Perceived Value and Subscription Behaviour

The Mediating Effect of Emotional Attachment

DOI

10.2991/978-2-38476-541-6_128How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Perceived Value Theory; Digital Cultural Products; Subscription Behaviour; Mediating Effect

Abstract

With the rapid penetration of the subscription economy within the digital cultural sphere, platforms commonly face challenges in converting free users and experience significant fluctuations in renewal rates. This study, grounded in perceived value theory, Emotional Attachment theory, and the Cognitive-Behavioural-Affective (CBA) model, aims to elucidate the mechanism through which perceived value influences subscription behaviour among users of digital cultural products, while validating the mediating role of emotional attachment. Data collected via questionnaire surveys were analysed using structural equation modelling (SEM), with Bootstrap sampling employed to test the mediating effect. The three dimensions of perceived value—functional value, affective value, and social value—drive subscription behaviour through both “direct pathways” and “affective bond mediation pathways,” with affective value playing the most prominent role. Findings provide theoretical grounding for platforms to optimise affective content supply and strengthen user emotional bonds to enhance subscription conversion, while also pointing the way for future exploration of boundary conditions for mediation effects.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Yuxuan He
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/02/26
TI  - Perceived Value and Subscription Behaviour
BT  - Proceedings of the 2025 5th International Conference on Culture, Design and Social Development (CDSD 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 1129
EP  - 1143
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-541-6_128
DO  - 10.2991/978-2-38476-541-6_128
ID  - He2026
ER  -