Learning Objectives
Topic 1 – Needs and Goals (chapter 3)
• Define needs and recognise how they can be activated
• Understand how needs influence goals
• Distinguish between
o Superordinate goals o Focal goals
o Subordinate goals
• Describe how marketers can use needs/goals to sell products and services
Topic 2 – Self-Concept and Personality (chapter 4)
• Define self-concept
• Examine how products can be used to define and maintain self-concept
• Define personality
• Understand the trait approach to personality
Topic 3 – Perception (chapter 5)
• How we perceive various sensations
• How we interpret our perceptions
• Strategic applications of perception, including:
o Positioning o Perceived risk
Topic 4 – Learning and involvement (chapter 6)
• Examine two forms of behavioural learning theory:
o Classical conditioning o Instrumental conditioning
• Explore cognitive learning theory
• Examine the influences of involvement on learning
Topic 5 – Attitudes and Attitude Change (chapter 7)
• Examine various models of attitude
• Understand how attitudes are formed
• Outline strategies for changing attitudes
• Review attribution theory
Topic 6 – Social Influence and Persuasion (chapter 7-8)
• Who is doing the communicating (the sender)
• What the sender is communicating (the message)
• Who is receiving the communication (the receiver)
Topic 7 – Family and Social Class (chapters 9-10)
• Family
o Define the concept of family
o Understand the consumer socialisation process o Discuss the various roles in family decision-making
• Social class
o Explain what is meant by social class
o Understand how social class can be measured
o Describe how social class can influence consumption patterns
Topic 8 – Culture, Sub-Culture and Cross-Culture (chapter 11-13)
• Understand what culture is and how it influences consumer behaviour
• Explore how culture is expressed
• Define subculture and examine various subcultural groups
• Describe the importance of cross-cultural differences, particularly in terms of the decision to standardise/localise
Topic 9 – Automatic and Conscious Decision Making (chapter 14)
• Understand what consumer decision making involves
• Explain the three levels of consumer decision making
• Describe the input, process, and output components of the conscious model of decision making
• Understand what is meant to by the term ‘automaticity’ within the context of decision making
Topic 10 – Consumer Influence and Diffusion of Innovations (chapter 15)
• Understand the basic elements of diffusion
• Explore the features of consumer innovators
Topic 1 – Needs and Goals
L1: Define needs and recognise how they can be activated
Needs: refer to any human requirement
- Innate (biogenic) needs: primary needs required to sustain life (food, water, shelter) - Acquired (psychogenic): secondary needs we learn in response to our family, social
class, culture etc. education, status
Goals: are how consumers seek to satisfy their unfulfilled needs
• All behaviour is oriented towards achieving goals o Generic goals e.g. track daily exercise
o Product-specific goals e.g. track steps using a FitBit
• Marketers are particularly interested in product-specific goals, but they need to know how product-specific goals align generic goals
L2: Understand how needs influence goals
Properties of needs and goals: in evaluating needs and goals, it’s important to recognise that:
• Consumers have many needs and goals
• Needs are often dormant
• Needs and goals vary between people
• Needs and goals vary over time
• Goals may be positive or negative
Needs are often dormant: most needs are latent; must be activated before they are acted upon
• Needs can be activated
o Physiologically e.g. feeling tired may trigger desire to travel o Emotionally e.g. feeling unfulfilled may trigger a desire to travel
o Cognitively e.g. thinking about a friend overseas may trigger desire to travel o Environmentally e.g. sensing winter is approaching may trigger desire to travel
• Need activation is an important function of advertising, packaging, point-of-sale displays
Needs/goals vary between people: basis of segmentation is to divide market into group of people with similar needs/goals
Needs/goals vary over time: we periodically assess our goals to see whether they satisfy our unfulfilled needs
- Goals that fulfil needs can lead to more aspirational goals
- Goals that don’t fulfil needs can lead to substitute/less aspirational goals
E.g. buy bitcoin – make money – buy more bitcoin/lose money – save money; ignore bitcoin
• Frustration – when we can’t achieve our goals
Defence mechanisms are used to cope with frustration; they protect our ego/self-concept from feelings of failure
• Rationalisation – whereby the original goal is reshaped as being unworthy of pursuit e.g. can’t afford to go overseas, so believe that there are more interesting things in Aus
• Projection – where blame for not being able to achieve a goal is projected onto
someone or something else e.g. can’t afford to go overseas because boss doesn’t give me enough shifts at work
Positive goals: referred to as approach objects because we direct our behaviour towards them - E.g. Work at café – save money
Negative goals: referred to as avoidance objects because we direct our behaviour away from them
- E.g. Avoid spending – save money
L3: Distinguish between Superordinate, Focal and Subordinate goals
Superordinate goals
- Are the reasons why we pursue certain focal goals - We are sometimes unaware of our superordinate goals
- The superordinate goals we select are based on our values, which are relatively enduring beliefs about appropriateness of certain actions
- Schwartz identified 10 universal values that vary in importance based on our:
❖ Family upbringing, social class, culture
Achievement: Strive to be successful and to bolster sense of self-respect
• Success arises from demonstrating competence on socially-approved standards
• Superordinate goal – earn a Uni degree Focal goal – earn more money
Power: Look to acquire wealth, status, authority and prestige as these represent an ability to control valued social and physical resources
• Superordinate goal – get a luxury car Focal goal – earn more money
