability to provide comprehensive clarity and coverage in domain-based reviews, making it highly valuable and impactful (Negi and Jaiswal, 2024). This structured presentation helps future researchers gain clear insights, enhancing the overall impact and advancement of the field.

An Excel sheet facilitated the documentation of TCCM components across all papers. Beyond mere enumeration, articles were coded by the first author and later substantiated by the second author on multiple attributes, including but not limited to citation count, journal title, methodology, theoretical framework and empirical context. This meticulous approach ensures a holistic, in-depth understanding of BBT’s application and impact.

Our analysis reveals that the application of BBT in scholarly articles has seen a discernible upward trend. The early 2000s marked its beginning, with only a few articles published yearly. However, from 2006 onward, there was a gradual but steady increase in academic interest, culminating in a peak of seven publications in 2016. Post-2016, the theory has maintained its scholarly relevance with a stable number of publications, indicating that its applications and implications continue to be of considerable academic interest. We have illustrated these trends in Figure 2.

Figure 3 provides an insightful quantification of the geographical distribution of scholarly articles that incorporate the BBT. This geographical distribution serves as a call to action for future scholarly endeavors. The overwhelming focus on the USA (35 articles, 46.7%) suggests a need for more geographically diverse studies to validate the universal applicability of BBT. The absence of substantial cross-cultural research (one article, 1.3%) further opens up avenues for multi-country explorations.

Figure 4 provides a distribution of scholarly articles applying BBT across marketing domains. Consumer behavior leads with 43 articles (57.3%), highlighting its significance in the theory’s application. Key themes (see Table A4 – Supplementary Material [Web Appendix]) here include Social and Interpersonal Dynamics (12 articles) and Emotional Triggers and Decision-making (11 articles), followed by Emotional Resilience and Brand Loyalty (10 articles). Notably, Ethical Choices and Sustainability appear underexplored, indicating potential research opportunities.

Services marketing, with 18 articles (24%), follows, where Organizational and Employee Dynamics (nine articles) dominate, supplemented by Customer-Brand Interactions and Emerging Contexts (five and four articles, respectively). These insights reveal the theory’s diverse implementation in services marketing.

Lesser activity is observed in educational marketing and sales (five and four articles, respectively) and tourism and hospitality marketing (four articles), each constituting under 7% of total publications. Surprisingly, digital or social media marketing accounts for only one paper (1.3%), suggesting a ripe area for future research.

Figure 5 serves as a methodological lens into the articles that deploy BBT. Most strikingly, surveys emerge as the go-to methodology, featuring 40 articles constituting approximately 53.3% of the total publications. Experiments are the second most prevalent design, incorporated in 26 articles or roughly 34.7% of the study. This indicates a strong inclination toward empirically testing hypotheses related to BBT, especially where causal relationships are of interest.

In contrast, other methodologies like diary studies and surveys with interviews are far less common, appearing in just four and three articles, respectively. This relative scarcity allows future studies to employ these less-used designs for more nuanced or longitudinal insights. The singular appearance of Field Experiments and Surveys with Experiments in the data set (each contributing just 1.3%) suggests that these are substantially underrepresented approaches that could offer fresh perspectives in applying the BBT.

The analysis reveals (refer Table 1) that structural equation modeling is the most commonly used method, especially in services marketing and consumer behavior. Consumer behavior stands out for its methodological diversity, confirming its central role in marketing research. However, advanced techniques like Bayesian analysis are rarely used, signaling a gap, particularly in emerging domains like Digital Marketing. In Bayesian analysis, prior knowledge is used alongside new data to refine understanding. This adaptability is especially beneficial in the fast-evolving digital marketing field.

Despite the potential of mixed methods to provide nuanced insights, they are underrepresented and primarily found in Educational and Services Marketing.

This section outlines recommendations for marketing researchers seeking to undertake studies grounded in BBT.

