The moderating role of the price frame on the effects of price range and the number of Competitors on consumers’ search intentions

The Internet and Internet shopping agents (ISAs) are likely to have a substantial impact on the way consumers shop and conduct price searches. This article examines how the price frame (the relative position of a retailer’s price presented by ISAs) moderates the effects of the price range and the number of competitors carrying a product on consumers’ search intentions. Building on prospect theory and range theory, the authors predicted that the effects of price range and the number of competitors on consumers’ search intentions would be more pronounced in a negative price frame than in a positive price frame. The results of two experiments provide support for these predictions.