The Impact of Augmented Reality Technology on Impulse Buying of Museum Cultural and Creative Products

This study integrates the Perceived Value-based Adoption Model (VAM) and Perceived Value Theory to examine the structural mechanism influencing visitors’ impulse buying behavior. The study collected 357 samples through a questionnaire survey and conducted data analysis using structural equation modeling. The research findings indicate that all four antecedent factors-perceived usefulness, perceived enjoyment, perceived effort, and perceived fee-significantly enhance visitors’ impulse buying behavior by increasing perceived utilitarian value and perceived hedonic value. Contrary to traditional assumptions, perceived effort and perceived fee exhibit significant positive effects on both utilitarian and hedonic values, thereby indirectly promoting impulse buying. These counterintuitive findings reflect an “effort-as-value” reframing and price-as-quality signaling in the museum AR context. The findings expand the scope of research on digital technology in museums and contribute to understanding the specific characteristics of AR required to stimulate visitors’ impulse buying behavior. Furthermore, the study calculates that visitors’ acceptable premium for museum cultural and creative products is approximately 30.28%, providing a quantitative reference for pricing strategies. This research offers new insights for promoting consumer buying behavior of museum cultural and creative products and provides innovative pathways for the development of museums, the tourism industry, and other sectors. vative pathways for the development of museums, the tourism industry, and other sectors.