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CONSUMER DECISION-MAKING BEHAVIOR CRITICAL FACTORS: AN EXPLORATORY STUDY

Audrey Sin Lye Yee (Corresponding author) Faculty of Management and Information Technology, UCSI University 1, Jalan Menara Gading, UCSI Heights, 56000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 1000924342@ucsi.edu.my Associate Professor Dr Keoy Kay Hooi Centre of Excellence for Research, Value Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CERVIE), Faculty of Management and Information Technology, UCSI University, 1, Jalan Menara Gading, UCSI Heights, 56000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia keoykh@ucsi.edu.my
ABSTRACT Malaysia is fast becoming one of the most important markets in the world. The 2005 World Competitiveness Report has placed Malaysia as the 10th most competitive nation among 30 countries with a population of more than 20 million (Yakcop, 2006). Day in day out people makes transaction to purchase goods or services for example purchasing of goods in the shopping centre or online purchasing. These people are often referred as consumer; the one who consume goods or services for personal usage. Consumer plays an important role in any business where this group of people creates demand for goods or services which leads to business growth and profitability; without demand there would be no business. In the present study the purpose is to evaluate the extent of young-adult consumers decision-making behaviour between the two chosen regions that varies which impact on consumers buying behaviour. The required information was collected from 100 respondents who were randomly selected from two regions in Malaysia. Questionnaire was utilised and the data gathered were analysed using correlation, ANOVA and regression coefficient r. A number of implications arise from these findings. First, quality is perceived as the most influential product factor that these young-adult consumers are taking into account when making purchases. This criterion is followed by price which means, these young-adult consumers are willing to pay the price if the quality if superior. However, this does not mean that companies should not pay attention to where their product is being located and this also does not mean that companies need to downplay their branding. INTRODUCTION Malaysia is fast becoming one of the most important markets in the world. The 2005 World Competitiveness Report has placed Malaysia as the 10th most competitive nation among 30 countries with a population of more than 20 million (Yakcop, 2006). Day in day out people makes transaction to purchase goods or services for example purchasing of goods in the shopping centre or online purchasing. These people are often referred as consumer; the one who consume goods or services for personal usage. Consumer plays an important role in any business where this group of people creates demand for goods or services which leads to business growth and profitability; without demand there would be no business. Consumers constantly required making decision regarding choices, purchases and use of products and services. This decision is often difficult as various expect needs to be evaluated during the decision-making process in order to obtain a desirable outcome. One aspect of young-adult consumers behaviour

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that the researcher is interested to investigate is the young-adult consumers decision-making behaviour. A consumers decision-making behaviour is defined as a mental orientation characterising a consumer's approach to making consumer choices" (Sproles &Kendall, 1986). Young-adults is also often characterised as a specialised market segment because it forms a powerful consumer spending group in their own way (Schoenbachler et al., 2004; Grant & Waite, 2003). Therefore, young-adult consumers potentially create a lucrative market segment. However, little is known about this group of consumers buying behaviour. Thus, encourages in depth study of this group of consumer as it becomes vital for consumer-based retailers and marketers to understand this unique market for the success of businesses. LITERATURE REVIEW: DECISION MAKING FRAMEWORK There are basically various decision-making frameworks available in various disciplines to cater for each decision makers. For example, in the context of clinical, Wessel et. al. (2006) has proposed the clinical decision-making model (CDMM) (Rothstein & Echternach, 1986; Wessel et al., 2006; WHO, 2002). Most educational programs in the health sciences present their students with a CDMM to help them define and treat client problems with a client-centred approach. However, little is known about how well students apply such a model in a clinical setting. The study conducted by Wessel et. al. (2006) was to determine whether physical therapy students used a CDMM to make clinical decisions, and how well they used it. It has been found that, the students from McMaster University uses CDMM automatically however there are still some who needs assistance in order to effectively use all the steps in CDMM to design client-centred, outcome-oriented treatment (Wessel et al., 2006). In the area of information technology, Crutzen et. al. (2009) has proposed the below framework that looks into various factors that affect adolescents decision-making in Internet usage (Crutzen et al., 2009). The aim of this article was to propose a useful tool, for the development process of Internet-delivered interventions, which aims to improve exposure rates and increase the number of revisiting users. The elements of user experience (Garrett, 2002) and their related factors are highlighted in italics that resulted from previous explorative research done by Crutzen et. al.( 2008a; 2008b). It was then a totally rational approach to adopt in making decisions that required decision makers to define their objectives clearly, analyze information rationally, predict consequences, and be consistent. However after 25 years Gelatt (1989) argued that what used to be the way to decide, no longer is. "Creating a new theory is not like destroying an old barn and erecting a skyscraper in its place. It is rather like climbing a mountain, gaining new and wider views, discovering unexpected connections between our starting point and its rich environment" (Zukau, 1979). Gelatt (1989) has proposed a new decision making strategy positive uncertainty (Gelatt, 1989). Anderson illustrated the positive uncertainty in the career diamond framework (Andersen, 2006) where optimism prevails when change occurs. Table 1 depicts the summary findings of decision making framework indentified from various literatures.

