The study of consumers helps firms and organizations improve their marketing

strategies by understanding issues such as how

• The psychology of how consumers think, feel, reason, and select

between different alternatives (e.g., brands, products, and retailers);
• The psychology of how the consumer is influenced by his or her
environment (e.g., culture, family, signs, media);
• The behavior of consumers while shopping or making other marketing
decisions;
• Limitations in consumer knowledge or information processing abilities
influence decisions and marketing outcome;
• How consumer motivation and decision strategies differ between
products that differ in their level of importance or interest that they
entail for the consumer; and
• How marketers can adapt and improve their marketing campaigns and
marketing strategies to more effectively reach the consumer.

One "official" definition of consumer behavior is "The study of individuals,

groups, or organizations and the processes they use to select, secure, use, and
dispose of products, services, experiences, or ideas to satisfy needs and the
impacts that these processes have on the consumer and society." Although it is
not necessary to memorize this definition, it brings up some useful points:

• Behavior occurs either for the individual, or in the context of a group

(e.g., friends influence what kinds of clothes a person wears) or an
organization (people on the job make decisions as to which products the
firm should use).
• Consumer behavior involves the use and disposal of products as well as
the study of how they are purchased. Product use is often of great
interest to the marketer, because this may influence how a product is
best positioned or how we can encourage increased consumption. Since
many environmental problems result from product disposal (e.g., motor
oil being sent into sewage systems to save the recycling fee, or garbage
piling up at landfills) this is also an area of interest.
• Consumer behavior involves services and ideas as well as tangible
products.

• The impact of consumer behavior on society is also of relevance. For

example, aggressive marketing of high fat foods, or aggressive marketing
of easy credit, may have serious repercussions for the national health
and economy.

There are four main applications of consumer behavior:

• The most obvious is for marketing strategy—i.e., for making better

marketing campaigns. For example, by understanding that consumers
 are more receptive to food advertising when they are hungry, we learn
to schedule snack advertisements late in the afternoon. By
understanding that new products are usually initially adopted by a few
consumers and only spread later, and then only gradually, to the rest of
the population, we learn that (1) companies that introduce new products
must be well financed so that they can stay afloat until their products
become a commercial success and (2) it is important to please initial
customers, since they will in turn influence many subsequent customers’
brand choices.
• A second application is public policy. In the 1980s, Accutane, a near
miracle cure for acne, was introduced. Unfortunately, Accutane resulted
in severe birth defects if taken by pregnant women. Although physicians
were instructed to warn their female patients of this, a number still
became pregnant while taking the drug. To get consumers’ attention,
the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) took the step of requiring that
very graphic pictures of deformed babies be shown on the medicine
containers.
• Social marketing involves getting ideas across to consumers rather than
selling something. Marty Fishbein, a marketing professor, went on
sabbatical to work for the Centers for Disease Control trying to reduce
the incidence of transmission of diseases through illegal drug use. The
best solution, obviously, would be if we could get illegal drug users to
stop. This, however, was deemed to be infeasible. It was also
determined that the practice of sharing needles was too ingrained in the
drug culture to be stopped. As a result, using knowledge of consumer
attitudes, Dr. Fishbein created a campaign that encouraged the cleaning
of needles in bleach before sharing them, a goal that was believed to be
more realistic.
• As a final benefit, studying consumer behavior should make us better
consumers. Common sense suggests, for example, that if you buy a 64
liquid ounce bottle of laundry detergent, you should pay less per ounce
than if you bought two 32 ounce bottles. In practice, however, you often
pay a size premium by buying the larger quantity. In other words, in this
case, knowing this fact will sensitize you to the need to check the unit
cost labels to determine if you are really getting a bargain.

