The Unconscious Consumer: Effects of Environment on Consumer Behavior

In this article, we argue that consumer behavior is often strongly influenced by subtle environmental cues. Using grocery shopping as an example (or a “leitmotif,” if you wish), we first argue that the traditional perspective on consumer choice based on conscious information processing leaves much variance to be explained. Instead, we propose that many choices are made unconsciously and are strongly affected by the environment. Our argument is based on research on the perception–behavior link and on automatic goal pursuit.     

What Do We Do Unconsciously? And How?

In this reply, we endorse Chartrand's (2005) taxonomy of conscious awareness for different stages of consumer decisions affected by environmental cues. In addition, we attempt to broaden the scope of this taxonomy by discussing its usefulness for consumer decisions in general. We generally support Simonson's (2005) claim that research based on consumers as conscious decision makers is indeed predictive of a wide variety of behavior. However, we also argue that the importance of consciousness should not be overstated. Conscious processes observed in a research laboratory are not representative of conscious processes in real life. The alternative model to describe effects of the environment on behavior by Janiszewski and van Osselaer (2005) may be useful to explain automaticity in goal‐directed behavior, but it poorly describes other automatic behaviors.     

On Having a Goal: Goals as Representations or Behavior

The Psychological Record - The present article discusses the concepts of having a goal and of goal-directed behavior from a behavior-analytic perspective. In clinical psychology as well as in the...     

Big Picture,Bad Outcomes: When Visual Perspectives Harm Health Goal Pursuit

People often fail to achieve health goals, which compromises their well‐being. Prior research suggests that seeing events through an observer's eyes (i.e., adopting a third‐person perspective) should facilitate goal pursuit. However, we find that third‐person perspectives discourage goal‐consistent intentions and behavior for health goals when goal centrality is low (i.e., the goal is peripheral to one's self‐concept). In Experiment 1, people who adopted a third‐person perspective chose more sugary foods if they considered a healthy eating goal to be more peripheral to the self. Experiment 2 examines why a third‐person perspective can hinder goal pursuit; it encourages a breakdown in implemental thinking which, in turn, increases negative self‐conscious emotions. While high goal centrality buffers people from negative effects on goal intentions, low centrality does not. Experiment 3 demonstrates that this effect is robust when goal centrality is manipulated. We recommend that consumers pursuing health goals (and individuals who support them) exercise caution when employing perspective‐based strategies, as they may backfire for people at greatest risk of goal abandonment.     

Development and Practice of the Systems Paradigm in Argentina, Chile and Peru

The systems paradigm has been developing in the southern region of South America for more than three decades, albeit at different paces and with a variety of achievements as can be expected when describing the process of countries as diverse as Argentina, Chile and Peru. This article describes the circumstances and actions that have enabled the systemic approach to gain a legitimate place in the local psychotherapy field permeating family, marital/couple, and individual therapy. Moreover, the family/contextual perspective has attained a valued respectability in the family legal system as well as in community interventions. Overall, the community is aware of and at ease with this efficacious contextual approach. As in other parts of the world, the universities have joined the private entities in the training endeavor and the accreditation process is a complex goal with obstacles that have not yet been surmounted.     

The use of structural equation models in Consumer Psychology: A methodological dialogue on its contributions,cautions, and concerns

The goal of Consumer Psychology is to use manipulations and measures in order to make inferences as to the psychological processes that underlie consumer behavior. A statistical tool available to do so is Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). Recent issues of this journal have provided primers in the use of SEM. Herein, three noted experts provide further guidance and philosophical consideration of the issues associated with SEM, as well as statistical and methodological concerns in general. The goal of this dialogue is to provide a foundation for the use of SEM in Consumer Psychology and the Social Sciences in general.     

Rituals, Compulsions, and Other Syncretic Tools: Insights from Werner's Comparative Psychology

In line with theme of this special issue, this article speaks to a topic in developmental psychology from a Wernerian perspective. We take a Wernerian, comparative, and orthogenetic approach in addressing rituals and other compulsive behaviors in a variety of contexts: Ritual as cultural practice, as a part of pathologic behavior, and as a normative aspect of child development. We discuss the similarities and differences in these various forms of ritual, and conclude by incorporating recent advances in the study of obsessive-compulsive disorder to shed light on the normative variant of compulsive behavior. Our goal is to emphasize the continued relevance Werner's work in light of contemporary trends in developmental psychology, developmental psychopathology, and neuroscience.     

Construal Level Theory as an Integrative Framework for Behavioral Decision‐Making Research and Consumer Psychology

In this comment to Trope, Liberman and Makslak's lead article, I refrain from any attempt to review or recapitulate the growing body of research in social psychology in general and in consumer science in particular that is explicitly devoted to construal level theory (CLT). Rather, granting the status of CLT as a leading contemporary theory, with rich implications and applications in consumer science, I concentrate on recent phenomena in judgment and decision making for which CLT provides an implicit account. Specifically, CLT affords an integrative framework for understanding a whole variety of preference reversals—a major challenge for students of consumer behavior.     