In our literature review, we used a comprehensive content analysis akin to the methodologies of Rozenkowska (2023). This approach enabled us to systematically identify prevalent themes and methodological trends in the current body of work. Of the 75 papers reviewed and coded for this analysis, 22 have used other theories in conjunction with BBT. This integration showcases the interdisciplinary application of BBT across various domains within marketing and consumer behavior research. These integrations range from examining leader humor in organizational settings to exploring the impact of gamification on creativity and understanding relationship dynamics through the lens of positive emotions. For an exhaustive comprehension encompassing notable authors, theories coupled with BBT and their respective contributions, refer to Table A2 (Supplementary Material [Web Appendix]).

Exploring BBT alongside specific theoretical frameworks within marketing remains largely unaddressed. This gap presents an opportunity to deepen our understanding of positive emotions in marketing.

First, integrating Prospect Theory could provide insights into how positive emotions affect consumer decisions under uncertainty, potentially reducing risk aversion and fostering more optimistic outcomes (Kahneman and Tversky, 2012; Fredrickson et al., 2008; Fredrickson and Branigan, 2005). Additionally, Reciprocity Theory could enrich this understanding by examining the social dynamics of exchanges, where positive emotions may enhance consumer loyalty through more generous interpretations of social cues (Gouldner, 1960).

Dual-Process Theories of Cognition could further clarify how positive emotions mitigate cognitive biases by differentiating between intuitive and deliberative thinking processes (Evans and Stanovich, 2013). Meanwhile, Flow Theory explains how positive emotions contribute to optimal consumer experiences and heightened satisfaction (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990).

In organizational contexts, Transformational Leadership Theory suggests that positive emotions could motivate staff to improve customer service, enhancing satisfaction and loyalty (Bass and Riggio, 2006). Finally, Attribution Theory explores how positive emotions influence consumers’ perceptions of products or services, completing a comprehensive model that spans decision-making, social interaction, cognitive processing and organizational effectiveness (Weiner, 1985).

These theoretical synergies suggest a progressive and integrated framework for understanding the complex impact of positive emotions on consumer behavior and marketing. For a comprehensive and detailed understanding of the integration of BBT with other theoretical frameworks, please refer to Table A3 (Supplementary Material [Web Appendix]).

We identified a wide variety of variables across the studies. This includes 60 independent variables (see Table A5 – Supplementary Material [Web Appendix]), most notably “Affect” and “Positive Affect”, 72 dependent variables with a focus on aspects like “Job Satisfaction” and “Life Satisfaction”, 36 mediating variables, prominently “Gratitude” and “Life Satisfaction” and 12 moderating variables. This diversity underscores the theory’s extensive influence on understanding various facets of consumer behavior and marketing dynamics.

We explored the domain-specific applications of BBT (Section 4.3, Figure 4). It provided articles across various marketing domains, revealing the predominance of consumer behavior, with 43 articles (57.3%). Building on this foundation, the current section aims to delve deeper into these insights, providing future research directions for each domain.

This analysis systematically categorizes Consumer Behavior into five themes (refer to Table A3 for details – Supplementary Material [Web Appendix]): Self-Identity and Self-Regulation, Emotional Resilience, Emotional Triggers and Decision-Making, Social and Interpersonal Dynamics and Ethical Choices and Sustainability. This structured approach enhances comprehension of the diverse applications within the field.

Self-identity and self-regulation. Johnson and Fredrickson (2005) showcase positive emotions mitigating racial bias, initiating our exploration of BBT’s role in self-identity. Building on this, subsequent studies extend its influence during relationship formation (Waugh and Fredrickson, 2006), ego depletion and moral identity, demonstrating its impact on self-regulation (Pohling et al., 2018; Ren et al., 2010).

Emotional resilience. Fredrickson (2001) establish BBT’s foundation in countering adverse effects with positive emotions. Works by Bridekirk et al. (2016) and Cohn et al. (2009) extend this understanding, linking BBT to life satisfaction and coping mechanisms, emphasizing its pivotal role in emotional resilience over time (Burns et al., 2008; Seaton and Beaumont, 2015).