There are several units in the market that can be analyzed. Our main thrust in
this course is the consumer. However, we will also need to analyze our own
firm’s strengths and weaknesses and those of competing firms. Suppose, for
example, that we make a product aimed at older consumers, a growing
segment. A competing firm that targets babies, a shrinking market, is likely to
consider repositioning toward our market. To assess a competing firm’s
potential threat, we need to examine its assets (e.g., technology, patents,
market knowledge, awareness of its brands) against pressures it faces from the
market. Finally, we need to assess conditions (the marketing environment). For
example, although we may have developed a product that offers great appeal
for consumers, a recession may cut demand dramatically.

Consumer Research Methods

Market research is often needed to ensure that we produce what customers really want
and not what we think they want.

Primary vs. secondary research methods.? There are two main approaches to
marketing.? Secondary ?research involves using information that others have already put
together.? For example, if you are thinking about starting a business making clothes for
tall people, you don?? need to question people about how tall they are to find out how
many tall people exist??hat information has already been published by the U.S.
Government.? Primary research, in contrast, is research that you design and conduct
yourself.? For example, you may need to find out whether consumers would prefer that
your soft drinks be sweater or tarter.

Research will often help us reduce risks associated with a new product, but it cannot take
the risk away entirely.? It is also important to ascertain whether the research has been
complete.? For example, Coca Cola did a great deal of research prior to releasing the
New Coke, and consumers seemed to prefer the taste.? However, consumers were not
prepared to have this drink replace traditional Coke.

Secondary Methods.? For more information about secondary market research tools and
issues, please see http://buad307.com/PDF/Secondary.pdf .

Primary Methods. Several tools are available to the market researcher??.g., mail
questionnaires, phone surveys, observation, and focus groups.? Please see
http://buad307.com/PDF/ResearchMethods.pdf for advantages and disadvantages of
each.

Surveys are useful for getting a great deal of specific information.? Surveys can contain
open-ended questions (e.g., ??n which city and state were you born? ____________??) or
closed-ended, where the respondent is asked to select answers from a brief list (e.g., ??
_Male ___ Female.?? Open ended questions have the advantage that the respondent is not
limited to the options listed, and that the respondent is not being influenced by seeing a
list of responses.? However, open-ended questions are often skipped by respondents, and
coding them can be quite a challenge.? In general, for surveys to yield meaningful
responses, sample sizes of over 100 are usually required because precision is essential.?
For example, if a market share of twenty percent would result in a loss while thirty
percent would be profitable, a confidence interval of 20-35% is too wide to be useful.
Surveys come in several different forms.? Mail surveys are relatively inexpensive, but
response rates are typically quite low??ypically from 5-20%.? Phone-surveys get
somewhat higher response rates, but not many questions can be asked because many
answer options have to be repeated and few people are willing to stay on the phone for
more than five minutes.? Mall intercepts are a convenient way to reach consumers, but
respondents may be reluctant to discuss anything sensitive face-to-face with an
interviewer.

Surveys, as any kind of research, are vulnerable to bias.? The wording of a question can
influence the outcome a great deal.? For example, more people answered no to the
question ??hould speeches against democracy be allowed??? than answered yes to ??
hould speeches against democracy be forbidden??? For face-to-face interviews,
interviewer bias is a danger, too.? Interviewer bias occurs when the interviewer
influences the way the respondent answers.? For example, unconsciously an interviewer
that works for the firm manufacturing the product in question may smile a little when
something good is being said about the product and frown a little when something
negative is being said.? The respondent may catch on and say something more positive
than his or her real opinion.? Finally, a response bias may occur??f only part of the
sample responds to a survey, the respondents?? answers may not be representative of the
population.

