Block-3

Group Influences on
Consumer Behaviour
BLOCK 3 GROUP INFLUENCES ON
CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
Building upon the group variables, introduced in Unit 1 of the course, this block
discusses the influences on consumer behaviour, that emanate from his membership
or identification with various groups, be they reference groups, primary groups like
family or composite groups like culture and subculture. The influences have been
dealt with as both affecting brand and product choice and as determinants of some
individual variables like attitudes, perceptions, and learning.

Unit 9 REFERENCE GROUP INFLUENCE AND GROUP DYNAMICS

UNIT 10 FAMILY BUYING INFLUENCES, FAMILY LIFE CYCLE AND
BUYING ROLES
UNIT 11 CULTURE AND SUBCULTURAL INFLVENCES
Group Influences on
Consumer Behaviour

154
 Reference Group Influence
UNIT 9 REFERENCE GROUP INFLUENCE and Group Dynamics

AND GROUP DYNAMICS

Learning Outcomes

After going through this unit, you should be able to:

 explain the role of reference groups in group dynamics, and their effect on
buyer behaviour

 describe the opinion leadership process

 explain the motivations and personalities of those who influence the consumer,
i.e., the opinion leaders, and also of those who are influenced, i.e., the
opinion receivers.

 examine the influence of social class and social stratification on consumers’

lifestyle characteristics and buyer behaviour

 apply your knowledge of Reference group influence in your marketing

decisions

Structure

9.1 Introduction
9.2 The influence of Reference Groups
9.3 Types of Reference Groups
9.4 Reference Group Influence on Products and Brands
9.5 The Role of Opinion Leadership in the Transmission of Information
9.6 The Dynamics of the Opinion Leadership Process
9.7 The Personalities and Motivations of Opinion Leaders
9.8 The Concept of Social Class: Its Nature and Meaning
9.9 Social Class and Social Stratification
9.10 Social Class and Social Influences
9.11 Social Class Categorisation
9.12 Relationship of Social Class to Lifestyles
9.13 Social Class and Buying Behaviour
9.14 Social Class and Market Segmentation
9.15 Summary
9.16 Key Words
9.17 Self-Assessment Questions
9.18 Project Questions
9.19 Further Readings
155
Group Influences on According to Counterpoint Research’s Market Lens consumer study, over half
Consumer Behaviour
of all smartphones sold in India in 2021 were purchased online, up to more
than one-third last year. The COVOD-19-induced social isolation and work-
from-home circumstances attributed to this alteration in purchase behaviour.
Surprisingly, the source of information on smartphones has shifted as well.
When it came to making a smartphone purchase choice, consumers relied more
on YouTuber videos and the opinions of technology influencers than on word
of mouth and friends/family. When it came to making smartphone purchasing
decisions, internet reviews and articles were also overlooked in favour of
comparison on websites and TV commercials.

9.1 INTRODUCTION
‘There are a number of factors that give rise to consumer desires and wants. In
the Unit 10 you will learn how families create significant effect on buying behaviour.
In this unit, the discussion is limited to the social and environmental variables that
influence the decision-making process namely, reference groups, opinion leadership
and social class.

9.2 THE INFLUENCE OF REFERENCE GROUPS

What do we mean by a Reference Group?
In simplistic terms, reference groups include all those that we refer toconsciously
or unconsciously or are influenced by, either through interaction or indirect impact,
This section deals with various aspects of the dynamics of reference group influence.
You would know from your personal experience that, influential people in your life
have helped to shape your buying decisions. You will find that this holds true for
items like clothing, for instance, that must be acceptable by your peer group. A
major reason for studying groups is that interaction among people modifies behaviour.
Reference groups influence consumer behaviour in two ways:
1) They set levels of aspiration for the individual, i.e., they offer cues as to what
lifestyle should be led
2) They define items appropriate for a member of the group to lead that lifestyle.
You had learnt earlier on, that, reference groups are defined as groups that a
person refers to, and identifies with, to the extent that the group becomes a norm,
standard or point of reference. A reference group is, in other words, a group to
which a person will compare himself or herself, to determine his or her own relative
standing. Consumers also look to reference groups for guidance and advice.
Reference groups are usually small groups, and are not as broad as an entire social
class. The reference group concept was, in fact, originally developed in connection
with small groups. These include the family, close friends, neighbours, religious groups,
work groups and also, athletic groups. The family is recognised as an important
reference group. In addition, various family members may play different roles in
the purchase consumption process. Like the family, there are several other social
groups that have an enormous influence on our lives. They regulate our lives through
establishing standards of dress and conduct, and the accomplishment of tasks on a
156 face-to-face basis.
Issues of importance to marketing concerning reference group influence include: Reference Group Influence
and Group Dynamics
 What influence do reference groups exert on individuals?
 How does reference group influence vary across products and brands? These
two issues will be discussed in the following sections.
How Reference Groups Influence Consumption
Reference groups affect consumers through a variety of means: through norms, through
information, and through influencing the value expressive needs of consumers. They
influence consumers through bringing about attitude changes, by encouraging the
expression of certain values and attitudes expressed through the group. Because
an individual wants to be a part of a group, he or she will be influenced by the
values and attitudes of the group. Furthermore, groups whose members exhibit similar
social characteristics are more susceptible to attitude change on account of the group
interaction, than groups whose members are less homogeneous. Thus, people
frequently buy products that others in their group buy. You must remember, of course,
that individuals who feel a strong sense of identification with a group do so
because they derive strong psychological or material benefit from being
associated with the group.
Reference groups also influence consumption through norms and conformity
pressures. All members of a group must adhere to the norms established for that
group. To enforce normative systems, groups tend to exert conformity pressure,
direct or indirect, on their members. For example, teenager peer groups exert pressure
on members’ choice of clothing. Conformity pressure is common in everyone’s
personal experience. Of course, it is possible that the pressure to conform can
produce the opposite effect and may not uniformly accepted.
Levels of Group Involvement: In addition, there are three processes or levels
of group involvement. These have been termed as compliance, identification and
internalisation.
Compliance involves only overt behaviour on the part of the individual and makes
no demands on personal beliefs and attitudes.
Identification represents a closer, more dependent relationship than that implied
by compliance. In identification, the individual complies to maintain a social relationship.
Identification also reinforces the self-perceptions of individuals.
Internalising the values of the group occurs at the third stage. In internalisation,
consumers enforce the values of the group even in its absence.

Activity 1
Have you been affected by reference group Influence in any of the following
choices?
A) Formal attire
B) Membership of a Gym
C) Restaurants
D) Passenger Cars/ Two-wheelers
157
Group Influences on
Consumer Behaviour If yes, identify the different reference groups which influence you and briefly
describe how did they influence you.
A) ……………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………
B) ……………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………
C) ……………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………
D) ……………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………

9.3 TYPES OF REFERENCE GROUPS

There are many different types of reference groups, and they do not need to be in
physical contact in order to be effective. Often, individuals called referent others
will serve in a reference group role. Figure 9.1 shows the existence of four types
of reference groups that you should be familiar with. The groups are:
1) Membership or Non-membership groups: Membership groups are those
to which an individual belongs. In contrast, non-membership groups are those
that an individual may aspire to belong to.
2) Formal or Informal Groups: This depends on whether reference group tend
to take on a formal or informal structure, as you see in Figure 9.2.
3) Primary or Secondary Groups: A group may be primary or secondary
depending on the frequency of contact. Primary groups can be either formal
or informal groups. If a person is in regular contact with certain individuals such
as families, friends, peers and business associates, then these can be referred
to as primary informal groups. Secondary formal groups meet infrequently; are
well structured and not so closely knit. Thus, shopping groups and club
membership groups constitute secondary groups because of their less frequent
contact.
4) Aspiration groups are classified into two types: Anticipatory aspiration groups,
or those that a person anticipates joining at some future time. The appeal of
the group is in the anticipation of eventually arriving at the top. Symbolic
aspiration groups are those that an individual is not likely to belong to, such
as professional sports groups, even though the person may be attracted to them.
Marketers appeal to symbolic aspirations by using celebrities to advertise certain
products.
Each type of reference group has importance in marketing, depending on the type
of influence exerted. The common factor among these various types of reference
groups is that, each is used by consumers as a point of reference at different times,
158 to evaluate actions, beliefs and attitudes.
Primary groups are more important to the consumer in developing product beliefs, Reference Group Influence
and Group Dynamics
tastes and preferences and have a more direct influence on purchasing behaviour.
As a result, advertisers frequently portray consumption among friends or, within a
family context, such as a family eating breakfast or, in some other group setting.
Figure 9.1 Types of Reference Groups

Figure 9.2 Distinctions between Types of Reference Groups

Reference Group Functions and Types of Influence Exerted

It is possible to further classify reference groups into four types, depending on the
function they perform and the kind of influence they exert.
By now it will be clear to you that, reference groups operate by establishing certain
norms, roles and status within the group for members to follow. As explained earlier,
159
Group Influences on norms are unwritten codes or, standards of conduct that are assigned to individuals
Consumer Behaviour
within the group. In addition, specific roles have been identified in group purchasing
behaviour in the attempt to select the best among alternative brands or makes of a
product. These are described as those of the influencer, the gatekeeper (i.e.,
the individual who has the maximum control over the flow of information), the
decision- maker, the purchaser and, the final user.
Status positions have also been designated within a group. High status of members
within a group implies greater power and influence. Products are sometimes purchased
to demonstrate status, for example an elegant dress or, an expensive car.
The influence exerted by the group depends on the type of reference group it is.
There are four general types of groups namely, normative, comparative, status
and dissociative groups.
Normative Reference Groups
These are group whose values, norms and perspective an individual uses in defining
a personal social situation. Norms represent shared value judgements about how
things should be done by members of the group. For example, dress codes indicate
the impact of normative influence on clothing. Similarly, norms influence how much
a person eats or drinks at a party.
Normative influence refers to the influence exerted by a group to conform to its
norms and behaviour. A group can exert normative influence in the purchase of clothes,
furniture and appliances because these items are visible. Normative influence may
also occur for itemslike mouthwash, even though such items are not visible, because
of fear of punishment of non-acceptance by the group. However, normative influence
is not likely to occur for products like vegetables,or dishwash liquid though
informational influence could occur in such cases. Since normative influence is based
on the desire of an individual to receive the rewards of the group, the influence
exerted by the group in such is also termed as utilitarian influence.
Comparative Reference Groups
Consumers constantly compare their attitudes to those of members of their important
groups. In doing this, they seek to support their own attitudes and behaviour. As a
result, the basis for comparative influence is the process of comparing oneself to
other members of the group and judging whether it will be supportive. You will find
that new residents in a neighbourhood are attracted to neighbours who are similar
to themselves because they reinforce existing attitudes and behaviour. You will also
find this in advertising that uses spokespersons whom consumers perceive as being
similar to themselves.
The function of comparative reference groups is to provide a basis for validating
beliefs, values and attitudes. Furthermore, in terms of reference group theory, it is
not necessary for consumers to be in direct social contact with a reference group
in order to be influenced by it.
In the case of comparative reference groups, value-expressive influence occurs
when the group is used to express certain values. For example, smoking cigarettes
in reference groups where it is okay to smoke, is a type of value expressive influence.
In fact, expressing the values of the group is a good way to become accepted by
160 the group and form a close association with it.
Dissociative Reference Groups Reference Group Influence
and Group Dynamics
These are negative reference groups. They are negative to the extent that an individual
does not wish to be identified with them and, therefore, tries not to behave or dress
like members of the dissociative group.
Such dissociation from a group may occur when individuals are striving to move
into the higher social classes. They may attempt to avoid buying the products and
services used by the dissociative group, i.e., the social class that the consumer is
attempting to leave.
Status Reference Groups
These are groups in which an individual seeks acceptance. An individual need not
be a member of such a group in order to be influenced by it. In fact, when a person
is not a member of the group, it is referred to, in such cases as an aspiration group.

Activity 2
Evaluate any two of your recent purchases, one a consumer durable and the
other, a non-durable, where you feel that you have been influenced by reference
group. Try to analyse what was the type of influence, whether normative,
comparative or dissociative that you felt, was exercised by the reference groups.
Product 1
....................................................................................................................
....................................................................................................................
Product 2
....................................................................................................................
....................................................................................................................