Hedonism: look for pleasure and indulgence and seek to enjoy life
• Superordinate goal – travel Focal goal – earn more money
Stimulation: Want an exciting life – desire novelty because novelty means having a varied life
• Superordinate goal – participate in adventure sports Focal goal – earn more money
Self-direction: Look for and value freedom, creativity and the choice to be whatever they want to be – value independence and curiosity
• Superordinate goal – retire early Focal goal – earn more money
Universalism: Social justice and equality, try to understand appreciate and protect nature and the welfare of all people
• Superordinate goal – effective altruism Focal goal – earn more money
Benevolence: Enhance the welfare of the people with whom one has frequent personal contact, true friendship and mature love
• Superordinate goal – educate kids Focal goal – earn more money
Tradition: Respect and accept traditional customs and values. Humble, accept one’s lot in life
• Superordinate goal – collect old objects Focal goal – earn more money
Security: Look for safety, harmony and stability in society
• Value family security, national security and social order
• Seek a sense of belonging
• Superordinate goal – buy house in safe area Focal goal – earn more money
Conformity: Look to restrain actions or ideas that could upset or cause harm to others
• Value self-discipline, obedience, and politeness
• Superordinate goal – buying material items to impress Focal goal – earn more money
Focal goals
- Aim to compensate for (or address) unfulfilled needs - Needs = human requirements
- Human requirements vary from person to person and are determined, in part, by our values
- We desire the human requirements we lack; results in unfulfilled needs
Subordinate goals
- Relate to the actions we take to achieve our focal (and superordinate) goals
- For every focal goal, there are many potential subordinate goals from which we can choose
Means-ends analysis: An approach that links motives to the means of satisfying those in understanding the ultimate values that drive a behaviour
• In this approach, laddering interview technique is applied where consumers are asked to provide an account of their behaviour.
• Every answer is counter-asked by another question for further elaboration to arrive at the ultimate reason/value behind the behaviour
• Consequently, performed to select our subordinate goal. This involves evaluating each subordinate goal in terms of their:
- Attributes: features or characteristics of a product, service, or action
- Consequences: outcome of each attribute; these will either satisfy or conflict with our focal (and superordinate) goals
- Values: whether those outcomes are consistent or inconsistent with our underlying values
EXAMPLE: Eating bread Attributes – Filling & tasty
Filling Consequence – Feel energetic, reduced temptation Value – Achievement, self-direction, benevolence
L4: Describe how marketers can use needs/goals to sell products and services
Products provide more than just functional benefits; they also satisfy our psychological needs- E.g. differences between branded products vs non-branded
Topic 2 – Self-Concept and Personality
L1: Define self-concept
Self-concept: is the totality of a person’s thoughts and feelings about themselves
Actual self-image: How consumers see themselves
• Actual self-image – lover of food
• Behaviour response – like ‘Lard Lad Donuts’
Ideal self-image: How consumers would like to see themselves
• Fit
• BR – use a treadmill
Social self-image: How consumers feel others see them
• Incompetent at work
• BR – study
Ideal social self-image: How consumers would like others to see them
• Classy and sophisticated
• BR – buy a new suit
Family self-identity: Defining oneself in terms of one’s family
• Family man
• BR – take family to a theme park
Group self-identity: Defining oneself in terms of one’s membership or affiliation with particular groups
• Regular at Moe’s tavern (Simpsons)
• BR – buy Duff beer
Subcultural self-identity: Defining oneself in terms of one’s subcultural membership
• Christian
• BR – going to church
National self-identity: Defining oneself in terms of one’s membership or affiliation of particular groups
• American
• BR – engage in American hobbies or traditions
L2: Examine how products can be used to define and maintain self-concept
Multiple selves: marketers can activate a particular self-image- Segment consumers on the basis of their self-images and then position their offerings as symbols of those self-images
- Assess the discrepancy between actual and ideal self-images and then use this information to position their offerings as a way of reducing such discrepancies
Extended self: self-concept is often supported through the consumption of particular products and services
• Extended self is based on the idea that we known who we are by looking at what we have/own/use
• From this perspective, we use possessions to o Remind us of our self-concept
o Define and shape our self-concept o Communicate our self-concept to others
• Downside can lead to ‘commodity fetishism’ where products are worshipped for their supposed ability to bring us happiness
Four ways that objects become integrated with self
Extended Self Controlling: the more control we have over an object, the more likely that object will become part of the self – control can arise from:
- Owning an object
- Overcoming an object e.g. climbing mountain, riding a bike
Extended Self Creating: We invest part of ourselves in things we create e.g. IKEA effect Extended Self Knowing: Intimately knowing an object increases our sense of identification with it e.g. hidden restaurant or unique brands that only you know about
Extended Self Contaminating: Attempt to incorporate traits of others through symbolic contamination e.g. The Beatles’ White Album
- Handcrafted objects store more of the original maker’s sense of self than mass-produced objects
L3: Define personality
Personality
• Describes the inner characteristics that differentiate one person from another
Difference between personality and self-concept:
➢ Consumers generally have some awareness of their self-concept
➢ Consumers are not always aware of their personality
