Consumer Motivation

From Chapter 5

Consumer Behavior: A Framework

John C. Mowen Michael S. Minor

Key Concepts

Concept of Motivation Mid-Range Theories of Motivation Consumer Needs vs. Opponent-process theory Wants Optimum-stimulation level General (Broad-Range) theory Need for Behavioral Theories of Motivation

Maslows Hierarchy of Needs McClellands Theory of Learned Needs

Freedom (Psychological Reactance theory) Need to Seek or Avoid Perceived Risk Need to Attribute Causality (Attribution Theory)

What is Motivation?

Motivation refers to an activated state within a person, which leads to goaldirected behavior.

It consists of the drives, urges, wishes, or desires that initiate the sequence of events leading to a behavior. It explains why human behavior is purposive behavior.

How Does Motivation Work?

Motivation begins with the presence of a stimulus that spurs the recognition of a need. Need recognition occurs when a perceived discrepancy exists between an actual and a desired state of being

Needs can be either innate or learned. Needs are never fully satisfied. Feelings and emotions (i.e., affect) accompany needs

Needs vs. Wants

Wants are many. Needs are few. Many different products can fulfill a single need.

e.g., the need for esteem can be fulfilled by a Rolex watch, a high-performance sports car, recognition for charity work).

Marketers do not create needs, they fulfill them with a variety of potential wants.

Types of Needs

Expressive needs involve desires by consumers to fulfill social and/or aesthetic requirements. Utilitarian needs involve desires by consumers to solve basic problems (e.g. filling a cars gas tank).

Some General Theories of Motivation

Maslows hierarchy: physiological, security, social, esteem, and self-actualization. McClellands Theory of Learned Needs

Achievement motivation is seeking to get ahead, to strive for success, and to take responsibility for solving problems. Need for affiliation motivates people to make friends, to become members of groups, and to associate with others. Need for power refers to the desire to obtain and exercise control over others. Need for uniqueness refers to desires to perceive ourselves as original and different.

Midrange Theories of Motivation

Opponent-Process Theory Optimum Stimulation Levels The Desire to Maintain Behavioral Freedom The Motivation to Avoid Risk The Motivation to Attribute Causality

Opponent-Process Theory
. . . explains that two things occur when a person receives a stimulus that elicits an immediate positive or negative emotional reaction: The immediate positive or negative emotional reaction is felt. A second emotional reaction occurs that has a feeling opposite to that initially experienced. The combination of the two emotional reactions results in the overall feeling experienced by the consumer. Explains addictive behaviors. Explains primingthe effects of a small exposure to a stimulus.

Optimum Stimulation Level

. . . is a persons preferred amount of physiological activation or arousal.

Activation may vary from very low levels (e.g. sleep) to very high levels (e.g. severe panic). Individuals are motivated to maintain an optimum level of stimulation and will take action to correct the level when it becomes to high or too low. Accounts for high vs. low sensation-seeking people. Accounts for variety seeking. Accounts for hedonic consumptioni.e., the need of people to create fantasies, gain feelings through the senses, and obtain emotional arousal.

The Desire to Maintain Behavioral Freedom

Psychological reactance is the motivational state resulting from the response to threats to behavioral freedom.

Two types of threats can lead to reactance:

Social threats involve external pressure from other people to induce a consumer to do something Impersonal threats are barriers that restrict the ability to buy a particular good or service

Frequent in marketing: e.g., pushy salesperson Scarcity effects: scarce products are valued more. Limited time offer, limited supply.

The Motivation to Seek or Avoid Risk

Perceived risk is a consumers perception of the overall negativity of a course of action based upon as assessment of the possible negative outcomes and of the likelihood that these outcomes will occur. Perceived risk consists of two major concepts - the negative outcomes of a decision and the probability these outcomes will occur.

7 Types of Consumer Risks.

Financial Performance Physical Psychological Social Time Opportunity Loss

Factors Influencing Risk Perception

Characteristics of the persone.g., need for stimulation Nature of the task

Voluntary risks are perceived as less risky than involuntary tasks.

Characteristics of the producte.g., price Salience of negative outcomes

Six risk-reduction strategies

Be brand loyal and consistently purchase the same brand. Buy through brand image and purchase a quality national brand. Buy through store image from a retailer that you trust.

Seek out information in order to make a well informed decision. Buy the most expensive brand, which is likely to have high quality. Buy the least expensive brand in order to reduce financial risk.

The Need to Attribute Causality

Attribution theory describes the processes through which people make determinations of the causality of action. Internal attribution is when a consumer decides that an endorser recommended the product because he or she actually liked the product. External attribution is when a consumer decides that an endorser recommended the product because he or she was paid for endorsing it. Causality also relates to perceptions of the source of product failure.

Augmentation-Discounting Model

Discounting occurs if external pressures exist that could provoke someone to act in a particular way - so actions would be expected given the circumstances. The augmenting principle states that when a person moves against the forces of the environment to do something unexpected, the belief that the action represents the persons actual opinions, feelings, and desires is increased. Fundamental Attribution Error: One consistent finding is that people are biased to make internal attributions to others.

Applications of Attribution Theory

Endorsers: seek to get consumers to perceive internal motives for making endorsement. Satisfaction: seek to get consumers to perceive external reasons for product problem. Sales promotion: find ways to avoid consumers attributing the cause of the purchase to the promotional tool (e.g., coupon) rather than to the excellence of the product.

Managerial Applications of Motivation

Positioning/differentiation: use discriminative stimuli distinguish one brand from another. Environmental analysis: identify factors that influence risk perception. Market research: measure motivational needs (e.g., McClellands needs and need for arousal), measure risk perception.

Managerial Applications of Motivation

Marketing mix: use motivational needs to design products (e.g., safe cars) and to develop promotional strategy that meets needs. Develop messages to influence consumer attributions. Use in-store promotions to prime consumers. Segmentation: Segment market based upon motivational needs.