Digital Disruption Adaptation Theory: Explaining Decision Function Restoration Following Family Disruption

Abstract Family disruption such as divorce, bereavement, or separation fundamentally alters household structures and the routines underpinning everyday consumption. While existing literature explores fragmented outcomes of these transitions, theoretical understanding of how consumers reconstruct purchase decision-making remains limited. The rapid digitalization of commerce introduces algorithmic recommendations, artificial intelligence (AI), and online communities as alternative decision resources. This paper advances the Digital Disruption Adaptation (DDA) framework into a middle-range theory by introducing Decision Function Restoration (DFR) as its central explanatory mechanism. DFR posits that consumers adapt to family disruption by actively restoring three core disrupted household decision functions: information gathering, validation, and coordination. Through six theoretical propositions, this paper establishes a nomological network detailing how function deficits motivate consumers to utilize digital and human marketplace resources based on "Function–Resource Fit." This paper contributes to consumer behavior literature by providing a falsifiable, capability-centered theory of post-disruption adaptation, offering a robust agenda for future empirical research. Keywords: Digital Disruption Adaptation, Decision Function Restoration, family disruption, consumer behavior, digital marketplace, middle-range theory, artificial intelligence (AI)