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TABLE 1 SUMMARY OF MODELS OF PAST RESEARCHES

Problem Statement If decision-making behaviour of consumers varies, advertising and other elements of the marketing mix must be adjusted to accommodate these differences in order to find success in businesses. Therefore, it is indeed important to understand these young-adults consumers decision-making behaviour in an academic point of view so that marketers could market effectively in regions within Malaysia. Marketers would be able to devise effective marketing strategies in this highly important emerging market with the knowledge about differences in consumer shopping style.

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Theoretical Foundation Building on the literature related to consumer decision-making, below are the factors identified that may influence young-adult consumer decision-making style in order to build the proposed framework. Product Factor: This is a study of product characteristics that influence the consumer decision-making style. The researcher looks into 6 variables which prompted the researcher to develop a hypothesis to test the positive influence of product factors towards young-adult consumers buying behaviour (H1) in this research. Quality: The researcher has defined quality as the benchmarking standard of a product. Sproles and Kendall's Consumer Style Inventory (CSI) model emphasised on the influence of high-quality product. These are the people categorised under the Perfectionistic, High-Quality Conscious Consumer who searches for high-quality product. Klerk and Lubbe (2008) also investigated the role of aesthetics in female consumers' evaluation of apparel quality during the decision-making process. In the study, it was found that the sensory, emotional and cognitive dimensions of the aesthetic experience play a major role when female consumers evaluate the quality of apparel products during the decision-making stage. Brand: A study has been conducted in Korea to investigate womens clothing brand loyalty regarding their buying behaviour, self-image and demographics (Oh & Fiorito, 2002). In the findings, it indicates that there are two categories of consumers; brand loyal consumers and non-brand loyal consumers. In fact, there are also high price loyal consumers as well as medium or low price loyal consumers. Therefore, it is an important task to build brand loyalty in order to reach brand loyal consumers and provide product satisfaction. In conclusion, there is no consensus in the extant literature in determining the influence of brand on young-adult consumers buying behaviour. Therefore, a hypothesized brand has positive influence on young-adult consumers buying behaviour (H1b) will be tested in this research. Price: Sproles and Kendall (1986) has also categorised some consumers as Price Conscious, Value for Money Consumer (Sproles and Kendall, 1986). This group of consumers most likely would compare the prices through several shops on the same product. As these consumers shop, they would look for sales price rather than information. It is found that when knowledge of the product category is low or the external information about the product is limited, price may be also used as the indicator of the quality of the product (Lee, 2005). However, these researches could be criticised because there are also consumers who are not so price conscious. These contradicting arguments have prompted the researcher to develop a hypothesis to test the positive influence of price towards young-adult consumers buying behaviour (H1c) in this research. Location: An exploratory study by Upadhyay et. al. (2007) on consumer preferences regarding restaurants is very much based on the location, less time in serving, convenient operating time, safety, parking facility and others (Yogesh Upadhyay, 2007). However, the researcher is very convinced that depending on the products and the location of the product, consumer would engage in a different shopping behaviour. Therefore, a hypothesized positive influence of location towards young-adult consumers buying behaviour (H1d) will be tested in this research. Design: Product design refers to the visual outlook of a product in terms of colour, shape and concept. Product customisation can satisfy consumer needs and preferences. Beyond incorporating new features into products and using new packaging design, is a critical approach to keeping a brand fresh and fashionable in the Chinese market ( Zhou et al, 2009). Advertisement: Advertising includes the placement of an advertisement in communication mediums such as newspapers, mail, billboards, television, radio, Internet and others to reach out to its intended recipients. Previous study on ice-creams and candies shows that advertising has a dual role in conveying the nature of the product and in creating personality around it (Bloom et al., 1977). By examining this attribute, the researcher believes that