Reference Groups, Social Influence and Social Power

The influence of social class as well as of reference groups on consumer behaviour
is felt through the influence of social power. The nature of the social power of these
groups on consumer behaviour can best be understood by examining the various
bases of power. These are five bases of social power. These are:
1) Reward Power
This is the ability to give rewards. Rewards may take several forms: money,
gifts, psychological rewards such as recognition and praise. The magnitude of
the reward also increased with the amount of power. In some situations, the
use of products offers the rewards of group acceptance, for example clothing.
2) Coercive Power
This is the ability to give threats, or withhold rewards. An individual can thus
be threatened or coerced to behave in a particular manner, for example in
purchasing accepted clothing. Deodorants, mouthwash, life insurance, are also
sold frequently by using coercive power.
161
Group Influences on 3) Legitimate Power
Consumer Behaviour
Legitimate power is closely linked to cultural or group values and involves the
sanction of what ought or should be done, because the group has a legitimate
right to influence persons just because they belong to it.
4) Referent Power
The basis of referent power is the identification and feeling of oneness of the
person with the group. It arises because a person admires or would like to be
associated with the group. Referent power is often used to buy status-oriented
products. Consumers are urged to obtain a similar status by purchasing the
item recommended.
5) Expert Power
Consumers accept information from members within a group whom they perceive
to be experts.
Marketing applications can be seen in the use of sports stars in the ads for
sports shoes, pain killers and even casual apparel.
From these various bases of power, it appears that a person may be attracted to
and conform to group norms either, in order to gain praise or recognition or in
response to coercive power.
Factors Affecting the Influence of Reference Groups
Reference groups influence is accepted and sought by individuals because of the
perceived benefits that it provides. Thus, the interaction may result in rewards of
friendship, information and satisfaction. However, the degree of influence that
areference group exerts on an individual’s behaviour depends on several factors.
1) How Informed and Experienced the Individual is: A person who has little or
no first-hand experience with a product or service, and also little or no information,
will tend to rely on reference groups. Where there is insufficient experience or
information, a consumer is more susceptible to the influence of others.
2) Reference Group Credibility: The higher a reference group is rated on
credibility, the more powerful it will be perceived to be, and the more it will
tend to change the beliefs, attitudes and behaviour of consumers. Also, the more
it will be used for information on product quality.

9.4 REFERENCE GROUP INFLUENCE ON

PRODUCTS AND BRANDS
Individual often buy particular brands because they observe others buying them,
and not necessarily in order to comply with group behaviour. At social gatherings
too, people discuss at lengths, products they like and dislike, recounting personal
experiences with products they have used. The use of social media has added a
new dynamic to this situation, as consumers are quite vocal about their product
experiences and brand ratings on social media and user endorsements have become
another important source of reference influence. It is necessary to consider carefully,
therefore, how much influence reference groups are likely to have for a product or
162
service. Those products or services that have strong group usage or connotation Reference Group Influence
and Group Dynamics
should then be presented in a group context in advertising situations.
It has been suggested that reference group influence on both, product and brand
decisions is a function of its conspicuousness. Conspicuousness affects the marketing
of goods depending on how products and brands fit into different categories of
conspicuousness. There are two dimensions or elements by which conspicuousness
is assessed. These are the exclusivity and the visibility of a product. The exclusivity
dimension refers to exclusivity in ownership of the product. This means that, if everyone
already owns a product, it is less conspicuous than if only a few people own it.
For example, when a maker of designer shirts asserts only 11 men in this world
will wear this shirt, he by deliberately restricting his output per pattern in imparting
exclusivity to the product. You see, in Figure 9.3. The exclusivity dimension of
conspicuousness is represented in terms of necessity goods to the left versus luxury
goods at the right. This means that products that are necessities will be owned by
most consumers and will not be very conspicuous. Products that are luxuries will
be owned by the fewer consumers and will be more conspicuous.
The other is the visibility dimension. This refers to the product and brand being
seen and identified by other people. This has its effect primarily on brand decision.
Figure 9.3 Reference Group Influence on Product and Brand

The visibility dimension of conspicuousness is built into the diagram as a public-

private dimension. This means that products consumed in public are more
conspicuous, while products consumed in private are less conspicuous. If you apply
both these dimension, you will get four categories of products. For public luxuries,
the potential for reference group influence is high. This occurs because few people
own these products in the first place. In addition, since such products have high
visibility, the brand or model will also be noticed.
For private luxuries, fewer people own these, so that, having the product will by
itself provide exclusivity benefits. However, since such products are not easily
seen by others, the brand or style will be less influenced by others. 163
Group Influences on For public necessities, reference group influence will not be very strong on the
Consumer Behaviour
product. However, because of product visibility, reference group influenceon
the brand will be strong.

Consider wrist watches, which are labelled public necessities. Because they are
owned by most people, there is likely to be little reference group influence on whether
to wear a watch. However, because they are easily visible and everyone can see
whether a person is wearing a wristwatch, the brand may be susceptible to reference
group influence.

For private necessities, products that are required by almost everyone, reference
group influence will be weak on both the product and the brand because such items
are not very visible.

Reference group influence will therefore vary depending on whether the products
and brands are public necessities, private necessities, public luxuries or private luxuries.
According to reference group theory, group influence is greatest for luxury goods
that are consumed publicly, and least for necessities that are consumed privately.
Using the typology shown in the matrix; the following conclusions about reference
group influence can be drawn:

1) Influence on Product and Brand (Public Luxuries)

Certain groups are more likely to allow smoking, than others. If smoking is the
norm, the group is likely to express a preference for a certain brand. Reference
group influence is therefore likely to be strong for both the product and the
brand.

2) Influence on Product only (Private Luxuries)

Some product categories are so distinctive that owing them is sufficiently

representative of group standards, for example, air conditioners, and home
security systems. Once a family buys a home security system, for instance, friends
and neighbours will come into contact with the recently acquired product and
the pattern of ownership will spread within the group.

3) Influence on Brand only (Public Necessities)

There are some products that are used by almost everyone. For example,
clothing, furniture, toilet soaps. In such cases, the product is not subject to group
influence. The brand becomes an important factor subject to group influence.
Thus, one group may emphasise designer clothes as a distinguishing feature.
Another may emphasise leisure wear.

4) No Group Influence (Private Necessities)

Some products have low social visibility for both the product and the brand.
In such cases reference group influence is weak or absent. Such products are
then bought on the basis of product attributes suitable to the consumer. Products
low in visibility, complexity and perceived risk such as bread, are not likely to
be susceptible to personal influence.

Now, see if you can do the following exercise

164
 Reference Group Influence
Activity 3 and Group Dynamics

In the space below, write down the names of groups of which you are a member,
for example, your family. For what products does each group influence your
behaviour as a consumer? Write down also, the type of group you believe it
to be.

Reference Group Applications in Marketing

The reference group concept is used by advertisers to persuade consumers to purchase
products and brands by portraying products being consumed in socially pleasant
situations, or else, using prominent and attractive people to endorse products and,
often, by using stereotype group members as spokespersons in advertising.
Where reference group influence is operative, it is necessary that the advertising
should stress the kinds of people who buy the product and, therefore, what specific
reference groups enter into the product purchase decision. The first objective for
an advertiser is to identify the lifestyle characteristics of a reference group. It will
then be possible for marketers to design effective advertising strategies.
There are three broad applications of reference group influence on buyer behaviour,
as expressed through the medium of advertising:
1) Use of celebrities for product endorsements
Advertisers spend enormous amounts of money on celebrities in the expectation
that their audiences will react positively to a celebrity’s association with their
product. Celebrities represent, to some extent, the idealisation of life for the
consumer.
2) Use of experts for product endorsements
A second type of reference group appeal used in advertising is to use persons
who are experts in the field. Experts help prospective consumers to evaluate
an advertised product.
3) Use of spokespersons for product endorsements
A third type of reference group appeal is that of the spokesperson. This is the
common man’ appeal. It demonstrates to the consumer that someone just like 165
Group Influences on him or her uses and, is satisfied with the product. The common man appeal is
Consumer Behaviour
especially effective in public health announcements because, most people seem
to identify with people like themselves, when it comes to such messages.
These reference group appeals have two benefits to advertising. They provide frames
of reference for consumers. Moreover, their use results in increased brand awareness
because they draw attention to the product through their own popularity.

9.5 THE ROLE OF OPINION LEADERSHIP IN

THE TRANSMISSION OF INFORMATION
Having identified the reference groups, marketing strategies need to focus on identifying
and communicating with key persons in the groups, namely, the influential or opinion
leaders and, the innovators or early buyers.
Every group has a leader, or more, specifically, an opinion leader: Opinion leadership
has been defined as the process by which one person, the opinion leader, informally
influences the actions or attitudes of others who may be opinion seekers or opinion
recipients who pass on information are known as opinion leaders. They exert a
personal influence on others because they know more about the product or service
either from advertising, or from conversations with people who have had some
experiences, or else, from their own personal experiences with the product. The
phenomenon of opinion leadership is interesting to marketers if we accept the
assumption that there are opinion leaders or influential who act as sources of
communication and, other consumers who behave as receivers.
Opinion leadership is not rare. At least fifty to seventy per cent people are opinion
leaders and also opinion receivers. Since existing friendships provide the opportunities
for product-related informal conversations, opinion leaders are often friends,
neighbours or work associates.
Because of the effect that opinion leaders are known to have on the behaviour of
other individuals, it is believed that directing persuasive communications to this segment
is more fruitful.

9.6 THE DYNAMICS OF THE OPINION

LEADERSHIP PROCESS
How does communication flow from person to person? How does this information
flow from the mass media to the general population? Are there opinion leaders who
mediate this transmission of information?
The process of opinion leadership has been described in simple terms as the two-
step flow of communication. According to this, ideas flow from the media to opinion
leaders and, from there to the general public. This two-step flow of communication
portrays opinion leaders as direct receivers of information from impersonal marketing
sources and, they therefore, serve as a vital link in the transmission of information.
The two-step flow theory has subsequently been modified into the more complex
model of multi-step flow. This takes into account the fact that, social interaction
between people serves as the principal means by which information is transmitted.
In other words, the mass media alone, are not responsible.
166
According to the multi-step flow model, information is transmitted by the mass media Reference Group Influence
and Group Dynamics
to three distinct sets of people namely, the pinion leaders, the gate keepers and the
opinion receivers or followers. Communications can be transmitted back and forth
between these three groups.
Figure 9.4 The Opinion Leadership Process

As the multi-step flow model suggests, opinion leaders do not influence a passive
group of followers.
This influence is, moreover, informal and interpersonal. In this process one party,
the opinion leader usually passes on information and advice. The kind of product-
related information that opinion leaders are likely to transmit are:
1) How to use a specific product
2) Which of several brands is best
3) Which is the best place to shop.
4) What are the new products/brands introduced
Opinion Leadership and Product Specificity
Opinion leadership is, however, product specific. Thus, an opinion receiver for one
product category may become an opinion leader for another. He. However, opinion
leadership for related product categories does show a tendency to overlap. For
example, people who are opinion leaders for small appliances may also be opinion
leaders for large appliances.
Opinion leaders do not, however, seem to exert their influence across a range of
unrelated product categories. This tends to happen because, since opinion leadership
is a two-way process, an opinion leader who is knowledgeable about a particular
product can very well become an opinion receiver for some other product.
Opinion leaders has been found to be a function of interest and personal expertise
in a particular area. Opinion leaders tend to specialise in certain product categories
about which they offer information and advice. Thus, for instance, you would find
that, opinion leadership in fashion is not necessarily associated with opinion leadership
in another area such as kitchen appliances. Again, opinion leaders for dental products
are not necessarily influential in other areas. 167
Group Influences on
Consumer Behaviour 9.7 THE PERSONALITIES AND MOTIVATIONS
OF OPINION LEADERS
Personality Profiles of Opinion Leaders
Can opinion leaders be profiled on the basis of any distinctive characteristics?
This is important for marketers because, if they are able to identify and
target the opinion leaders for their product, they can influence the
consumption behaviour of others.
It has been found that opinion leaders tend to be more involved with the product
category. They have a keener level of interest, read more special interest magazines
and are consequently more knowledgeable about the product category. They also
tend to be more innovative about their purchases than their followers. They have
local friendships and social interaction and, are therefore more active in disseminating
information. In addition, opinion leaders are higher on credibility because they are
perceived as neutral sources. They base their advice frequently on first hand exposure.
Opinion leaders are also more non-conforming, more self- confident, more sociable
and cosmopolitan and, also socially higher on perceived risk.
What Motivates Opinion Leaders?
Three reasons have been suggested as the forces motivating opinion leaders. One
is that, they may use conversations as a dissonance reducing process for products
they have bought. Or they may want to influence a friend or neighbour. Another
reason can be self-involvement, when they may want to confirm their own judgement.
Demographic Characteristics of Opinion Leaders
Some studies have shown that opinion leaders tend to be younger, often with more
education, higher incomes and higher occupational status. Opinion leaders for movies
tend to be young and single. Those for food purchases have been found to be
predominantly married. In contrast, those for giving information and advice on medical
services are predominantly unmarried.
Media Exposure
Can opinion leaders be reached through any specific media? Yes. Some studies
indicate that opinion leaders possess a keener level of interest for particular product
categories and, specific media, than opinion receivers in general. Opinion leaders
are more exposed to the media. This is particularly true of media reflecting their
areas of interest. Opinion leaders go to more movies and watch more television,
more avid users of social networking sites. They also read more magazines. There
is more exposure relevant to their areas of interest. They also have greater readership
of special and technical publications or sites devoted to the product category. Such
special interest magazinesand media sites place them in a better position to make
recommendations to relatives, friends and neighbours. It is not necessary, however,
that opinion leaders have more exposure to the mass media in general.
Digital Opinion Leaders
Digital media technologies have made the content creation easier and information
sharing faster. Moreover, comments or retweets are measurable and identifiable on
168
social networking sites. Social media analytics app Klout claims to precisely measure Reference Group Influence
and Group Dynamics
just how influential each of us is in cyberspace. “Klout Score”, the numerical value
between 1 and 100 can be assigned to anyone who is online. Higher Klout score
indicates the high level of influence of the users in online social networks. Digital
opinion leaders are sometimes also called as power users. They have a strong
communications network that gives them the ability to affect purchase decisions for
a number of other consumers, directly and indirectly.

