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Technological advances have prompted companies to increasingly rely on automation to streamline production. Armin Granulo and colleagues, however, found that for products with higher symbolic value (those viewed as contributing to individual self-expression), consumers prefer products made by humans rather than by robots, likely because human-made products are more strongly associated with uniqueness. When considering automation, therefore, companies—especially those specializing in products of symbolic value—should weigh trade-offs between efficiency gains and consumer preferences.