Chapter 4

Personality, Self-Image, and

Life Style

Consumer Behaviour
Canadian Edition
Schiffman/Kanuk/Das
Copyright 2006
Pearson Education Canada Inc

Opening Vignette

Do you see yourself as beautiful?

Only1% of all women see themselves as
beautiful
Most ads portray an ideal image that is
unattainable
Doves Campaign for Real Beauty
http://www.dove.ca
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4-2

What Is Personality?
The inner psychological characteristics
that both determine and reflect how a
person responds to his or her
environment.

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4-3

The Nature of Personality

Personality

reflects individual

differences
Personality is consistent and
enduring
Personality can change
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Theories of Personality
Freudian

theory

Unconscious needs or drives are at the heart of

human motivation
Three interacting systems
Id: primitive and impulsive drives
Superego: Individuals internal expression of
societys moral and ethical codes of conduct
Ego: Individuals conscious control
continued

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Theories of Personality
Neo-Freudian

personality theory

Social relationships are fundamental to

the formation and development of
personality
e.g., CAD theory

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4-6

Horneys CAD Theory

Using

the context of child-parent

relationships, individuals can be
classified into:
Compliant individuals
Aggressive individuals
Detached individuals

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CAD theory
Compliant

Personality

One who desires to be loved, wanted, and

appreciated by others.
Aggressive

Personality

One who moves against others (e.g., competes

with others, desires to excel and win
admiration).
Detached

Personality

One who moves away from others (e.g., who desires

independence, self-sufficiency, and freedom from
obligations).

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4-8

Theories of Personality
Contd
Cognitive Theories

of Personality

Personality as differences in cognitive

processes (how consumers process and
react to information)

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Need for Cognition (NC)

A persons craving

for enjoyment of

thinking
High NC consumers are likely to:

Relate better to written messages

Want product-related information
Spend more time processing print ads
Enjoy using the internet to get
information
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Visualizers Vs Verbalizers
A persons preference

for information
presented visually or verbally
Visualizers require strong visual
elements in ads
Verbalizers prefer written information,
print ads, question-answer format
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Theories of Personality
Contd
Trait

theory

Quantitative approach to personality as a

set of psychological traits
Single-trait or multiple-trait theories

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Trait Theories Contd

Consumer

materialism

The extent to which a person is considered

materialistic
Fixed

consumption behaviour

Consumers fixated on certain products or

categories of products
Compulsive

consumption behaviour

Addicted or out-of-control consumers

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Consumer Innovativeness
The

degree to which consumers are receptive

to new products, new services or new
practices.
Consumer innovators are likely to:

Score lower on dogmatism

Score higher on need for uniqueness
Have higher optimum stimulation levels
Have higher need for sensation seeking and
variety seeking behaviours
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4-15

Consumer Materialism
Possessions

seen as for ones identity

Materialistic People

Value acquiring and showing-off possessions

Are particularly self-centered and selfish
Seek lifestyles full of possessions
Have many possessions that do not lead to
greater happiness

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Consumer Ethnocentrism
Ethnocentric

consumers feel it is
wrong to purchase foreign-made
products
They can be targeted by stressing
nationalistic themes

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Research Insight: From Consumer

Materialism to Compulsive
Consumption
Consumer

materialism

The extent to which a person is considered

materialistic
Fixed

consumption behaviour

Consumers fixated on certain products or

categories of products
Compulsive

consumption behaviour

Addicted or out-of-control consumers

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Fixated Consumption Behaviour

Consumers

have

a deep interest in a particular object or

product category
a willingness to go to considerable lengths
to secure items in the category of interest
the dedication of a considerable amount
of discretionary time and money to
searching out the product
Examples:

collectors, hobbyists

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4-19

Sample Items to Measure Compulsive

Buying
1. When I have money, I cannot help but spend part
or the whole of it.
2. I am often impulsive in my buying behaviour.
3. As soon as I enter a shopping center, I have an
irresistible urge to go into a shop to buy
something.
4. I am one of those people who often responds to
direct mail offers.
5. I have often bought a product that I did not need,
while knowing I had very little money left.
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Brand Personality
Personality-like

traits associated with

brands
Volvo - safety
Perdue - freshness
Nike - the athlete
BMW - performance
Levis 501 - dependable and rugged
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4-22

(continued)

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Figure 4-11 (continued)

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Personality and Marketing

Strategy
Identify

relevant personality traits

Target consumers with the relevant
personality traits
Develop promotional messages that
appeal to consumers with specific
personality traits
Develop a personality for the brand
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Self and Self-Image

Self-image: A persons perceptions

of

his/her self
People have multiple selves
Different selves in different situations

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Different Self-Images
Actual SelfImage

Ideal Self-Image

Ideal Social
Self-Image

Social Self-Image

Expected
Self-Image
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Different Self-Images
Actual

Self-Image

How you see your self

Ideal

Self-Image

How you would like to see yourself

Social

Self-Image

How you think others see you

Ideal

Social Self-Image

How you would like others to see you

continued

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Different Self-Images- Contd

Expected

Self-Image

How you expect to be in the future

Ought-to

Self

The qualities that you think you should

possess

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Possessions Act as Self-Extensions

By

allowing the person to do things

that otherwise would be very difficult
By making a person feel better
By conferring status or rank
By bestowing feelings of immortality
By endowing with magical powers
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Altering Self Images

If

actual and ideal self-images are

different, consumers may use products
to alter their selves
Personality vanity: self interest or
admiration for ones own
appearance/achievements
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4-32

Internet Insight: Virtual Self

Online

individuals have an opportunity

to try on different personalities
Virtual personalities may result in
different purchase behaviour

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Self Concept and Marketing

Strategy
Use

self-concept for segmentation and

positioning
Market to consumers actual or ideal
self-images
Depends on the nature of the product
Promote

products as ways of altering

or extending self-image
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Life Style and Psychographics

Psychographic

Segmentation

Segmenting consumers on the basis of

their activities, interests and opinions
Psychographic-demographic

profiles
Geodemographic segmentation

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Life Styles and Marketing

Strategy
Use

life styles for segmentation and

positioning
Develop media campaigns based on
consumer life styles

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