Consumer Behavior Glossary

ability The extent to which consumers have the resources knowledge, intelligence, and money
necessary to make an outcome happen.

absolute threshold The minimal level of stimulus intensity needed to detect a stimulus.

accessibility The likelihood that an item will be retrieved from long-term memory.

accommodation theory The more effort one puts forth in trying to communicate with an ethnic
group, the more positive the reaction.

acculturation Learning how to adapt to a new culture.

acquisition The process by which a consumer comes to own an offering.

activities, interests, and opinions (AIOs) The three components of lifestyles.

actual identity schemas The set of multiple, salient identities that reflect our self-concept.

actual state The way things actually are.

adaptability The extent to which the innovation can foster new styles.

addiction Excessive behavior typically brought on by a chemical dependence.

additive difference model Compensatory model in which brands are compared by attribute,

two brands at a time.

adoption A purchase of an innovation by an individual consumer or household.

aesthetic or hedonic innovation An innovation tat appeals to our aesthetic pleasure seeking,
and /or sensory needs.

affect Low-level feelings.

affect referral A simple type of affective tactic where we simply remember our feelings for the
product or service.

affective decision making Decisions based on feelings and emotions.

affective function How attitudes influence our feelings.

affective involvement Expending emotional energy and heightened feelings regarding an

offering or activity.

affective responses When consumers generate feelings and images in response to a message.

affect-related tactics Tactics based on feelings.

agentic goals Goals that stress mastery, self-assertiveness, self-efficacy, strength,

assertiveness, and no emotion.
alternative-based strategy Developing an overall liking or disliking for each option in order to
make a noncomparable decision.

ambiguity of information A condition whereby decision options are hard to differentiate.

anchoring and adjustment process Starting with an initial evaluation and adjusting it with
additional information.

approach-approach conflict A conflict that occurs when a consumer must choose between two
or more equally desirable options that fulfill different needs.

approach-avoidance conflict A conflict that occurs when a given behavior or outcome is seen
as both desirable and undesirable because it satisfies some needs but fails to satisfy others.

aspirational reference group Group that we admire and desire to be like.

associative reference group Group to which we currently belong.

attention The process by which an individual allocates part of his or her mental activity to a
stimulus.

attitude A relatively global and enduring evaluation of an object, issue, person, or action.

attitude accessibility How easily an attitude can be remembered.

attitude confidence How strongly we hold an attitude.

attitude persistence How long our attitude lasts.

attitude resistance How difficult it is to change an attitude.

attitude specificity How specific the attitude is to the behavior being predicted. 6

attitude toward the act (Aact) How we feel about doing something.

attitude toward the ad (Aad) Whether the consumer likes or dislikes an ad.

attraction effect The adding of an inferior brand to a consideration, which increases the

attractiveness of the dominant brand.

attractiveness A source characteristic that evokes favorable attitudes if a source is physically

attractive, likable, familiar, or similar to ourselves.

attribute determinance Attributes that are both salient and diagnostic.

attribute processing Comparing brands, one attribute at a time.

attribute-based strategy Making noncomparable choices by making abstract representations

of comparable attributes.

attribution theory A theory of how individuals find explanations for events.

autobiographical or episodic memory Knowledge we have about ourselves and our personal

experiences.
autonomic decision Decision equally likely to be made by the husband or wife, but not by both.

availability heuristic Basing judgments on events that are easier to recall.

avoidance-avoidance conflict A conflict that occurs when the consumer must choose between
two equally undesirable options.

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baby boomers Individuals born between 1946 and 1964.

bait-and-switch technique A technique whereby consumers are attracted by a low price and
then enticed to trade up to a more expensive item.

bargaining A fair exchange of preferences.

base-rate information How often an event really occurs for all consumers.

basic level A level of categorization below the superordinate category that contains objects in
more refined categories.

behavior (B) What we do.

behavioral intention (BI) What we intend to do.

belief discrepancy When a message is different from what consumers believe.

black market An illegal market in which consumers pay often exorbitant amounts for items not
readily available.

boycott An organized activity in which consumers avoid purchasing products or services from a
company whose policies or practices are seen as unfair or unjust.

brand alliance A marketing strategy in which two companies' brand names are presented
together on a single product.

brand community A specialized group of consumers with a structured set of relationships

involving a particular brand, fellow customers of that brand, and the product in use

brand extension A marketing strategy in which a firm that markets a product with a well-
developed image uses the same brand name but in a different product category.

brand familiarity Easy recognition of a well-known brand.

brand image A subset of salient and feeling-related associations stored in a brand schema.

brand loyalty Buying the same brand repeatedly because of a strong preference.

brand personality The set of associations that reflect the personification of the brand.
brand processing Evaluating one brand at a time.

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categorization The process of labeling or identifying an object. Involves relating what we

perceive in our external environment to what we already know.

central-route processing The attitude formation and change process when effort is high.

choice tactics Simple rules of thumb used to make low effort decisions.

chunk A group of items that can be processed as a unit.

class average Families with an average income in a particular class.

classic A successful innovation that has a lengthy product life cycle.

classical conditioning Producing a response to a stimulus by repeatedly pairing it with another

stimulus that automatically produces this response.

closure According to this principle, individuals have a need to organize perceptions so that they
form a meaningful whole.

clustering The grouping of consumers according to common characteristics using statistical

techniques.

co-branding An arrangement by which two brands form a partnership to benefit from the power
of two.

coercive power The extent to which the group has the capacity to deliver rewards and
sanctions.

cognitive complexity The extent to which consumers prefer information to be presented in a

simple or complex manner.

cognitive function How attitudes influence our thoughts.

cognitive involvement Interest in thinking about and processing information related to one's

goal.

cognitive models The process by which consumers combine items of information about

attributes to reach a decision.

cognitive responses Thoughts we have in response to a communication.

cognitive style Preferences for how information is received e.g., visually or verbally.

communal goals Goals that stress affiliation and fostering harmonious relations with others,
submissiveness, emotionality, and home oriented.
comparative messages Messages that make direct comparisons to competitors.

compensatory consumption The consumer behavior of buying products or services to offset

frustrations or difficulties in life.

compensatory eating Making up for lack of social contact or depression by eating.

compensatory model A mental cost-benefit analysis model to make a decision.

compliance Doing what the group or social influencer asks.

comprehension The process of deepening understanding. Involves using prior knowledge to

understand more about what we have categorized.

compulsive consumption An irresistible urge to perform an irrational consumption act.

Computerized Status Index (CSI) A modern index used to determine social class through
education, occupation, residence, and income.

concession Giving in on some points to get what one wants in other areas.

concreteness The extent to which a stimulus is capable of being imagined.

confirmation bias Tendency to recall information that reinforces or confirms our overall beliefs
rather than contradicting them, thereby making our judgment or decision more positive than it
should be.

confirmation bias The greater likelihood of being able to recall things consistent with our
beliefs.

conformity Doing what others in the group do.

conjoint analysis A research technique to determine the relative importance and appeal of
different levels of an offering's attributes.

conjunctive model A noncompensatory model that sets minimum cutoffs to reject "bad"
options.

conjunctive probability assessment Estimating the extent two events will occur together.

connative function How attitudes influence our behavior.

connectedness function The use of products as symbols of our personal connections to

significant people, events, or experiences.

conservation behavior Consumer preservation of natural resources.

consideration evoked set The subset of brands evaluated when making a choice.

conspicuous consumption The acquisition and display of goods and services to show off one's
status.

conspicuous waste Visibly buying products and services that one never uses.

consumer behavior The totality of consumers' decisions with respect to the acquisition,

consumption, and disposition of goods, services, time, and ideas by human decision-making
units [over time].

consumer memory A personal storehouse of knowledge about products and services, shopping,
and consumption experiences.

consumer rights Protection and access to information in certain consumer-related areas that

are guaranteed to consumers.

consumer socialization The process by which we learn to become consumers.

consumerism Activities of government, business, independent organizations, and consumers

designed to protect the rights of consumers.

contextual effects The influence of the decision situation on the decision-making process.

continuous innovation An innovation that has a limited effect on existing consumption

patterns.

corrective advertising The formal statement a company must make to correct false beliefs.

correlated associations The extent to which two or more associations linked to a schema go

together.

counterarguments CAs Thoughts that disagree with the message.

credibility Extent to which the source is trustworthy, expert, or has status.

cultural categories The natural grouping of objects that reflect our culture.

cultural principles Ideas or values that specify how aspects of our culture are organized and/or
how they should be perceived or evaluated.

culture The typical or expected behaviors, norms, and ideas that characterize a group of people.

curtailment behaviors Activities that result in using less energy.

customer retention The practice of keeping customers by building long-term relationships.

cutoff levels For each attribute, the point at which a brand is rejected with a noncompensatory
model.

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data mining Searching for patterns in the company database that offer clues to customer
needs, preferences, and behaviors.

deal-prone consumers Consumers who are more likely to be influenced by price.

decay The weakening of nodes or links over time.

deception Marketing communications that leave consumers with information or beliefs that are
incorrect or cannot be substantiated.

decision framing The initial reference point or anchor in the decision process.

decision making Making a selection between options or courses of action.

demand-shift behaviors Activities that use more efficient energy sources.

diagnostic information That which helps us discriminate among objects.

differential threshold/just noticeable difference ( j.n.d.) The intensity difference needed

between two stimuli before they are perceived to be different.

diffusion The percentage of the population that has adopted an innovation at a specific point in
time.

disconfirmation The existence of a discrepancy between expectations and performance.

discontinuous innovation An offering that is so new that we have never known anything like it
before.

discursive processing The processing of information as words.

disjunctive model A noncompensatory model that sets acceptable cutoffs to find options that
are "good."

disposition The process by which a consumer parts with or gets rid of a possession / offering.

dissociative reference group Group we do not want to emulate.

divestment rituals Rituals enacted at the disposition stage that are designed to wipe away all
traces of our personal meaning in a product.

doctrine of foreseeability The expectation that companies should be able to anticipate normal

risky uses of a product/service.

dogmatism A tendency to be resistant to change or new ideas.

domain-specific values Values that may apply to only a particular area of activities.

door-in-the-face technique A technique designed to induce compliance by first asking an

individual to comply with a very large and possibly outrageous request, followed by a smaller
and more reasonable request.

downward mobility Losing one's social standing.

dramas Ads with characters, a plot, and a story.

dual coding The representation of a stimulus in two modalities e.g., pictures and words in
memory.

dual-mediation hypothesis Explains how attitudes toward the ad influence brand attitudes.

dynamically continuous innovation An innovation that has a pronounced effect on

consumption practices and often involves a new technology.
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earned status Status acquired later in life through achievements.

echoic memory Very brief memory for things we hear.

efficiency behaviors Activities that result in more efficient energy usage.

elaboration Transferring information into long-term memory by processing it at deeper levels.

elimination-by-aspects model Similar to the lexicographic model but adds the notion of

acceptable cutoffs.

embedded markets Markets in which the social relationships among buyers and sellers change
the way the market operates.

emblematic function The use of products to symbolize membership in social groups.

emotional appeals Messages that elicit an emotional response.

emotional detachment Emotionally disposing of a possession.

encoding of evidence Processing the information experienced.

enduring involvement Interest in an offering or activity over an extended period of time.

equity theory A theory that focuses on the fairness of exchanges between individuals, which
helps in understanding consumer satisfaction and dissatisfaction.

estimations of likelihood Judging how likely it is something will occur.

ethnic groups Subcultures with a similar heritage and values.

ethnographic research A technique in which researchers observe how consumers behave in

real-world surroundings.

even-a-penny-will-help technique A technique designed to induce compliance by asking

individuals to do a very small favor ? one that is so small it almost does not qualify as a favor.

expectancy-value model A widely used model that explains how attitudes form and change.

expectations Beliefs about how a product/service will perform.

explicit memory Memory for some prior episode achieved by active attempts to remember.

exponential diffusion curve A diffusion curve characterized by rapid initial growth.

exposure The process by which the consumer comes in physical contact with a stimulus.
exposure to evidence Actually experiencing the product or service.

expressive roles Roles that involve an indication of family norms.

expressiveness function The use of products as symbols to demonstrate our uniqueness ? how

we stand out as different from others.

extended family The nuclear family plus relatives such as grandparents, aunts, uncles, and
cousins.

external search The process of collecting information from outside sources e.g., magazines,
dealers, ads.

extremeness aversion Options that are extreme on some attributes are less attractive than
those with a moderate level of those attributes.