Activity 4

Talk to some opinion leaders in your own circle for different product or service
categories like electronic gadgets, entertainment, restaurants and holiday
destinations to find out what are the reasons that motivate them to act as opinion
leaders. Do the reasons vary across product categories?

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9.8 THE CONCEPT OF SOCIAL CLASS:

ITS NATURE AND MEANING
Nearly everyone has some impression of a system of social class and of their own
position within that system. This is because, occupationally as well as by education,
some people are better off than others and have more prestigious, higher status
occupations. You will find this in the case of doctors, lawyers and civil servants,
for instance.

When social class is mentioned, however, some people at least, feel uncomfortable
about the realities of life that it reflects. Within a marketing context, social class is
worth thinking about because of the insights it offers on the market behaviour of
consumers, and on the existence of market segments. Social class influences affect
various aspects of products that we aspire to own such as colour, styling, what
preferences we might have for product sizes, what type of stores we will shop at,
and how we go about the shopping process.

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Group Influences on What is Social Class?
Consumer Behaviour
Social class refers to the social position that an individual occupies in society. Thus,
your social standing is a result of characteristics you possess such as education,
occupation, ownership of property and source of income, as you see illustrated in
Figure 9.5. This leads to the division of society into a hierarchy of social classes
ranging from high status to low status so that, members within each of the social
classes have relatively the same status as each other.
Figure 9.5 Social Standing: How it is Derived and How it Influences Behaviour

This hierarchical aspect of social classes is important to marketing because consumers

in a particular social class develop preferences and consumption patterns that are
unique to them. As a result, they tend to purchase certain products because they
are favoured by members of their own social class or a higher social class. They
might also be found avoiding some products because they are perceived to have
associations as lower-class products. Consistent with this behaviour, social class
has been defined as the relatively permanent and homogeneous divisions or
strata in society, which differ in their status, wealth, education, possessions,
values, beliefs and attitudes, friendships and manner of speaking.
Status differences also exist between the social classes in terms of diverging amounts
of prestige, power and privilege. Social class is used in fact, to describe status
differences and social value systems in a society. The term status is used to convey
the idea that different positions in a society have different values to it. Status is, in
other words, a socially identified position, along with a socially ascribed role,
that results in particular patterns of behaviour for individuals.
The concept of social class involves families rather than individuals. A family shares
many characteristics among its members that affect its relationships with outsiders
namely, the same house, a common income, and, similar values. This means that, if
a large group of families are approximately equal to one another and closely
differentiated from other families, we call them a social class. Thus, social class
could be considered as resulting from large groups in a population sharing
approximately the same lifestyles, who are stratified according to their social status
and prestige.
Behaviour is restricted so that members of a social class tend to socialise both formally
and informally with each other, rather than with members of other classes. Social
class associations also tend to occur in class related patterns. Interactions with-
friends and relatives vary according to class membership and the kinds of people
with whom a person associates in the course of work. In this way, an individual’s
sense of belonging is constantly reinforced by the people with whom that person
interacts.
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 Reference Group Influence
9.9 SOCIAL CLASS AND SOCIAL STRATIFICATION and Group Dynamics

The term social stratification refers to groups or strata of people. People within
any social stratum tend to view those in other social classes as being socially superior
or inferior to themselves. It is in fact, well known that, in any society, some groups
are treated with respect by others while, other groups are looked down on and,
treated less well. People who are ranked within the same stratum tend to share
interests and activities, and, to spend their work and leisure time together. Stratification
is found in some form or other in every society, and in all human cultures, by social
agreement. It derives its support from the prevailing cultural values. Since these
differ for different cultures, so do the details of the various stratification systems.
There are two ways in which stratification systems have resulted. One is by inherited
status, and the other is by earned status. While some amount of inherited status
is based on a person’s past, and is present in every stratification system, earned
status is based on a person’s actions and performance. There are two basic models
for social stratification, namely, the class and the caste system. The best example
of a caste system is found in our own country, particularly in rural society in India,
where it is documented as having existed for several thousands of years. The caste
system relies on inherited status, and reflects sharp boundaries, with no social mobility.
Cultures in which the caste system and, therefore, inherited status dominant tend
to be closed systems while those in which earned status in dominant tend to be
open systems with social mobility. Closed systems have sharp boundaries and are
traditional. Social distance is considered proper, and socialising between the classes
is discouraged.
In the relatively more open class system, social class membership is not hard and
fixed. This means that individuals can move up or down in social class standing,
from the class membership held by their parents. Because upward mobility is possible
in a society and depends on education and opportunities, the higher social classes
tend to become the reference groups for members of lower social status.
The significance of social stratification is that there are differences in values and
attitudes of each of the classes. These differences are reflected in their lifestyles
and their purchasing patterns and consumption characteristics and, therefore, provide
a basis on which to segment the market.

9.10 SOCIAL CLASS AND SOCIAL INFLUENCES

Social influence pertains to the extent to which we are aware of other people and
groups while making decisions, and the extent to which they influence the decisions
that we make. Certain products are associated with particular social classes and
individuals and, these in turn, are used as a reference point by others.
Type of Social Influence
There are two types of social influence. First, there is normative social influence.
This involves the influence of social factors in the decisions that consumers make.
The pressure of normative social influence can be so strong that, it may frequently
lead to consumer conformity, i.e., consumers acting like sheep and striving to be
accepted by buying only socially approved products and brands. In the marketing
system consumer conformity is indirectly encouraged because the process of mass
171
Group Influences on production results in similar goods being made available at dramatically lower-costs,
Consumer Behaviour
and along with social influence, this is strongly suggestive of pushing consumers towards
conformity.
A second type of social influence is informational influence. Consumers often obtain
information from other people and groups about products, stores, movies and
restaurants, for instance. They may be influenced by such information but do not
necessarily feel pressured to behave in any particular way.
Information may be given directly through various types of verbal or other
communication or, indirectly, through observation. For example, a friend may tell
you that he has purchased a cross pen, likes it very much and suggests that you
too, should buy one. This is direct communication. Alternatively, you may see a
friend smiling while using such a pen, infer that it is good, and consider purchasing
one yourself. This is indirect communication.
Informational influence can, moreover, occur in three different situations. As an
individual you may seek out information or a reference group member may simply
volunteer information or the information may be transmitted through observation.
Informational influence tends to come primarily from personal rather than just
commercial sources, even though these are (for certain category of products) also
important. This is because consumers rely more heavily on friends, neighbours and
family members rather than on advertisers or sales persons in obtaining product
information. The reason for this is that, personal sources seem to be more credible
than impersonal commercial sources.
Both these forms of social influence work through the process of social identification
of consumers. This so-called consumer identification reflects the orientation of
consumers and the need to identify with a desirable group or persons. Consumer
products frequently serve as external symbols of this identification process.
Now see if you can complete the following exercise:

Activity 5
The upper and lower classes are known to differ in the way they view the
world and themselves. Try to identify and list down three psychological differences
that separate the upper classes from the lower classes. In each case name the
products that you think are bought predominantly by the members of these
social classes.

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 Reference Group Influence
9.11 SOCIAL CLASS CATEGORISATION and Group Dynamics

As you noted earlier, identification of members within each social class is influenced
most heavily by education and occupation, including income, as a measure of work
success. But it is also affected by family recreational habits and social acceptance
by a particular class. Thus, social class is a composite of many personal and social
attributes rather than a single characteristic such as income or education.
Traditionally, social class positioning has been measured in terms of socio-economic
factors, namely, type and source of income (inheritance or salary), occupational
status, level of education, value of housing and quality of neighboured. Socio- economic
factors appeal to marketers because the information is easily collected as part of
any questionnaire. It is thus possible to prepare profiles of the potential target markets.
The number of categories of social class varies. They are ordered in a manner that
begins with some type of elite upper class and ends with a lower class. A variety
of different classification schemes has been developed, to rank the social classes.
A frequently used scheme is the well-known Warner’s Index of Status
Characteristics (ISC).
Warner’s Index uses four variables as indicators of social class. They are occupation,
income; house and dwelling area. Warner categorised the members in a society
into six classes as follows:
1. Upper-upper class
2. Lower-upper class
3. Upper-middle class
4. Lower-middle class
5. Upper-lower class
6. Lower-lower class
The percentage of population accounted for in each social class appears to fluctuate
but is concentrated in the middle and lower classes. The concept of mass marketing
can, for instance, be applied to the middle classes but not to the affluent upper-
upper class. The upper-upper is, however, a desirable target market for speciality
goods marketing by firms. Such goods can appeal to the cultivated tastes of a very
small number of affluent consumers.
In addition, four target groups have been identified by marketers for their use. These
include, as you see in Figure 9. 6, a broad upper class, a white-collar middle class,
an affluent working class and poorer lower class.
Figure 9.6 Requirements for a Social Class System

173
Group Influences on The social classes are described for marketing purposes, in terms of the social groups
Consumer Behaviour
from which they are drawn in society. On the basis of demographic factors, we
thus have:
The upper-upper social class: This is the wealthy, aristocratic, landed class. It
serves as a reference for the social classes below. It is not a major market segment,
because of its small size.
The lower upper social class: This is the newer social elite. Money is relatively
new. It is an achieving group, drawn from professionals and, includes the successful
and wealthy executive elite, doctors, lawyers and founders of large businesses. It
constitutes a major market for specialised luxury goods.
The upper-middle class: This class consists of the moderately successful. It consists
of the professionally educated managers, intellectual elite and successful professionals,
doctors, lawyers, and professors, owners of medium-sized businesses and managerial
executives, and also younger men and women who are expected to reach these
occupational status levels. Housing is important to this class, and also the appearance
of products in general.
The Lower-middle class: It is represented by the common man, and the highly
paid individual worker. It includes the small business owners and non-managerial
workers. Persons in this class tend to have high school educations and some college
education, but do not reach high levels in their organisations.
The Working Class: This is the largest of the social classes, and is composed of
skilled and semi-skilled workers.They are blue (Khaki) collar workers but have
sufficient money for consumer products, and along with the middle classes, they
represent the market for mass consumer goods.
Within each of these social classes, there are both, underprivileged and overprivileged
members depending on whether their incomes are above, or below, the average
for the class. For many products, the groups of interest to the marketer are the
middle and working classes, by far the largest segment of the market.

9.12 RELATIONSHIP OF SOCIAL CLASS TO

LIFESTYLES
An individual’s lifestyles, beliefs and values are based not only on his or her current
status but also on the status of his or her parents. The socialisation pattern creates
a tendency for individuals to live a certain lifestyle. Lifestyle characteristics are generally
assumed, therefore, to reflect social class, and are closely associated with it. Because
of this, it is possible to think of the social classes as subcultures where each class
has its own distinguishing mode of behaviour with its own values and lifestyles.
You will find that detailed breakdown of social classes is useful for investigating
the process by which consumers develop different values and behaviour patterns.
For example, the upper-upper class may be socially secure and not find it necessary
to purchase the most expensive brands to impress other people. The middle and
lower classes on the other hand may tend to engage heavily in conspicuous
consumption.
Lifestyle differences should therefore be considered when choosing appropriate
marketing appeals to communicate with members in these different social class
groupings. This does not imply that members of the same social class will necessarily
174 have homogeneous behaviour. In fact, it is observed that there is considerable variation
in the way individual members within each social class, realise their goals and express Reference Group Influence
and Group Dynamics
their values, in terms of their consumption pattern, if you go through Figure 9. 7
you will see how social class reflects lifestyle differences.

