In 2026, the concept of the “emotional economy” has moved beyond online buzzwords to appear in government work reports across multiple regions. According to a report by iiMedia Research on China’s emotional economy consumption trends from 2025 to 2029, the market size of China’s emotional economy reached 2.3 trillion yuan (approximately $334.2 billion) in 2024 and is projected to exceed 4.5 trillion yuan by 2029. Taken together, these developments suggest that a new wave of consumption centered on emotional needs and experiential value is evolving from a market-driven phenomenon into a new driver of economic growth.

Shifts in consumer demand

Zhou Xinyue, a professor from the School of Management at Zhejiang University, told CSST that emotional value consumption refers to consumers paying a premium for specific emotional experiences, marking a shift from paying for functionality to paying for states of being. Currently, emotional consumption appears in three major scenarios: healing and companionship, represented by the pet economy and AI companions; identity and self-expression, exemplified by blind boxes and anime merchandise; and instant gratification, such as dopamine dressing and “nonsensical rant” co-branded products.

Drawing on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, Zheng Hong’e, a professor from the College of Humanities and Development Studies at China Agricultural University, categorized emotional consumption into four types: healing consumption for security needs; trendy toys and companionship consumption for identity and belonging; experiential consumption for knowledge and aesthetics; and interest- and culture-based consumption for self-actualization.

“The difference between emotional value consumption and traditional consumption lies in the shift of the decision-making framework from utility maximization to experience optimization,” said Ouyang Rihui, deputy director of the China Center for Internet Economy Research at the Central University of Finance and Economics. The digital economy, he explained, has increased the convenience of emotional consumption, while online communities have further endowed it with attributes of identity recognition and social currency.

Su Yubo, a professor from the School of Marxism at Xi’an Jiaotong University, noted that changes in consumer demand are rooted in the development of productive forces and material accumulation. Entering the new era, as household incomes rise, consumption attitudes are shifting from cost-effectiveness to self-gratification. Data from iiMedia Research show that China’s emotional consumption market expanded from 1.63 trillion yuan in 2022 to 2.72 trillion yuan in 2025, directly reflecting growing demand for spiritual fulfillment in an era of material abundance.

Generation Z is the primary driving force behind emotional value consumption. According to the 2025 Generation Z Emotional Consumption Report released by the Shanghai Youth and Children Research Center and Soul App, over 90% of young respondents acknowledged the importance of emotional value, and nearly 60% expressed willingness to pay for it. Zhu Di, a research fellow from the Institute of Sociology at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told CSST that as Generation Z increasingly gains socioeconomic status and influence, digital technologies and social media have enabled them to shape consumption trends earlier than previous generations.

However, emotional value consumption is not exclusive to the younger generations. Ouyang noted that Generation X and the so-called “silver” demographic are gradually emerging as potential participants, transforming emotional consumption from a youth trend into a universal psychological need that spans generations.

Proper guidance essential

Emotional value consumption has generated multiple positive effects. From an economic perspective, Ouyang argued that it unlocks the potential of service consumption, giving rise to new business models such as the “guzi economy” (a market of derivative products based on intellectual properties in comics, games, and novels) and the “ticket-stub economy” (spending driven by collectibles and experiences linked to concerts, exhibitions, and other events), while providing new pathways for traditional industries to shift from selling products to offering experiences.

From a social perspective, Su underscored that emotional consumption helps individuals relieve stress and find comfort, which contributes to mental well-being and reduces the risk of social tensions. At the industry level, rising demand for emotional value, belonging, and self-identity is encouraging companies to shift from functional satisfaction strategies to emotional enhancement and value-added services.

However, scholars caution that the risks associated with this shift should not be overlooked. Overreliance on emotional consumption may weaken real-world social skills. Some businesses may also deliberately create anxiety or use algorithmic targeting to steer vulnerable consumers toward emotional spending, raising growing concerns about emotional manipulation and potential exploitation.

Concerns also arise from uneven service quality. Emotional services, for instance, may vary widely in price, without clear labeling regarding service content, duration, or practitioner qualifications. Emerging roles such as emotional coaches” and “virtual companions” lack standardized entry requirements. Moreover, many emotional consumption services require the collection of personal data, and inadequate data protection may lead to privacy breaches or fraud.

In response to these risks, scholars argue that market forces and public policy should work together to build a healthy consumption ecosystem. Zhou suggested that governments provide more free public spaces for emotional fulfillment so that well-being does not become a privilege tied solely to spending. Zhu proposed that future growth opportunities may lie in deeply embedding emotional value services throughout the consumption chain, offering professional and empathetic support before, during, and after purchases.

The growing popularity of emotional value consumption reflects not only a profound shift in consumption logic from function-driven to meaning-driven, but also deeper changes in the mentality of contemporary Chinese society. It marks the era’s progress from the pursuit of material to spiritual fulfillment, while mirroring the evolving definitions of selfhood, life, and happiness.