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advertising tends to have a relatively strong effect on sales. Retailers who spend on advertising would bring in more sales to any product that is advertised. External Factor This is a study of other characteristics besides human and product factors that influence the consumer decisionmaking style. The researcher looks into 3 variables which prompted the researcher to develop a hypothesis to test the positive influence of external factors towards young-adult consumers buying behaviour (H2) in this research: Peer pressure: Peer pressure refers to the psychological pressure that each agent experiences when comparing his actions with those of others (Daido, 2004). Peer pressure can be a powerful tool in boosting sales. The CEO of Playfish, Kristian Sergerstale reinstated that the successful growth of Playfish is because of the presence of peer pressure (Cohan, 2009). Governments Direction: It is the initiatives taken by the national government or the support given by the national government. In the annual report Malaysia Consumer Electronics & Electronics Industry Report Q2 2009 the author has highlighted on the importance of the government support and incentives which could encourage higher-end semiconductor manufacturing activities and attract more investment in the industry (Monitor, 2009). Information Technology: According to Kleinmuntz and Schkada (1993), information display influence decision processes by facilitating some decision strategies (Kleinmuntz & Schkade, 1993). The use of various channels to transmit information is also important in helping consumers in making purchasing decision. According to a study on internet usage patterns conducted in Germany, Fittkau & M Consulting (Consulting, 2006) has found a new trend as internet is becoming more and more important in consumer buying decisions. This finding is supported by Hubl and Trift (2000), where making purchase decisions, consumers are often unable to evaluate all available alternatives in great depth and, thus look into the interactive tool for solution (Hubl & Trifts, 2000). Young-adult Consumers Buying Behaviour Satisfaction Level to the satisfaction of the respondents which is the impact of decision-making style that they employed. The outcome could be positive or negative which is satisfactory or dissatisfactory. A study by Homburg et. al. (2005) has a convincing result whereby customer satisfaction would affect the choice and purchase behavior at the individual consumer level. The same result has been observed in another research The Value of Different Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty Metrics in Predicting Customer Retention, Recommendation, and Share-of-Wallet (Keiningham et al, 2007). Therefore, in this research, the researcher would like to examine whether the similar relationship can be found when putting other variables to test. Purchasing frequency is defined as the repetitiveness of the respondent in buying a product as a result from the decision-making style that they employed. This could generate 2 outcomes which is increase or decrease in purchasing frequency. Price has a significant influence in consumers purchase behaviour and consequently on firms sales and profit (Han et al, 2001). Due to the attractiveness of product pricing, consumers are seen more frequent in purchasing which leads to sales and profit of a company. A similar study on the relation of brand choice to purchase frequency has been conducted (Robert et al, 1977). Therefore, the researcher believes that this factor could be evaluated in terms of purchasing frequency. Future decision making is often based on past decisions, as well as levels of satisfaction or regret on the purchase of the previous product (Abraham & Sheeran, 2003; Jullisson et al., 2005; Sagi & Friedland, 2007). Due to the satisfaction achieved on the previous purchase, one may be willing to pay a premium price for the product however on the other hand, one may also change their minds on the next purchase despite the satisfaction achieved (Wood, 2001).

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RESEARCH OBJECTIVES The main objectives for this study include: 1. To identify the aspects that influences young-adult consumers decision-making behaviour. 2. To develop a theoretical framework that evaluates the various factors that influence young-adult consumers decision-making behaviour. 3. To empirical test on the theoretical framework based on (1) and (2). 4. To evaluate the differences of these young-adult consumers decision-making behaviour within regions in Malaysia. 5. To propose recommendation to consumer based retailers on how to market effectively and efficiently to young-adult consumers. HYPOTHESES Zikmund (2003) identified a hypothesis as a not proven proposition or assumption that tentatively explains certain fact or phenomena (Zikmund, 2003). In other words, it is a statement in relation to the nature of the world in short it is a guess. In this study the following hypotheses will be explored (see Figure 1): H1: Product factor has positive influenced on young-adult consumers buying behaviour. H2: External factor has positive influenced on young-adult consumers buying behaviour. FIGURE 1: THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