9.13 SOCIAL CLASS AND BUYING BEHAVIOUR

People’s buying behaviour is strongly influenced by the social class to which they
belong, or, aspire to belong, rather than by income alone. Social class measures
have also been linked to demographic and geographic data using the principle that
people of similar social classes live in geographic clusters.
The result is that relatively homogeneous geodemographic segments arise, in terms
of their housing, urbanisation and ethnicity.
Class differences in status are commonly symbolised by food, housing, clothing,
furnishings and even at religious gatherings. Particularly in societies where wealth
dictates status, possessions become a substitute indicator of an individual’s worth.
Social class and relative standing within a class also decide the kinds of purchases
with regard to house, car, clothing, food, furniture and appliances, consistent with
what is expected by their peers.
Figure 9.7 Life-style Orientation and Purchasing Tendencies of the Different Social Class

175
Group Influences on Buying Patterns and Motivations
Consumer Behaviour
The buying behaviour as well as the motivating forces underlying such behaviour
differ for the different social classes. Refer again to Figure 9.7. You will find that
the social classes differ in their buying behaviour patterns, thereby allowing companies
to target their products to particular, class-based, market segments.
The Upper-upper Class
Members of the upper class have access to property, prestige and power. Their
wealth allows access to prestige. Thus, a wealthy person can buy the right products
and services, join the right clubs and socialise with the right type of people. The
affluent upper class also has a disproportionately larger share of discretionary income.
They are therefore an especially attractive market segment for goods and services
such as leisure, designer clothing, and domestic as well as foreign travel.
The Lower-upper Class
This is the newly rich class. Their goal is to imitate the gracious living style of the
upper-upper class. This class is, therefore, strongly oriented toward conspicuous
consumption, and may be a significant market for luxury goods. Sometimes, the
use of certain products by the upper classes trickles down to other social class
groups.
This is referred to as the trickledown effect. The upper social classes are therefore
used in advertising, as reference groups for those below them. Furthermore, at each
social class level, there are members who constantly seek to achieve a higher status
by virtue of their possessions. You will see this illustrated in Figure 9.8 which indicates
the effect that this has on marketing strategy.
Figure 9.8 Upward Pull Strategy Targeted at Middle Class

You will find this in advertisements that show beautiful women in upscale surroundings.
Such advertising sells dreams to the lower classes.
The Upper-middle Class
This is the moderately successful class. They are usually members of clubs and also
have a broad range of cultural interests. Their motivations are towards achieving
176
success in their careers and reaching higher income levels. Their aspirational reference Reference Group Influence
and Group Dynamics
group is usually the upper classes.
The Lower-middle Class
The motivation of this group is to acquire respectability. They also desire to live in
well maintained, neatly furnished homes in good neighbourhoods. Products are bought
with social acceptance in mind.
Upper-lower Class
This class lives for the present. It looks horizontally within its own class for its values,
rather than upwards to the next social class.
Marketers are concerned with how the buying patterns of these social classes differ.
For the marketer, the social classes are appropriately seen as subcultures with distinct
lifestyles, buying patterns and motivations. The basic premise is that, their wants
and needs do not result from some indefinable subjective feeling on the part of
consumers. They are a product of social conditioning by the environment. The needs
of individual members within the social classes are therefore influenced by the social
activities in which they tend to get involved. The surrounding culture acts as a general
supportive framework for these activities.
Product choice and usage therefore differ among the social classes. Some products
and services such as vacations are bought mainly by the upper classes. Again, the
upper classes go more for products that provide identification, that are fashionable
and, represent good taste. The various social groups thus transmit the norms and
values of their social culture, to members on a daily basis.
Shopping Patterns and Search for Information
The reason for shopping has also been found to differ among the social classes.
The upper classes tend to shop more for pleasure. Because of this they also tend
to shop in stores with a sophisticated, highbrow atmosphere. For example, people
in this class are more likely to patronise exclusive boutiques for their apparel needs.
Social class thus seems to determine where to shop.
The social classes also differ in how much they search for information prior to and,
during shopping. The upper and middle classes tend to engage in more information
search prior to buying. For example, prior to purchasing appliance they will search
on websites, read more newspapers, brochures and test reports. In contrast, lower
class consumers are more apt to rely on instore displays and on salespersons. Lower
class consumers have less product information.
Advertising and Social Class
The upper classes respond to more sophisticated appeals that offer objects as
symbols related to status and self. Advertising to the upper classes is, therefore,
more effective when stressing abstract product benefits. Lower status people have
been found to be more responsive to advertising that depicts racial relationships
and offers solutions to practical problems in daily life. They respond to advertising
of a strong visual character, and straight-forward, literal approaches. Message
positioning thus become important when addressing members of the different social
classes.
177
Group Influences on
Consumer Behaviour 9.14 SOCIAL CLASS AND MARKET
SEGMENTATION
The social classes serve as a natural basis for marketers to segment the market for
their products and services. Social class has, in fact, been suggested to be a better
predictor of consumer lifestyles than income alone.
Social class has thus been found better than income for expressive types of consumer
behaviour such as private club membership, ownership of farm houses, type of
automobile owned, type of stores patronised, and also the particular brands purchased.
It is therefore necessary that, promotional messages, distribution channels and, retail
outlets be effectively related to social class membership. However, social class has
not always been successful in segmenting markets, and there has been a long
controversy as to whether social class or income is a better variable for segmentation.
The choice between the two appears to depend on the product and the situation.
Social class variable has been found superior to income variable for the purchase
of highly visible symbols and expensive objects such as living room furnishings. What
is important for market segmentation is that, within each social class, there will be
similarly shared values, attitudes and behaviour patterns.
Income has been found to be a better predictor for major kitchen and laundry
appliances and products that require substantial expenditure but are not status symbols.
Lastly, the combination of social class and income have been found superior for
product classes that are visible, serve as symbols of social status and require moderate
expenditure like television sets, cars and clothing.

9.15 SUMMARY
This unit focuses on the influence of group variables like reference groups, opinion
leaders, and social class. First of all, every human society has some type of social
class structure which divides its members into hierarchical groups. Within these social
classes, social groups tend to form, and it is these groups that are responsible for
transmitting the norms and behaviour patterns prescribed by society. Several factors
distinguish these groups including occupation, wealth, education, possessions and
values. Social class is not equivalent to occupation or income or any criterion, but
it may be related to one or more of these. In addition, reference groups also represent
important sources of social influence in consumer behaviour. However, reference
group influence varies.
Some products and brands are susceptible to reference group influence while others
are not, and this depends on the conspicuousness of the products. Conspicuousness
relates to both, the visibility as well as the exclusivity of concerned products.
Reference Group influence is greatest when both these factors are present, and
lowest when neither is present. Thus, when visibility is high but exclusivity is low,
reference group influence pertains more to the purchase of the product and less
to the brand.
In addition, there are opinion leaders who influence the decision-making of consumers
by providing information on products, and the process by which opinion leadership
functions is described as the multi-step flow of communication.
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 Reference Group Influence
9.16 KEY WORDS and Group Dynamics

Social class : The division of members of a society into a hierarchy of

distinct status classes so that, members of each class have
relatively the same status, and members of all other classes
have either higher or lower status.
Social class hierarchy : The description of the social classes in terms of a
hierarchy of lower classes to higher classes.
Social comparison : The process by which people evaluate the correctness
of their opinions, the extent of their abilities and the
appropriateness of their possessions.
Reference group : A person or group that serves as a point of comparison
for an individual, in the formation of either general or
specific values, attitudes or behaviour.
Formal group : A group that has a clearly defined structure, specific roles
and specific goals and objectives.
Informal group : A group of people who see each other frequently on an
informal basis such as social acquaintances.
Primary group : A group of people who interact, meet and talk on a regular
basis, such as members of a family, neighbours or co-
workers.
Secondary group : A group of people who interact infrequently or irregularly.
Aspirational group : A group to which a non-member would like to belong.
Normative reference : A group that influences the general values of behaviour
group of an individual.
Comparative : A group whose norms serve as a benchmark for certain
reference group specific types of behaviour.
Conformity : The extent to which an individual adopts attitudes and/
or behaviour that are consistent with the norms of a group
to which he or she belongs or would like to belong.
Dissociating group : A reference group with whom a person does not wish
to be associated.
Compliance : The act of conforming to the wishes of another person
or group. Compliance involves conformity to the wishes
of the group without necessarily accepting the group’s
dictates.
Opinion leader : A person who informally influences the attitudes or
behaviour of others.
Opinion seekers : Individuals who either actively seek product information
from others or receive unsolicited information.
179
Group Influences on Opinion leadership : The degree to which people who are opinion leaders
Consumer Behaviour
overlap in one product category are also opinion leaders in one
or more other product categories.
Overprivileged : Individuals with high incomes within a particular social
class.

9.17 SELF-ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS

1) Define the concept of social class. Which type of social influence, informational
or normative, has a greater impact on consumer behaviour? Explain.
2) Do you think that social class or income would be a better segmentation tool
for the following products?

3) What is a reference group? Name two reference groups that are important to
you. In what way do they influence you in your purchasing behaviour?
4) What factors are important in reference group influence? Suggest four products
for which you think your reference groups would exert a strong or weak influence
with regard to the purchase of the product and the brand, and explain the reason
why this should happen.
5) Explain the two-step flow of communicationin the opinion leadership process
and also indicate how and why it has been modified.

9.18 PROJECT QUESTIONS

1. Describe two situations in which you served as an opinion leader and two
situations in which you sought information as an opinion seeker
2. How can marketers strategically use digital opinion leaders? Illustrate with
examples.
3. How would you describe your social status and social background or social
influencers? Comment on influence of social class on your recently made purchase
decisions.

9.19 FURTHER READINGS

1. Berkman, H.W. and Gilson C. (1986). Consumer Behaviour, Concepts and
Strategies,
2. Kent Publishing Company.
180
3. Fernandes, S., and; Panda, R. (2019). Influence of Social Reference Groups Reference Group Influence
and Group Dynamics
on Consumer Buying Behavior: A Review, Journal of Management Research
(09725814). Apr-Jun2019, Vol. 19 Issue 2, p131-142.
https://web.p.ebscohost.com/abstract?direct=true&profile=ehost&scope
=site&authtype=crawler
4. Kotler, P., Keller, K.L., Koshy, A. and Jha, M. (2018), Marketing Management:
A South Asian Perspective, Pearson Education.
5. Niosi, A.Social Influences on Consumer Decision Making https://
kpu.pressbooks.pub/introconsumerbehaviour/chapter/social-influences
6. Schiffman, L.G., Wisenblit, J., and Ramesh, K.S. (2018) “Consumer Behaviour”,
Twelfth edition, Pearson Education.
7. Solomon, M.R. (2018) “Consumer Behaviour: Buying, Having, and Being” Twelfth
edition, Pearson Education.
8. Patricia LUI,Influence of online consumer reviews on brand choice,2018 ,https:/
/ink.library.smu.edu.sg/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=7219&context=lkcsb_research
9. https://www.counterpointresearch.com/survey-online-channels-dominate-india-
smartphone-market/

181
Group Influences on
Consumer Behaviour UNIT 10 FAMILY BUYING INFLUENCES,
FAMILY LIFE CYCLE AND BUYING
ROLES
Learning Outcomes
After going throughthis unit, you should be able to:
 explain the nature of the family influences that operate on the purchase
behaviour
 describe how family decision-making is influenced by the role specialisations
of the members involved in the purchase decisions
 evaluate the impact of the family life cycle stages on consumption behaviour

 explain the implications of family decision-making for marketing strategy.

 apply the understanding of influence of family on buying behaviour in your

marketing decisions
Structure
10.1 Introduction: The Family as a Consuming Unit
10.2 Family Buying Influences: Nature and Types of Influences
10.3 Consumer Socialisation
10.4 Intergenerational Influences
10.5 Family Decision-Making
10.6 Family Role Structure and Buying Behaviour
10.7 The Dynamics of Family Decision-Making: Purchase Influences and Role
specialization
10.8 The Influence of Children
10.9 The Family Life Cycle Concept
10.10 Implications of Family Decision-Making for Marketing Strategy
10.11 Summary
10.12 Key Words
10.13 Self-assessment Questions
10.14 Further Readings

10.1 INTRODUCTION: THE FAMILY AS A

CONSUMING UNIT
As you have seen in the example Mr. Bannerjee buying a TV for his family that we
have discussed in Unit 1; consumer behaviour is influenced not only by consumer
personalities and motivations, but also by the relationships within families. You will
find this illustrated in Figure 10. 1. The family is such a familiar social unit that, it is
182
difficult to discuss it without appearing to discuss the obvious. Nevertheless, in this Family Buying Influences,
Family Life Cycle and
unit we will look at the interaction of the individual within the family and examine Buying Roles
those features that are of importance to marketing. A knowledge of family structure
and its consumption characteristics is,and the way family influences operate in fact,
a necessaryprecondition for successful marketing.
A family is typically defined as a household where people living together a related
to each other by marriage or by blood ties. From the marketing point of view, the
family differs from larger reference groups in that the members must satisfy their
individual and shared needs by drawing on a common and shared, relatively fixed
supply of resources. And for the individual, the family is the strongest, most immediate,
and most pervasive influence on decision- making.
Figure 10.1 Factors Influencing the Consumer Decision Making Process

Family Types
As a consuming unit to consider, the marketer is interested in the variety of living
arrangements that exist in the population. There are several types of families and
their buying requirements would differ subject to their structural variations. Here is
the nuclear family, which is termed as consisting of the husband, wife and their
offspring.
There is the extended family in which the family structure extends beyond the
nuclear family and includes other relatives such as the parents of the husband or
wife, aunts, uncles, grandparents and in-laws. The traditional household set-up in
India consisting of a joint family is an example of an extended family.
A more recent development is the rising proportion across the world of non-
traditional families, consisting of couples in live in relationships, which are significant
to marketers on account of the size as well as the relatively high income of the
segment. Single parent families are another significant segment of interest to marketer
The term family is actually a subset of the more general classification of household,
where the household comprises all those persons who occupy and share a housing
unit. The household thus covers a variety of living arrangements such as roommates
living in an apartment, and paying guest arrangements, all of which are of value to
the marketer as consumption units with differing consumption patterns. 183
Group Influences on
Consumer Behaviour 10.2 FAMILY BUYING INFLUENCES: NATURE AND
TYPES OF INFLUENCES
The Reciprocal Nature of Family Influence
The family is not just a social group. It is also an earning, consuming, decision-
making unit, and it is of importance to marketers because of the influence that family
members have on purchase and consumption decision. In this section we will consider
the various family related factors that have an impact on consumer decision-making.
The family’s influence comes from the fact that the bonds within the family are likely
to be much more powerful and intimate than those in other small groups. Because
of these bonds, the family has profound social, cultural, psychological and economic
influence on consumers. Within the family, operating as the unit of analysis, a
reciprocal influence operates on all decisions. There are three main sources of
influence in the family decision process. These are the father, the mother and other
family members.
Since a particular family may have several persons in the ‘other family members’
category, the decision process for a given family can be complex. Every family member
brings his or her own motives, evaluations, beliefs and predispositions to the decision
process. Every family member becomes part of the environment for the other family
members and, influences, and is influenced by them. And the cognitions, behaviour
and environments of the several persons become an important consideration for
the marketer, as do the interactions of the members among themselves. Not only
do we need to analyse the cognitions of these individuals, as you see in Figure 10.2,
but also the possible interaction patterns between each of the family members. For
the marketer, it is therefore necessary to sort out the extent of influence exerted by
the various family members. In the next section you will read about the two main
buying influences that operate on the individual within the family, namely consumer
socialisation and the intergenerational influences.
Figure 10.2 The Reciprocal Influence of Family Members