Focus groups are useful when the marketer wants to launch a new product or modify an
existing one.? A focus group usually involves having some 8-12 people come together in
a room to discuss their consumption preferences and experiences.? The group is usually
led by a moderator, who will start out talking broadly about topics related broadly to the
product without mentioning the product itself.? For example, a focus group aimed at
sugar-free cookies might first address consumers?? snacking preferences, only gradually
moving toward the specific product of sugar-free cookies.? By not mentioning the
product up front, we avoid biasing the participants into thinking only in terms of the
specific product brought out.?? Thus, instead of having consumers think primarily in
terms of what might be good or bad about the product, we can ask them to discuss more
broadly the ultimate benefits they really seek.? For example, instead of having consumers
merely discuss what they think about some sugar-free cookies that we are considering
releasing to the market, we can have consumers speak about their motivations for using
snacks and what general kinds of benefits they seek.? Such a discussion might reveal a
concern about healthfulness and a desire for wholesome foods.? Probing on the meaning
of wholesomeness, consumers might indicate a desire to avoid artificial ingredients.?
This would be an important concern in the marketing of sugar-free cookies, but might not
have come up if consumers were asked to comment directly on the product where the use
of artificial ingredients is, by virtue of the nature of the product, necessary.

Focus groups are well suited for some purposes, but poorly suited for others.? In general,
focus groups are very good for getting breadth??.e., finding out what kinds of issues are
important for consumers in a given product category.? Here, it is helpful that focus
groups are completely ??pen-ended:?? The consumer mentions his or her preferences and
opinions, and the focus group moderator can ask the consumer to elaborate.? In a
questionnaire, if one did not think to ask about something, chances are that few
consumers would take the time to write out an elaborate answer.? Focus groups also have
some drawbacks, for example:

• They represent small sample sizes.? Because of the cost of running focus groups,
only a few groups can be run.? Suppose you run four focus groups with ten
members each. This will result in an n of 4(10)=40, which is too small to
generalize from.? Therefore, focus groups cannot give us a good idea of:
• What proportion of the population is likely to buy the product.
• What price consumers are willing to pay.
• The groups are inherently social.? This means that:
• Consumers will often say things that may make them look good (i.e., they watch
public television rather than soap operas or cook fresh meals for their families
daily) even if that is not true.
• Consumers may be reluctant to speak about embarrassing issues (e.g., weight
control, birth control).

Personal interviews involve in-depth questioning of an individual about his or her interest
in or experiences with a product.? The benefit here is that we can get really into depth
(when the respondent says something interesting, we can ask him or her to elaborate), but
this method of research is costly and can be extremely vulnerable to interviewer bias.

To get a person to elaborate, it may help to try a common tool of psychologists and
psychiatrists??imply repeating what the person said.? He or she will often become
uncomfortable with the silence that follows and will then tend to elaborate.? This
approach has the benefit that it minimizes the interference with the respondent?? own
ideas and thoughts.? He or she is not influenced by a new question but will, instead, go
more in depth on what he or she was saying.

Personal interviews are highly susceptible to inadvertent ??ignaling?? to the respondent.?

Although an interviewer is looking to get at the truth, he or she may have a significant
interest in a positive consumer response.? Unconsciously, then, he or she may
inadvertently smile a little when something positive is said and frown a little when
something negative is said.? Consciously, this will often not be noticeable, and the
respondent often will not consciously be aware that he or she is being ??einforced??
and ??unished?? for saying positive or negative things, but at an unconscious level, the
cumulative effect of several facial expressions are likely to be felt.? Although this type of
conditioning will not get a completely negative respondent to say all positive things, it
may ??wing?? the balance a bit so that respondents are more likely to say positive
thoughts and withhold, or limit the duration of, negative thoughts.

Projective techniques are used when a consumer may feel embarrassed to admit to certain
opinions, feelings, or preferences.? For example, many older executives may not be
comfortable admitting to being intimidated by computers.?? It has been found that in
such cases, people will tend to respond more openly about ??omeone else.?? Thus, we
may ask them to explain reasons why a friend has not yet bought a computer, or to tell a
story about a person in a picture who is or is not using a product.? The main problem
with this method is that it is difficult to analyze responses.

