consumer behaviour

consumer behaviour

1. Consumer behaviour focuses on the processes that occur before, during and after product purchase

   •    •The study of the processes involved when individuals or groups select, purchase, use or dispose of products, services, ideas or experiences to satisfy needs and desires.   
   • The Impact of consumer behaviour
     • Marketing, e.g. creating consumer wants
       • Public policy, e.g. attitudes to ‘green’ policies
         • Popular culture, e.g. role of celebrities as opinion leaders, fashion
           • The consumer society, e.g. we buy (many) things because of what they mean not what they do

2. Perception and Emotion

   •    •Perception –The perceptual process –Sensation –Getting attention –Interpretation –Semiotics •Emotions –Functions and range of emotions –Emotions in advertising and retailing   

3. personality and the self

   •    •Personality –Features of personality –Trait vs. experience-based approaches –Brand personalities   •The self concept –Autonomous vs. Inter-dependent self –Multi-faceted nature, e.g.  self-esteem, actual, ideal –Products and the extended self •Relationships between personality and the self –Overt vs. covert –Pre-determined vs. learned   

4. Learning, memory and motivation

   •    •Learning Behaviourist approaches, i.e. classical and operant conditioning  Cognitive approaches, e.g. observational learning •Memory –Memory systems –Information retrieval •Motivation Utilitarian or hedonic needs  Pull and push theories, e.g. Maslow’s hierarchy Consumer involvement   

5. Attitudes and values

   •    •Attitudes –Functions of attitudes –Forming attitudes –Affect, Behaviour, Cognition (ABC) model –Cognitive consistency and dissonance –Measuring, e.g. multi-attribute models •Values –Acquiring (enculturation) –Measuring, e.g. laddering –Materialism and sustainability