Emotional triggers and decision-making. Challenging conventions, Bendall and Thompson (2015) align with BBT’s nuanced stance on cognitive broadening. Shukla et al. (2019) illustrate positive affect’s impact on decisions favoring positive expected value, whereas Zhong and Mitchell (2012) extend BBT to long-term well-being influencing hedonic spending. Asebedo et al. (2022) reveal a bidirectional link between positive emotions and net wealth, highlighting BBT’s “build” aspect.

Social and interpersonal dynamics. Nelson (2009) establishes BBT’s role in enhancing cross-cultural empathy. Whelan and Zelenski (2012) find that positive moods foster sociability, aligning with BBT’s “broadening” effects on social bonds. Liu et al. (2016) and Ilies et al. (2020) offer nuanced perspectives on the potential drawbacks of positive emotions, signaling a complex interplay in the BBT framework.

Ethical choices and sustainability. Barclay and Kiefer (2014) extend BBT’s applicability to ethical choices and sustainability, showcasing positive emotions as mediators in approach-related behaviors. This research provides a balanced view by considering negative emotions, contributing to a nuanced understanding of ethical decision-making.

Current research, exemplified by Lin et al. (2016) and Pohling et al. (2018), has initiated the exploration of positive emotions in self-regulation. However, a gap exists in its application to impulse buying. BBT asserts that positive emotions can enhance impulse control, a critical facet of consumer behavior tied to emotional regulation (Fredrickson, 2001; Gross, 2015; Vohs and Faber, 2007). Future investigations should experimentally manipulate positive emotional states to gauge their impact on impulse buying, extending Lin et al.’s (2016) work and potentially using neuroimaging techniques for deeper insights, building upon studies such as Knutson et al. (2007).

Similarly, as seen in Zhou et al. (2022), recent literature has started exploring the role of positive emotions in fostering social connectedness. However, this framework needs an extension to the online retail context. Fredrickson’s BBT suggests positive emotions can expand cognitive capabilities and build lasting social resources (Fredrickson, 2001; Fredrickson and Branigan, 2005). Understanding how positive emotions in online retail translate into customer loyalty and social sharing is crucial. Incorporating the concept of “social capital” for brands, as highlighted by (Nahapiet and Ghoshal, 1998), can offer insights into competitive advantages. Future research should investigate how positive emotions in online retail experiences contribute to tangible social capital metrics, such as brand advocacy or customer lifetime value (Kumar et al., 2010).

Another avenue could be to examine how positive emotions interact with social cues, such as reviews or social proof, in online retail settings to influence purchasing decisions. Neuroimaging techniques, based on the work of Knutson et al. (2007), could offer a more profound understanding of these complex emotional and social dynamics.

The era of big data and artificial intelligence (AI) offers unprecedented opportunities for personalization in marketing. However, the potential to integrate BBT to create emotionally engaging experiences still needs to be explored. Emotions play a critical role in decision-making and BBT suggests that positive emotions can broaden consumers’ thought-action repertoires (Fredrickson, 1998). Therefore, future research should focus on how data analytics can be combined with insights from emotional intelligence to craft personalized experiences that capture attention and broaden consumer behavior meaningfully. This could be an extension of the work of Segon and Booth (2015) on emotional intelligence in the workplace, adapted to the consumer setting.

In digital and social media marketing, BBT is applied innovatively by Kautish and Khare (2022) to AI-enabled services in online shopping. The study explores how AI technologies moderate the relationship between online flow elements and consumer awe experiences, enhancing digital shopping platforms.

BBT’s relevance in educational marketing is evident in its insights into intrinsic motivation, well-being, customer satisfaction and institutional culture.