10.3 CONSUMER SOCIALISATION

Consumer socialisation is the process by which young people acquire the skills,
knowledge and attitudes relevant to their functioning as consumers. Through the
variety of family interactions, the consumer learns to develop tastes, preferences,
and shopping styles, how to budget money, what types of clothes to wear for what
184 occasions, and also what stores to patronise.
Factors Influencing Consumer Socialisation Family Buying Influences,
Family Life Cycle and
Buying Roles
There are several distinct factors that influence the consumer socialising process,
as you see in Figure 10.3. These are:
1) The Background/Environmental Factors
These include the environmental factors such as social and economic status,
social class, age, sex, and religious affiliation of the consumer.
2) The Socialising Agents
These include individuals who have direct influence on the consumer such as
parents, sisters, brothers, peers, teachers and the media. The family is found
to be important in teaching the rational aspects of consumption while TV viewing
encourages consumption for emotional reasons.
Figure 10.3 A Model of Consumer Socialization

Consumer socialisation occurs through two types of learning. One is the imitation
of others by observing the actions of others in the family. What is learnt early in life
has a lasting effect on most people. Brand loyalty is thus transmitted from parents
to children and, favoured brands may persist for periods of anywhere up to twelve
years or longer. The second type of learning is operant conditioning. This means
that consumption behaviour that receives praise and is complimented likely to be
repeated by a child while actions, that are ridiculed or, are less likely to have a
negative outcome be repeated. A very common example is the praise a growing
child revives when he finished the home food on his plate served to him and eats
up his fruit. Over a period of time this operant conditioning serves as important
leaning related to healthy eating habits and non-wastage of food.
Consumer socialisation occurs in subtle ways that are not always obvious. There
are four primary ways in which family influences can be transmitted to the individual
within the family:
1) The parents act as models for the child on numerous consumption occasions.
The child learns through observation without the parents’ conscious awareness
or intention to teach.
2) Parent-child discussions about particular products or brands, why they are
good for you, and why they are not.
3) Child-child interactions. These become an important socialising influence when
more than one child is present.
4) The child begins to handle money as he or she becomes older. Thus, through
gifts and allowances, the family provides opportunities for a child to become
more experienced as a consumer.
185
Group Influences on
Consumer Behaviour 10.4 INTERGENERTIONAL INFLUENCES
The intergenerational consumer influences refer to what is passed along from
grandparents to parents, from the parents to their children, and from the children
to their children. Many forms of influence are passed on. These include religious
and cultural values, general lifestyles, attitudes toward education, sports, leisure and
social life. Such intergenerational influences play an important role in forming product
and brand differences. In fact, many consumers have, perhaps, never considered
purchasing brands other than those their parents purchased for them as children.
For example, consider your own experiences regarding your choice of tea, ketchup,
bath soap, laundry detergent, and many other such products. Thus, you may find
that you prefer a brand because it was what your mother, used or, because your
father believed in the manufacturer. Such items are often purchased throughout an
individual’s adult life without serious consideration of other brands.

And this is the marketer’s dream-to get consumers who are highly brand loyal for
many decades. Figure 10. 4 illustrates for you, the concept of intergenerational
carryover that you have been reading about.
Figure 10.4 The Concept of Intergenerational Carryover

10.5 FAMILY DECISION-MAKING

The decisions made by families involve large amounts of money and, it is necessary
to understand as much as possible about this consumption unit. In this section we
will examine how families make their purchase decision. How many members are
involved in each decision? How are they involved? How does this influence work
on the outcome? What is the best way to reach them?

As in other small groups, there is a well-defined role structure in families as well,

as you would find if you apply this concept to your own family. Thus, there is the
Instrumental role, usually taken by the head of the family for the achievement of
specific goals. In addition, there is the expressive role undertaken by the wife and
other family members to provide emotional support to the functioning of the family
group. In addition to this goal-oriented behaviour there is also a set of purchase
roles undertaken by family members.
186
 Family Buying Influences,
10.6 FAMILY ROLE STRUCTURE AND BUYING Family Life Cycle and
Buying Roles
BEHAVIOUR
In order to function as a cohesive unit, purchase roles or tasks are assigned and
carried out by one or more family members. When trying to reach families, therefore,
marketers need to realise that a set of purchase roles exist and come into play within
the family. These roles can be identified and they determine how families make
decisions.
The important buying roles include:
1) The Instigator (Initiator): This is the person who first suggests the idea of a
product or service and initiates the purchase process, to begin with. The Initiator
can even be a stranger. For example, you may see someone walking down
the street, wearing a new style of sweater or shirt, and decide tilt you would
like a similar one. Or, you may go over to a friend’s house and notice a new
smart TV. Your friend (the instigator), turns it on to demonstrate the picture
quality. The matter is then discussed at home with your family members (co-
decision makers) and you decide whether the brand suits your requirements.
2) The Influencer: This is someone whose opinion is valued in the decision-making
process. An influencer may be a friend, brother, sister, spouse, doctor or other
influential person. All these persons have a direct or indirect influence on the
final purchase decision.
3) The Decider: This is the person who makes the final decision on what brand
or make to buy, after all aspects such as price, quality, servicing, have been
thought over.
4) The Purchaser (Buyer): This is the individual who actually purchases the
product, pays for it, takes it home or arranges for delivery. Very often, the
purchaser and the decider are the same person, particularly for big value items.
5) The Consumer: He is the user of the goods or service. In family consumption
decisions, a large number of purchases are for shared consumption for example,
appliances, furniture food and services like household help, investment and health
insurance
Although these five buying roles are performed whenever a purchase is made, the
individual performing each role may vary from purchase to purchase, and from family
to family. The number and identity of the family members who fill these roles thus
varies. In any given situation, the samemember may take on several or all roles.
Thus, in some cases, a single family member may independently assume a number
of roles, in which case, it is really an individual decision within a family context. In
other cases, a single role will be performed jointly by two or more family members.
Multiple roles, too, may be performed by one of the family members.
For example, in the purchase of household cleaning products, a single person may
perform all buying roles. In contrast, in purchasing cornflakes, the mother may act
as the decider and buyer, her children as influencers and users and her husband as
the evaluator. Thus, different persons may perform different tasks in the purchase
process. In all cases, family roles are usually appointed in a way that ensures that
they will be handled efficiently. Again, for example, the person who purchases a
187
Group Influences on loaf of bread may not be the same one who prepares the toast or eats it. In fact,
Consumer Behaviour
the purchaser may have been quite indifferent to the various brands or makes and
purchased it only because one or more family members expressed preference.
Family Decision Stages
Just as there are different purchase roles, there are also a number of different steps
in the decision to buy a product or service. And the amount of influence exerted
by the husband, wife and children will vary, depending on the stage of the decision
process. If you refer back to Figure 10.1 for what goes on inside the consumer’s
mind, you will find that the simplest of these is the five-stage decision-making model
which includes:
1) Problem recognition
2) Search for information
3) Evaluation of alternatives
4) Final decision
5) Purchase
The role of husband, wife and children will differ across the stages. There can thus
be shifts in the husband-wife decision-making from stage one of problem recognition,
to stage two of search for information and finally, to the decision. Marketers should
therefore examine husband-wife decision-making in terms of specific purchase factors.

Activity 1
Recall the purchase of ‘a recent consumer durable product by your family and
try to identify the role(s) played by respective members of your family.

10.7 THE DYNAMICS OF FAMILY DECISION-

MAKING: PURCHASE INFLUENCES AND
ROLE SPECIALISATION
The assignment of roles to specific members of the family, that you saw in the previous
section, has an impact on the overall buying behaviour. There is a sensitive interplay
of roles and the different roles are reflected in the relative influence of husband and
wife.
The extent and nature of husband-wife influence is an interesting factor to consider
in family decisions, because it is likely to shift, depending on the specific stage
of the decision-making process and the specific product features under
consideration.
188
When a single person decides to eat out, the decision is based on only his or her Family Buying Influences,
Family Life Cycle and
own needs. But when that person gets married, the situation changes. A household Buying Roles
forms and its members are confronted with various decisions that reflect the needs
of the family unit. Who will pay the bills? Who will do the grocery shopping? Who
will wash the clothes? Who will cook the dinner?
It has consistently been found that, most husband-wife influence studies classify
consumer decisions as husband-dominated, wife-dominated, joint or syncratic and,
autonomic or unilateral. This gives us four main decision type categories, namely:
Wife-dominant decisions: Wives have been found to dominate decisions on food
purchase, groceries, household furniture and appliances.
Husband-dominant decisions: Husbands have been found to dominate the decisions
on purchases such as automobiles and life insurance.
Syncratic decisions (Joint decisions): These are decisions in which husbands
and wives share influence. Vacations, choice of schools for children and healthcare
decisions for example, are jointly decided.
Autonomic decisions (Unilateral decisions): Decisions of lesser importance that
either the husband or wife make independently.
In a joint decision, several persons will be involved in performing a particular role
in deciding what to buy (or not buy). Shared consumption and joint decision-making
are characteristic of family living. As children grow older, their opinions about products
also become important.
An interesting aspect of the role specialisation in the purchase decision process is
that, in several families, particularly in traditional households, the husband takes on
the roles that are external to the home such as arranging finances, buying the product
and so on. The wife performs tasks internal to the home, as in grocery shopping,
decorating and cleaning. However, as women become more active, these distinctions
decrease, even though they continue to hold for the majority of the Indian
households.These roles are undergoing a rapid change on account of the steadily
rising numbers of dual income families and the proportion of women in employment.
Different family members assume the leadership role under different situations.
Particularly for low-cost items, decisions tend to be autonomic and each partner
tends to take responsibility forparticular types of purchases. More expensive items
involve more joint decision-making. And compromises often have to be made on
how a family’s limited resources will be spent, since family members value different
items differently.
All families face the problem of determining who gets what he or she wants, even
when resisted by others. When family members disagree about the goals, then decisions
become more difficult to make. Decisions may thus be either consensual or
accommodative. In the case of consensual decisions, everyone in the family may
agree with the desired outcome. However, accommodative decisions become
necessary in other cases, and conflict resolution may then need to be accomplished.
There are two ways that families generally use to resolve conflict. One is persuasion,
where a family member is persuaded to make a decision. When persuasion is not
used then bargaining is often resorted to. Bargaining involves creating conditions
189
Group Influences on of give and take in which a family member is induced to make a decision that is
Consumer Behaviour
favourable to other family members.
You have just studied the use of power in social groups in Unit 9. The element of
power within the family is derived from a variety of sources such as the following:
1) Economic resources: Here, the person making the greater economic contribution
tends to have the most power.
2) Cultural norms: The prevailing culture may decide which partner has the most
power. In many cultures the male is the dominant partner and decisions for
several product purchases may be husband-dominant, while this equation may
be reverse in other cultures
3) Expert power: One partner has more knowledge and more detailed information
concerning the products purchase under consideration and may exercise this
superior knowledge for influencing a buying decision.
4) Legitimate power: This is the influence that results naturally from role
expectations in the family.
5) Bargaining power: This involves inducing one member to make a decision
favourable to another on the basis of give and take.
6) Reward/referent power: One spouse may reward the other by doing something
the other will like.
7) Emotional power: The direction of the purchase decision may be influenced
by one partner by making use of non-verbal emotional pressure on the other.

Activity 2
Prepare a list of about 2 to 3 durable products and 7 to 8 non-durable products
(at different levels of price) consumed by your family. In case of each product
try to identify the type of decision that led to the choice.

10.8 THE INFLUENCE OF CHILDREN

Another major influence operating on family purchase behaviour is the influence of
190 children on the budget allocation and purchases and consumption. The birth of a
child creates a demand for a wide variety of products a couple never needed or Family Buying Influences,
Family Life Cycle and
considered purchasing previously. In addition, children influence the purchase of Buying Roles
many products both directly and indirectly. Thus, in a child-centred culture such as
the one that exists in Indian society, children tend to dramatically affect family
expenditures. When children are part of a family, their influence may or may not
be felt. However, it is found that the child centredness of mothers may increase
their receptivity to the child related consumption demands.
As soon as children develop the basic skills to communicate, they start attempting
to influence the family decisions. Older children participate more directly in the decision
processes. While children generally have no say in how much to spend (which
essentially remains a parental prerogative) they influence virtually all major dimensions
of the decision-making exercise. They may take up buying roles of initiators and
influencers in case of products the use of which they share with others in the family.
Examples could be the choice of breakfast cereal, brand of toothpaste and other
toiletries. As they grow older, they may take a far greater degree of leadership for
particular purchases, for example choice of amusement, and restaurants, and
sometimes even vacations. In products which are for their exclusive use, the influence
is obviously much greater. The role of children, however, varies across product
categories and even across family environments. As families differ in their internal
culture, the discretion that is allowed to children may differ across families and would
affect the degree of influence children can exert on purchase decision. In addition,
children are also influenced by their families through the socialisation process. In
the context of consumer behaviour, the parent-child relationship can be seen as an
influence versus yield situation. Children, acting as initiators or influencers seek to
influence parents make a particular product/brand decision (to yield). The response
of the parent may be modified by enabling condition, or a differing order of expenditure
priorities. It has been found that attempts on the part of children to influence purchase
decisions of parents tend to decline as they grow up.

