LECTURE 9

CULTURE
Dr. Dongmei Li

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THE WHEEL OF CONSUMER BEH
AVIOR

2 2
UNDERSTANDING CULTURE
Visible Behaviors

Invisible Sources:
Beliefs, Values, Rituals, Norms
UNDERSTANDING CULTURE
Culture is A societys personality and the accumul
ation of shared meanings, rituals, norms, and tra
ditions among the members of an organization or
society.
Consumption choices cannot be understood witho
ut cultural context.
A consumers culture determines the priorities th
e consumer attaches to activities and products.
Products can reflect underlying cultural processe
s of a particular period:
Cosmetics made of natural materials without animal test
ing
Pastel carrying cases for condoms
DISCUSSION
Why dont the
Chinese need e
verything black
& white?

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 HOFSTEDES DIMENSION OF CULTURE
(PD) The way members perceive
differences in power when they Power (UA) The degree to
form interpersonal relationships. Distance which people feel
threatened by
ambiguous
situations.
Uncertainty
Individualism Avoidance
(ID) The extent to which the Culture
culture values the welfare of the
individual versus that of the (MA) The degree to
group. which a culture clearly
defines sex roles.

(LTO) The degree to Long-Term

which a culture focuses Orientation Masculinity
on the short term versus
the long term.
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INFLUENCE OF CULTURE: VALUES
Value is an enduring beliefs that a given beh
avior or outcome is desirable or good. It infl
uences the importance of varies needs.

What values do you stand by?

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CORE VALUES & VALUE SYSTEM
There is a general set of values that uniquely defi
ne a culture, we call it the core values.
The core values of American are freedom, yout
hfulness, achievement, materialism.
The core values of Japanese are reciprocity, loya
lty, hygiene, and respect.
The value system is a cultures unique set of rank
ings of the relative importance of universal value
s.

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CULTURAL VALUES ARE LEARNED
Enculturation: learning the values of one
s own culture from childhood
Passing values from one generation to the
next
Family, schools, institutions, observation
Acculturation: learning the values of ano
ther culture
Adapts to the consumption values and beh
avior of the adopted country
Observation, word-of-mouth, mass media

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 APPLICATION OF VALUES TO CONSUM
ER BEHAVIOR
Useful distinctions in values for consumer behavio
r research
Cultural Values (e.g. security or happiness)
Consumption-Specific Values (e.g. convenient sho
pping or prompt service)
Product-Specific Values (e.g. ease-of-use or durab
ility)
Virtually all consumer research is ultimately relat
ed to identification and measurement of values.
 INFLUENCE OF CULTURE: NORMS
Norms :
An accepted way of behaving or of doing
things in a society or a community. Rules
dictating what is right or wrong, acceptable or
unacceptable.
Enacted norms: Explicitly decided on
Crescive norms: Embedded in a culture
Custom: A norm handed down from the past
that controls basic behaviors
Conventions: Subtle norms regarding the
conduct of everyday life.

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CROSS-CULTURAL NORMS
Customary distance
Distance between people during conversation
U.S.: 5-8 feet (business discussion)/ 18 inches to
3 feet (personal business)
Latin America: 3-5 feet (business discussion)
Japan: 6-10 feet (business discussion)

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MYTHS
Myths are stories with symbolic elements tha
t represent the shared emotions/ideals of a c
ulture
Story characteristics
Conflictbetween opposing forces
Outcome is moral guide for people
Myth reduces anxiety by providing guidelines
FUNCTIONS OF MYTHS
Metaphysical Help explain origins of existence

Emphasize that all components of the

Cosmological universe are part of a single picture

Maintain social order by authorizing a

Sociological social code to be followed by members
of a culture

Psychological Provide models for personal conduct

 Influence of Culture: Rituals

Rituals:
A setof multiple, symbolic behaviors that occur in a fix
ed sequence and that tend to be repeated periodically.
Ritual Artifacts:
Items needed to perform rituals, such as wedding ring,
birthday candles, diplomas, specialized food and bever
ages, trophies and plaques, band uniforms, greeting car
ds, and retirement watches.

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RITUALS
Primary Behavior Ritual Type Examples
Source
Cosmology Religious Baptism, meditation
Cultural values Rites of passage Graduation, marriage
festivals, holidays
Cultural Valentines Day, Super
Bowl
Group learning Civic Parades, elections
Group Business negotiation,
office luncheons
Family Mealtimes, bedtimes,
birthdays, Mothers Day,
Christmas
Individual aims and Personal Grooming, household
emotions rituals

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EXAMPLES
Thanksgiving day

On Valentines Day, w
ho should send gifts in
Japan? Men or Women
Mid-autumn Day ?
INFLUENCE OF CULTURE
Be careful about th
e symbolic meaning
s behind gift.
A lack of understan
ding may send a wr
ong message.