Intrinsic motivation and well-being. Løvoll et al. (2017) highlight intrinsic motivation’s role in eliciting positive emotions. Huber et al. (2021) connect well-being to unlocking character strengths, emphasizing the need for marketing strategies that reinforce both.

Customer satisfaction as multi-dimensional. Malhotra et al. (2023) integrate BBT with human capital theory, emphasizing customer satisfaction’s diverse outcomes, necessitating marketing strategies beyond transactional benefits.

Emotional regulation and institutional culture. Mao et al. (2021) explore the role of positive emotions in regulating negative emotions. Carlson et al. (2011) stress the importance of a family-friendly institutional culture, guiding the need for emotionally supportive marketing strategies.

Building upon Kautish and Khare’s (2022) insights, future research could further investigate the role of BBT in enhancing user engagement metrics on social media platforms. Understanding how positive emotions influence key metrics and interact with algorithms to amplify user engagement presents an avenue for exploration, integrating insights from emotional contagion in online environments.

Similarly, expanding on Mao et al. (2021), future research has the potential to examine how BBT contributes to improved student retention through positive emotions, offering holistic solutions. Adapting Kautish and Khare’s (2022) work to explore how technology enhances educational environments for positive emotions could provide actionable insights for educational marketing.

Furthermore, based on Malhotra et al. (2023), future studies could explore how BBT informs emotionally resonant branding strategies in education. This exploration aligns with the current shift toward brands offering emotional benefits and providing practical tools for building enduring student relationships.

In the context of digital transformation and the surge in online education, future research could investigate how BBT optimizes the user experience on online educational platforms. Integrating BBT into design and functionality may foster more effective and emotionally enriching learning experiences, aligning with the acknowledged impact of well-designed user experiences on student engagement in online education.

BBT is integral to sales research, illuminating sales performance and customer satisfaction (Lussier and Hartmann, 2017). It showcased BBT’s impact, revealing that psychological resourcefulness, rooted in BBT, positively influences customer-oriented behaviors, mediating sales performance and customer satisfaction. Extending this insight, Lussier et al. (2017) demonstrated that humor, when aligned with BBT, enhances creativity and customer trust, thereby indirectly affecting sales performance.

In a digital context, Sridhar and Lyngdoh (2019) expanded the application of BBT, linking subjective well-being to adaptive selling and sales creativity. This linkage was mediated by coping and moderated by organizational identity. In addition, they pioneered BBT’s application in sales ethics, illustrating how the state of flow influences ethical selling through information sharing.

BBT’s emphasis on cultivating positive emotions for enduring benefits, as demonstrated by Lussier and Hartmann (2017), suggests an avenue for future research. Exploring the mediating role of emotional intelligence between BBT constructs and critical sales metrics could unveil the strategic significance of BBT-enabled emotional intelligence in sales.

Extending Sridhar and Lyngdoh (2019) in the evolving digital landscape, future studies could delve into how BBT can be operationalized in digital platforms, potentially integrating its principles into AI algorithms to create emotionally resonant customer experiences.

Considering the influence of psychological constructs on sales performance (Sridhar and Lyngdoh, 2019), future research could assess the effectiveness of incorporating BBT principles into sales training programs. Such studies could explore measurable improvements in sales teams’ key performance indicators and their effectiveness across different industries or sales roles.

The enduring impact of BBT constructs, such as trust and satisfaction (Lussier et al., 2017; Lussier and Hartmann, 2017), on customer retention and lifetime value suggests a direction for future quantitative research. Exploring the measurable impact of BBT on long-term customer metrics could provide a comprehensive understanding of its financial implications for organizations.

BBT significantly influences the services marketing literature across three key themes.

Organizational and employee dynamics. BBT’s impact is evident in corporate and employee dynamics. Barnes et al. (2014) link customer delight to employee engagement, extending to leadership dynamics and organizational citizenship behaviors. From technological contexts to social entrepreneurship, BBT finds applications, showcasing its relevance in diverse corporate and employee settings (Cooper et al., 2018; Nivedhitha and Manzoor, 2020).

