Consumer Bahaviour

Consumer Bahaviour

1. POST-MODERNISM

   • BROWN (2006) Pomo is a “pan-disciplinary movement”, witnessed across all disciplines and therefore is more like a social movement that influences all aspects of society and culture,
   • LYON: (2000) commodification of almost all aspect of life, coupled with the expansion of communication and information technologies (CITs) are signs of a pomo
   • The Consumer Society of today has witnessed a change from us being Production defined (defined by what we do) to Consumption defined (defined by what we have/consume) -Lecture 1
     • current 21st Century everything is seen to be “consumable” even culture itself!
     • “Our contemporary culture is basically something to “be consumed”. Whether we talk about travelling around, our styles of dressing, our music, our spectacles and sports events, tourism, fashion, popular music and sports are deeply commercialised consumer markets” (Solomon et al, 2013, 34)
   • We consume from birth: Baby showers, motherhood
   • CB is seen to be a process.
     • Consumption process: Influencing the consumer before during and after a purchase (Solomon et al, 2013, 6) Select, Purchase, Use or Dispose (re-purchase) (Solomon et al, 2013, 644)
     • The Circle of Consumption: Production, Acquisition, Consumption, DisposalArnould, E.J., Price, L., Zinkhan, G. (2004). lecture 1

2. WHAT IS CONSUMPTION: “The act of consuming or the state of being consumed” (Collins English Dictionary, 1982, 240)

   • “Consumer socialisation is the process by which young people acquire the skills, knowledge and attitudes relevant to their functioning in the marketplace” (Ward, 1974, 2)

3. WHAT IS CONSUMPTION: "Plants consume carbon; animals consume plants; humans consume animals. Consumption in this sense is a condition of life, and no one will oppose it” (Borgmann, 2000, 418)

4. EXAMPLES

   • GUARDIAN - NOV 14: £400 per year on dog food, vet bills, grooming, pet insurance, holidays and kennels, which equates to £3.5 billion a year for the entire UK nation.
   • OXYGEN BAR: An Oxygen Bar is a unique and exciting entertainment product, that is both fun and revitalizing.  The Oxygen Bar delivers 95% pure oxygen, that is filtered through flavoured liquids, to produce cool and delicious smelling flavoured oxygen sessions.

5. CCT: CONSUMER CULTURE THEORY

   • Unified, grand theory
   • Family of theoretical perspectives that address the dynamic relationships between consumer actions, the marketplace, and cultural meanings
   • CCT explores the heterogeneous distribution of meanings that exist within the broader socio-historical frame of globalization and market capitalism
   • Four Main Research Domains in CCT: Consumer Identity Projects, Marketplace Cultures, The Socio-historic Pattrning of consumption, Mass-Marketplace Ideologies
     • “ A theory that questions the search for universal truths and values and the existence of objective knowledge” (Solomon et al, 2013, 654)

6. SOCIALISATION

   • The adoption of the behaviour patterns of the surrounding culture, norms of their culture - Lecture 3
   • an individual can be said to be socialized when he or she has learned to think and feel according to society’s expectations” (Moschis, 1987; 23)
   • FACTORS:Economic, Social, Cultural, Political, Family, media, television, Peers, Teachers

7. CHILDREN AND CONSUMING

   • “ Very early in the life of the child parents take their tots with them to the shopping environment, perch them in the seat of a shopping cart, make small talk with them about some of their purchase considerations, and actually buy them things” (McNeal and Yeh, 1993, 57)
   • “Globally, children spend $300 billion of their own pocket money and income annually and also influence a further $1.88 trillion of family expenditure” (Lindstrom and Seybold, 2003)
   • Children start accompanying parents to the marketplace as early as 1 month old and begin to make independent purchases as early as 4 years
     • PERCEPTUAL STAGE 3-7 YEARS: Concrete, Simple, Egocentric, Single Attributes
     • ANALYTICAL STAGE 7-11 YEARS: Abstract, Two or more dimensions, Dual Perspectives (other than own) Thoughtful, Moderate)
     • REFLECTIVE STAGE 11-16 YEARS: Abstract, Multidimensional , Fully Developed, Dual Perspectives in social situationss

