Chapter 15

Cultural Influences on Consumer Behavior

CONSUMER BEHAVIOR, 9e
Michael R. Solomon

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Chapter Objectives
When you finish this chapter, you should understand why:

A culture is a societys personality; it shapes

our identities as individuals.

Myths are stories that express a cultures

values, and in modern times marketing messages convey these values.

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Chapter Objectives (continued)

Many of our consumption activities including

holiday observances, grooming, and gift giving are rituals.

We describe products as either sacred or

profane, and its not unusual for some products to move back and forth between the two categories.

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What is Culture?

Culture is the accumulation of shared

meanings, rituals, norms, and traditions

Culture is a societys personality

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Discussion

If your culture were a person, how would you

describe its personality traits?

Now, select another culture youre familiar

with. How would those personality traits differ from your own?

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Understanding Culture

Products can reflect underlying cultural

processes of a particular period: The TV dinner for the United States Cosmetics made of natural materials without animal testing Pastel carrying cases for condoms

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Functional Areas in a Cultural System

Ecology

Social structure

Ideology

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Cultural Dimensions
Power Distance
Way members perceive differences in power when they form interpersonal relationships

Uncertainty Avoidance Masculine versus Feminine Individualism versus Collectivism

Degree to which people feel threatened by ambiguous situations

Degree to which sex roles are clearly delineated

Extent to which culture values the welfare of the individual versus that of the group

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Norms in Culture

Enacted norms are specifically chosen Crescive norms are discovered as we

interact Customs: norms handed down from the past that control basic behavior Mores: custom with a strong moral overtone Conventions: norms regarding the conduct of everyday life
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Discussion

When you go out on a first date, identify the

set of crescive norms that are operating.

Describe specific behaviors each person

performs that make it clear he or she is on a first date.

What products and services are affected by

these norms?

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Cultural Stories

Every culture develops

stories and ceremonies that help members make sense of the world Lucky rabbits foot Lucky numbers (e.g., 7) Magic remedies

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Myths

Myths are stories with symbolic elements

that represent the shared emotions/ideals of a culture

Story characteristics Conflict between opposing forces Outcome is moral guide for people Myth reduces anxiety by providing
guidelines

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Functions of Myths
Metaphysical
Help explain origins of existence

Cosmological

Emphasize that all components of the universe are part of a single picture Maintain social order by authorizing a social code to be followed by members of a culture Provide models for personal conduct

Sociological

Psychological

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Myths Abound in Modern Popular Culture

Myths are often found in comic books,

movies, holidays, and commercials

Monomyths: a myth that is common to many

cultures (e.g., Spiderman and Superman)

Many movies/commercials present

characters and plot structures that follow mythic patterns Gone With the Wind E.T.: The Extraterrestrial Star Trek
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Rituals

Rituals are sets of multiple,

symbolic behaviors that occur in a fixed sequence and that tend to be repeated periodically

Many consumer activities

are ritualistic Trips to Starbucks Sunday brunch
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Rituals and Brands

Fortress brands are those that have become

embedded in our ceremonies

Consider these rituals: Getting ready for bed Checking e-mail Shaving Putting on makeup Do you use the same brands every time you
perform the ritual?
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Table 15.1 Types of Ritual Experience

Primary Behavior Source
Cosmology Cultural Values Group Learning

Ritual Type
Religious Rites of passage Cultural Civic

Examples
Baptism, meditation Graduation, holidays, Super Bowl Parades, elections

Group
Family Individual Aims and Emotions Personal

Fraternity initiation, office luncheons

Mealtimes, bedtimes, Christmas Grooming, household rituals

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Ritual Artifacts

Weddings Birthdays Graduations Ball games Awards ceremonies Holidays

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Specific Ritual Types

Grooming rituals Gift-giving rituals Holiday rituals Rites of passage

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Grooming Rituals

Transition from private to public self Transition from work self to leisure self Natural state to social world

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Gift-Giving Rituals

Consumers procure the perfect object,

meticulously remove the price tag, carefully wrap it, then deliver it to recipient

Gift giving is a form of: Economic exchange Symbolic exchange Social expression Every culture prescribes certain occasions
and ceremonies for giving gifts
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Stages of the Gift-Giving Ritual

Gestation: giver is motivated by an event to

procure a gift Structural event: prescribed by culture (e.g., Christmas) Emergent event: more personal

Presentation: process of gift exchange when

recipient responds to gift and donor evaluates response

Reformulation: giver and receiver adjust the

bond between them
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Holiday Rituals

Holidays are based on a myth with a

character at center of story Christmas St. Patricks Day

Marketers find ways to encourage gift giving Secretaries Day and Grandparents Day Retailers elevate minor holidays to major
ones to provide merchandising opportunities Cinco de Mayo
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Rites of Passage

Rites of passage: special times marked by a

change in social status Separation Liminality Aggregation
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Discussion

Describe the three stages of the rite of

passage associated with graduating from college.

Fraternity hazing is just a natural rite of

passage that should not be prohibited by universities. Do you agree?

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Sacred and Profane Consumption

Sacred consumption:
involves objects and events that are set apart from normal activities that are treated with respect or awe

Profane consumption:
involves consumer objects and events that are ordinary and not special

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Sacralization

Sacralization occurs when ordinary objects,

events, and even people take on sacred meaning

Objectification occurs when we attribute

sacred qualities to mundane items, through processes like contamination

Collecting is the systematic acquisition of a

particular object or set of objects

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Domains of Sacred Consumption

Sacred places: religious/mystical and

country heritage, such as Stonehenge, Mecca, Ground Zero in New York City

Sacred people: celebrities, royalty Sacred events: athletic events, religious

ceremonies

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Sacred Souvenir Icons

Local products (e.g., regional wine) Pictorial images (e.g., postcards, photos) Piece of the rock (e.g., seashells) Literal representations (e.g., mini icons) Markers (e.g., logo-oriented t-shirts)

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Desacralization

Desacralization: when a sacred item/symbol

is removed from its special place or is duplicated in mass quantities (becomes profane) Souvenir reproductions (Statue of Liberty)

Religion has somewhat become desacralized Fashion jewelry Christmas and Ramadan as secular,
materialistic occasions
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Chapter Summary

A culture is a societys personality. Myths are stories that express a cultures

values.

Many of our consumption activities include

rituals associated with holidays, grooming, rites of passage, and other events.

Products may be sacred or profane and

some may shift between the two categories.

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