Showing papers in "Journal of Consumer Research in 1976"
TL;DR: The authors summarizes what we have learned from research on the diffusion of innovations that contributes to understanding new product adoption, discusses how the background of diffusion research affected its contributions and shortcomings, and indicates future research priorities.
Abstract: This paper summarizes what we have learned from research on the diffusion of innovations that contributes to understanding new product adoption, discusses how the background of diffusion research affected its contributions and shortcomings, and indicates future research priorities. Diffusion research has played an important role in helping put social structure back in the communication process. Network analysis and field experiments are promising tools in diffusion studies. The diffusion model has aided our understandings of the consumption of new products.
764 citations
TL;DR: The authors reviewed existing research on household decision making in terms of three questions: (1) which family members are involved in economic decisions, (2) what is the nature of family decision processes, and (3) are decision outcomes affected by differences in family role structure and decision strategies.
Abstract: Existing research on household decision making is reviewed in terms of three questions: (1) Which family members are involved in economic decisions? (2) What is the nature of family decision processes? and (3) Are decision outcomes affected by differences in family role structure and decision strategies? Problem areas related to each of these questions are discussed, including an overemphasis on decision roles rather than processes and outcomes, noncomparable and insufficient measures of purchase influence, and marketing's preference for individual-based models of consumer behavior.
491 citations
TL;DR: The directive, information processing aspects of the personality are described in terms of eight successive steps: exposure, perception, comprehension, agreement, retention, retrieval, decision making, and action as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: The directive, information-processing aspects of the personality are described in terms of eight successive steps: exposure, perception, comprehension, agreement, retention, retrieval, decision making, and action. Each of these steps is illustrated by recent psychological research. The dynamic, motivational aspect of human personality is described more briefly in terms of 16 basic human motives that have received attention in recent psychological research.
375 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the relationship between time and consumer behavior has been reviewed in the fields of economics, sociology, home economics, psychology, and marketing and a rudimentary terminology appropriate for the exploration of these relationships is proposed.
Abstract: Despite the fact that time pervades every aspect of human behavior, consumer researchers have given it scant attention. Our objective is to stimulate much-needed conceptual and empirical attention regarding the relationships between time and consumer behavior. The approach adopted here is to review what has been published on the subject in the fields of economics, sociology, home economics, psychology, and marketing and to advance a rudimentary terminology appropriate for the exploration of these relationships.
288 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a model of gift selection based on cognitive consistency theories is presented and tested for predicting the conditions under which giver tastes or recipient tastes dominate gift selection and predicting the amount of satisfaction which the gift brings the giver.
Abstract: This article presents and tests a model of gift selection based on cognitive consistency theories. The model, which is supported by the data presented, offers a means for predicting the conditions under which giver tastes or recipient tastes dominate gift selection, and for predicting the amount of satisfaction which the gift brings the giver.
199 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a personality related study was made of individuals exhibiting socially conscious consumer behavior and it was found that these individuals may be characterized as "self-actualizing" as Maslow uses the term.
Abstract: A personality-related study was made of individuals exhibiting socially conscious consumer behavior. It was found that these individuals may be characterized as “self-actualizing” as Maslow uses the term. The findings expand previous findings by Webster, and they are evidence that a holistic approach to personality measurement is possible in consumer research.
192 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the effects of price and brand familiarity on brand preferences were examined using a complex experimental design, and it was found that changes in brand preferences are asymmetric and that brand familiarity is a dominant cue.
Abstract: Using a complex experimental design, the effects of price and brand familiarity on brand preferences are examined. Results of the research suggest that changes in brand preferences are asymmetric, and that brand familiarity is a dominant cue. Also, a methodological finding questions the validity of forced-choice experiments.
186 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors focus on several characteristics of societies which affect individual consumers, and suggest new research directions which delineate the domain of a sociology of consumption and its potential contributions to private and public policy makers.
Abstract: The study of some psychological processes has become the main focus of consumer research; consequently, there has been a tendency to overlook the societal context in which consumers operate. The Authors focus on several characteristics of societies which affect individual consumers, and suggest new research directions which delineate the domain of a sociology of consumption and its potential contributions to private and public policy makers.
