Consumer Behavior And Culture

Marieke de Mooij answers the fundamental questions about consumption in this new edition, using her own model of consumer behavior that integrates culture in the self, in personality and in people’s relationships with others.

The Second Edition of this popular text brings up-to-date Marieke de Mooij’s important analysis of the impact of culture on consumer behavior worldwide. The author shows how it is increasingly vital for marketing students—tomorrow’s marketing professionals—to understand the limits of consistent brand identities and universal advertising campaigns. Consumer behavior is not converging across countries, and therefore it is of even greater importance to understand, and be able to respond to, differences in behavior. This edition offers a new chapter, Chapter 7, on culture, communication, and media behavior that extends the prior edition’s discussion on communication theories and advertising styles to cover differences in media usage worldwide, particularly the use of the Internet.

This book covers the gamut of topics related to gender and consumer culture. Changing gender roles have forced scholars and practitioners to re-examine some of the fundamental assumptions and theories in this area. Gender is a core component of identity and thus holds significant implications for how consumers behave in the marketplace. This book offers innovative research in gender and consumer behavior with topics relevant to psychology, marketing, advertising, sociology, women’s studies and cultural studies. It offers 16 chapters of cutting-edge research on gender, international culture and consumption. Unique to this volume is its emphasis on consumption and masculinity and inclusion of topics on a rapidly changing world of issues related to culture and gender in advertising, communications, psychology and consumer behavior.

De Mooij argues that differences in consumer behaviour across countries are not decreasing, but increasing. This book provides empirical evidence that the need to understand culture to explian differences in consumer behaviour is greater than ever.

Positive consumerism is the backbone to a strong economy. Examining the relationship between culture and marketing can provide companies with the data they need to expand their reach and increase their profits. Global Observations of the Influence of Culture on Consumer Buying Behavior is an in-depth, scholarly resource that discusses how marketing practices can be influenced by cultural preferences. Featuring an array of relevant topics including societal environments, cultural stereotyping, brand loyalty, and marketing semiotics, this publication is ideal for CEOs, business managers, professionals, and researchers that are interested in studying alternative factors that impact the marketing field.

Research on the influence of culture on consumer decision-making and consumption behavior has witnessed tremendous growth in the last decade. With increasing globalization, managers are becoming increasingly aware that operating in multiple markets is crucial for firms' survival and growth. As the world's growth engine shifts from Europe and North America to Asia and Latin America, it has become apparent that an inward-looking and domestic focus strategy will not be sustainable in the long run. And success in foreign markets requires marketers to understand not just what consumers in these markets need but also how they think, behave, consume, and purchase. Numerous studies have documented cultural differences in values and beliefs, motivational orientations, emotions, self-regulation, and information-processing styles, and the effects of these cultural variations on consumer behavior such as brand evaluation, materialism, and impulsive consumption. In this volume, experts from a variety of disciplines and perspectives trace the historical development of culture research in consumer psychology and examine the theoretical underpinnings that account for these findings and the current state of the field. Collectively, the chapters provide a forum for researchers to engage in thoughtful debates and stimulating conversations and offer directions for future research.

Consumer Culture and Society offers an introduction to the study of consumerism and consumption from a sociological perspective. Author Wendy Wiedenhoft Murphy examines what we buy, how and where we consume, the meanings attached to the things we purchase, and the social forces that enable and constrain consumer behavior. Opening chapters provide a theoretical overview and history of consumer society and featured case studies look at mass consumption in familiar contexts, such as tourism, food, and higher education. The book explores ethical and political concerns, including consumer activism, indebtedness, alternative forms of consumption, and dilemmas surrounding the globalization of consumer culture.

"This book compiles and integrates highly innovative work aimed at bridging the fields of anthropology and consumer behavior." —Journal of Consumer Affairs " . . . fascinating . . . ambitious and interesting . . . " —Canadian Advertising Foundation Newsletter " . . . an anthropological dig into consumerism brimming with original thought . . . " —The Globe and Mail "Grant McCracken has written a provocative book that puts consumerism in its place in Western society—at the centre." —Report on Business Magazine " . . . a stimulating addition to knowledge and theory about the interrelationship of culture and consumption." —Choice "[McCracken's] synthesis of anthropological and consumer studies material will give historians new ideas and methods to integrate into their thinking." —Maryland Historian "The book offers a fresh and much needed cultural interpretation of consumption." —Journal of Consumer Policy "The volume will help balance the prevailing cognitive and social psychological cast of consumer research and should stimulate more comprehensive investigation into consumer behavior." —Journal of Marketing Research " . . . broad scope, enthusiasm and imagination . . . a significant contribution to the literature on consumption history, consumer behavior, and American material culture." —Winterhur Portfolio "For this is a superb book, a definitive exploration of its subject that makes use of the full range of available literature." —American Journal of Sociology "McCracken's book is a fine synthesis of a new current of thought that strives to create an interdisciplinary social science of consumption behaviors, a current to which folklorists have much to contribute." —Journal of American Folklore This provocative book takes a refreshing new view of the culture of consumption. McCracken examines the interplay of culture and consumer behavior from the anthropologist's point of view and provides new insights into the way we view ourselves and our society.