Consumer Behaviour and Decision Matrix - Assignment Example

Assessment Item 1 Part A Decision Matrix The decision matrix used in this context has seven evaluative criteria, namely; relaxation, excitement, physical challenge, mental challenge, romance, share with friends and the desire to be outdoors. The scale used is a 1-5 scale. The weights used range from 1-4, with four showing the highest importance and one the lowest importance. The decision matrix works by the addition of the values obtained from the calculation of the values of the respective leisure activities based on their score on the evaluative criteria scale. The totals obtained are as a result of the addition of the values obtained after the multiplication of the score with their respective weight value. The leisure activity with the highest total score is rated as the one which is most preferred. Respondent 1 Relaxation Excitement Physical Challenge Mental Challenge Romance Share With friends To be outdoors Total Rugby 2 2 5 2 1 3 3 44.5 Cricket 1 3 3 2 1 4 4 44.5 Surfing 5 5 3 3 1 3 4 65.5 Drinking 2 3 1 1 2 5 3 46.5 Shopping 5 4 2 2 1 4 4 61.5 Watching Sports 5 4 2 3 3 4 4 66.5 Fishing 5 3 2 1 1 3 4 53.5 Relaxation Excitement Physical Challenge Mental Challenge Romance Share with friends To be outdoors Weight 4 3 2 2 1.5 3 2 Respondent 2 Relaxation Excitement Physical Challenge Mental Challenge Romance Share With friends To be outdoors Total Rugby 5 4 2 3 3 4 4 66.5 Cricket 5 3 2 1 1 3 4 53.5 Surfing 5 4 2 2 1 4 4 61.5 Drinking 2 2 5 2 1 3 3 44.5 Shopping 5 5 3 3 1 3 4 65.5 Watching Sports 2 2 5 2 1 3 3 44.5 Fishing 2 3 1 1 2 5 3 46.5 Respondent 3 Relaxation Excitement Physical Challenge Mental Challenge Romance Share With friends To be outdoors Total Rugby 5 4 2 2 1 4 4 61.5 Cricket 2 2 5 2 1 3 3 44.5 Surfing 2 3 1 1 2 5 3 46.5 Drinking 1 3 3 2 1 4 4 44.5 Shopping 5 4 2 3 3 4 4 66.5 Watching Sports 5 5 3 3 1 3 4 65.5 Fishing 1 3 3 2 1 3 3 44.5 From the above decision matrix, respondent one prefers watching sports, respondent two prefers rugby and respondent three prefers shopping as leisure activities. The results from the decision matrix for respondent one are in line with respondent ones preference. The results for respondent two are not in coherence with his preference because the respondent could not round up other people who would love to indulge in rugby at that particular moment. Respondent two would have liked to go drinking instead. The results from the decision matrix are in line with respondent three’s preference of shopping as a leisure activity. Part B Personality The leisure decisions made by the respondents is dependent on the respondent’s personality and personal characteristics which include; consumer’s age, occupation and economic situation (Edward & William). Personality is the unique and continuing pattern of thoughts, emotions and behaviors that characterize a person’s adaptation to the situation of their lives. In a nutshell it is an individual’s consistent self-representation. The following theories have been used in the analysis of personality; psychoanalytic, trait-factor and social-psychological. The psychoanalytic theory suggests that personality consists of the following three aspects; id, ego and superego. The id is the psychic part which has to be gratified instantaneously for biological needs. The superego stands for the societal or personal habits that serve as an ethical restraint on conduct. The ego mediates the pleasure-seeking demands of the id and the moral prohibitions of the superego. The interactions of the aforementioned elements lead to unconscious motivations that are manifested as human behavior. This serves as a basis of the research-motivation faction. In the socio-psychological theory social variables are put into consideration instead of biological instincts (David & Albert). It also stipulates that behavioral motivations are geared to achieve the aforementioned needs. The Horney paradigm is used as a representation of socio-psychological theory. The paradigm suggests that human behavior is as a result of the following orientations; detached, aggressive and compliant. It is used as the CAD scale which consists of a 35-item scale. It helps with the relation of consumer choices with personality. Trait factor theory is a quantitative personality analysis method. The theory suggests that an individual’s personality is composed of attributes known as traits. A trait is a discernible enduring manner in which a person differs from another person. It is thought that traits vary among individuals and it can be measured by the use of techniques such as the California Psychological Inventory or via the use of the Edwards Personal Preference Scale. It is thought that personality influences the choices people make when it pertains to choices that relate to the type magazines, automobiles and their occupations. Personal characteristics can be measured by the use of the following methods; inventory schemes, situational tests, rating methods and projective techniques (Webster & Yoram). Rating methods entail the assessment of personality characteristics by the use of standardized scales. It may also entail the use of interviews (Webster & Yoram). Situational tests involve the use of make belief real life situations such as stressful circumstances which is used to determine a person’s personality. For instance make belief situations may be used to test a person’s aggression or submissive nature. Projective techniques are used in the analysis of the organization of an individual’s personality. Inventory schemes are used because they are more objective than subjective. The data obtained from the analysis of personality leads to the broad categorization of individuals as introverts or extroverts. Extroverts are out going people who prefer activities that involve people whereas introverts are people who prefer solitary activities. Respondent one is likely to be an introvert since the individual prefers watching sports in the comfort of his living room, preferably alone. Respondent two and three are most likely to be extroverts since they prefer activities that involve the interaction of people. Demographics Other