163 citations
TL;DR: A review of consumer choice models of choice can be found in this article, where the authors present a discussion of psychological models for consumer choice in general before turning to models of consumer choices.
Abstract: BACKGROUND Unlike economists, psychologists have not been directly concerned with consumer behavior. Psychological theory has been applied to the study of consumer choice by marketing students, who have worked with models developed in such areas as social psychology, motivational psychology, environmental psychology, and educational psychology. Furthermore, psychologists do not have one theory of choice behavior. Instead, they have a number of different theories, many of which may be applied to the study of consumers. Therefore, the topic "psychological models of consumer choice" can be approached from two different angles: One can ask, "What kind of psychological models exist that could be used in the study of consumer choice?" or one can ask, "What kind of psychological models are actually applied by students of consumer choice?" Ideally, one should arrive at the same answers regardless of the question raised, but that is not the case. The first question calls for a review of different areas of psychology, whereas the second question implies that marketing and other students' applications of psychological theory be analyzed. In this chapter, the second approach dominates. However, to provide a broader frame of reference, the review begins with a discussion of psychological models of choice in general before turning to models of consumer choice.
159 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors show that adoption decisions are viewed as following evaluation, a cognitive stage in the decision process, or trial, an overt purchase act following the Klonglan-coward model, and that the tendency to base adoption decision on evaluation or trial is supported by data from a sample survey of adult females.
Abstract: Following the Klonglan-Coward model, adoption decisions are viewed as following evaluation, a cognitive stage in the decision process, or trial, an overt purchase act. Operationalizing a person's optimal stimulation level with Zuckerman's Sensation Seeking Scale, hypotheses linking stimulation needs and the tendency to base an adoption decision on evaluation or trial are supported by data from a sample survey of adult females.
152 citations
TL;DR: Two empirical studies are reported in which tests are conducted between adding and averaging combination rules for evaluative judgments, and results indicate that attribute information combines by averaging.
Abstract: Two empirical studies are reported in which tests are conducted between adding and averaging combination rules for evaluative judgments. The results indicate that attribute information combines by averaging. Multi-attribute models which assume adding are contradicted by the findings, and thus, provide an inadequate description of consumers' psychological processes.
TL;DR: In this article, an alternative, more parsimonious, approach is suggested to describe environmental differences, which is noted as lacking parsimony, and an alternative approach to describing environmental differences is suggested.
Abstract: Russell Belk's explicit recognition of environmental variables and their ability to explain and predict behavior is applauded. His approach to describing environmental differences is noted as lacking parsimony, however, and an alternative, more parsimonious, approach is suggested.
TL;DR: In this article, a mathematical theory of the adoption of new products is derived from extant behavioral knowledge and tested against first purchase data on low-risk, non-durable products, and it is shown that this theory can be applied to any product category.
Abstract: A mathematical theory of the adoption of new products is derived from extant behavioral knowledge and tested against first purchase data on low-risk, non-durable products.
TL;DR: The relationship between perceived risk and personality measures believed to influence information processing was examined using correlational analyses by as mentioned in this paper, who found that perceived risk measures were positively related to a number of anxiety measures and negatively related to self-esteem and risk taking.
Abstract: The relationships between perceived risk and personality measures believed to influence information processing were examined using correlational analyses. Perceived risk measures were positively related to a number of anxiety measures and negatively related to self-esteem and risk taking. No significant patterns of relationships were found between perceived risk and rigidity or between perceived risk and perceptual measures previously related to such traits as tolerance for ambiguity, ego control, and rigidity. The construct validity of psychophysical perceptual measures of the personality traits of anxiety and rigidity was not supported.
TL;DR: A general theory of motivation, derived from Tolman and Atkinson and his associates is applied to message processing, which explains a person's tendency to process a message and his resultant information processing intensity in terms of his need for information on the given topic.
Abstract: A general theory of motivation, derived from Tolman and Atkinson and his associates is applied to message processing The model explains a person's tendency to process a message and his resultant information processing intensity in terms of his need for information on the given topic, his expectancy that processing the message will lead to information relevant to the need and his evaluation of the particular message as a source of information
TL;DR: A non-technical description of latent class analysis and a discussion of the CANDECOMP procedure and its application to consumer adoption of a new telecommunications service is presented in this paper.