10.9 THE FAMILY LIFE CYCLE CONCEPT

Just as individuals and product types go through a life cycle, families also have life
cycles. Most people go through several phases in their lives. The term family life
cycle refers to the series of life stages through which families proceed over time. It
describes, in other words, the process of family formation, growth and dissolution.
Thus, a family may begin as a married couple and move through a series of stages
in which young children are born, grow older and move out and, finally, the couple
grows old. Each life cycle stage differs from the previous stages in terms of family
structure, financial position, consumption patterns, and product needs and
preferences.
The family Life Cycle Stages
The life cycle of families has been conceptualised as a progression involving several
stages:
1) The Bachelor Stage (Young and single)
In the bachelor stage of the life cycle, income is low relative to future earnings,
since most bachelors are just beginning their careers. However, there are few
financial burdens. They therefore have relatively high discretionary incomes. 191
Group Influences on They tend to spend substantial amounts on personal consumption items, food,
Consumer Behaviour
clothing, transportation, certain luxury goods entertainment, vacations, and
possibly even a car. A few basic furniture items may be acquired, as well as
some kitchen equipment. However, these purchases tend to be on a non-
systematic basis and also minimal, because possessions restrict their freedom
of movement.
This market segment also offers marketers opportunities in terms of single serving
packaging a wide variety of foods and very high incidence of online ordering
for food, gadgets and home services. Overall, there is more individuality in
purchasing at this stage.
2) The Newly Married Couples (Young, no children)
With marriage, the requirements and resources change. Household requirements
increase. In addition, in some cases, both partners may be working. This stage
therefore represents a high expenditure period. Purchases include durable goods
such as refrigerators and other appliances, inexpensive durable furniture, home
entertainment items such as TV sets. These items often take priority over other
purchases.
Family Life Cycle

3) Full Nest 1 (Young, married, with child)

The arrival of a child creates major changes. Some wives may stop working
and they suffer a reduction in income. The financial resources thus change
significantly. Child rearing and educational responsibilities increase. Money is
now directed to baby furniture, toys, chest rubs, vitamins, baby foods and baby
medicines. While more shopping is done, the family also faces more medical
bills. This is also the period that they become dissatisfied with their income
and with their inability to accumulate earnings.
192
4) Full Nest 2 (Older, married, with children) Family Buying Influences,
Family Life Cycle and
Buying Roles
The family’s financial position starts to improve because of career progress and
also because many wives return to work. They present an active market for a
wide variety of food products, bicycles, music lessons, magazines and also
educational services as children are growing up.
5) Full Nest 3 (Older, married, with dependent children)
Income is high for the family at this stage. However, they now represent
experienced buyers and tend to be less interested in new product purchases.The
children start having a direct bearing on buying decisionsand choices. Expenditures
continue to be high due to replacement buying in the later phases of the stage.
6) Empty Nest (Older, married, with no children living with them)
This is the stage where children have completed their education, may settle
down with their own nuclear families and have left the parental home.With no
children living at home, the financial position stabilises, savings accumulate. There
may be a resurgence in self-education. Hobbies also become an important source
of satisfaction. More is spent on luxury appliances, self-reliance supporting gadgets
like dishwashers and health products. Major expenditures are on home
ownership, home improvements and also on medical care.
7) Solitary Survivor (Older, single, retired people)
Simple, often more economical lifestyle. A lower income due to retirement may
be a restrictive factor. Health care and other services become important.
The stages at which families find themselves thus affect the nature of the goods
and services required, their wants and consumption patterns, as well as the volume
of consumption on specific products. At each stage there are unique needs, different
patterns of object accumulation, and different demands that are placed on the family.
It would seem, therefore, that the family life cycle is a better predictor of consumption
patterns than age. For example, it is well known that major furniture items are bought
at or shortly after marriage, regardless of age. Conversely, furniture purchases tend
to be put off in favour of baby furniture and medical expenses at the time and stage
required.
The family life cycle stages are therefore used along with age in analysing and
segmenting markets. Since it combines incomes, marital status, social perceptions,
and family needs into one measure, richer picture of family is obtained than is possible
on any single variable. Family life cycle analysis thus permits marketers to segment
families into subgroups that are relatively homogeneous in terms of age, interests,
needs and disposable income. Segmentation by stage in the family life cycle also
permits marketers to develop products and services to meet the specific needs of
families at each stage, and to design promotional strategies for their specific target
audiences.
You will find in Table 10.1 the differences in the consumption patterns and
characteristics of families in the various family life cycle stages. As you can see,
the presence or absence of children to a large extent dictates the families’ activities
and much of a family’s disposable income gets spent in fulfilling children’s needs.
193
Group Influences on The traditional view of the family life cycle has, however, been criticised for failing
Consumer Behaviour
to recognise that a single-family unit may not exist throughout the life of an individual.
Families may be created by second marriages, and these families may involve children
from prior marriages. Also, the traditional model ignores the existence of single parent
households. The modern family life cycle, which takes into account, the rising trend
of working women as well as the non-traditional family set ups, is a more complex
and more useful model than the traditional model.
The modern family life cycle accounts for women in the work force and dual income
families. The pace of life is faster and there is less time for children and for one
another. As a result, the two income households are more likely to spend more on
time saving, home help and convenience goods. Women also appear to retain the
primary responsibility for housekeeping though husbands appear to help more than
in the past. Convenience products ranging from paper plates automatic appliances
and other convenience foods appeal to the working women segment. There is also
more sharing of responsibilities than in single income households.
In conclusion, while the family life cycle concept segments families on the basis of
demographic variables, it still has the disadvantage that it ignores the psychological
variables. It is therefore used to supplement the concept of lifestyle which emphasises
behavioural dispositions and attitudes. it is a good idea to remember, moreover,
that while the family life cycle is an important factor in understanding consumption
patterns, there are other variables such as available income, education, occupation,
whose effects govern spending on such items as food, clothing, housing and even
cars, and which control how consumers spend their money. Family life cycle is also
related to the use of leisure time, family expenditure patterns for services and other
consumer activities.

Table 10.1 Consumption Patterns of Families in Life Cycle Stages

194
 Family Buying Influences,
Activity 3 Family Life Cycle and
Buying Roles

Select at least 10 known families in your social world and identify the stage at
which they are in the family life cycle description. Also list some of the products
(a) they have stopped buying (b) they are going to buy for the first time.

10.10 IMPLICATIONS OF FAMILY DECISION-

MAKING FOR MARKETING STRATEGY
Once it is recognised that the same individual may not perform all the purchase
consumption tasks, it becomes clear that the development of a successful marketing
mix depends on answers to questions such as:
1) Is the product likely to be purchased for joint or family use?
2) Is the product likely to be purchased with individual or family funds?
3) Is the product so expensive that the purchase involves a trade-off in purchasing
other products for the family?
4) Are family members likely to disagree about the product?
5) Is the product likely to be used by more than one family member? If so, are
product modifications necessary to accommodate different persons?
6) Which family members will influence the purchase and what media and messages
should be used to appeal to each?
7) Are particular stores or online providers preferred by various family members
or families in the target market?
Forward-thinking companies can anticipate and take advantages of trends that are
likely in the future.

10.11 SUMMARY
The family has an institutionalised position in the larger society and provides the
primary setting for consumer socialisation, whereby children learn consumer tastes,
preferences and shopping styles. When trying to reach families marketers should 195
Group Influences on therefore realise that, family influence is an important factor in developing marketing
Consumer Behaviour
strategy.
Parents play an important role in consumer socialisation, especially in providing
information on the rational aspects of consumption. Their impact varies across types
of products and across the stage of the decision process.
A set of buying roles also exist within the family. Different roles can be identified
such as initiators, influencers, gatekeepers, deciders, buyers and users. The role of
the member is shaped partially by cultural and social determinants, including the
mass culture, subcultural influences, social class and reference groups.
The relative importance of members may vary according to the kind of product
and service under consideration, its cost and other variables. Decisions within the
family can thus be classified into four categories namely, wife-dominant, husband-
dominant, syncratic and autonomic. These categories refer to the extent to which
the husband-and-wife act independently versus together in making purchases. And
for certain type of products or services the presence of children as well as their
request can influence the purchase decisions.
The family also has a life cycle that determines its needs and expenditure patterns
at different points in its development. The family life cycle includes nine stages which
describe changes in the family’s buying and behaviour patterns across time. This
has implications for segmenting families into various markets.

10.12 KEYWORDS
Household : A group of people living under one roof.
Family : A group of members living under the same roof who are
related to each other by marriage or by blood ties.
Nuclear Family : Consists of husband, wife and offspring.
Extended Family : Consists of the nuclear family plus the husband and/or wife’s
mother, father and/or other relative.
Family Life Cycle : The idea that families move through a series of stages in
a developmental fashion.
Instrumental Role : Within a group, the instrumental role is taken by the person
who deals with the problem of getting the group to achieve
certain goals and complete certain tasks.
Expressive Role : A role found in many groups that involves a person helping
to maintain and provide emotional support for its members.
Purchase Roles : include the various roles in the buying and using of products
by family members or industrial buying groups.
Syncratic decision : Important decisions in which husband and wife participate
jointly.
Autonomic decisions : Decisions of lesser importance that either the husband or
wife may make independently.
196
Family Decision : The steps in the decision process used by a family to Family Buying Influences,
Family Life Cycle and
Stages purchase products or services. Buying Roles

Power Sources : Factors that can increase the personal power of a person
in a relationship such as economic resources, cultural and
subcultural values and the degree of dependence in a
relationship.
Consumer : Processes by which young people acquire skills, knowledge
Socialisation and attitudes relevant to their functioning as consumers in
the market place.
Socialising Agents : Individuals directly involved with a consumer, who have
influence because of their frequency of contact with the
consumer, importance to the consumer or control over
rewards and punishments given to the consumer.

10.13 SELF-ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS

1) Differentiate between the household and family. What implications do this
difference present to marketers?
2) Which of the five stages of the family life cycle constitutes the most lucrative
segment for each of the following products and services:
(a) Netflix subscriptions (b) Domino’s Pizza (c) iPods (d) mutual funds, and
(e) the fastest Internet access available in one’s location? Explain your answers.
3) What purchase decision process would occur for a family in the purchase of
furniture? Think of your own family. Which individuals in your family have the
roles of gatekeeper, influencer, decider, buyer, and user? To what extent do
these roles change across different product categories?
4) How do consumption patterns change as people move through the stages of
the family life cycle? Now apply this to yourself by referring to the stage of
family life cycle that your own family is in.
Project Questions
1. Collect ads for five different product categories that target families and evaluate
benefits from a family emphasis.
2. Identify one nuclear family and one extended family and compare the
characteristics and consumption patterns of the two households.

10.14 FURTHER READINGS

1. Kotler, P., Keller, K.L., Koshy, A. and Jha, M. (2018), Marketing Management:
A South Asian Perspective, Pearson Education.
2. Schiffman, L.G., Wisenblit, J., and Ramesh, K.S. (2018) “Consumer Behaviour”,
Twelfth edition, Pearson Education.

197
Group Influences on
Consumer Behaviour UNIT 11 CULTURE AND SUBCULTURAL
INFLUENCES
Learning Outcomes
After going through this unit, you should be able to:
 define culture and subculture
 describe the characteristics of culture
 distinguish between components of culture
 explain how culture and subculture influence our behavior
 utilize the understanding of culture and subcultures to make informed marketing
decisions
Structure
11.1 Introduction
11.2 Culture: Meaning and Significance
11.3 The Characteristics of Culture
11.4 Cultural Values
11.5 Cultural Values and Change
11.6 The Need for Cross-cultural Understanding of Consumer Behaviour
11.7 Subcultures and their Influence
11.8 Summary
11.9 Key Words
11.10 Self-Assessment Questions
11.11 Project Questions
11.12 Suggested Readings

11.1 INTRODUCTION
One of the most pervasive influences on our lives and indeed our consumption
behaviour is that of culture. Culture has a profound effect on family life, living patterns,
social interactions and is indeed an input in shaping values, attitudes, personalities,
attitudes and perceptions, variables that you have studied earlier in this course. We
shall in this unit try to understand what is culture and how does it influence buyer’s
behaviour. We will also briefly discuss the various subsets of culture-the subcultures
within a given society.

