enign envy sells iPhones

People are willing to pay more for products that elicit their envybut that's only when they are motivated by a positive, non-malignant form of envy, as per a newly released study in the Journal of Consumer Research

"Our studies showed that people who had been made envious of someone who owned an iPhone were willing to pay 80 Euros more on average," write authors Niels van de Ven, Marcel Zeelenberg, and Rik Pieters (Tilburg University).

The scientists made some important discoveries about the motivations that result from different kinds of envy. "Note that two types of envy exist: non-malignant and malicious envy," the authors explain. "Non-cancerous envy exists if the advantage of the other person is deserved, and motivates people to attain a coveted good or position for themselves. This more motivating type of envy makes people pay an envy premium for the products that elicited their envy." Conversely, malicious envy occurs if the other person is believed to be undeserving; it evokes a desire to "pull down" the other person.

In a series of experiments, the authors compared non-malignant envy with its malicious cousin. They observed that only benignly envious people were willing to pay more for products that they coveted. Maliciously envious people were more likely to pay more for related but different products. For example, people who felt maliciously envious of someone with an iPhone were more likely to pay more for a BlackBerry.........