Projective techniques are inherently inefficient to use.? The elaborate context that has to
be put into place takes time and energy away from the main question.? There may also?
be real differences between the respondent and the third party.? Saying or thinking about
something that ??its too close to home?? may also influence the respondent, who may or
may not be able to see through the ruse.

Observation of consumers is often a powerful tool.? Looking at how consumers select

products may yield insights into how they make decisions and what they look for.? For
example, some American manufacturers were concerned about low sales of their products
in Japan.? Observing Japanese consumers, it was found that many of these Japanese
consumers scrutinized packages looking for a name of a major manufacturer??he product
specific-brands that are common in the U.S. (e.g., Tide) were not impressive to the
Japanese, who wanted a name of a major firm like Mitsubishi or Proctor & Gamble.?
Observation may help us determine how much time consumers spend comparing prices,
or whether nutritional labels are being consulted.

A question arises as to whether this type of ??pying?? inappropriately invades the privacy
of consumers.?? Although there may be cause for some concern in that the particular
individuals have not consented to be part of this research, it should be noted that there is
no particular interest in what the individual customer being watched does.? The question
is what consumers??ither as an entire group or as segments??o.? Consumers benefit, for
example, from stores that are designed effectively to promote efficient shopping.? If it is
found that women are more uncomfortable than men about others standing too close, the
areas of the store heavily trafficked by women can be designed accordingly.? What is
being reported here, then, are averages and tendencies in response.? The intent is not to
find ??uicy?? observations specific to one customer.

The video clip with Paco Underhill that we saw in class demonstrated the application of
observation research to the retail setting.? By understanding the phenomena such as the
tendency toward a right turn, the location of merchandise can be observed.? It is also
possible to identify problem areas where customers may be overly vulnerable to the ??ut
brush,?? or overly close encounter with others.? This method can be used to identify
problems that the customer experiences, such as difficulty finding a product, a mirror, a
changing room, or a store employee for help.

Online research methods.? The Internet now reaches the great majority of households in
the U.S., and thus, online research provides new opportunity and has increased in use.

One potential benefit of online surveys is the use of ??onditional branching.?? In

conventional paper and pencil surveys, one question might ask if the respondent has
shopped for a new car during the last eight months.? If the respondent answers ??o,?? he
or she will be asked to skip ahead several questions??.g., going straight to question 17
instead of proceeding to number 9.? If the respondent answered ??es,?? he or she would
be instructed to go to the next question which, along with the next several ones, would
address issues related to this shopping experience.? Conditional branching allows the
computer to skip directly to the appropriate question.? If a respondent is asked which
brands he or she considered, it is also possible to customize brand comparison questions
to those listed.? Suppose, for example, that the respondent considered Ford, Toyota, and
Hyundai, it would be possible to ask the subject questions about his or her view of the
relative quality of each respective pair??n this case, Ford vs. Toyota, Ford vs. Hyundai,
and Toyota vs. Hyundai.

There are certain drawbacks to online surveys. Some consumers may be more
comfortable with online activities than others??nd not all households will have access.?
Today, however, this type of response bias is probably not significantly greater than that
associated with other types of research methods.? A more serious problem is that it has
consistently been found in online research that it is very difficult??f not impossible??o
get respondents to carefully read instructions and other information online??here is a
tendency to move quickly.? This makes it difficult to perform research that depends on
the respondent?? reading of a situation or product description.

Online search data and page visit logs provides valuable ground for analysis.? It is
possible to see how frequently various terms are used by those who use a firm?? web site
search feature or to see the route taken by most consumers to get to the page with the
information they ultimately want.? If consumers use a certain term frequently that is not
used by the firm in its product descriptions, the need to include this term in online content
can be seen in search logs.? If consumers take a long, ??orturous?? route to information
frequently accessed, it may be appropriate to redesign the menu structure and/or insert
hyperlinks in ??ntermediate?? pages that are found in many users?? routes.

Scanner data.? Many consumers are members of supermarket ??lubs.?? In return for
signing p for a card and presenting this when making purchases, consumers are often
eligible for considerable discounts on selected products.

