The thesis is embargoed until June 2032 but here's the abstract:
This research explores the consumption of romance literature by providing theoretical and practical implications for scholars, marketers, and publishers. The romance genre of literature has developed into a powerhouse genre, commanding a substantial share of the book market. However, academic research examining this consumption process is sparse. Essay 1 uses eighteen in-depth interviews and a grounded theory approach for both description and conceptual organization to identify the dimensions of romance novel consumption. The findings were grouped into four themes: emotional and psychological needs, social and relational aspects, cognitive engagement, and sensory and physical interactions. These dimensions provide insight into how readers experience romance narratives and what draws them to the genre.
Essay 2 builds on these findings to examine how individual differences influence motivations for reading romance novels. Using survey data from over 200 participants, this essay empirically tests the relationship between romance reading motivations and the personality traits of openness, extraversion, and creativity. Results suggest that readers high in openness are driven by all three motivations, readers high in creativity are driven by the social and relationship aspects, and readers low in extraversion are linked to the motivation of emotional and psychological need fulfillment. These findings contribute to the literature by offering two preliminary profiles of romance readers: imaginative immersers and introspective romantics.
Essay 3 examines how romance novel cover designs influence readers’ expectations for imaginative engagement (a dimension of the romance reading experience) and subsequent purchase intentions. Grounded in construal-level theory, this essay finds that more abstract covers (those without images of the protagonist) foster greater expectations for imaginative engagement, which leads to higher product evaluations and increased purchase likelihood. This essay offers actionable marketing implications by demonstrating that cover design choices can influence romance readers’ expectations and experiences.
The thesis is embargoed until June 2032 but here's the abstract: