Özet:

Anthropomorphism is the phenomenon of attributing human qualities to non-human entities. This study examines the historical process of the conceptualization of anthropomorphism, its prevalence in daily life, the theories that try to explain the phenomenon, and the findings of empirical anthropomorphism research conducted in the context of consumer behavior. To this end, the history of both the phenomenon and the concept of anthropomorphism was investigated, theories that try to provide an explanation to the phenomenon were presented in a critical approach, and the findings of empirical research conducted until the beginning of 2020 on anthropomorphism in the context of consumer behavior were summarized and evaluated in a qualitative manner. When the results of the empirical research in the consumer behavior literature were evaluated as a whole, it was observed that firms' anthropomorphizing of their products and brands leads to positive consequences such as attracting more attention, being perceived as warmer, being liked more, being trusted more, being more memorable, higher consumer willingness to buy, etc., unless they engage in behaviors that are deemed unfavorable by consumers (e.g., raising prices, false advertising, privacy violations, injustice). As for the consumers, it was found that anthropomorphic products and brands can meet consumers' particular psychological needs (e.g., belongingness, control, effectance) but may also lead to negative consequences in some cases depending on the individual and situational differences. As a result, it was concluded that anthropomorphism generally has positive outcomes for companies and conditional effects on consumers, but given the concerns that have come to the fore with the replication crisis in behavioral research in recent years, the findings in the literature should be treated with caution unless they are supported by replication studies.

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