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fad A successful innovation that has a very short product life cycle.

fairness of exchange The perception that people's inputs are equal to their outputs in an
exchange.

false objective claim A claim made by a company that has no validity.

family life cycle Different stages of family life depending on the age of the parents and how
many children are living at home.

fashion A successful innovation that has a moderately long and potentially cyclical product life
cycle.

favorability The degree to which we like or dislike something.

fear appeals Messages that stress negative consequences.

felt involvement The psychological experience of the motivated consumer. Includes

psychological states such as interest, excitement, anxiety, passion, and engagement.

figure and ground According to this principle, people interpret stimuli in the context of a
background.

financial risk Risk associated with monetary investment in an offering.

focus group A form of in-depth interview involving 8 to 12 people; a moderator leads the group
and asks participants to discuss a product, concept, or other marketing stimulus.

foot-in-the-door technique A technique designed to induce compliance by getting an

individual to agree first to a small favor, then to a larger one, and then to an even larger one.

fraudulent symbols Symbols that become so widely adopted that they lose their status.
frequency heuristic Beliefs based simply on the number of supporting arguments or amount of
repetition.

functional innovation A new product, service, attribute, or idea that proved utilitarian benefits
different from or better than existing alternatives.

functional needs Needs that motivate the search for products to solve consumption related
problems.

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gatekeepers Sources that control the flow of information.

gender Biological state of male or female.

Generation X Individuals born between 1965 and 1976.

Generation Y Mini-population explosion from the children of baby boomers.

gestation stage The first stage of gift giving, when we consider what to give someone.

global values A person's most enduring, strongly held, and abstract values that hold in many
situations.

goal-derived category Things that are viewed as belonging in the same category because they
serve the same goals.

goals Objectives that we would like to achieve.

graded structure The fact that category members vary in how well they represent a category.

gray market Individuals over 65.

grooming rituals Rituals we engage in to bring out or maintain the best in special products.

grouping The tendency to group stimuli to form a unified picture or impression.

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habit Doing the same thing time after time.

habituation The process in which a stimulus loses its attention-getting abilities by virtue of its
familiarity.
hedonic dimension An ad that creates positive or negative feelings.

hedonic needs Needs that relate to sensory pleasure.

hedonism The principle of pleasure seeking.

heuristic A simple rule of thumb used to make judgments or decisions.

hierarchy of effects Sequential steps used in decision making involving thinking, then feeling,
then behavior.

high-effort hierarchy of effects A purchase of an innovation based on considerable decision-

making effort.

homeless People at the low end of the status hierarchy.

homophily The overall similarity among members in the social system.

host selling A technique that features a character in a TV show in ads.

household A single person living alone or a group of individuals who live together in a common
dwelling, regardless of whether they are related.

household decision roles Roles that different members play in a household decision.

husband-dominant decision Decision made primarily by the male head-of-household.

hypothesis generation Forming expectations about the product or service.

hypothesis testing Testing out expectations through experience.

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iconic memory Very brief memory for things we see.

ideal identity schema A set of ideas about how the identity would be indicated in its ideal form.

ideal state The way we want things to be.

illusory correlation When consumers think two things occur together when they actually do
not.

imagery Imagining an event in order to make a judgment.

imagery processing The processing of information in sensory form.

implicit memory Memory for things without any conscious attempt at remembering them.

impulse purchase An unexpected purchase based on a strong feeling.

incidental learning Learning that occurs from repetition rather than from conscious processing.

Independent variable The ?treatment? or the entity that researchers vary in a research

project.

inept set Options that are unacceptable when making a decision.

inert set Options toward which consumers are indifferent.

information overload The negative effect on a decision caused by having too much

information.

informational influence The extent to which sources influence consumers simply by providing

information.

inherited status Status that derives from parents at birth.

inhibition The recall of one attribute inhibiting the recall of another.

Innovation An offering that is perceived as new by consumers within a market segment and
that has an effect on existing consumption patterns.

instrumental roles Roles that relate to tasks affecting the buying decision.

instrumental values The values needed to achieve the desired end states such as ambition and
cheerfulness.

integration of evidence Combining new information with stored knowledge.

intensity of ethnic affiliation How strongly people identify with their ethnic group.

interference That which causes us not to remember which features go with which brand or
concept due to semantic networks being too closely aligned.

internal search The process of recalling stored information from memory.

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judgments Estimating or evaluating the likelihood of an event.

judgments of goodness/badness Evaluating the desirability of something.

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knowledge content Information we already have in memory.

knowledge structure The way in which knowledge is organized.