11.2 CULTURE-MEANING AND SIGNIFICANCE

Culture is the broadest component that has an effect on consumer behaviour. It
provides the background for other factors that you have studied, namely the family,
social class and reference groups, that have an influence on buying behaviour.
198 Reference groups and families play a critical role in transmitting cultural and sub-
cultural values. Since they regulate people’s lives on a day-to-day basis, they become Culture And Sub Cultural
Influeces
the agents for transmitting the standards of behaviour and the values of the culture
in which they exist.
Our clothing, diet, methods of food preparation and service, all these are manifestations
of our culture. It is difficult for us, or for people in any culture to see just what our
culture is like, because we are too involved with the specifics, to realize its impact
on our daily lives. In fact, the impact of culture on our decision-making is so natural
and automatic that its influence is usually taken for granted. It is only when we are
exposed to people with different cultural values and customs that we recognize that
our own culture is unique.
At a general level, Culture is defined as:
“a complex set of values, ideas, beliefs, attitudes and other meaningful
symbols, created by human beings to shape human behaviour and the artefacts
of that behaviour as they are transmitted from one generation to another.”
The significance of culture in understanding consumer behaviour is that, although
consumers may be biologically similar in their instincts, their views of the world differ
according to their cultural orientations. Culture provides the standards or rules
regarding when to eat, where to eat, what is appropriate to eat for breakfast, what
to serve guests for a dinner party, a picnic, or a wedding. For instance, we can
think of French culture, Canadian culture, American culture, Indian culture and are
also aware of how very different these societies are in their consumption preferences.
People in thesecultural groupings are more similar in their outlook and behavior
among themselves than those in other groupings. They are also similar in their
lifestyles, personalities, attitudes, values and belief systems, as described in the
definition of culture. This similarity would apply to their purchase behaviour as well,
much of which is culturally determined.
Culture results from interactions between people. The function of culture is to establish
modes of conduct, standards of performance, and ways of dealing with people in
interpersonal relations. This reduces uncertainties with people and increases
predictability. Over a period of time, behaviour values, and artefacts become
institutionalized. Since there are many ways in which people can organize their social
relationships, it is not surprising that a wide variety of cultural patterns have emerged.
Thus, while many aspects of all culture are the same, there are also difference between
cultures. We see this in our own country in India, which is so large and diverse
that it is difficult to consider it as a single culture. Within a given culture, sub-
cultures therefore arise due to geographic, religious, nationality and ethnic
differences.
In every society, the prevailing culture has a purpose. It provides a framework of
traditions, values, beliefs, practices and behaviours that facilitate interaction and become
institutionalized. It therefore results in commonly accepted standards of conduct.
Parents and social institutions such as schools and other organizations transmit culture
from one generation to the next generation.
Because culture is such a broad and pervasive concept, it is divided into two distinct
components:
1) The internal mental culture
2) The external material culture 199
Group Influences on The internal mental culture can be further divided into two parts, the cognitive
Consumer Behaviour
component and the normative component.
The Internal Mental Culture
The cognitive component of culture consists of its ideas and knowledge, such as
ideas about gods, ideas about supernatural phenomena, and concepts of an afterlife.
The normative component of internal mental culture consists of its values, rules of
conduct and norms which regulate behaviour, and which are shared by most members
of a culture. Consider, for instance, what happens to our consumer information processing
system as cultural influences build up over our lives. They reflect our beliefs and opinions
and this guides our information processing. Social norms are actually beliefs and opinions
that are held by, people in exactly the same way. Internalizing the prevailing cultural
values over time is called enculturation, and this is especially important in the case
of children learning to function in their own society. Culture is therefore one of the
most basic influences on our cognitions and behaviour.
The External Material Culture
The external or material culture refers to the things that we can see, touch and
use in our day-to-day living. This is the most obvious of cultural components. The
material culture allows us to express ourselves aesthetically, as for instance, in art,
music, theatre, clothing and housing and to protect ourselves from the elements. It
concerns how we enjoy our moments of leisure by means of books, movies, sports
among other things.
An important dimension of the material culture is the influence of technology and
how it has brought about cultural changes as for example, through smartphone, internet,
television, and the airlines. The material culture is important to marketing because
symbolism plays an important role in marketing to any culture. Clothing, for instance,
represents a highly visible form of expressive symbolism in any cultural system. Virtually
all product packaging and advertising also uses some form of expressive symbolism
to get a message across to persuade consumers to buy.

11.3 THE CHARACTERISTICS OF CULTURE

To understand that brushing your teeth with toothpaste is a cultural phenomenon,
requires some knowledge and awareness of the characteristics of culture. The following
characteristics can be cited to describe its nature.
1. Culture is invented
This means that culture is invented and is not a set of instinctive responses. It
is a way of thinking, feeling and acting that results from years of accumulated
experience and is handed down from one generation to another. Each generation
adds to the cultural heritage of the past. The response patterns are transmitted
through values, attitudes, beliefs, customs and symbols. Cultural norms
consequently result from defining and prescribing acceptable behaviour.
2. Culture is a set of learned responses
Cultural learning takes two forms. One is patterned instruction. The other is
imitative learning. While imitative learning is informal, patterned instruction may
occur at either a formal or informal level.
200
 Patterned Instruction: This is the formal learning of values through family Culture And Sub Cultural
Influeces
members, of what is right or wrong, and technical learning, which occurs through
the educational environment or by active and deliberate instruction by parents/
grandparents.
Imitative learning: This is informal learning, and involves imitating the behaviour
of friends, family, television/digital media. Many advertisements influence the
consumer and enhance informal learning by providing the audience with a model
to imitate. Repetition of advertisements further reinforces beliefs and values by
teaching consumers what to desire.
3. Culture is shared
Culture is frequently viewed as a group phenomenon. It thus links together the
members of a society. Various social institutions within a society, namely the
family, social class, educational institutions, and religious organizations make
the sharing of culture possible. Another important social institution is the mass
media, and consumers receive important cultural information from advertising.
4. Culture is gratifying and persistent
Culture in a society offers direction and guidance to the members, to satisfy
physiological and personal needs.
5. Culture is dynamic and adapts
In spite of resistance to change in societies, cultures are gradually and continuously
changing. Many factors are likely to produce cultural change such as new
technologies, resource shortages, such as those of energy and water, and customs
borrowed from other culture. This means that marketers must constantly monitor
cultural change to find new opportunities.
6. Culture is an organized and integrated whole
This means that the elements of a culture are consistent and woven together to
form a whole.
7. Cultures are similar yet different
In terms of elements that they exhibit, cultures are strikingly similar, you would
find elements like social institutions of family, marriage, rituals, schools, government,
housing, religious rituals, social functions, personal adornments, calendars,
language, music and dance forms and law in every society whose culture you
may be interested in studying. Societies, however, differ greatly in how each
of these elements are practiced in the society, which in turn results in important
consumer behaviour differences among consumers of different societies.
8. Culture is prescriptive
Culture determines desirable norms or patterns of behaviour so that in a given
cultural context people have a common appreciation of what is right and wrong,
indeed what is proper or improper. Culture also suggests items appropriate
for consumption in the pursuance of norms, moves, values and beliefs that prevail
in a given society.
201
Group Influences on
Consumer Behaviour Activity 1
Look at your own culture in terms of the elements that have been referred to
above. In terms of any five elements that you choose, compare your culture
with that of any other society that you are familiar with or have read about.

11.4 CULTURAL VALUES

Cultural Values
Cultural values are important to the organized and integrated nature of culture. A
cultural value can be defined as a widely held belief that endures over time. Values
therefore produce inclinations to respond in standard ways. They serve as standards
or criteria for behaviour. Values deal with modes of conduct and, therefore, transcend
specific situations. We therefore have in a culture, two types of values:
1) Instrumental value (or modes of conduct)
2) Terminal values (or states of existence)
These values together influence consumer behaviour in several ways such as methods
of shopping, tastes and preferences. It is necessary, therefore, to understand a society’s
basic value structure before marketing to it.
Different social classes may respond to cultural values in different ways. Consider
the cultural value of achievement, for example. While all individuals may share the
same cultural values, their methods of responding to them may differ greatly, depending
on the sub-culture and social class.
Each culture has what is termed the core values.
These are the dominant or basic cultural values. It is not necessary that the core
values be exclusive to a particular culture. Several values are borrowed or adopted
as people emigrate to societies.
While somewhat obvious to you, the important fact is that these values are pervasive
and accepted as givens. For example, core values that have been cited may be
any of the following.
1) Progress, achievement and success: These values lead to progress for society
2) Activity: Being and keeping active is widely accepted as a healthy and necessary
part of life.
3) Humanitarianism
4) Individualism

202 5) Efficiency, Practicality

Commonly held cultural values shape consumption choices to a large extent. Marketers Culture And Sub Cultural
Influeces
therefore try to appeal to consumer values through advertising, product concepts
and design. These values influence both, product and brand choices. It has been
found that terminal values such as comfort, security, pleasure, are influential in
the choice of product class. Instrumental values such as broadmindedness become
important in the brand choice decision.
Though limited amount of research has been done on how to measure values, Milton
Rokeach has created a Rokeach Value scale consisting of two sets of values, eighteen
terminal values and eighteen instrumental values. Ranking or agreement scales are
used to find out the importance of these values to the individual respondents.
Table11.1 presents the values listed in the Rokeach Value Survey.

Activity 2
Select five core Indian cultural values, and provide a consumer behaviour example
for each.

11.5 CULTURAL VALUES AND CHANGE

The core values discussed above do not represent a static concept but are dynamic
in nature. Depending upon the rate of change a society is going through, cultural
change may evolve slowly, in an evolutionary manner which is adapted more easily
and is least disruptive. A culture may also change rapidly owing to fast paced changes 203
Group Influences on in a society, changes which come rapidly produce stress for the social system and
Consumer Behaviour
may even be disruptive of some basic values.
As world trade globalizes, information and communication technology bring the people
of the world in closer interaction with each other, cultures of nearly all open or
opening societies have faced the winds of change. As the world around us changes,
reverberation is naturally likely to be felt in the Indian society. Already sign of changes
in the cultural values of respect for authority, religious and family ties, responsible
consumption etc. are becoming apparent in the Indian society. The need for the
marketer is to clearly understand and track the changing value orientations of Indian
consumers and respond in designing products and services to be offered for
consumption.
Changing Cultural Trends In Indian Urban Markets
The Indian urban market environment is very different from the rural or semi-urban
market environments. In cities, there are target segments comprised of professionally
qualified, high-salaried individuals who are on the fast track of life. This segment is
heavily influenced by Western lifestyle and aspirations. There is however also a counter
trendof returning to the Indian identity This segment can be associated with the
following values.
Achievement Orientation- These factors contribute to intrinsic and extrinsic
motivational levels, which are reflected in an interest in membership in prestigious
clubs and vacationing in foreign resorts.
Work Ethic- Present-day consumers are breaking away from traditional work
practices and are involved in high-pressure, fast-paced jobs. They are under time
constraints and thus prefer convenience products and services such as ordering of
groceries online, online shopping, using food delivery apps (Zomato/Swiggy), one-
stop shops etc.
Material Success-Young professionals between the ages of 25 and 30 have acquired
substantial wealth at a young age as a result of their intelligence and education. They
work in cutting-edge fields such as software or are well-known entrepreneurs. This
segment selects products and brands with a symbolic overtone, most likely to signal
to society that they have “arrived”. There is a high demand for quality-oriented,
branded services such as laundry services, in-home food delivery, babysitters, and,
pet-care providers.
Middle-of-the-Road Approach to Tradition- A segment of consumers who are
urban, well-educated, and in the upper end of the socio-economic strata take a
middle-of-the-road approach to rituals and other cultural practises.
Impulse Gratification- A neo-urban young adults have an obsessive desire to
purchase goods and services using credit cards or other digital methods like wallets.
This segment may possess multiple credit cards and use multiple payment avenues.
Use of Hi-Tech Products - High-profile consumers use products like iPods, smart
phones, tablets, and hi-tech products in the categories of household appliances and
entertainment systems. This segment is information-oriented, independent, and has
the potential and willingness to spend on high-end products such as fuzzy logic washing
machines, plasma television sets, and Bluetooth technology CCTV systems,
204 comprehensive health care insurance and fitness equipment or gym memberships.
 Culture And Sub Cultural
Activity 3 Influeces

Some of the trends noted above have already become apparent. How are they
likely to change some of the Indian cultural values? Give your own opinion.
Talk to some of your peers and report upon their opinion.
Trends Likely Cultural Changes
…………………… ……………………………………….
……………………. ……………………………………….
…………………….. ….……………………………………

11.6 THE-NEED FOR CROSS CULTURAL

UNDERSTANDING OF CONSUMER
BEHAVIOUR
As world trade globalizes, corporations tend to look upon the whole world as their
market. Major Corporations of the world today, Coca Cola, IBM, Gillette, Amazon
and Apple receive more than half of their earnings from their overseas operations.
A parallel emergence of common culture of management has however not taken
place. Research surveys of management personnel serving across countries reveal
that managers views tend to relate more to their country’s cultural context and less
to the geographical location of their company.
The International marketer however would need to understand the different value
orientation in the various cultures that he operates in or is planning to operate in. A
useful conceptualization of a frame of reference has been developed by Florence
R Kluckholm, which may enable the international marketer to evaluate cross cultural
variation on a range for five important value orientation. These value orientations
are given in the Table 11.2.

