TITLE:
Price Sensitivity and Value Perception under Inflationary Pressure: A Mixed-Methods Investigation
AUTHORS:
Shankar Subramanian Iyer, Rajesh Arora, Raman Subramanian, Brinitha Raji
KEYWORDS:
Price Sensitivity, Value Perception, Inflation, Consumer Behavior, Behavioral Economics, Willingness to Pay, Mental Accounting, Mixed Methods, Price Elasticity, Purchasing Decisions
JOURNAL NAME:
Voice of the Publisher,
Vol.12 No.3,
July
21,
2026
ABSTRACT: Inflationary episodes fundamentally alter the economic landscape within which consumers make purchasing decisions, yet the psychological and behavioral mechanisms through which inflation shapes price sensitivity and value perception remain incompletely theorised. This paper presents a mixed-methods investigation examining how sustained inflationary pressure reconfigures consumer price sensitivity, perceived value, and willingness to pay across product categories. Drawing on a quantitative survey of 487 adult consumers combined with 32 in-depth qualitative interviews, the study integrates behavioral economics, reference-dependent utility theory, and mental accounting frameworks to explain observed patterns. The study was conducted in the United Kingdom during the 2021-2024 inflationary episode, when UK CPI peaked at 11.1% in October 2022. Quantitative findings reveal that perceived inflation is significantly and positively associated with price sensitivity (β = .41, p