Customer–brand interactions. In customer–brand interactions, BBT-driven positive emotions influence consumer behavior. Studies range from service recovery in frontline employees (Azab et al., 2018) to customer return rates in the casino industry (Bilgihan et al., 2016), emphasizing BBT’s central role in optimizing interactions across various service settings.

Emerging and specialized contexts. The third theme extends BBT’s application to nontraditional service contexts, showcasing its impact on leisure nostalgia, access-based services and work engagement. These studies highlight the nuanced and multifaceted influence of BBT in shaping consumer and employee behavior in specialized service contexts (Cho, 2021; Chou et al., 2023; Zhao and Zhang, 2023).

Future research in services marketing should explore how emotions at each customer touchpoint impact experiences, focusing on anticipatory emotions. Investigating AI and VR’s role in enhancing BBT’s “broadening” and “building” effects can reveal impacts on consumer loyalty and well-being.

In addition, examining BBT in diverse industries, especially regarding employee well-being in high-stress environments, can inform strategies to reduce burnout. Understanding how organizational culture influences the “building” phase can clarify factors affecting employee productivity and retention.

These areas will deepen our understanding of BBT’s influence on consumer and employee experiences.

The application of BBT in tourism and hospitality marketing is evident in critical studies, offering insights into various consumer behaviors. Baloglu et al. (2019) established a connection between emotional well-being and customer loyalty in spa services. Chen et al. (2021) extended this exploration to mobile social media, enhancing the digital tourism experience. Paramita et al. (2021) delved into service provider rapport and induced happiness, guiding ethical tourist behavior. Shipley et al. (2023) expanded the scope by examining emotions, such as pride and guilt, influenced by place attachment, encouraging pro-environmental actions.

In tourism and hospitality, future research should expand beyond spa services (Baloglu et al., 2019) to examine emotional impacts on loyalty across diverse experiences, such as adventure tourism and culinary offerings. Building on Chen et al.’s (2021) work, further exploration of digital touchpoints, such as augmented and virtual reality (VR), can enhance understanding of emotions on tourist experiences. In addition, as noted by Paramita et al. (2021), ethical considerations in tourism warrant investigation into how positive emotions such as awe and gratitude influence ethical behaviors. Expanding on Shipley et al.’s (2023) insights, research should also explore marketing strategies that foster emotional connections to promote sustainable practices, advancing both theoretical and practical applications of BBT in tourism.

Although BBT has been seminal in understanding the role of positive emotions in psychological well-being (Fredrickson, 1998, 2001), its application in marketing research is still nascent. Certain core concepts within the theory and its application warrant further investigation to fully comprehend their ramifications in marketing contexts.

As delineated by Fredrickson and Branigan (2005), BBT proposes that positive emotions – such as joy, interest and love – are instrumental in broadening cognitive repertoires and building durable personal resources. For example, joy promotes creative thinking and fosters long-term habits of exploration and play (Emmons, 2020). Similarly, interest broadens immediate thought-action repertoires by encouraging exploration and may lead to the building of valuable skills and knowledge over time (Murayama et al., 2019). Despite BBT’s comprehensive framework, literature often views positive emotions as a single category, overlooking how specific emotions distinctly influence broadening and building, especially in consumer behavior. Targeted research should examine how individual emotions and combinations, such as joy and pride, enhance brand allegiance within BBT. In addition, exploring how shifts between emotions (e.g. from interest to joy) affect decision-making can deepen insights into consumer choices, filling key gaps in understanding how diverse positive emotions drive complex consumer behaviors.

BBT suggests that positive emotions extend visual attention, enhancing focus on focal and peripheral items (Jäger and Rüsseler, 2016). This insight could refine in-store layouts and sensory cues to capture consumer attention in retail. Duchenne smiles, a genuine marker of positive emotion, are linked to shifts in attentional flexibility and holistic processing (Johnson et al., 2010), which could guide product awareness to purchase decisions – an area often missed in sales training.