Researchers use a more elaborate version of this type of program in some communities.?
Here, a number of consumers receive small payments and/or other incentives to sign up
to be part of a research panel.? They then receive a card that they are asked to present any
time they go shopping.? Nearly all retailers in the area usually cooperate.? It is now
possible to track what the consumer bought in all stores and to have a historical record.

The consumer?? shopping record is usually combined with demographic information

(e.g., income, educational level of adults in the household, occupations of adults, ages of
children, and whether the family owns and rents) and the family?? television watching
habits.? (Electronic equipment run by firms such as A. C. Nielsen will actually recognize
the face of each family member when he or she sits down to watch).
It is now possible to assess the relative impact of a number of factors on the consumer??
choice??.g.,

• What brand in a given product category was bought during the last, or a series of
past, purchase occasions;
• Whether, and if so, how many times a consumer has seen an ad for the brand in
question or a competing one;
• Whether the target brand (and/or a competing one) is on sale during the store
visit;
• Whether any brand had preferential display space;
• The impact of income and/or family size on purchase patterns; and
• Whether a coupon was used for the purchase and, if so, its value.

A ??plit cable?? technology allows the researchers to randomly select half the panel
members in a given community to receive one advertising treatment and the other half
another.? The selection is truly random since each household, as opposed to
neighborhood, is selected to get one treatment or the other.? Thus, observed differences
should, allowing for sampling error, the be result of advertising exposure since there are
no other systematic differences between groups.

Interestingly, it has been found that consumers tend to be more influenced by

commercials that they ??ap?? through while channel surfing even if they only see part of
the commercial.? This most likely results from the reality that one must pay greater
attention while channel surfing than when watching a commercial in order to determine
which program is worth watching.
Scanner data is, at the present time, only available for certain grocery item product
categories??.g., food items, beverages, cleaning items, laundry detergent, paper towels,
and toilet paper.? It is not available for most non-grocery product items.? Scanner
data analysis is most useful for frequently purchased items (e.g., drinks, food items,
snacks, and toilet paper) since a series of purchases in the same product category yield
more information with greater precision than would a record of one purchase at one point
in time.? Even if scanner data were available for electronic products such as printers,
computers, and MP3 players, for example, these products would be purchased quite
infrequently.? A single purchase, then, would not be as effective in effectively
distinguishing the effects of different factors??.g., advertising, shelf space, pricing of the
product and competitors, and availability of a coupon??ince we have at most one
purchase instance during a long period of time during which several of these factors
would apply at the same time.? In the case of items that are purchased frequently, the
consumer has the opportunity to buy a product, buy a competing product, or buy nothing
at all depending on the status of the brand of interest and competing brands.? In the case
of the purchase of an MP3 player, in contrast, there may be promotions associated with
several brands going on at the same time, and each may advertise.? It may also be that the
purchase was motivated by the breakdown of an existing product or dissatisfaction or a
desire to add more capabilities.

Physiological measures are occasionally used to examine consumer response.? For

example, advertisers may want to measure a consumer?? level of arousal during various
parts of an advertisement.? This can be used to assess possible discomfort on the negative
side and level of attention on the positive side.

By attaching a tiny camera to plain eye glasses worn by the subject while watching an
advertisement, it is possible to determine where on screen or other ad display the subject
focuses at any one time.? If the focus remains fixed throughout an ad sequence where the
interesting and active part area changes, we can track whether the respondent is following
the sequence intended.? If he or she is not, he or she is likely either not to be paying as
much attention as desired or to be confused by an overly complex sequence.? In
situations where the subject?? eyes do move, we can assess whether this movement is
going in the intended direction.

Mind-reading would clearly not be ethical and is, at the present time, not possible in any
event.? However, it is possible to measure brain waves by attaching electrodes.? These
readings will not reveal what the subject actually thinks, but it is possible to distinguish
between beta waves??ndicating active thought and analysis??nd alpha waves, indicating
lower levels of attention.