F2: Product Factor

V6: Quality V8: Price V7: Brand

F4: Consumers Buying

V15: Satisfaction Level V9: V7: Location Purchasing Frequency

V9: Location V11: Advertisement

V10: Design

F3: External Factor

V12: Peer Pressure V7: Governments Direction

V14: Future Purchase

V14: Information Technology

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RESEARCH METHOD AND DESIGN This research is descriptive in nature, making use of information gathered from young-adult consumers in Malaysia. This research design can be used to answer the question to what extent young-adult consumers decision-making behaviour between the two chosen regions varies which impact on consumers buying behaviour. And casual research is undertaken with the aim of identifying cause and effect relationships amongst variables. This research is normally preceded by exploratory and descriptive research studies. According to Zikmund (2003) a causal research is conducted to identify cause-and-effect relationships between variables when the research problem has already been narrowly defined (Zikmund, 2003). Hence, even though this research is of a descriptive in nature, it will also encompasses a causal intent as the research identify factors influencing young-adult consumers decision-making behaviour and its implication on consumers buying behaviour. Questionnaire Design The questionnaire will starts with an introduction page stating the purpose and objectives of the designed questionnaire followed by types of 18 questions asked which is organised into four sections. The logical sequence of the questionnaire is also important hence, the questions that are related to similar areas were group together to keep the questions flowing through the questionnaire (Burgess, 2001). Section A: consists of the questions related to the demography of the respondent. Section B: measures the human and product factors that influence young-adult consumers decision-making behaviour. This section uses ranking questions where respondents are asked to compare different items directly to one another. According to Munson and McIntyre (1979) respondents will take on average three times longer to answer the ranking type of questions than rating questions (Munson and McIntyre, 1979). However, this is needed to allow respondents to indicate the relative importance of choices and to be able to choose among various options. Section C: measure the external factors that influence young-adult consumers decision-making behaviour. This section focused on rating questions where the Likert scale measurement with 1-Not at all, 2-Limited extent, 3-Not sure, 4-Certain extent, 5-Large extent will be used. Section D: measures the outcome deriving from the young-adult consumers decision-making behaviour that leads to the young-adult consumers buying behaviour. The Likert scale measurement with 1-Not at all, 2-Limited extent, 3-Not sure, 4-Certain extent, 5-Large extent will be used gather answers for the rating questions. Sampling and Administration of Survey The full set of cases from which the sample is taken from is called population (Saunders et al., 2007). For this research purpose the researcher has a specific target of population; they are young-adult consumers from Malaysia. In particular, the researcher would like to make a comparison on young-adult consumers decision-making behaviour between Peninsular Malaysia and East Malaysia. The sample frame is the list of elements which the sample may be drawn (Zikmund, 2003). For the purpose of the study the sampling frame would be young-adult consumers from Kuala Lumpur and Kota Kinabalu. Kuala Lumpur representing Peninsular Malaysia while Kota Kinabalu representing East Malaysia. A sampling element or sampling unit is a single member or unit of the target population. In this study, the sampling elements would be young-adult consumers aged 20 to 40 years old from Kuala Lumpur or Kota Kinabalu. Data Analysis and Results Respondents Demographic Profile Among the 100 respondents, female respondents made up 55 percent of the sample and male respondents were 45 percent of the sample. The geographic locations of the respondents included Peninsular Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur) and East Malaysia (Kota Kinabalu), in Malaysia. The majority of respondents; 54 percent were from Peninsular Malaysia and 46 percent were from East Malaysia. The majority of the respondents, 62 percent were in the age range of 26 to 30. 17 percent of the respondents were 21-25, while more than 14 percent were between 31-35 years old, and only 6 percent of the respondents were between 36-40 years old and 1 percent aged 16-20 years old. Regarding the education

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levels majority of the respondents (54 percent) were degree holders followed by postgraduate (29 percent). 8 percent were diploma holders, 5 percent secondary leavers and the remaining were higher diploma. Multiple Regression Analysis Based on Table 2: peer pressure is the predictors that the researcher is focusing on to identify whether the predictor is statistically significant and, if so, the direction of the relationship. The average sample size (peer pressure, b=0.298) is significant (p=0.046), and the coefficient is positive which would indicate that larger sample sizes is related to higher influence on consumers buying behaviour which is what the researcher would expect. In the extant literature peer pressure can be a powerful tool in influencing young-adult consumers buying behaviour (Daido, 2004; Cohan, 2009). Next, the effect of governments direction (b=0.280, p=.047) is also significant and its coefficient is positive indicating that the greater the proportion sample is exposed to governments campaign the higher the influence on young-adult consumers buying behaviour. The importance of governments direction has also been highlighted in various articles to attract more investment in an industry (Monitor, 2009; Diekmeyer, 2008). Thus, the findings from the current study support the extant literature. Finally, Table 16 the influential percentage of Information Technology (b=0.299, p=.045) seems to be related to young-adult consumers buying behaviour. According to Kleinmuntz and Schkada (1993), information display influence decision processes by facilitating some decision strategies. Fittkau & M Consulting (Consulting, 2006) has found a new trend as internet is becoming more and more important in consumer buying decisions and this finding is supported by Hubl and Trift (2000). Therefore, from these results, the researcher would conclude that all the external factors under study are related to young-adult consumers buying behaviour.
TABLE 2: SUMMARY FINDINGS

