Adventure Sports in Paradox - A Qualitative Study of the Impact of Wearable Technology in the Field of Experiential Consumption

Background: Similar to other innovative technologies, wearable technology has started to make its way into mainstream and is expected to grow rapidly within the next few years. These technologies raise a variety of effects on consumers’ lived experiences due to the close interaction between body and machines. One growing field that heavily relies on the proactive interplay between technology and the human body is adventure sports. Combining those fields within the realm of experiential consumption, new emotional stances initiated by participants are expected to occur which might moderate the overall consumer experience. Purpose and Research Question: The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of wearable technology from a consumer perspective. This is achieved through answering the research question of: How does wearable technology shape consumer experiences in adventure sports? Methodology: The study is of a constructivist and interpretivist nature, and based on a qualitative research method. Friendship pair interviews with surfers who currently study in Lund were conducted and further enriched by a projective picture technique. Findings: The present study shows evidence that wearables are prone to create various contradictory feelings, which are differently shaped in the core consumption experience (restricting), respectively in the remembered consumption experience (facilitating). The relationships between different experiences and wearables are summarized in a new conceptual model deducing a new paradox of physical/technological experiences. Originality/value: Traditionally, research has focused on examining consumer emotions in a broader technology context or in the realm of future wearables such as Google Glass, which are not fully established yet. This thesis extends the understanding of technology consumption by investigating consumer experiences with already established wearables, in particular wearable action cameras. Due the fact that this product originated from the surfing scene, wearable technologies are analyzed in the sport surfing, an area which heavily relies on the production of individual perceived experiences. Keywords: Adventure sports, Experiential consumption, Paradox, Wearable Technology