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SACRED CONSUMPTION

Sacred consumption involves objects and events

that are set apart from normal activities that are
treated with respect or awe.
DOMAINS OF SACRED CONSUMPTION
Sacred Places:
Set apart by a society because they have religious or mysti
cal significance or because they commemorate some aspect o
f a countrys heritage.
Contamination: Something sacred happened on that spot, so
the place itself takes on sacred qualities.
Sacred People:
People who are idolized and set apart from the masses
Movie stars, rock stars, royalty (Princess Diana)
Sacred Events:
Consumer activities which take on a special status
public events (Olympics), tourism
SACRALIZATION
Sacralization occurs when ordinary objects, e
vents, and even people take on sacred meani
ng
Objectification occurs when we attribute sac
red qualities to mundane items, through proc
esses like contamination
Collecting is the systematic acquisition of a p
articular object or set of objects
DESACRALIZATION
Desacralization: when a sacred item/symbol i
s removed from its special place or is duplica
ted in mass quantities (becomes profane)

Religion has somewhat become desacralized

Christmas as secular, materialistic occasions
THE MOVEMENT OF MEANING
UNDERSTANDING CULTURE
A societys personality is culture.
We can differentiate a society in many different ways
. Each segment is different.
Asubcultureis a group of people with aculture(whe
ther distinct or hidden) which differentiates them fro
m the larger culture to which they belong
Major subculture domain: income, social class, ethnic
, racial, religious, age,
 SOCIAL CLASS
Social class is the overall rank of people in a
society. It is a universal pecking order.

Social classes are societys relatively permanent

and ordered divisions whose members share similar
values, interests, and behaviors
Measured by a combination of occupation, income,
education, wealth, and other variables

Karl Marx
Marx (1818-1883) summarized his approach
Max Weber
Weber (1864-1920)'s most famous work is his
essay The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of
in the first line of chapter one of The
Capitalism, published in 1904. His ideas
Communist Manifesto, published in 1848:
influence the development of capitalism,
The history of all hitherto existing society is
bureaucracy and the rational-legal state in the
the history of class struggles
West.
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 SOCIAL CLASS AFFECTS LEISURE

This ad implies that there are social class

differences in leisure activities and
preferred beverages

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COMPONENTS OF SOCIAL CLASS
The status one is born with
Ascribed ( e.g., a person born into a wealthy
status family has a high ascribed status)

Occupa- The worth of people based on

tional what they do for a living
Prestige (e.g., Doctor, banker,
accountant)

The distribution of wealth is

Income important to marketers

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PREDICTING CONSUMER BEHAVI
OR
Social class is better predictor of lower to mo
derately priced symbolic purchases
Income is better predictor of major nonstatu
s/nonsymbolic expenditures
Need both social class and income to predict
expensive, symbolic products
TASTE AND SOCIAL CLASS
PRESTIGE AND INCOME
What is the relationship between occupation
al prestige and income?
Certain occupations hold prestige because of their wo
rth to society. Others are prestigious because of pow
er or income.
Can you think of professions that are prestigious but n
ot necessarily high in income?

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PROBLEMS WITH SOCIAL CLASS SEGMENTATION

Ignores status inconsistencies

Ignores intergenerational mobility
Ignores subjective social class
Ignores consumers aspirations to change clas
s standing
Ignores the social status of working wives
 STATUS SYMBOLS
- Peoples desire to provide
Conspicuous prominent visible to inspire envy in
consumption
others
- Evidence of their ability to afford
luxury goods

Model Billboard Leisure Parody

potlatch wife class display

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HIGH CULTURE AND POPULAR C
ULTURE
An art product is an object we admire for its
beauty and our emotional response
A craft product is admired because of the be
auty with which it forms a function
Mass culture creates products for a mass mar
ket
CONSUMPTION AND SOCIAL CLASS
Class structure:
Warners Six Social Class
1. Upper Upper
2. Lower Upper Luxury items like diamond
3. Upper Middle engagement rings are
valued as status symbols the
4. Lower Middle world over, as this this ad
5. Upper Lower for a jeweler reminds us.

6. Lower Lower

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STATUS SYMBOLS

The ad to the left

insinuates that because
of the status of a gift
from Tiffany and Co., it
really doesnt matter
what is in the box.

What other brands can you think

of that have such status, that the
name carries as much prestige as
the product?

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STATUS SYMBOLS
WHICH HAND BAG DO YOU THINK IS MORE EXPENSIVE?

1. b
1
2. s

2
 LUXURY CONSUMPTION & STATUS SYMBOLS
Recall that consumers use brands and products to
signal their social class
A TYPOLOGY OF STATUS SIGNAL
ING

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A NEW CATEGORIZATION OF LUXURY CONSUMERS

Source: Nunes & Dreze, Journal of Marketing,

2010
STATUS SYMBOLS

- Peoples desire to provide

Conspicuous prominent visible to inspire envy in
consumption
others
- Evidence of their ability to afford
luxury goods
- It is affected by the relationship
between wealth and need for
status
EDUCATION:
A HIGHER LIVING STANDARD

Education is strongly linked to a higher standard of

living. People who earn a college degree are likely to
earn higher income during their lives than those who do
not. In general, occupational prestige is also positively
correlated with education level.

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