Credits: 3
Lecture Hours: 48
Course Objective:
This course provides the theoretical basis for analyzing consumers’ purchase behaviors and their applications in various areas of marketing.
Course Description:
Consumer behavior analysis is the basic science of marketing and provides a deep understanding of the buying process and buying reasons of the end users of products and services. It includes topics on the use of the consumer behavior analysis in business and non-business decisions, buying process of consumers, individual and socio-cultural determinants of consumer behavior.
Course Details:
Unit 1: Introduction LH 6
Concept and nature of consumer behavior. Why study consumer behavior: significance in
daily lives and application to decision making. Application of consumer behavior knowledge in
business decisions, marketing management, social marketing, and public policy decisions.
Simple input-output based model of consumer behavior.
Unit 2: Consumer Buying Decision Process LH 12
Consumer buying decision processes in high-involvement and low involvement purchase.
Problem/Need recognition: Consumer problem recognition process, types of consumer
problems, and results of problem recognition. Marketing implications of problem recognition.
Information search: Information search process, information evaluation process. Marketing
implications of the information search process.
Evaluation: Evaluative criteria, influencing consumer’s evaluation. Marketing implications of evaluation. Purchase: Brand choice factors and determinants of brand loyalty. Impulse buying behavior. Store choice factors and determinants of store loyalty. In-store purchasing behavior. The effect of the store image in buying. Situational and social influence in buying. Non-store purchasing behavior. Marketing interventions in purchase decisions. Post purchase behavior: Consumer satisfaction and dissatisfaction. Consumer complaint behavior. Cognitive dissonance and solutions. Product disposition alternatives and determinants. Marketing implications of the post purchase outcomes.
Unit 3: Individual Determinants of Consumer Behavior LH 18
Consumer Motivations: Nature and role of consumer motives, Classification of motives –
Maslow’s hierarchy and McGuire’s classifications. Motive arousal process. Marketing
implications of consumer motivations.
Personality, Self-concept, and Lifestyle: Personality Theories – Psychoanalytical theory,
Social theories and trait theory. Applications of personality in marketing. Self-concept. Product image congruence. Life style – measurement and applications.
Consumer Information Processing and Perception: Information processing framework.
Information Acquisition, Perceptual Encoding, and Interpretation.
Consumer Learning and Memory: Learning Characteristics and Elements. Types of
Consumer Learning - Classical conditioning, Instrumental conditioning, and Vicarious Learning. Marketing applications of consumer learning. Consumer memory systems – storage, retrieval and forgetting. Advertising applications of consumer memory.
Consumer Attitude: Attitude characteristics and functions, Attitude formation process.
Attitude theories and models – Congruity theory, balance theory, Fishbein’s structural models. Attitude Change –low and high-involvement strategies. Persuasive communications and attitude change.
Unit 4: Socio-environmental Determinants of Consumer Behavior LH 12
Social groups: Types of social groups. Group properties. Reference groups. Influence of
reference group on consumer behavior. Influence of opinion leaders and word-of-mouth
communications.
Family influences: Family purchase roles. Family life cycle – traditional and modern.
Influence of family in household and individual purchases.
Social class: Social class stratification and characteristics. Social class’s influence in consumer behavior. Social classes in Nepal and their consumption behavior.
Culture and Sub-culture: Characteristics of culture. Nepalese core cultural values and
adopted cultural values and their implications in consumer behavior. Cultural values and its
influence on consumer behavior. Sub-culture in Nepal.
Situational influence: The nature of situational influence; communications situation, purchase
situation, usage situation, disposition situation. Situational influences and marketing strategies.
References Books:
David L. L. & Albert J. D. Bitta, Consumer Behavior. New Delhi: Tata McGraw Hill.
Del I. H., Roger J. B. & Coney, K.A., Consumer Behavior: Implications for Marketing Strategy.
New Delhi: Tata McGraw Hill.
Leon G. S., Consumer Behavior. New Delhi: Prentice Hall Of India.
Krishna, R., Consumer Behavior. New Delhi: Oxford University Press.
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