factors that may not be necessarily being hinged on personality are consumer’s age, occupation, gender, family situation, ethnicity, and economic situation. The consumer’s age refers to the consumer’s age bracket which is thought to weigh heavily on the consumer’s preference. Elderly people prefer leisure activities that do not entail a lot of physical movement while the youth prefer activities that entail a lot of physical movement. For instance respondent two who prefers to indulge in rugby is a young adult while respondent one who prefers to watch sports is a middle aged person. Occupation also plays a role on leisure decisions as it determines the amount of free time a person has and it also determines the amount of money a person has. People who work very long hours usually end up being very tired and as such prefer activities that do not involve the use of a lot of energy. They also end up participating in indoor activities since they do not have ample time to engage in outdoor activities. Their salary will also determine their form of leisure activity since some activities require the use of money in order to be performed. A consumer’s economic situation refers to the consumer’s liquidity level and as such the amount of money a consumer can spend on leisure. For instance respondent three who spends most of his/her time shopping happens to be very affluent and hence exuberant in his/her spending. Respondent three has a lot of cash to spare and therefore has shopping as a leisure activity. Family is a number of people related by blood, adoption or marriage who live together. The types of family that exist are nuclear and extended. Nuclear family consists of mother, father and children who reside together. Extended family on the other hand comprises the nuclear family and relatives like aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents. The family that an individual is born into is called family of orientation while that in which an individual marries into is called family of procreation (Edward & William). Household is a terminology used interchangeably with family and it refers to people related or not who reside in a housing unit. The family influences a person’s leisure activity decisions due to the following characteristics of a household; a person’s marital status, the presence or absence of children and a person’s status of employment. Family decisions are further influenced by the following sociological aspects; communication, adaptability and cohesion. Cohesion is how a family is emotionally attached to each other. It is a measure of how close family members are. Family adaptability is a measure of how a family can adapt to situational and developmental stress. It measures the effectiveness at which a family can alter its structure, role and rule relationships. Communication is the factor that enables the movement of information between the aforementioned dimensions. Positive communication include; empathy, supportive comments and reflective listening. These facilitate the communication of family members about their ever changing preferences. The traditional family is thought to evolve through the following phases; single, newly married people, full Nest I, full Nest II, Full Nest III, Empty Nest I, Empty Nest II, The Solitary Survivor and The Retired Solitary survivor (Kotler). The single stage is phases in which individuals’ earnings is comparatively low and are used for few rigid demands. Part of the individual’s income is used to buy a car, basic necessities and furniture for the single person’s new home. Single people are usually fashion oriented and spend most of their money on leisure, beverages and food. Newly married couples have a larger income base and therefore spend most of their money on leisure activities, vacations, food and beverages. This group of people is very predisposed to advertising. Full Nest I is a situation in which a married couple welcomes their first child. At this stage the family’s income is low. The family unit uses most of its income on the child and thus they are more often than not financially strained. Full Nest II is a stage in which the family’s financial position improves but it is mostly influenced by the children’s demands. Full Nest III is a situation in which the family’s financial standing improves as the children also get some sort of income from occasional employment. The family spends a lot of money on automobiles and new furniture. Empty Nest I is a situation in which children leave home and the family’s financial position is steadier than ever. The children seize to be financially dependent on parents. The family’s spending on luxury sky rockets (Edward & William). Empty Nest II is a situation in which the head of the family are retired and the family experiences a drop in income. The expenditure is channeled to health matters more than anything else. The solitary survivor is using most of their income on leisure and vacations. The Retired Solitary Survivor experiences a reduction in income than the aforementioned family phase. The individuals who fall in this bracket have more needs that pertain to security, attention and affection. The modern family evolves in the following stages; Bachelor, the individual has no dependants has never been married nor divorced. Young couple is those people who may be married or unmarried and do not have dependants (Ayuba). Full Nest I consists of a couple who may either be married or unmarried with a child who is less then 6 years of age. Full Nest II consists of a couple who are married or unmarried with a child who is more than six years of age. Single parent I consists of an individual who has never been married before and has a child who is either less than or greater than six years of age. Bachelor II the individual is in the age category of 35-60 and has never been married before nor had any dependents. Childless couple falls in the age category 35-60 with no dependents and may either be married or unmarried. Delayed female Nest couples fall in the age category of 35-60 and are neither married nor unmarried with their youngest child less than six years of age. The family type and the stage at