THE TEMPORAL DYNAMICS OF CUSTOMER JOURNEY EMOTIONS: A CONTINUOUS-TIME MODELING APPROACH
Published:
2026-04-12Downloads
Abstract
This article examines the temporal dynamics of customer journey emotions and proposes a continuous-time modeling approach to better understand how emotions evolve throughout the customer experience. Traditional customer journey models often rely on static, stage-based representations that fail to capture the continuous and interconnected nature of emotional responses. Drawing on a narrative literature review across marketing, psychology, and data science, this study highlights the importance of viewing emotions as dynamic trajectories shaped by ongoing interactions. Key findings emphasize the role of emotional peaks, troughs, critical moments, and lag effects in influencing overall customer perceptions and behavioral outcomes. The study introduces a continuous-time modeling framework that integrates customer interactions as inputs, emotional state changes as processes, contextual and psychological factors as mediators, and outcomes such as satisfaction and loyalty. Additionally, moderating factors including customer characteristics, interaction channels, timing, and external context are identified as crucial in shaping emotional dynamics. The article contributes theoretically by integrating temporal perspectives with customer experience research and offers practical insights for real-time monitoring and adaptive experience design. Future research should focus on empirical validation and the application of advanced analytics to capture real-time emotional changes in customer journeys.
Keywords:
Customer journey emotional dynamics continuous-time modeling customer experience temporal analysisReferences
Becker, L., & Jaakkola, E. (2020). Customer experience: fundamental premises and implications for research. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-019-00718-x
Becker, L., Jaakkola, E., & Halinen, A. (2020). Toward a goal-oriented view of customer journeys. Journal of Service Management. https://doi.org/10.1108/josm-11-2019-0329
Caruelle, D., Shams, P., Gustafsson, A., & Lervik-Olsen, L. (2024). Emotional arousal in customer experience: A dynamic view. Journal of Business Research. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2023.114344
Chevtchouk, Y., Veloutsou, C., & Paton, R. A. (2021). The experience – economy revisited: an interdisciplinary perspective and research agenda. Journal of Product & Brand Management, 30(8), 1288–1324. https://doi.org/10.1108/jpbm-06-2019-2406
Diener, E., Thapa, S., & Tay, L. (2020). Positive Emotions at Work. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-012119-044908
Filieri, R., Lin, Z., Li, Y., Lu, X., & Yang, X. (2022). Customer Emotions in Service Robot Encounters: A Hybrid Machine-Human Intelligence Approach. Journal of Service Research, 25(4), 614–629. https://doi.org/10.1177/10946705221103937
Frank, E. L., Matta, F. K., Sabey, T. B., & Rodell, J. B. (2021). What does it cost you to get there? The effects of emotional journeys on daily outcomes. Journal of Applied Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0000908
Grewal, D., & Roggeveen, A. L. (2020). Understanding Retail Experiences and Customer Journey Management. Journal of Retailing. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretai.2020.02.002
Hodgkinson, I. R., Jackson, T. W., & West, A. A. (2021). Customer experience management: asking the right questions. Journal of Business Strategy, 43(2), 105–114. https://doi.org/10.1108/jbs-07-2020-0158
Keyser, A. De, Verleye, K., Lemon, K. N., Keiningham, T., & Klaus, P. (2020). Moving the Customer Experience Field Forward: Introducing the Touchpoints, Context, Qualities (TCQ) Nomenclature. Journal of Service Research. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094670520928390
Khatoon, S., & Rehman, V. (2021). Negative emotions in consumer brand relationship: A review and future research agenda. International Journal of Consumer Studies. https://doi.org/10.1111/IJCS.12665
Klaus, P., & Kuppelwieser, V. (2021). Guiding directions and propositions: Placing dynamics at the heart of customer experience (CX) research. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2020.102429
Koch, C., Lindenbeck, B., & Olbrich, R. (2023). Dynamic customer journey analysis and its advertising impact. Journal of Strategic Marketing. https://doi.org/10.1080/0965254x.2023.2171475
Kumar, P., Hollebeek, L., Kar, A., & Kukk, J. (2022). Charting the intellectual structure of customer experience research. Marketing Intelligence & Planning. https://doi.org/10.1108/mip-05-2022-0185
Li, J., Ma, F., & Dipietro, R. B. (2022). Journey to a fond memory: How memorability mediates a dynamic customer experience and its consequent outcomes. International Journal of Hospitality Management. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2022.103205
Manthiou, A., Hickman, E., & Klaus, P. (2020). Beyond good and bad: Challenging the suggested role of emotions in customer experience (CX) research. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2020.102218
Mele, C., Russo-Spena, T., Tregua, M., & Amitrano, C. (2021). The millennial customer journey: a Phygital mapping of emotional, behavioural, and social experiences. Journal of Consumer Marketing. https://doi.org/10.1108/JCM-03-2020-3701
Prentice, C., & Nguyen, M. (2020). Engaging and retaining customers with AI and employee service. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2020.102186
Rehman, M., Keyser, A. De, Oikarinen, E., & Juntunen, M. (2026). Mapping the co-evolution of customer experience and customer journey research: a bibliometric review and future research agenda. Journal of Service Theory and Practice. https://doi.org/10.1108/jstp-03-2025-0103
Rekettye, G., Tudományegyetem, P., & Rekettye, G. (2020). The Changing Role of Customer Experience in the Age of Industry 4.0. Marketing & Menedzsment. https://doi.org/10.15170/mm.2020.54.01.02
Rizvi, I., & Popli, S. (2021). Emotions: The Essence of Customers’ Experience. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-83909-710-220211003
Sengoz, M. (2024). The effect of emotional engagement on decision-making behaviour. Pressacademia. https://doi.org/10.17261/pressacademia.2024.1906
Sykora, M. D., Elayan, S., Hodgkinson, I. R., Jackson, T. W., & West, A. (2022). The power of emotions: Leveraging user generated content for customer experience management. Journal of Business Research. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2022.02.048
Sykora, M., Elayan, S., Hodgkinson, I. R., Jackson, T. W., & West, A. (2022). The power of emotions: Leveraging user generated content for customer experience management. Journal of Business Research, 144, 997–1006. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2022.02.048
Towers, A., & Towers, N. (2021). Framing the customer journey: touch point categories and decision-making process stages. International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, 50(3), 317–341. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijrdm-08-2020-0296
Tuerlan, T., Li, S., & Scott, N. (2021). Customer emotion research in hospitality and tourism: conceptualization, measurements, antecedents and consequences. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 33(8), 2741–2772. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijchm-11-2020-1257
Tyrväinen, O., Karjaluoto, H., & Saarijärvi, H. (2020). Personalization and hedonic motivation in creating customer experiences and loyalty in omnichannel retail. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2020.102233
Witell, L., Kowalkowski, C., Perks, H., Raddats, C., Schwabe, M., Benedettini, O., & Burton, J. (2020). Characterizing customer experience management in business markets. Journal of Business Research, 116, 420–430. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.08.050
Wu, S., & Gan, X. (2025). Literature Review on Algorithm Aversion: Definition, Antecedents, and Mitigation. Journal of Global Economy, Business and Finance, 7(10), 38–43. https://doi.org/10.53469/jgebf.2025.07(10).08
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Tara Hasbelita, Lukmanul Hakim, Dahrul Aman Harahap
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
