This article examines changes in the quality of consumer products over time. It begins with a historical overview of the evolution of product quality since the beginning of the twentieth century. Next, evidence that substantive quality has increased and variability has decreased is summarized. An examination of Consumer Reports data supports the hypotheses that substantive quality has increased and variability has decreased significantly in recent years. Implications for consumer behavior and marketers are discussed.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.