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law of small numbers The expectation that information obtained from a small number of
people represents the larger population.

legitimacy The extent to which the innovation follows established guidelines for what seems
appropriate in the category.

lexicographic model A noncompensatory model that compares brands by attributes, one at a

time.

licensing A marketing strategy in which a firm sells the rights to the brand name to another
company who will use the name on its product.

lifestyles People's patterns of behavior.

List of Values (LOV) A survey that measures nine principal values in consumer behavior.

locus of control How people interpret why things happen (internal versus external)

long-term memory (LTM) The part of memory where information is placed for later use;
permanently stored knowledge.

low-effort hierarchy A purchase of an innovation based on limited decision-making effort.

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market maven A consumer who has and communicates considerable marketplace information
to others.

market test A study in which the effectiveness of one or more elements of the marketing mix is
examined by evaluating sales of the product in an actual market e.g., a specific city.

marketer-dominated source Influence delivered from a marketing agent e.g., advertising,

personal selling.

marketing A social and managerial process by which individuals and groups obtain what they
need and want through creating and exchanging products and value with others.

marketing stimuli Information about products or brands communicated by either the marketer

via ads, salespeople, brand symbols, packages, signs, prices, and so on or nonmarketing sources
e.g., the media, word of mouth.
match-up hypothesis The idea that the source must be appropriate for the product/service.

materialism Placing importance on money and material goods.

means-ends chain analysis A technique that helps us understand how values link to attributes
in products and services.

mere exposure effect When familiarity leads to liking an object.

middle class Primarily white-collar workers.

miscomprehension Inaccurate understanding of a message.

modernity The extent to which consumers in the social system have positive attitudes toward
change.

motivated reasoning. Consumers process information in a way that allows them to reach a

particular conclusion they want to reach.

motivation An inner state of arousal that denotes energy to achieve a goal.

multiattribute expectancy-value model A type of brand-based compensatory model.

multibrand loyalty Buying two or more brands repeatedly because of a strong preference.

multicultural marketing Strategies used to appeal to a variety of cultures at the same time.

mystery ad An ad in which the brand is not identified until the end of the message.

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NAD/NARB system A system set up by the National Advertising Division to self-regulate

advertising messages.

national character The personality of a country.

need for cognition (NFC) A trait that describes how much people like to think.

need for uniqueness (NFU) The desire for novelty through the purchase, use, and disposition
of products and services.

needs An internal state of tension caused by disequilibrium from an ideal/desired physical or

psychological state.

negative word-of-mouth communication The act of consumers saying negative things about

a product or service to other consumers.

noncomparable decisions The process of making decisions from products or services from

different categories.
noncompensatory model Simple decision model in which negative information leads to
rejection of the option.

non-marketer-dominated source Influence delivered from an entity outside a marketing

organization; e.g., friends, family, the media.

normative choice tactics Low elaboration decision making that is based on others' opinions.

normative influences How other people influence our behavior through social pressure.

norms Collective decisions about what constitutes appropriate behavior.

nuclear family Father, mother, and children.

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objective comprehension The extent to which the receiver accurately understands the

message a sender intended to communicate.

offering A product, service, activity, or idea offered by a marketing organization to consumers.

one-sided message A marketing message that presents only positive information.

ongoing search A search that occurs regularly, regardless of whether the consumer is making a
choice.

online processing The ability of consumers to process an ad as they are viewing it.

operant conditioning The view that behavior is a function of the reinforcements and

punishments received in the past.

opinion leader An individual who acts as an information broker between the mass media and
the opinions and behaviors of an individual or group.

optimal stimulation level (OSL) The ideal level of stimulation in any situation.

optimal stimulation level (OSL) The level of arousal that is most comfortable for an
individual.

overprivileged Families with an income higher than the average in their class.

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parody display Status symbols that start in the lower classes and move upward.
passive incidental learning Low-level learning that occurs through repetition.

perceived risk The extent to which the consumer is uncertain about the consequences of an
action e.g., buying, using, or disposing of an offering.

perception The process by which incoming stimuli activate our sensory receptors eyes, ears,
taste buds, skin, and so on.

perceptual organization The process by which stimuli are organized into meaningful units.

performance The measurement of whether the product/ service actually fulfills consumers'

needs.

performance risk Uncertainty about whether the offering will perform as expected.

performance-related tactics Tactics based on benefits, features, or evaluations of the brand.

peripheral cues Easily processed aspects of a message such as music, an attractive source or

picture, or humor.

peripheral route to persuasion Aspects other than key message arguments that are used to
influence attitudes.