205
Group Influences on Important among the steps to be undertaken while trying to understand cultural
Consumer Behaviour
orientation of international markets are suggested below.
a) Research into underlying values and the rate at which these are altering-Try to
understand the direction of the change specially with references to the target
market.
b) Evaluate how the intended product concept relates to the cultural values, in
terms of any possible or perceived conflicts with the values. In the cultural context
in which the product is to be introduced, how important are the needs for which
the product is created? Are there alternative satisfiers available?
c) Analyze the existing individual and family decision patterns and characteristic
criteria used for decision making, as well as the information sources for decision
making.
d) Decide on appropriate Marketing Communication- Looking at the language,
symbols, beliefs and the role models that exist in a given cultural context, the
marketer must decide upon messages and formats which effectively communicate.
What media would be the most appropriate would again vary depending upon
the preferred. information sources and media habits of people in different
cultures.
e) Take appropriate pricing and channel decision-What are the valuation norms
of a given society? Do people value an imported product label higher than a
domestic one or is it vice versa? Are people aware and sensitive of price
differentials? Are existing channels adequate and appropriate? How willing are
people in a given cultural context to try new distribution alternatives? These
are some of the issues which would enable the markets to evolve suitable pricing
and distribution strategies in a cross-cultural marketing situation.
Hofstede Dimensions of National Culture is one of the most widely used instrument
to measure the cross-cultural values. It has following six dimensions:
Power Distance- The extent to which the less powerful members of organizations
and institutions (like the family) accept and expect that power is distributed unequally.
Individualism- The degree to which individuals are integrated into groups.
Masculinity- The distribution of roles between the genders.
Uncertainty Avoidance- A society’s tolerance for uncertainty and ambiguity.
Long-Term Orientation- Values associated with long-term orientation are thrift
and perseverance; values associated with short-term orientation are respect for
tradition, fulfilling social obligations, and protecting one’s “face.”
Indulgence versus Restraint- The extent to which a society allows relatively free
gratification of basic and natural human drives related to enjoying life and having
fun. A culture high on restraint suppresses gratification of needs and regulates it by
means of strict social norms.
These dimensions are useful to marketers to understand how members of different
cultures may respond to the same marketing messages.
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 Culture And Sub Cultural
Activity 4 Influeces

Try to look at some of the new products introduced by multinationals in India

(for example personal care and hygiene products etc.) and evaluate how do
they, in terms of product concepts and communication messages relate to the
Indian cultural contexts
....................................................................................................................
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....................................................................................................................
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11.7 SUBCULTURES AND THEIR INFLUENCE

You have after going through the above section, a very clear idea of how pervasive
and lasting is the influence of culture on a person’s consumer behaviour. Not all
segments of a given society, however, display the same behaviour pattern. This is
partly due to ‘ethnicity’ - the basic origins from which these segments emanate or
different religious beliefs or even climatic and geographical considerations. It is therefore
possible for a marketer to identify more homogeneous subgroups within the
heterogeneous national culture.
These subgroups are referred to as subcultures. The members of a specific subculture
display customs, values and beliefs which are distinct enough to set them apart from
the other segments in the same culture. However, in addition to the above different
beliefs, values and customs, they conform to the dominant values and behavioural
patterns of the larger society to which they belong. To take an example, if we refer
to the Indian society as the larger “Culture” segment, the various religious subgroups
like Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs and Christians, represent the religious subcultures. They
may possess different religious beliefs and customs, but are also similar in the sense
that they all display common value system as Indians. In a multi racial society like
America, there is an American way of life which typifies the American Culture, the
various social groups like blacks, Hispanics and Asians display values and customs
which are typical of them as subsegments. Each of these then represent a subculture.
Subcultures therefore can be defined as a distinct cultural group that exists
within a layered, complex society as an identifiable segment in terms of its
beliefs, customs and values. A culture is thus made up of the distinctive values
beliefs and customs followed by the members of its various subcultures as well as
the core cultural values and beliefs shared by most of its population regardless of
specific subcultural identification.

Activity 5
Look around yourself and try to identify the type of subcultural group that you
see in the Indian society. In what ways do they tend to differ from the other
subsegments.
207
Group Influences on
Consumer Behaviour ....................................................................................................................
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Types of subcultures
Marketers have tended to look at subcultures as specific segments in terms of the
differential mores of these subgroups result in consumption patterns and behavioural
patterns specific to them. You have only to refer to the different customs followed
by the various communities in India to understand how the marketer would like
the consumption patterns at different religious festivals and performance of customary
rites of these communities to identify distinct marketing opportunities. The different
food habits of the geographical subcultures, for example, North and South India,
represent possibilities for segmenting and targeting consumers for the food market.
Looking around us we can see that for multicultural societies, it is possible to identify
several types of subcultures. We would briefly refer to the major types of subcultures
here.
Racial or nationality subcultures: Multiracial societies like America are today
comprised of citizens who come from different nationalities or belong to different
races. While they are subscribe to the wider concept of the core American values,
each one of them display interesting differences for the marketer to be able to identify
them as important, subculture segments. The broader American culture therefore
can be seen as consisting of the Afro- American subculture, the Asian subculture
the Hispanic subculture to name some. These subcultures tend to vary in their values,
aspiration and beliefs which get reflected in their consumption priorities, spend save
patterns, purchase behaviour, use of credit, social mores and customs etc. Marketers
have found it useful to look at each of these subcultures as distinct market segments
and tailor marketing plans to effectively reach them.
Religious subcultures: Most societies of the world today consist of people
subscribing to different religions, which may differ in their beliefs, values and customs.
We have referred to the Indian society earlier which is a good example of a multi-
religion society. The religious subgroups may follow different custom, have important
rites of passage (like birth, marriage and death) performed in different ways and
have different festivals. These in turn suggest items appropriate for consumption
for the above activities which may not be common to all the members of the wider
society. In addition, religion subcultures may suggest important “taboos” in consumption
terms, certain foods are prohibited among the different groups, consumption of liquor
or non-vegetarian foods may be specifically prohibited by some religious norms.
Geographical and regional subcultures: Large countries, partly on account of
geographical and climatic condition display geographical and regional differences
which are distinct enough to enable marketer to envisage a country as consisting
of different geographical or regional subcultures. One has only to look at our own
country to clearly identify and appreciate the Gujarati, Tamil, Punjabi, Kashmiri,
Bengali subculture identities with the Indian culture. Of special significance to the
208
marketer are the various food preferences of these geographical regional subculture Culture And Sub Cultural
Influeces
and the languages spoken in different regions.
India today had 22 languages identified as official regional languages. These create
unique challenges in terms of creating and delivering marketing communication.
Geographical subcultures also result in different consumption patterns in clothing,
housing patterns and food habits on account of climatic conditions. While cottons
maybe the most preferred fabric in North West India, silk predominates in South,
Woolens have a very low priority in coastal regions as they are not required at all.
Age subcultures: You have already read about the stages in family life cycle and
understand how consumption priorities change as the age pattern of the family changes.
Marketers have, on a more generic basis have been able to use age as a basis of
identifying different subcultural identities as the youth market and the elderly market.
The youth market (14-24) is important to marketers not only because it is a growing
and lucrative segment but also because consumption preference found at this age
are likely to continue for a long time. The youth market is distinctive enough in terms
of its spending patterns, demographics, psychographic, profiles etc. In a very
interesting in-depth study of teens, Young and Rubicon ad agency found the following:
 Teens want to learn things but do not want to be told

 want independence yet want to be taken care of

 want to be treated as adult but don’t want too much responsibility

 want to be active yet spend hours relaxing

 want to try new things but only acceptable ones

 want to be individuals, but also members of the group

 can be very critical but are very sensitive to criticism.

The youth market differs significantly from the elderly market in term of its norms,
purchase preferences, information sources used, media habits and preferences and
to an extent values and beliefs, to constitute a subcultural segment for the marketers.
For a very large variety of consumables, apparels, accessory and entertainment,
education and training, fast food and hospitality industry, the youth market constitutes
a substantial and lucrative market segment.
The Elderly Market: In terms of age subcultures, the ‘Elderly’ constitute the 50
plus Market segment. They have traditionally received low priority attention from
the marketers but it is fast being realized that in terms of purchasing power and
discretionary incomes, this segment is one of the most attractive segments. In subculture
segment term, this segment has been found to display value orientation which are
more stable, have identified shopping patterns and store preferences, and are a very
attractive market for home improvement, investment, insurance, health services and
home equipment enabling convenience in living. Though they tend to view advertising
as a less reliable source of information, their media habits are more stable to enable
the marketers to carve out communication positioning better.
Gender subcultures: It has been increasingly felt that as men and women vary in
terms of dominant traits, they possess, information search and processing norms
209
Group Influences on they follow, gender may be indeed used as a subculture segmentation variable. While
Consumer Behaviour
the traditional role identification of men as breadearners and women as homemakers
are getting blurred, products can still be seen as being strongly associated or as
exclusively developed for one sex or the other. Assignment also in terms of
predominant decision-making roles, tend to relate to gender subcultures. In behavioural
terms, it hasbeen found that consumers lend to assign a gender to products, in term
of the perceived meaning of the product it may either be seen as a feminine or a
masculine product. These are perceptions that need to be borne in mind by
advertisers in addition to the gender of the target market. One gender subcultural
segment that has been distinctively identified and used is, the segment of the working
woman.
Working women as a subcultural segment and consumption patterns: Whatever
be their career orientation, working women have been found to spend less time in
shopping and tend to be weekend shoppers and now increasingly online shoppers.
This higher discretionary income enables them to try out new brand alternatives
and be a very attractive market for time saving, convenience-oriented goods or
improved home services as well as personal grooming products and services. Media
usage is more diverse among working women and the messages that have been
found to be most effective are those that relate to both career and family rather
than those targeting only family or only career.
As proportion of working women continue to rise across the world, greater research
is bound to be directed towards specific value orientation and role identification of
this important segment.

11.8 SUMMARY
The study of culture enables us to understand and appreciate all aspects of a given
society-language customs, beliefs,value systems, customs and religion in a given society.
The unit studied by you defines culture as the sum total of the beliefs, values and
customs learned by the members, of a society that set them apart from other societies.
The unit also explains the characteristics of culture and the way it affects our behaviour
as consumers.
In an internationalizing world economy several cross-cultural transactions and adaptation
have to be made by the international marketers. The unit addresses some of the
value orientation across which different societies can be seen and analyzed. Subcultures
and their understanding enable the marketers to segment the market so as to tailor
their offerings to the needs, motivations value orientations and attitudes of members
of specific groups. Subcultures exist as identifiable distinct groups within a given
culture. The unit describes the various types of subcultures that can be identified in
a society.

11.9 KEY WORDS

Culture : A complex set of values, ideas, beliefs, attitudes and other
meaningful symbols, created by human beings to shape
human behaviour and the artefacts of that behaviour as
they are transmitted from one generation to another.
210
Cross-Cultural : Relating to different cultures or comparison between them. Culture And Sub Cultural
Influeces
Cultural Value : A widely held belief that endures over time and serve
as standards that guide our behaviour across situations
and over time.
Enculturation : Internalizing the prevailing cultural values over time.
External or Material : refers to the things that we can see, touch and use in
Culture our day-to-day living.
Instrumental values : The values that measure basic approaches an individual
might take to reach end state values.
Internal mental : can be divided into two parts, the cognitive component
culture and the normative component.The cognitive
component of culture consists of its ideas and
knowledge, whereas the normative component of
culture consists of its values, rules of conduct and norms
which regulate behaviour, and which are shared by most
members of a culture.
Sub-culture : A distinct cultural group that exists within a layer, complex
society as an identifiable segment in terms of its beliefs,
customs and values.
Terminal values : The values designed to measure the relative importance
of end states of existence or personal goals.

11.10 SELF-ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS

1. Define Culture and Subculture. Compare the Indian culture values with the
American culture or that of any other culture that you have read about or are
familiar with.
2. How are cultural values relevant to a marketing practitioner?
3. How does subcultural analysis help a marketing in the segmentation exercise?
4. Discuss the importance of subcultural segmentation for food products, clothing
and accessories.
5. It is often said that culture is such a pervasive and all-encompassing influence
that we realize its impact when we are out of it for some period of time. Do
you agree. Justify your answer on the basis of your own travel to other societies
on the basis of discussion with friend who have stayed abroad for some time.

11.11 PROJECT QUESTIONS

1. Select three commercials that were broadcast during the episode of a TV or
online series that you watch regularly and describe how each reflects a cultural
value(s).
2. Locate one or more consumers who have emigrated from another country.
Interview them about how they adapted to their host culture.In particular, what
changes did they make in their consumption practices over time?
211
Group Influences on
Consumer Behaviour 11.12 SUGGESTED READINGS
1. Kotler, P., Keller, K.L., Koshy, A. and Jha, M. (2018), Marketing Management:
A South Asian Perspective, Pearson Education.
2. Schiffman, L.G., Wisenblit, J., and Ramesh, K.S. (2018) “Consumer Behaviour”,
Twelfth edition, Pearson Education.
3. Solomon, M.R. (2018) “Consumer Behaviour: Buying, Having, and Being” Twelfth
edition, Pearson Education.
4. https://www.europeanbusinessreview.com/impact-of-culture-on-consumer-buying-
behavior/Impact of Culture on Consumer Buying Behavior September 2020
5. HellmutSchütte, Deanna Ciarlante Consumer Behaviour in Asia, McMillan
business 1988

212