Conceptualizing and investigating patterns of consumer behaviour towards in-home shopping

Hogg, MK

Abstract

This research examines intermediate patterns of joint consumption whereby
constellations, anti constellations and configurations are seen as representing patterns of
consumption which lie between the traditional micro (product-centred) and macro
(societal-centred) studies of consumption. A series of models are developed: of the
relationship between individuals and consumption from a social psychological
perspective; of the formation of patterns of joint consumption; and of the three forces
which influence patterns of consumption: the symbolic-functional force (located in the
product); the physiological-esteem-self-actualization force (located in individual needs);
and the expressive-instrumental force (located in activities or behaviour). A two stage
empirical study explores the content, structure and context of consumption patterns
amongst mail order shoppers in the U.K. The quantitative stage involved the application
of correspondence analysis to data extracted from the BMRB/TGI database and the
qualitative phase was a series of in-depth interviews with mail order industry marketing
personnel.
The findings confirmed the existence of three identifiable groups amongst mail
order shoppers, with different intermediate patterns of joint consumption representing
different sets of responses to the three forces which influence consumption and which
had been modelled above. The research extends work on the grammar of consumption by
developing a set of rules of combination for analyzing the structure and levels of joint
consumption: constellations, anti constellations and configurations, which could be
associated with the groups of mail order shoppers. The study concludes that products
cohere around social roles and that interdependence exists at two levels, firstly, amongst
the forces which influence consumption, and secondly, between consumption and the
societal-cultural context. It was seen that functional and symbolic complementarities
could be found in the intermediate patterns of joint consumption; and that different
combinatorial rules could be applied to the different levels of consumption patterns
elicited for the various groups.

Citation

Hogg, M. Conceptualizing and investigating patterns of consumer behaviour towards in-home shopping. (Thesis). University of Manchester

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Deposit Date: Jun 29, 2021
• Award Date: Jan 1, 1995