Abstract: A nontechnical description of latent class analysis and a discussion of the CANDECOMP procedure and its application to consumer adoption of a new telecommunications service is presented with some suggestions for other areas in consumer and market research where latent class analysis might be of use.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors conduct an experimental test of the Federal Trade Commission's proposed ban of child-directed television commercials promoting premiums, and the preliminary results are generally non-supportive of the FTC's position and question the legitimacy of the proposed guide.
Abstract: This study constitutes an experimental test of the Federal Trade Commission's proposed ban of child-directed television commercials promoting premiums. These preliminary results are generally non-supportive of the FTC's position and question the legitimacy of the proposed guide.
TL;DR: In this paper, the degree to which consumers use identical or similar brand and store choice strategies across product categories was analyzed based on data on two pairs of frequently-purchased products.
Abstract: This article describes the degree to which consumers use identical or similar brand and store choice strategies across product categories. The analysis is based on data on two pairs of frequently-purchased products and the results indicate that consumers frequently use identical or similar purchasing strategies across product categories. The principal implication of these results is that buying behavior may be governed by general household characteristics such as demographics to a greater extent than past research in this area had indicated.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors look at the most recent attempts to construct models of the socially and ecologically conscious consumer and subject them to empirical test, but results have been largely disappointing, and use its negative findings to construct a model which is more sensitive to the political dimensions of consumption activities.
Abstract: Several researchers have attempted to construct models of the socially and ecologically conscious consumer and subject them to empirical test, but results have been largely disappointing. The author looks at the most recent of these attempts and uses its “negative” findings to construct a model which is more sensitive to the political dimensions of consumption activities.
TL;DR: A recent review of the literature on decision making within the household (Davis, 1975) concludes that "the view of consumers as individual decision makers is still very much alive" as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: Despite a growing number of studies involving husband-wife decision making (Davis, 1970; Ferber, 1973; Ferber and Lee, 1974; Davis and Rigaux, 1974 and Munsinger, Weber and Hansen, 1974 to mention just a few), a recent review of the literature on decision making within the household (Davis, 1975) concludes that "the view of consumers as individual decision makers is still very much alive." This lopsided focus on the individual, which is clearly evident in most applied consumer research studies can be the result of a belief that the individual is the appropriate unit of analysis. This may be the case if one assumes that the individual makes his purchase and consumption decisions independent of the influence of others or alternatively that his decisions reflect his perceptions of the preference of others and their relative importance to his decision. This latter approach is implicit in most of the consumer behavior studies which tend to focus on the housewife as the representative "purchasing agent" of the household. Alternatively, one may recognize that the unit of analysis should be the household or any combination of members within it, but given the conceptual and methodological problems involved in moving from the individual to the multi-person unit of analysis (not to mention the extra costs involved in collecting such data), the researcher is willing to settle for the analysis of consumer behavior at the individual level. Since the purchase and consumption behavior of individuals is rarely done independently of the influence of others, it is desirable to change the unit of analysis in consumer research from the individual to the "buying center" (those members of the family and other individuals involved in the purchase decision).1 Having identified the members of the buying unit, ideally, one would like to examine the dynamics of the purchase and consumption decision processes among the relevant members of the buying center. Given, however, the complexity and cost of such an undertaking2, a somewhat less ambitious approach would be to examine explicitly the influence of relevant others on the purchase decision of a decision maker within the buying center. The importance of the influence of relevant others on an individual purchase behavior has long been recognized in the consumer behavior and marketing literature. Coulson (1966), for example, stated: "other members of the family exert considerable influence on the housewife in making brand decisions." Similarly, the organizational buying behavior literature has recognized the fact that most organizational purchase decisions are influenced by various members of the buying center-, and that purchasing agents attempt to take into consideration the preference of the other members of the buying center (Wind, 1967 and Webster and Wind, 1972). Examination of the influence of relevant others on a decision maker's buying decisions cannot explain the dynamics of the interaction among the members of the buying center, but if measured in a rigorous way may provide answers to questions such as:
TL;DR: A review of findings about these factors, the family, schools, and other mediating variables is presented in this paper in which the problems of research are stressed, particularly the inadequacies of studies that ignore factors such as the demand for labor and business cycles.