Hypothesis H1

Hypothesis Statement

Result Accept

Product factor has positive influenced Quality = .048 on young-adult consumers buying Brand = .033 behaviour. Price = .044 Location = .037 Design = .027 Advertisement = .012

H2

External factor has positive influenced Peer Pressure = .046 on young-adult consumers buying Governments behaviour. Direction = .047 Information Technology = .045

Accept

IMPLICATIONS OF THE RESEARCH Both H1 and H2 were accepted in this study as significant relationships were found between product and consumers buying behaviour as well as between external factors and young-adult consumers buying behaviour. A number of implications arise from these findings. First, quality is perceived as the most influential product factor that these young-adult consumers are taking into account when making purchases. This criterion is followed by price which means, these young-adult consumers are willing to pay the price if the quality if superior. However, this does

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not mean that companies should not pay attention to where their product is being located and this also does not mean that companies need to downplay their branding. In terms of external factors, the most important role is from the government. Campaign organised by government does influence the young-adult consumers buying behaviour. Information technology is mainly used as an alternative source of gathering information where peer pressure seems to be more influential in these young-adult consumers decision-making behaviour. Therefore, marketers should pay more attention in these aspects to win young-adult consumers hearts. CONCLUSION Malaysia is becoming one of a large worlds markets. To better understand Malaysian young-adult consumers decision-making behaviour is crucial for those foreign companies exploring or planning to explore the Malaysian market. As a conclusion, there are differences in young-adult consumers buying behaviour in different regions within Malaysia is not supported by this research. This surprising finding shows the importance of having a deeper understanding about the variations in young-adult consumers decision-making behaviour in this large country. Therefore, this research is a step forward in this direction. REFERENCES Abraham, C. & Sheeran, P. (2003). Acting on intentions: the role of anticipated regret. Journal of Social Psychology, 42, 495-511. Alba, J. & Hutchinson, J. (1987). Dimensions of consumer expertise. Journal of Consumer Research, 13, 411-454. Andersen, P. (2006). Career counseling and development in a global economy. Lahaska Press Of Houghton Mifflin. Bellenger, D. N. & Korgaonkar, P. K. (1980). Profiling the recreational shopper. Journal of Retailing, 56, 77-92. Bloom, D., Jay, A. & Twyman, T. (1977). The validity of advertising pretests. Journal of Advertising Research, 17, 716. Burgess, T. F. (2001). A general introduction to the design of questionnaires for survey research. Retrieved from http://www.leeds.ac.uk/iss/documentation/top/top2.pdf . Consulting, F. M. (2006). Fittkau & M Consulting, Hamburg, Survey. Retrieved from Www-Benutzer-Analyse Web.. Crutzen, R., Nooijer, J. D., Brouwer, W., Oenema, A., Brug, J., & Vries, N. K. D. (2008a). Internet-delivered interventions aimed at adolescents: a delphi study on dissemination and exposure. Oxford Journals, 23, 427439. Crutzen, R., Nooijer, J. D., Brouwer, W., Oenema, A., Brug, J., & Vries, N. K. D. (2008b). Qualitative assessment of adolescents views about improving exposure to internetdelivered interventions. health education. Oxford Journals, 108, 105116. Crutzen, R., Nooijer, J. D., Brouwer, W., Oenema, A., Brug, J., & Vries, N. K. D. (2009). A conceptual framework for understanding and improving adolescents exposure to internet-delivered interventions. Oxford Journals. 24, 277-284 Daido, K. 2004. Risk-averse agents with peer pressure. Applied Economics Letters, 383386. Diekmeyer, P. 2008. Bribery in public procurement: protecting your company from corruption. Engle, J. F., Kollat, D. T. & Blackwell, R. D. (1968). Consumer Behaviour. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston. Garrett, J. J. (2002). The elements of user experience: user-centered design for the web. Berkeley: New Riders Press. Gelatt, H. B. (1989). Positive uncertainty: a new decision-making framework for counseling. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 36, 252-256. Grant, I. C. & Waite, K. (2003). Following the yellow brick road - young adults experiences of the information super-highway. Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal, 6, 48-57. Han, S., Gupta, S., Lehmann, D. R. (2001). Consumer price sensitivity and price thresholds. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 77, 417-418. Haubl, G. & Trifts, V. (2000). Consumer decision making in online shopping environments: the effects of interactive decision aids. Marketing Science, 19, 4-21

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