Chapter 4

Motivation and Values

By Michael R. Solomon

Consumer Behavior
Buying, Having, and Being
Sixth Edition
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The Motivation Process

Motivation:
The processes that lead people to behave as they do. It occurs when a need arises that a consumer wishes to satisfy.
Utilitarian need: Provides a functional or practical benefit Hedonic need: An experiential need involving emotional responses or fantasies

Goal:
The end state that is desired by the consumer.
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The Motivation Process

Drive:
The degree of arousal present due to a discrepancy between the consumers present state and some ideal state

Want:
A manifestation of a need created by personal and cultural factors.

Motivation can be described in terms of:

Strength: The pull it exerts on the consumer Direction: The particular way the consumer attempts to reduce motivational tension
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Motivational Strength
Biological vs. Learned Needs:
Instinct: Innate patterns of behavior universal in a species Tautology: Circular explanation (e.g. instinct is inferred from the behavior it is supposed to explain)

Drive Theory:
Biological needs produce unpleasant states of arousal. We are motivated to reduce tension caused by this arousal. Homeostasis: A balanced state of arousal

Expectancy Theory:
Behavior is pulled by expectations of achieving desirable outcomes positive incentives rather than pushed from within
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Motivational Direction
Needs Versus Wants:
Want: The particular form of consumption used to satisfy a need.

Types of Needs
Biogenic needs: Needs necessary to maintain life Psychogenic needs: Culture-related needs (e.g. need for status, power, affiliation, etc.) Utilitarian needs: Implies that consumers will emphasize the objective, tangible aspects of products Hedonic needs: Subjective and experiential needs (e.g. excitement, self-confidence, fantasy, etc.)

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Motivational Conflicts
Approach-Approach Conflict:
A person must choose between two desirable alternatives. Theory of Cognitive Dissonance: A state of tension occurs when beliefs or behaviors conflict with one another. Cognitive Dissonance Reduction: Process by which people are motivated to reduce tension between beliefs or behaviors.

Approach-Avoidance Conflict:
Exists when consumers desire a goal but wish to avoid it at the same time.

Avoidance-Avoidance Conflict:
Consumers face a choice between two undesirable alternatives.
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Three Types of Motivational Conflicts

Figure 4.1

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Classifying Consumer Needs

Henry Murray need dimensions:
Autonomy: Being independent Defendance: Defending the self against criticism Play: Engaging in pleasurable activities

Thematic Apperception Technique (TAT): (1) What is happening? (2) What led up to this situation? (3) What is being thought? (4) What will happen? People freely project their subconscious needs onto the stimulus
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Classifying Consumer Needs (cont.)

Specific Needs and Buying Behavior:
Need for achievement: To attain personal accomplishment Need for affiliation: To be in the company of others Need for power: To control ones environment Need for uniqueness: To assert ones individual identity

Maslows Hierarchy of Needs:

A hierarchy of biogenic and psychogenic needs that specifies certain levels of motives.

Paradise: Satisfying Needs?

Distinct differences regarding the conceptualization of paradise between American and Dutch college students

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Maslows Hierarchy of Needs

Figure 4.2

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Criticisms of Maslows Hierarchy

The application is too simplistic:
It is possible for the same product or activity to satisfy every need.

It is too culture-bound:
The assumptions of the hierarchy may be restricted to Western culture

It emphasizes individual needs over group needs

Individuals in some cultures place more value on the welfare of the group (belongingness needs) than the needs of the individual (esteem needs)

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Consumer Involvement
Involvement:
A persons perceived relevance of the object based on his/her inherent needs, values, and interests.
Object: A product or brand

Levels of Involvement: Inertia to Passion

Type of information processing depends on the consumers level of involvement
Simple processing: Only the basic features of the message are considered Elaboration: Incoming information is linked to preexisting knowledge
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Conceptualizing Involvement

Figure 4.3

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Consumer Involvement (cont.)

Involvement as a Continuum:
Ranges from disinterest to obsession

Inertia (Low involvement consumption):

Consumer lacks the motivation to consider alternatives

Flow State (High involvement consumption):

Consumer is truly involved with the product, ad or web site

Cult Products:
Command fierce consumer loyalty and perhaps worship by consumers who are highly involved in the product

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The Many Faces of Involvement

Product Involvement:
Related to a consumers level of interest in a particular product

Message-Response Involvement:
(a.k.a. advertising involvement) Refers to a consumers interest in processing marketing communications

Purchase Situation Involvement:

Refers to the differences that may occur when buying the same product for different contexts
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Measuring Involvement
Teasing out the Dimensions of Involvement:
Involvement Profile:
Personal interest in a product category Risk importance Probability of making a bad purchase Pleasure value of the product category How closely the product is related to the self

Zaichkowskys Personal Involvement Inventory Scale

Segmenting by Involvement Levels:

Involvement is a useful basis for market segmentation

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Strategies to Increase Involvement

Appeal to hedonic needs
e.g. using sensory appeals to generate attention

Use novel stimuli

e.g. unusual cinematography, sudden silences, etc.

Use prominent stimuli

e.g. larger ads, more color

Include celebrity endorsers Build a bond with consumers

Maintain an ongoing relationship with consumers
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Values
Value:
A belief that some condition is preferable to its opposite (e.g. freedom is better than slavery)

Core Values:
General set of values that uniquely define a culture Value system: A cultures unique set of rankings of the relative importance of universal values. Enculturation: Process of learning the value systems of ones own culture Acculturation: Process of learning the value system of another culture Cultural beliefs are taught by socialization agents (i.e., parents, friends, and teachers)
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Application of Values to Consumer Behavior

Useful distinctions in values for consumer behavior research
Cultural Values (e.g. security or happiness) Consumption-Specific Values (e.g. convenient shopping or prompt service) Product-Specific Values (e.g. ease-of-use or durability)

Virtually all consumer research is ultimately related to identification and measurement of values.
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Measuring Cultural Values

The Rokeach Value Survey
Terminal Values: Desired end states Instrumental Values: Actions needed to achieve terminal values

The List of Values (LOV) Scale

Developed to isolate values with more direct marketing applications Identifies nine (9) consumer segments based on the values they endorse Relates each value to differences in consumption
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The Means-End Chain Model

Laddering:
A technique that uncovers consumers associations between attributes and consequences

Hierarchical value maps:

Show how product attributes are linked to desired end states

Means-End Conceptualization of the Components of Advertising Strategy (MECCAS):

Message Elements Consumer Benefits Executional Framework Leverage Point Driving Force
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