CONSUMER MOTIVATION AND PERSONALITY

Consumer Behaviour
PGP – III (2024-25)
Prof. Gopal Das
 Overall structure of the course

Fundamentals Inside the Black Box Outside the Black Box

• • Decision making
• Introduction to CB Perception mechanism
• • Social influence
• STP - Revisited Consumer learning
• • Situational influence
Attitude formation
• Consumer motivation
• Consumer personality
• Consumer emotion

New and Notable

• Customer-brand relationship
• Consumers and social media
Conceptualization of Consumer Motivation

• Dr. Singh, how come are you still prescribing medicine X rather than
medicine Y, the leading brand from our company?

• Ms. Nancy, why did you change the specifications on this purchase
order?

• Mr. Sharma, the CFO, wants to know why you are recommending
vender X over the lowest-price bidder?

• Why do IIMB MBA students work hard?

What do these questions have in common?

Conceptualization of Consumer Motivation

• Consumer Motivation: The

driving force within
individuals that impels them
to act such as purchase to
fulfill needs.

• Consumer motivation: is an
internal state that drives
people to identify and buy
products or services to fulfill
their needs.
The motivation process – Elaborated model
The motivation process – Elaborated model
1.Unsatisfied need. Motivation process begins when there is an unsatisfied
need in a human being.

2. Tension. The presence of unsatisfied need gives him tension.

3. Drive. This tension creates an urge of drive in the human being as he/she
starts looking for various alternatives to satisfy the need.

4. Behavior. After searching for alternatives, the human being starts behaving
according to chosen option.

5. Satisfied need. After behaving in a particular manner for a long time then
he evaluates that whether the need is satisfied or not.

6. Reduction of tension. After fulfilling the need the human being gets
satisfied and his tension gets reduced.
 Facets of motivation

• Needs: Are gaps between the desired and current states. Felt deprivation of the
desired state.

• Emotions: American Psychological Association (APA), emotion is defined as a

complex reaction pattern, involving experiential/stimuli  (behavioral and
physiological) reactions. Emotional experiences have three components: a
subjective experience (e.g., snake/stimulus), a physiological response (e.g., fast
heartbeat/increase in breathing) and a behavioral or expressive response (e.g.,
fear/facial expression).

• Psychographics: Values, self-concept (beliefs one hold about oneself); and

lifestyles (the manner of living that is characteristic of an individual or group, as
expressed by behaviors, attitudes, interests, and other factors).

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 Need versus Want versus Demand
• Need
- necessity. Something that is required to survive or to sustain. For
example, food, water, shelter. People have strong need for education, recreation and
entertainment. People have psychological needs such as respect, status, power.

• Want
- desires. Things without which we can survive, but we need them for
higher satisfaction. For example, he/she wants iphone 12, though I can do
without it.

• Demand
- willing and able to buy. Things that you want to buy/consume and your
pocket allows its consumption, i.e., you can afford it, thus you demand that thing.

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 Need/want Analysis – Types of Need/want
Some customers have needs of which they are not fully conscious or cannot
articulate:

• Stated needs: The customer

wants an inexpensive car.

• Real needs: The customer

wants a car whose operating
cost, not initial price, is low.

• Unstated needs: The customer

expects good service from the
dealer.

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Need/want Analysis – Types of Need/want

• Delight needs: The customer

would like the dealer to
include an onboard GPS
system.

• Secret needs: The customer

wants friends to see him or
her as a savvy consumer.

Impress Girl Friend… 

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Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Motivation increases as needs are NOT met

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Dimensions of Consumer Affect/Emotion (Russell, Weiss, and
Mendelsohn, 1989).
 Psychographic Factor - Human Value
Human Values refer to stable life goals that people have, reflecting on what is most
important to them. Two types of value are as follows:

Instrumental Values: comprise of personal characteristics and traits (reflects in

behaviour).
Terminal Values: refer to the ultimate things a person wants to achieve through
his/her behaviour (objective of life).

Instrumental Values Terminal Values

Ambitious (hardworking) A comfortable life (a prosperous life)
Broadminded (open minded) An exciting life (a stimulating, active life)
A sense of accomplishment (lasting
Capable (competent, efficient)
contribution)
Cheerful ( light-hearted, joyful) A world of peace (free of war and conflict)
Honest (sincere, truthful) Happiness
How Product Features lead to achieve Terminal value?

