Online review analysis maps demand for Chinese red cultural products

A mixed-methods analysis of online consumer reviews identifies cultural-educational demand as the defining feature of Chinese red cultural and creative products, with emotional resonance weighted more heavily than visual aesthetics in the perceptual dimension. The study combines grounded theory and the Analytic Hierarchy Process to construct and prioritize a model of consumer demand, then applies the model to guide product-design practices.

Researchers collected and analyzed consumer reviews of red cultural and creative products posted on e-commerce platforms. Grounded theory provided the qualitative foundation for identifying recurring themes in the reviews, while the Analytic Hierarchy Process was used to calculate the relative weighting of the resulting demand levels. This mixed research paradigm links the interpretation of expressed consumer preferences with a structured assessment of their relative importance.

The resulting theoretical model divides red cultural consumption demand into three dimensions: value-based, perceptual and interactive demand. Cultural-educational demand emerged as the model’s “meta-attribute,” distinguishing red cultural and creative products from ordinary commodities. The finding places learning and cultural meaning at the center of the proposed framework rather than treating appearance or symbolism as the only relevant features of these products.

Within the perceptual dimension, emotional resonance carried significantly greater weight than visual aesthetics. The analysis therefore indicates that the feelings and meanings evoked by a product were assigned more importance in the model than its visual appeal alone. The interactive dimension addresses a separate motivation described by the researchers as accumulating “objectified cultural capital,” linking interaction with the products to a broader cultural value.

The authors then used the calculated demand weights to guide a set of design practices for red cultural and creative products. In the study’s account, the framework is intended to help designers address the symbolization and homogenization challenges facing red culture during contemporary consumption transformation. It offers a way to consider value-based, perceptual and interactive demand together when translating revolutionary culture into modern cultural and creative products. The paper reports that the model’s effectiveness was validated through these design practices, but the supplied abstract does not specify the number of reviews analyzed, participant characteristics, geographic coverage, weighting sensitivity tests or commercial outcomes. The evidence therefore supports the model as a research-based framework and set of design practices, rather than demonstrating universal consumer preferences or guaranteed cultural or market benefits.

Subject of Research: Consumer-demand modeling and design priorities for Chinese red cultural and creative products

Article Title: A study on the consumption demand and design of Chinese red cultural and creative products based on grounded theory and the analysis hierarchy process

Article References: Fan, L., Wu, F., Lai, S., Wang, X., & Cheng, C. (2026). A study on the consumption demand and design of Chinese red cultural and creative products based on grounded theory and the analysis hierarchy process. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-026-09494-w

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1057/s41599-026-09494-w

Keywords: consumer demand, red culture, cultural products, grounded theory, analytic hierarchy process, online reviews, emotional resonance, cultural capital, product design, revolutionary culture, consumption, demand