A Study on the Value of Participation in Crowdfunding Platform Project and Consumer Empathy Response

This study examines the relationships between participation value in fashion crowdfunding, consumer empathy (both cognitive and emotional), behavioral intentions (including participation and purchase intentions), and the moderating effect of perceived scarcity. Despite the rapid growth of crowdfunding in the fashion industry, there has been limited research on the psychological processes that connect participation value to behavioral intentions. Data were gathered from consumers experienced in fashion crowdfunding projects and analyzed through regression analysis. The results show that economic, functional, and environmental values positively influenced cognitive empathy, while economic, emotional, and environmental values significantly affected emotional empathy. Both types of empathy were found to positively predict participation and purchase intentions. Furthermore, perceived scarcity notably enhanced the positive relationships between consumer empathy and behavioral intentions. These findings underscore the unique roles of cognitive and emotional empathy in influencing behavioral intentions and highlight the significance of participation value and perceived scarcity in fashion crowdfunding. The study offers practical implications for developing effective marketing strategies for crowdfunding platforms.