8. CONSUMER MISBAHVIOUR

   • “Consumer misbehavior may be defined as behavioral acts by consumers, which violate the generally accepted norms of conduct in consumption situations, and thus disrupt the consumption order” (Fullerton and Punj, 2004)
   • It results in either material loss or psychological damage, (Fullerton and Punj, 2004)
   • JAY CONSUMER: LOVELOCK 94
     • THE CHEAT: Writing compensation letters when nothing was wrong; ‘wardrobing’; inflating insurance claims
     • THE THIEF: Sneaks in to movies; bypasses cable TV/electric meters); stolen credit cards/identity; swap price tags
     • THE RULE-BREAKER: Breaks the rules of consumer-organisation conduct e.g. queue jumps
     • BELLIGERENT: Insults, threats, swearing, angry at staff, telephone rudeness
     • FAMILY FEUDERS: Start arguments with members of their own family (or worse, other customers)
     • THE VANDAL: Maliciously breaks property, graffiti
     • THE DEADBEAT: Similar to thief, but fail to pay due to lack of concern or interest
   • Motivations for Misbehaviour
     • m&m: 1.Unfulfilled aspirations Discrepancy between consumption goals and the availability of legitimate means to achieve them Unable to fulfill material aspirations legitimately, some people will resort to theft or fraud (particularly so among the younger generation)
     • m&m: 2.Deviant thrill-seeking The search for thrills and adventure a basic motivation for misconduct For some consumers, misbehaving is an thrilling experience in which they defy basic legal and moral strictures The risk of being caught only heightens the exquisite tension Perverse variant of ‘hedonic consumption’
     • m&m 3: Absence of moral constraints A lack of powerful internal inhibitions against conduct perceived to be wrong is another difference between normal and misbehaving consumers To misbehavers, acts of misconduct are simply not perceived as immoral, and acts may be neutralized
     • m&m 4: Differential association The idea that deviant behavior is learned, particularly in intimate groups In groups whose prevailing norms deviate from those of the larger society, misbehavior promotes the group’s identity and can serve as an initiation ritual (particularly so amongst teenage groups)
     • m&m 5: Pathological socialization The size and ownership of marketing institutions can evoke negative feelings leading to misbehavior Consumers are more willing to victimize large rather than small businesses. Consumers sometimes view misbehavior as revenge, for real or imagined injustices
     • m&m 6: Provocative situational factors Certain situations are frequently asserted to trigger powerful impulses to misbehave e.g. crowding and unsettling amounts of heat and noise e.g. crowded airplanes and delayed flights are being considered as intensifying factors in several reported incidents of airplane “rage” Enticing displays of merchandise may arouse urges to shoplift; political climates also heighten misbehavior (e.g. London/Manchester riots)
     • Calculating opportunism Weighing of the risks and rewards of misconduct
     • HOW TO MANAGE??
       • The educational approach uses promotional messages to persuade consumers to unlearn patterns of misconduct and to strengthen moral constraints which inhibit misbehavior Portraying consumer misbehavers as repulsive (e.g., Kallis and Vanier, 1985)
       • Deterrence is the most widely used control strategy today. It emphasizes the use of formal and informal sanctions. block opportunities to misbehave by making the perceived risks too great (e.g., Tittle, 1980)
     • Why do people buy compulsively? Low levels of self-esteem. Fantasy orientation.
   • “An irresistible urge to perform an irrational consumption act” (Hoyer and MacInnis, 2010, p. 472)
   • 1 in 11 consumers will leave a shop with something they have not paid for (National Association for Shoplifting Prevention, 2011)
   • Addictive consumption: Reflects excessive behaviours typically brought on by a chemical dependency Feel great attachment and dependence
   • Consciousness of addiction Hirschman (1992)
     • Dysfunctional families. Boundaries. Crime and deception of others.Suicide. Relapse.

9. SYMBOLIC CONSUMPTION

   • social tools: “serving as a means of communication between the individual and his significant references” (Grubb and Grathwohl, 1967)
     • “The tendency of consumers to rely and focus on the meanings attached to goods, beyond their physical properties” (Szmigin and Piacentini, 2014, p. 247)
   • indivisual A, consumes symbol X to impress its audience. Grubb and Grathwohl (1967)
   • you announce your sex, age and class to me through what you are wearing (Lurie 1992)
   • People often conform to their culture’s expectations about how those of their gender should act, dress
   • During socialization (Ward, 1974) we pick up on “appropriate” ways to behave Males are controlled by agentic goals, stressing self-assertion and mastery Women are taught to value communal goals, such as affiliation/harmony
   • biological gender (male/female) does not totally determine whether he/she will exhibit sex-typed traits
     • Masculinity/femininity are not biological characteristics