Instrumental
values
Terminal
Values
(ultimate
life
objective)
Laddering Technique
Product
Features
Means-End Theory
In-depth interview – Laddering technique

• Laddering originated in consumer research based on Means-End Theory as

proposed by Gutman (1982). It seeks to understand why people buy and use
products and services. Positioning the products with consumer life goals.

• Means-End Theory states that people choose a product because it contains

attributes (the means) that are instrumental to achieving the desired
consequences (ends, means) and fulfilling values (the ends).

Attributes (means) Consequences (ends/means) Life Values (ends)

Which features Why do the features

(utilitarian/symbolic) of What do the features important to you?
the product do you like do?
most?
 Laddering technique – Live Project/application
Attributes (means) Consequences (ends, means) Values (ends)

Which features
(utilitarian/symbolic) of the What do the features Why do the features
product do you like most? do? important to you?

A long drive with all family

Large interior space,
members including children safely Happiness/Peace
Child safety lock, Look.
(functional); Status (Phycho)

Terminal values

PGP; 2019-2021
 Laddering technique – Live project/application

Attributes (means) Consequences (ends, means) Values (ends)

Which features
(utilitarian/symbolic) of the What do the features Why do the features
product do you like most? do? important to you?

Light weight, barefoot- Quality of

like feel, soft. Can walk/play longer life/Happiness

Terminal values

PGPEM; 2018-2020
Consumer motivation research

Aaker, Jennifer and Angela Y. Lee (2001). I Seek Pleasures, We Avoid Pains: The
Role of Self Regulatory Goals in Information Processing and Persuasion. Journal
of Consumer Research, 28 (June), 33-49.

Consumer Regulatory Focus Theory

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 Consumer regulatory focus theory – Promotion Focus Vs. Prevention Focus

Point of Promotion focus Prevention focus

differentiation
Needs Growth and progress Security and protection
Standards targeted Ideal self – reflected by hopes and Ought self – reflected by duties
aspirations and obligations

Strategic tendencies Approaching the desired state Avoiding the non-attainment of

the desired state or avoiding a
non-desired state

Outcomes  Presence of positive outcomes  Absence of negative

 Ensuring that positive outcomes outcomes
are obtained.  Ensuring the absence of
errors and opting for good
rejections.

“I” seek pleasures and “WE” avoid pains

 Approach/Avoidance Motive
• Depending on if the identified goal is something to approach or avoid, consumers
will use either approach or avoidance motive.

• Approach goal-objects are sought for. For example, most people seek vacation
and good food. Approach attractive pastry cake.

• Avoidance motivation is the desire to protect oneself from an object. For

example, people avoid traffic fines, traffic jam. Consumer avoid travelling long for
groceries.

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 Conceptual Framework of the study

LIMITED EDITION

Helps to gain uniqueness

(promotion focus)

Selling cues/ Psychological

Product types Purchase
process intentions

VS.

Perfume Sunscreen
Lotion

BESTSELLER

Helps to avoid risk

(prevention focus)
 Promotion Focus: State vs. Trait
Motivation manipulation (Promotion focus) – Independent Variable
Please think about your current hopes and aspirations in your day-to-day life. Please write down any 2 of
them below:
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………..

Now, please answer the following question: What is more important for you to do?
Something I ought to do 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Something I want to do

Personality Measure/Scale Promotion focus (Semin et al., 2005)

Strongly disagree 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Strongly agree

• I feel I have often made progress towards being successful in my life.
 Are you a “fanatic” when you are trying to realize your goals?

 Are you someone who looks forward to situations in which you expect to have success?

 I often try to reach that in life in which I believe.

 Prevention Focus: State vs. Trait
Motivation manipulation (Prevention focus) – Independent Variable
Please think about your current duties, obligations and responsibilities in your day-to-day life.
Please write down any 2 of them below:
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………….
Now, please answer the following question: What is more important for you to do?

Something I ought to do 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Something I want to do

Prevention focus (Semin et al., 2005)

Strongly disagree 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Strongly agree

 Did you get on your parents’ nerves often when you were growing up?

 Growing up, did you ever act in ways that your parents thought were objectionable?

 Do you find that there are things that you have not thought about when you make choices?

 Do you break rules to reach your goals?