BBT also posits that positive emotions widen trust circles (Fredrickson, 1998, 2001; Fredrickson and Branigan, 2005), which is valuable for marketing lesser-known brands through design elements that induce positive feelings, like color schemes or interactive displays. Moreover, positive states can enhance physical demeanor, benefit sales staff and consumer interactions (Fredrickson, 2001; Scheer et al., 2021) and suggest training enhancements like mindfulness exercises for improved staff and customer satisfaction.

The theory’s role in fostering cognitive broadening offers a fresh perspective on high-involvement purchases (e.g. real estate), a notably underrepresented area in the literature. Furthermore, Fredrickson’s BBT suggests enduring cognitive broadening effects, with studies such as Gibbons et al. (2011) showing that positive emotions can persist for up to three months. These temporal dynamics warrant further investigation into long-term consumer engagement and loyalty, addressing key research gaps in psychology and marketing.

Applying the BBT of positive emotions in marketing is a burgeoning area of interest that mainly focuses on the theory’s propositions about resource building. As illustrated in Figure 6, the theory suggests that positive emotions broaden the cognitive scope and build enduring personal resources – cognitive, psychological, social and even physical (Fredrickson, 1998, 2001; Fredrickson and Branigan, 2005). Although empirical studies explicitly addressing this framework within consumer behavior are sparse, the potential applications are compelling. Burns et al. (2008) emphasize a “dose-response” relationship, suggesting that time spent in a positive emotional state has a cumulative impact on resources. This concept is particularly relevant for marketing, as research indicates that longer engagements with a brand contribute to stronger customer relationships and better customer lifetime value (Lemon and Verhoef, 2016). This synergy between time spent and resource building offers a novel way to conceptualize customer–brand interactions, pushing beyond immediate transactional goals toward long-term, emotional investments.

BBT could also revolutionize the current understanding of brand loyalty by introducing the concept of resource building as a mediating variable. This potential mediating role of resource-building aligns with emerging paradigms that emphasize value co-creation and customer well-being, setting the stage for innovative marketing strategies.

Furthermore, BBT directly challenges conventional marketing strategies that rely on negative emotional appeals, such as fear or urgency (Hodkinson, 2019). According to Fredrickson et al. (2008), whereas negative emotions may not deplete resources, they certainly do not contribute to building them. On the other hand, eliciting positive emotions through advertising may enhance customer satisfaction and loyalty and may even contribute to a consumer’s overall well-being.

Moreover, individual differences such as baseline vagal tone could moderate the effects of positive emotions on resource-building (Kok et al., 2013). In a consumer context, this suggests a layered complexity where some consumers may be more predisposed to resource-building through brand interactions based on their physiological and psychological markers.

In summary, the unexplored dimensions of BBT in marketing present fertile ground for interdisciplinary research, blending insights from both psychology and marketing. Future empirical studies in this area have the potential to fundamentally reshape our understanding of consumer behavior, thereby influencing more effective and emotionally resonant marketing strategies. Applying this theory’s ethical and long-term relational considerations could significantly shift academic discourse and marketing practice.

In Section 4.4, we delved into the methodological preferences in the context of the BBT, highlighting prevailing approaches and potential areas for methodological innovation. Building on this foundation, this section aims to provide deeper insights into future research directions.

Exploring BBT in consumer behavior research calls for a multi-methodological approach that captures the theory’s multifaceted nature. Neuroscientific methods, backed by technologies such as fMRI and EEG, align well with the cognitive-emotional focus of BBT. These could be enhanced by adding eye-tracking methodologies to better understand the real-time focus of attention during positive emotional states. Such approaches could be crucial in deciding how positive emotions influence complex decision-making processes, akin to the studies by Cho (2021) and Chou et al. (2023).