peripheral-route processing The attitude formation and change process when effort is low.

personal relevance Something that has a direct bearing on the self and has potentially
significant consequences or implications for our lives.

personality An internal characteristic that determines how individuals behave in various

situations.

physical detachment Physically disposing of an item.

physical or safety risk The potential harm that an offering might pose to one's safety.

possession rituals Rituals we engage in when we first acquire a product that help to make it
"ours."

postcard scheme A deceptive practice in which a consumer receives a postcard that claims he
or she has won a valuable prize but that is really a front for intensive selling pressure.

post-decision dissonance A feeling of anxiety over whether the correct decision was made.

post-decision feelings Positive or negative emotions experienced while using the products or

services.

post-decision regret A feeling that one has made the wrong purchase decision.

preattentive processing The nonconscious processing of stimuli in peripheral vision.

prepurchase search A search that occurs to aid a specific decision.

presentation stage The second stage of gift giving, when we actually give the gift.

price-related tactics Tactics based on price or cost.

primacy effect The tendency to show greater memory for information that comes first in a
sequence.

primary data Data originating from a researcher and collected to provide information relevant
to a specific research project.

primary reference group Group with whom we have physical face-to-face interaction.

priming Activation of a node in memory, often without conscious awareness.

problem recognition The perceived difference between an actual and an ideal state.

product life cycle A concept that suggests that products go through an initial introductory
period followed by periods of sales growth, maturity, and decline.

profane things Things that are ordinary and hence have no special power.

prominence The intensity of stimuli that causes them to stand out relative to the environment.

prototype The best example of the category.

psychographics A description of consumers on the basis of their psychological and behavioral

characteristics.

psychological risk Risk associated with the extent to which the offering fits with the way
consumers perceive themselves.

puffery The exaggerated claims made by companies that are not generally believed by
consumers.

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reactance Doing the opposite of what the individual or group wants us to do.

recall The ability to retrieve information from memory.

recency effect The tendency to show greater memory for information that comes last in a
sequence.

recirculation The process by which information is remembered via simple repetition without

active rehearsal.

recognition The process of determining whether a stimulus has or has not been encountered
before.

reference group A group of people we compare ourselves to for information regarding

behavior, attitudes, or values.

reflexive evaluation Feedback from others that tells us whether we are fulfilling the role
correctly.

reformulation stage The final stage of gift giving, when we reevaluate the relationship based
on the gift-giving -experience.

rehearsal The process of actively reviewing material in an attempt to remember it.

relative advantage Benefits in an innovation superior to those found in existing products.

reposition To give a brand or company a new and/or different image from the image it had
before.

representativeness heuristic Making a judgment by simply comparing a stimulus to the

category prototype or exemplar.

research foundation A nonprofit organization that sponsors research on topics relevant to the
foundation's goals.

Resistance A desire not to buy the innovation, even in the face of pressure to do so.

response involvement Interest in certain decisions and behaviors.

retrieval The process of remembering.

retrieval cue Stimulus that facilitates a node's activation in memory.

Rokeach Value Survey (RVS) A survey that measures instrumental and terminal values.

role acquisition function The use of products as symbols to help us feel more comfortable in a
new role.

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sacred entities People, things, and places that are set apart, revered, worshiped, and treated
with great respect.

salient attributes Attributes that are "top of mind" or more important.

satisfaction The feeling that results when consumers make a positive evaluation or feel happy
with their decision.

satisfice Finding a brand that satisfies a need even though the brand may not be the best
brand.

schema The set of associations linked to a concept.

script A special type of schema that represents knowledge of a sequence of events.

searching by attribute Comparing brands on attributes, one at a time.

searching by brand Collecting information on one brand before moving to another.

secondary data Data collected for some other purpose that is subsequently used in a research
project.

secondary reference group Group with whom we do not have direct contact.

self-concept Our mental view of who we are.

self-referencing Relating a message to one's own experience or self-image.

semantic memory Knowledge about an entity that is detached from specific episodes.

semantic or associative network A set of associations in memory that are linked to a concept.

sensation seekers Those who actively look for variety.

sensory memory Sensory experiences stored temporarily in memory.

sexual orientation A person's preference toward certain behaviors.

shaping Leading consumers through a series of steps to create a desired response.

short-term memory STM The portion of memory where incoming information is encoded or

interpreted in light of existing knowledge.