Consumer motives for online interactions

• Interest in buying and comparing products’ features

• Personalizing products is fun

• Desire for good customer service

• Win prizes and receive free samples

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Consumer Personality Development

• Conceptualization of personality: Personality represents inner

psychological traits that both determine and reflect how we
think and act. Examples: Friendly, Humble etc.

• Characteristics of personality:
- Personality reflects individual differences
- Personality is consistent and enduring
- Personality can change, sometimes

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Three approaches of consumer personality
• Freudian theory: suggests unconscious needs or drives are at the heart of human
personality.

• Neo-Freudian: theory suggests social relationships are fundamental to the formation

and development of personality.

• Trait theory: takes a quantitative approach to personality as a set of psychological

traits. A trait is any distinguishing, relatively enduring way in which one individual
differs from another.

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Few consumer personality theories
• Self-construal:

• Sinha, J., & Lu, F. C. (2016). “I” value justice, but “we” value relationships: Self-
construal effects on post-transgression consumer forgiveness. Journal of Consumer
Psychology, 26(2), 265-274.

• Need for uniqueness:

• Das, G., Mukherjee, A., & Smith, R. J. (2018). The perfect fit: The moderating role of
selling cues on hedonic and utilitarian product types. Journal of Retailing, 94(2), 203-
216.

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Few consumer personality theories
• Self-construal:
• Self-construal involves a belief about “the relationship between the self and
others, and especially, the degree to which people see themselves as
separate from others or as connected with others” (Markus & Kitayama,
1991).
• People with independent self-construal hold a view of self as unique and
defined by their internal qualities and distinctive features. On the other
hand, individuals with interdependent self-construal hold an interpretation
of self as defined by their social associations (Kim & Johnson, 2014).

• People possessing interdependent self-construal show a higher level of

association to, and lower level of distinction from, others (Markus &
Kitayama, 1991).

• Self-construal and Information process???

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Self-Construal and Conformity Experiment
Independence prime -
• I go to the city often. My anticipation fills me as I see the skyscrapers come into
view. I allow myself to explore every corner, never letting an attraction escape me.
My voice fills the air and street. I see all the sights, I window shop, and everywhere I
go I see my reflection looking back at me in the glass of a hundred windows. At
nightfall I linger, my time in the city almost over. When finally I must leave, I do so
knowing that I will soon return. The city belongs to me.

Interdependence prime -
• We go to the city often. Our anticipation fills us as we see the skyscrapers come into
view. We allow ourselves to explore every corner, never letting an attraction escape
us. Our voices fill the air and street. We see all the sights, we window shop, and
everywhere we go we see our reflections looking back at us in the glass of a hundred
windows. At nightfall we linger, our time in the city almost over. When finally we
must leave, we do so knowing that we will soon return. The city belongs to us.

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Self-Construal and Conformity Experiment

Brand A: 71% people use it Versus Brand B: 29% people use it.

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Few consumer personality theories
• Consumer Need for uniqueness: Consumers' need for
uniqueness is defined as an individual's pursuit of differentness
relative to others that is achieved through the acquisition,
utilization, and disposition of consumer goods.

• Measure
• (1) “I perceive this brand/product as highly unique”,
• (2) “This brand/product is one of a kind”,
• (3) “My product/brand is really special” (all measured on five-
point scales where 1=strongly disagree, 5=strongly agree).

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Consumer need for uniqueness and Limited edition

• What is the relationship between consumer

need for uniqueness and Limited edition
products?

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A Classification of Qualitative Research Procedures
– Brand Personality
Qualitative Research
Procedures

Direct (Non- Indirect

disguised) (Disguised)

Projective
Techniques (Brand
Focus Groups In-depth Interviews personality)

Association Completion Construction Expressive

Techniques Techniques Techniques Techniques
Know the Personality of people who drink Kingfisher Vs. Bira?

Tell the personalities of others who consume Kingfisher vs. Bira

CCS Project, PGP 2019-2020

Know the Personality of people who drink Kingfisher Vs. Bira?

Soft; Punctual;
Goal-oriented; Social; Romantic
hard-working;
stressful; Social
Projective Techniques in Brand research – few popular
applications
• Brand personality (know the personality of consumers
through Brands’ personality).
• Brand equity
• Brand identity
Brand Personality Research (Aaker, 1997)
Define the personality of the following brand
Define the personality of the following brand
Define the personality of the following brand