VR offers a unique simulation environment, allowing for the controlled study of emotion-driven consumer exploration and interaction (Wohlgenannt et al., 2020). Combining VR with biometric feedback mechanisms, including pulse or skin conductance, could yield more profound insights into consumers’ real-time emotional states and physiological responses.

Longitudinal field studies are invaluable for examining the lasting impacts of positive emotions on consumer behavior. These studies could be augmented by using experience sampling methods (ESMs) to capture real-time emotional states and consumer choices, as suggested by the work of Zhao and Zhang (2023). Text mining and sentiment analysis techniques offer a modern approach to understanding consumer perspectives at scale. These could be refined by leveraging advanced natural language processing algorithms to detect nuanced emotional expressions, which can be especially useful in the context of online reviews and social media.

Finally, cross-cultural comparative studies can explore how cultural variations affect the role of positive emotions in consumer behavior. Combining ethnographic research and quantitative surveys can yield a more holistic understanding of cultural norms and their impact on consumer choices.

These methods provide academic depth and equip practitioners with robust tools for capturing how positive emotions influence consumer decisions.

Our review systematically maps the applications of BBT in marketing, establishing a foundation for future research. This study is the first in marketing to provide a structured framework for BBT, revealing its impact on consumer behavior through positive emotions (Sharma et al., 2023). It also demonstrates how BBT can be integrated with theories like emotion contagion (Azab et al., 2018), theory of reasoned action (TRA) (Bilgihan et al., 2016), prospect theory (Tversky, 1979) and reciprocity theory (Gouldner, 1960). Our findings advocate exploring under-researched areas such as digital marketing, sales and tourism, offering a roadmap for expanding BBT’s theoretical reach (Table 2).

Managers can apply BBT’s focus on positive emotions by designing campaigns that evoke joy, interest or contentment to foster deeper consumer engagement and brand loyalty, as exemplified by Coca-Cola’s “Share a Coke” campaign. Creating a positive organizational culture can also promote creativity and innovation, aligning with BBT’s principles. In addition, implementing loyalty programs centered on consumer well-being builds long-term relationships. Integrating emotional intelligence training for service teams further enhances customer interactions by enabling empathetic, responsive service, while aligning marketing strategies with sustainability goals adds value by connecting with ethically-minded consumers. Together, these practices create a robust framework for building sustained consumer loyalty through positive emotional experiences. See Recommendations for Managers and Policymakers for a summary of these insights:

• Recommendations for managers and policymakers.

• Create emotion-driven campaigns: Design experiences that evoke joy, interest and contentment to strengthen brand connections.

• Promote ethical marketing: Prioritize consumer well-being with strategies that align with BBT’s positive psychological effects.

• Use BBT in data-driven marketing: Integrate BBT insights in data analytics to create targeted, emotionally engaging campaigns.

This SLR explored BBT’s applications in marketing, identifying trends, constructs and methodologies. We found a growing use of BBT in consumer behavior studies, particularly emphasizing emotional well-being, loyalty and sustainable consumption. Despite this, the potential remains for BBT in digital/social media marketing and sales and advanced methods such as Bayesian analysis are underused.

Our review enriches understanding by highlighting BBT’s adaptability and revealing interdisciplinary research gaps. Practically, businesses can harness BBT to enhance customer engagement, loyalty and employee satisfaction. Policymakers may use these insights to inform ethical marketing guidelines. BBT’s potential in digital and social media can guide content creation for user engagement and long-term relationships, especially when integrated with data analytics.

This review’s scope may be limited by the focus on English-language publications, which introduces a selection bias. Future studies should explore integrating BBT with other marketing theories, expanding applications to areas such as digital marketing and examining the longitudinal effects of positive emotions on customer retention. This SLR provides a comprehensive foundation for future research, practical applications and theory development in marketing, advancing BBT’s role in both academic and professional contexts.

The supplementary material for this paper can be found online.