simple inferences Beliefs based on peripheral cues.

situational involvement Temporary interest in an offering or activity, often caused by

situational circumstances.

sleeper effect Consumers forget the source of a message more quickly than they forget the
message.

social class fragmentation The disappearance of class distinctions.

social class hierarchy The grouping of members of society according to status high to low.

social comparison theory A theory that proposes that individuals have a drive to compare
themselves to other people.

social influences Information by and pressures from individuals, groups, and the mass media
that affect how a person behaves.

social relevance The extent to which an innovation can be observed or the extent to which
having others observe it has social cachet.

social risk Potential harm to one's social standing that may arise from buying, using, or
disposing of an offering.

source derogations SDs Thoughts that discount or attack the source of the message.

spreading of activation Strong semantic links between concepts.

S-shaped diffusion curve A diffusion curve characterized by slow initial growth followed by a
rapid increase in diffusion.
status crystallization When consumers are consistent across indicators of social class income,
education, occupation, etc..

status float Trends that start in the lower and middle classes and move upward.

status panic The inability of children to reach their parents' level of social status.

status symbols Products or services that tell others about someone's social class standing.

storytelling A research method by which consumers are asked to tell stories about product
acquisition, usage, or disposition experiences. These stories help marketers gain insights into
consumer needs and identify the product attributes that meet these needs.

strong argument A presentation that features the best or central merits of an offering in a
convincing manner.

subjective comprehension Reflects what we think we know, whether or not it is -accurate.

subjective norms (SN) How others feel about us doing something.

subliminal perception The activation of sensory receptors by stimuli presented below the

perceptual threshold.

subordinate level A level of categorization below the basic level that contains objects in very
finely differentiated categories.

substantiation Having to prove questionable claims.

superordinate level The broadest level of category organization containing different objects

that share few associations but are still members of the category.

support arguments (SAs) Thoughts that agree with the message.

survey A written instrument that asks consumers to respond to a predetermined set of research
questions.

symbolic innovations A product, service, attribute, or idea that has new social meaning.

symbolic needs Needs that relate to how we perceive ourselves, how we are perceived by
others, how we relate to others, and the esteem in which we are held by others.

symbols External signs that we use to express our identity.

syncratic decision Decision made jointly by the husband and wife.

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taxonomic category An orderly classification of objects, with similar objects in the same
category. 5
terminal values A highly desired end states such as social recognition and pleasure.

theory of reasoned action TORA A model that provides an explanation of how, when, and why
attitudes predict behavior.

tie-strength The extent to which a close, intimate relationship connects people.

time risk Uncertainties over the length of time consumers must invest in buying, using, or
disposing of the offering.

trace strength The extent to which an association or link is strongly or weakly linked to a

concept in memory.

trade group A professional organization made up of marketers in the same industry.

transformational advertising Ads that try to increase emotional involvement with the product
or service.

trialability The extent to which an innovation can be tried on a limited basis before it is

adopted.

trickle-down effect Trends that start in the upper classes and then are copied by lower classes.

truth effect When consumers believe a statement simply because it has been repeated a
number of times.

two-sided message A marketing message that presents both positive and negative
information.

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underprivileged Families below the average income in their class.

upper class The aristocracy, new social elite, and the upper-middle class.

upward mobility Raising one's status level.

usage The process by which a consumer uses an offering.

use innovativeness Using products in new ways.

utilitarian functional dimension An ad that is informative.

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V
valence Whether information about something is good positive valence or bad negative valence.

value segmentation The grouping of consumers by common values.

value system Our total set of values and their relative importance.

values Enduring beliefs about what is good or appropriate

Values and Life Style Survey (VALS) A psychographic tool that measures demographic,
value, attitude, and lifestyle variables.

variable The entity that is studied or that varies in a research project. In a study on how humor
in ads influences attitudes toward a brand, one variable might be the level of humor in the ads.

variety seeking Trying something different.

vicarious exploration Seeking information simply for stimulation.

viral marketing Online consumer-to-consumer communication that supports a particular

offering.

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wearout Becoming bored with a stimulus.

Weber's law The stronger the initial stimulus, the greater the additional intensity needed for
the second stimulus to be perceived as different.

wife-dominant decision Decision made primarily by the female head-of-household.

word of mouth Information about products or services that is communicated verbally.

working class Primarily blue-collar workers.

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young again Individuals age 50 to around 65.