Abstract: Major theories about educational and occupational attainment have stressed the final choices as the results of a development process. Many empirical studies have demonstrated that the major influences on educational and occupational attainments are socioeconomic origins, intelligence, race, and sex. A review of findings about these factors, the family, schools, and other mediating variables is presented in which the problems of research are stressed, particularly the inadequacies of studies that ignore factors such as the demand for labor and business cycles.
TL;DR: This paper found that childbearing patterns vary by race, socioeconomic status, and religion, with conception control a possible reason for the variation, and there is some evidence that nonhomogamous marriages are broken more often than homogamous ones.
Abstract: Patterns of mate selection reflect a tendency toward homogamy. Child-bearing patterns vary by race, socioeconomic status, and religion, with conception control a possible reason for the variation. Divorce and separation occur more frequently among black and poor couples, and there is some evidence that nonhomogamous marriages are broken more often than homogamous ones. Despite the increased divorce rate and tendency of young people to delay marriage, there is little empirical support for a radical change in American marriage and family patterns.
TL;DR: In this paper, an Exponential Smoothing Model (ESM) of brand choice is presented which possesses a mathematical structure very similar to that of the Linear Learning Model (LLM).
Abstract: An Exponential Smoothing Model (ESM) of brand choice is presented which possesses a mathematical structure very similar to that of the Linear Learning Model (LLM) of brand choice. While the LLM is posited on adaptive learning (purchase event feedback) by the consumer, the ESM is basically a forecasting model, i.e., a forecast of the consumer's brand choice probability on the next purchase occasion is obtained from his previous purchase history by weighting recent information more heavily.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors discuss some of the problems inherent in a totally mediational approach to studying situational influence, and clarify the need for the sort of objective characteristics outlined in the original paper.
Abstract: In their comments concerning the variables by which consumer situations (their "environments") might best be characterized, Russell and Mehrabian urged ". . . a consideration of [pleasure, arousal, and dominance] emotions as the lowest common denominator of response to environments . . . related both to any aspect of environments and to most aspects of behavior" (Russell and Mehrabian, 1976), as a more parsimonious substitute for the consideration of objective characteristics of situations which was suggested by Belk (1975b). While such "emotional" mediators are indeed potentially useful in seeking to understand the influences of consumer situations, these mediators offer only partial accountings of situational effects, and also fail to obviate the need to characterize situations in more objective terms. This reply will discuss some of the problems inherent in a totally mediational approach to studying situational influence, and clarify the need for the sort of objective characteristics outlined in the original paper.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors developed and validated two psychographic instruments and found that moderate correlations between these measures and preferences for meaningfully grouped sets of products provided a degree of parsimony in explaining patterns of consumer preference, and that appropriately selected, psychographic measures might be able to predict actual choice behavior for clearly differentiated consumer segments.
Abstract: Two psychographic instruments were developed and validated. Moderate correlations between these measures and preferences for meaningfully grouped sets of products provided a degree of parsimony in explaining patterns of consumer preference. Further, there was some evidence that, appropriately selected, psychographic measures might be able to predict actual choice behavior for clearly differentiated consumer segments.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors respond directly to some of Ryans and Deutscher's points and present some additional analyses as they suggested, and elaborate why it is important to study children's attributions of persuasive and assistive intent in conceptualizing their response to commercials.
Abstract: We appreciate the comments by Ryans and Deutscher (1975) regarding our 1974 JCR article, "Children and Commercial Persuasion: An Attribution Theory Analysis." Our purpose in this note is to respond directly to some of Ryans and Deutscher' s points and to present some additional analyses as they suggested. We will also elaborate as to why it is important to study children's attributions of persuasive and assistive intent in conceptualizing their response to commercials. The additional analyses and elaborations prompted by Ryans and Deutscher's critique, we believe, serve to strengthen our original position.