which a family is usually determine the kind of leisure activities a person may participate in. For instance respondent one who is most interested in watching sports does this as it involves his entire family and thus falls in the family time category (Eric & George). The respondent does this as it accords the family time to bond and interact over a game. Respondent three who likes shopping is single and thus is more inclined to spending money on buying new clothes, equipment and furniture and thus does a lot of shopping. Culture or ethnicity is a collection of ideas, values and symbols that facilitate the communication of individuals, interpretation and evaluation as people that comprise the society. Instincts are not part of culture or one time remedies to problems (John & Jagdish). Culture gives people a sense of identity and also provides them with things that are allowed in the community. Ethnicity influences the following parts of the society; work routines and practices, the perception of time, norms, mental process and eating habits. In a nutshell ethnicity is the total acquired beliefs, customs and values that steer consumer habits to a specified direction. Culture has the following aspects; firstly it ways heavily on an individual’s process of thought and behavior. Culture influences the manner in which biological urges are fulfilled. It thus influences our perception of the world around us. Culture is acquired which means that an individual is not born with it. Thirdly culture lays out the boundaries in which an individual is expected to operate in. Lastly culture is reflex action other than anything else as it is ingrained in our subconscious. Ethnicity has the following characteristics; it is invented that is which entails the formation of the following attributes; ideology which entails the ideas and beliefs that people put in mind when they define desirable and undesirable things, technological components that entail arts and crafts that facilitate the production of goods from earthly materials, organizational component that facilitate the coordination of human behavior. The second aspect is that culture is acquired and more or else imbedded in the human brain. It is socially shared by the entire community (Eric & George). Cultures are similar and at the same time different. For instance the following things exist in different communities; cooking, courtship, government, family, housing, and education the only difference in cultures is the manner in which they are perceived and performed (Leon & Leslie). It provides for some form of gratification and persistence. It does this by the satisfaction of both biological and learned needs. It is adaptive in that people alter their culture as they interact with those of different cultures. It is organized and integrated as forms some consistency. Lastly it is prescriptive since it provides an elaborate outline of how people should behave, think and feel. Culture in the United States touches on different elements for instance the role in families is that of equality which is quite different from those in African countries. Time in the United States is very vital and it takes the precedence in a lot of things done in the States. Form of communication is also very impersonal which is contrary to the ones in African countries. People in the States equate success to material things which is contrary with their African counterparts. Individualism is also advocated for in the United States which is contrary to countries which advocate for communism. All in all culture plays a big role in the choice of leisure activities as it stipulates what is and what is not accepted in the society. For instance there are cultures in which women are not allowed to wear skimpy clothes, that is shorts therefore leisure activities such as rugby are not very common among women. These countries are mainly those of Arab origin. Also in some cultures alcohol drinking is discouraged and therefore its consumption is limited or eliminated all together. Gender plays a huge role in consumption decisions. This is because men and women take part in very different activities and are inclined to consume different amounts of products. In this context, respondent three who prefers shopping as leisure activity is a woman. Women have a preference for shopping as an activity than physical activities or taking part in sports. Respondent one who is interested in rugby is male. Rugby is a masculine sport and it is not shocking that the male young adult chose it as a leisure activity. Consumer behavior is a large aspect in marketing and its proper understanding is imperative for the formulation of successful marketing strategies. Consumer behavior transcends consumer personality and demographics. Personality lays a basis of consumer preference as it is thought to run in the genes of a consumer. Personality is therefore measured by the use of a number of techniques and scales. Consumer demographics comprises of gender, age, ethnicity or culture, family, occupation and consumer’s economic situation. It is therefore determined that there are a number of factors that influences consumer behavior apart from genetic factors. Works Cited David. L and Albert J.D (2002), Consumer Behavior, New Delhi: Tata McGraw Hill. Edward, J. and William J. (1963): Fundamentals of Marketing; New York, Mc-Graw Hill, Inc. Fredrick E. Webster Jr. and Yoram W. (1972), Organizational Buying Behavior, Eaglewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. Eric, A.L & George, Z (2002), Consumer, New York: Mc-Graw-Hill Irwin. Del I.H. Roger J.B. and Kenneth A.C (2001), Consumer Behavior; Building Marketing Strategy, New York: McGraw-Hill Irwin. John A.H. and Jagdish N.S. (1969), Theory of Buyer Behavior, New York; Wiley Leon G.S and Leslie L.K (2004), Consumer Behavior, Upper Saddle River, U.S.A; Pearson Education, Inc. Pearson Prentice Hall. Ayuba, B. (2005), Marketing Principles and Management, Kaduna: Shukrah Printing. Geoff, R. (1988); Modern Industrial Marketing; New York; McGraw Hill Inc. Kotler, P. (2002), Marketing Management 21C., Upper Saddle River, U.S.A: Pearson Education Inc. Pearson Prentice Hall. Read More