Exchange Taboos From an Interpretive Perspective

The relational framing perspective on taboo exchanges addresses a number of issues that have also been the subjects of considerable interpretive research and theorizing. This commentary highlights interpretive work on gift giving, love, sacredness, purity, and boundaries as it pertains to exchange taboos. It suggests that there is a ritual and moral substrate that underlies exchange behaviors. It concludes that the interpretive perspective may deepen relational framing by revealing an ideal moral template that guides behavior and leads to polite ruses in order to reframe behaviors that violate these norms. It further suggests that there is much to be gained by integrating insights from consumer psychology with those of consumer sociology and consumer anthropology.     

Evolutionary psychology is not the only productive evolutionary approach to understanding consumer behavior

I respond to Vladas Griskevicius and Douglas T. Kendrick (G&;K) and Gad Saad's (S) defenses of the view that Consumer Studies would benefit from the appeal to evolution in all work aimed at understanding consumer behavior. I argue that G&;K and S's reliance on one theoretical perspective, that of evolutionary psychology, limits their options. Further, I point out some specific problems with the theoretical perspective of evolutionary psychology. Finally, I introduce some alternative evolutionary approaches to studying human behavior that could profitably be adopted in consumer research.     

Understanding Japanese consumers: Some important underlying factors

This article reviews existing findings and outlines some general points that need to be considered when trying to understand Japanese consumer behavior. In addition to various psychological variables, researchers need to attend to a set of unique sociocultural factors. Among the factors considered are Japan's setting, population density, economic prosperity, modernization, homogeneity, and group orientation. Other issues that are raised are the implications of a well informed society, and the importance of both age and aesthetic values. The article also discusses risk aversion, eclecticism, lack of time and space, the importance of quality and image to the Japanese, and recent changes as they affect consumer behavior. In addition to universals, there are some unique factors that should be considered in order to understand Japanese consumer behavior, much as, undoubtedly, another set of unique features should be considered for the study of any other society.     

Proactive Goal Generation and Innovative Work Behavior: The Moderating Role of Affective Commitment,Production Ownership and Leader Support for Innovation

Building on goal‐regulation theory, we develop and test the hypothesis that proactive goal generation fosters individual innovative work behavior. Consistent with a resource‐based perspective, we further examine two‐three‐way interactions to assess whether the link between proactive goal generation and innovative behavior is jointly moderated by organizational affective commitment and production ownership, or, alternatively, leader support for innovation. In a sample of 442 municipal employees from the administrative division of an Italian city hall, proactive goal generation was positively associated with innovative work behavior. Additionally, as expected, this relationship was stronger when employees were highly affectively committed to their organization and when they exhibited a high level of production ownership or received extensive support for innovation from their supervisors. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.     

Doctoral training in behavior analysis: Training generalized problem-solving skills

This essay provides guidelines for designing a doctoral program in behavior analysis. First, we propose a general accomplishment for all behavior analytic doctoral students: that they be able to solve problems concerning individual behavior within a range of environments. Second, in order to achieve this goal, we propose that students be trained in conceptual and experimental analysis of behavior, the application of behavioral principles and the administration of behavioral programs. This training should include class work, but it should emphasize the immersion of students in a variety of environments in which they are required to use behavior analytic strategies. Third, we provide an example of a hypothetical graduate program that involves the proposed training. Finally, an evaluation plan is suggested for determining whether a training program is in fact producing students who are generalized problem-solvers. At each step, we justify our point of view from a perspective that combines principles from behavior analysis and educational systems design.     

Fundamental motives: How evolutionary needs influence consumer behavior

Can we better understand modern consumer behavior by examining its links to our ancestral past? We consider the underlying motives for consumption and choice from an evolutionary perspective. We review evidence that deep-seated evolutionary motives continue to influence much modern behavior, albeit not always in obvious or conscious ways. These fundamental motives include: (1) evading physical harm, (2) avoiding disease, (3) making friends, (4) attaining status, (5) acquiring a mate, (6) keeping a mate, and (7) caring for family. We discuss how, why, and when these motives influence behavior, highlighting that many consumer choices ultimately function to help fulfill one or more of these evolutionary needs. An important implication of this framework is that a person's preferences, behaviors, and decision processes change in predictable ways depending on which fundamental motive is currently active. We discuss how consideration of evolutionary motives provides fertile ground for future consumer research, while also helping build bridges between consumer behavior, evolutionary biology, and other social sciences.     

Goal‐Derived Categories: The Role of Personal and Situational Goals in Category Representations

Prior research often emphasized a stimulus‐based or bottom‐up view of product category representations. In contrast, we emphasize a more purposeful, top‐down perspective and examine categories that consumers might construct in the service of salient (i.e., highly accessible) goals. Specifically, we investigate how the point of view imposed by salient consumer goals might affect category representations assessed by participants’ similarity judgments of food products. A key factor in our study is that we examine both individual and situational sources of variability in goal salience. In addition, we also vary the surface‐level, visual resemblance of the stimulus pairs of foods used in the study. The results suggest that personal goals (e.g., health) and situational goals (e.g., convenience) act in conjunction and exert a systematic impact on category representations. Both types of goals, when salient, enhanced the perceived similarity of goal‐appropriate products and reduced the similarity of product pairs when only one product was ideal for the particular goal. The similarity‐enhancing effect was most pronounced when the surface resemblance between the products was low, and the similarity‐diminishing effect was more apparent when surface resemblance was high. Implications are discussed for current theoretical assumptions regarding categorization in consumer research.     

Motivational and Cultural Variations in Mortality Salience Effects: Contemplations on Terror Management Theory and Consumer Behavior

Terror management theory provides a viable framework to examine the effects of mortality salience (MS) and related coping behaviors. We explore the utility of viewing MS effects from an information processing perspective and discuss the implications for understanding consumer behavior. We suggest that a better understanding of the motivational nature of MS and the underlying processes could provide additional insights on the persuasive impact of MS. We also anticipate effects of MS to differ across cultures and predict some novel outcomes. Finally, we outline several potential avenues for investigating MS effects in consumer domains such as branding and advertising.     

深谋远虑:前瞻行为研究的回顾与展望

前瞻行为是一个自我发起、未来导向以及试图改变现状的积极行为,能够为个人与组织带来正面的影响.本文旨于回顾前瞻行为的本质、前导因素、动机历程以及结果效应,也特别回顾笔者近期针对前瞻行为所进行的研究.首先,关于前瞻一词可以从不同的角度进行理解,包括个别差异观点、行为观点与历程观点.由于过去文献多从行为观点进行研究,本文的回顾亦以行为观点为主轴.其次,本文逐一回顾目前文献所提出的三个关于促进前瞻行为的动机历程:能力、缘由与情绪.再者,笔者讨论各种能够促发前瞻行为的前导因素,包括个人因素、环境因素,以及两者间的交互作用如何影响前瞻行为的展现.笔者也基于过去的研究发现,总结前瞻行为所能导致的结果,包括工作态度与绩效.最后,在近期研究的介绍中,笔者介绍了三个根据个别差异的观点所进行的研究.此研究路线旨在了解人格特质对前瞻行为的影响,并且勾勒情境所扮演的调节效应.全文最终总结前瞻行为的研究现状,以及提出未来可能探索的研究方向.     

利用无意识目标启动降低个体的冲动购买行为：个体目标状态的调节作用

冲动购买会给个体和社会带来诸多不良影响,而探讨如何降低冲动购买的研究报道却很少。此外,仅有的少数研究都是从提升自我控制能力的角度来开展,其干预方法具有一定的局限性。本研究从提升自我控制的动机角度出发,考察利用无意识目标启动能否降低冲动购买,并考察其适用条件。研究发现,无意识目标启动可以显著降低有省钱目标个体的冲动购买行为,而对无省钱目标个体的冲动购买行为没有显著影响。本研究结果提示,无意识目标启动有希望成为一种简单、便捷的降低冲动购买行为的有效干预方式,特别是对有省钱目标的个体而言。     

Social and Emotional Processes in the Classroom Setting: A Goal Approach

Goals can be defined as cognitive- and as value-related motivational constructs. Consequently, both goal elaboration and personal valuing of goals are emphasized as critical determinants of motivated action. From this perspective, it is argued that goals play an influential role in students' cognitions, and in their social and emotional processes. I explore students' strategies for dealing with potentially stressful classroom circumstances in relation to their goals by examining students' reactions to imagined specific academic stressors, focusing on their emotions, behavior, and goals. Four distinct strategies were defined: strategic flexible action, strategic rigid action, passive behavior, and disorganized behavior. It is suggested that (a) goals play a major role in articulating and integrating behaviors and emotions within a whole strategy, (b) particular combinations of goal characteristics - goal-setting, personal goal valuing, and goal difficulty - are required for successful coping, and (c) both productive behavior and emotional regulation are predicted by specific goal characteristics.     

Can normal narcissism be managed to promote green product purchases? Investigating a counterintuitive proposition

Despite the presumed influence of narcissism as a prevalent consumer trait, the psychological construct was only recently linked to consumer theory. “Normal” narcissism is traditionally associated with negative effects on others. But narcissism is examined from a different perspective here. This study investigates how narcissistic traits may influence consumer tendencies to engage in “green” behaviors. Study 1 demonstrates that narcissists do not intrinsically value green behavior or its potential societal benefits. However, four integrated experiments—grounded in costly signaling theory and the realistic accuracy model—demonstrated that situational factors such as product visibility, purchase visibility, relative price, and message detection and utilization could be influential in motivating normal narcissists to act “green.”