An important feature of physiological measures is that we can often track performance

over time.? A subject may, for example, be demonstrating good characteristics??uch as
appropriate level of arousal and eye movement??uring some of the ad sequence and not
during other parts.? This, then, gives some guidance as to which parts of the ad are
effective and which ones need to be reworked.
In a variation of direct physiological measures, a subject may be asked, at various points
during an advertisement, to indicate his or her level of interest, liking, comfort, and
approval by moving a lever or some instrument (much like one would adjust the volume
on a radio or MP3 player).? Republican strategist used this technique during the
impeachment and trial of Bill Clinton in the late 1990s.? By watching approval during
various phases of a speech by the former President, it was found that viewers tended to
respond negatively when he referred to ??peaking truthfully?? but favorably when the
President referred to the issues in controversy as part of his ??rivate life.?? The
Republican researchers were able to separate average results from Democrats,
Independents, and Republicans, effectively looking at different segments to make sure
that differences between each did not cancel out effects of the different segments.? (For
example, if at one point Democrats reacted positively and Republicans responded
negatively with the same intensity, the average result of apparent indifference would have
been very misleading).

Research sequence.? In general, if more than one type of research is to be used, the more
flexible and less precise method??uch as focus groups and/or individual interviews??
hould generally be used before the less flexible but more precise methods (e.g., surveys
and scanner data) are used.? Focus groups and interviews are flexible and allow the
researcher to follow up on interesting issues raised by participants who can be probed.?
However, because the sample sizes are small and because participants in a focus group
are influenced by each other, few data points are collected.? If we run five focus groups
with eight people each, for example, we would have a total of forty responses.? Even if
we assume that these are independent, a sample size of forty would give very imprecise
results.? We might conclude, for example, that somewhere between 5% and 40% of the
target market would be interested in the product we have to offer.? This is usually no
more precise than what we already reasonably new.? Questionnaires, in contrast, are
highly inflexible.? It is not possible to ask follow-up questions.? Therefore, we can use
our insights from focus groups and interviews to develop questionnaires that contain
specific questions that can be asked to a larger number of people.? There will still be
some sampling error, but with a sample size of 1,000+ responses, we may be able to
narrow the 95% confidence interval for the percentage of the target market that is
seriously interested in our product to, say, 17-21%, a range that is much more
meaningful.

Cautions.? Some cautions should be heeded in marketing research.? First, in general,

research should only be commissioned when it is worth the cost.? Thus, research should
normally be useful in making specific decisions (what size should the product be??
Should the product be launched?? Should we charge $1.75 or $2.25?)

Secondly, marketing research can be, and often is, abused.? Managers frequently have
their own ??gendas?? (e.g., they either would like a product to be launched or would
prefer that it not be launched so that the firm will have more resources left over to tackle
their favorite products).? Often, a way to get your way is to demonstrate through ??
bjective?? research that your opinions make economic sense. One example of misleading
research, which was reported nationwide in the media, involved the case of ??he
Pentagon Declares War on Rush Limbaugh.?? The Pentagon, within a year of the election
of Democrat Bill Clinton, reported that only 4.2% of soldiers listening to the Armed
Forces Network wanted to hear Rush Limbaugh.? However, although this finding was
reported without question in the media, it was later found that the conclusion was based
on the question ??hat single thing can we do to improve programming??? If you did not
write in something like ??arry Rush Limbaugh,?? you were counted as not wanting to
hear him.

Culture and Subculture

NOTE: This topic is also discussed in the International Marketing section of this site.

Culture is part of the external influences that impact the consumer.?That is, culture
represents influences that are imposed on the consumer by other individuals.

The definition of culture offered in one textbook is ??hat complex whole which includes
knowledge, belief, art, morals, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by
man person as a member of society.?? From this definition, we make the following
observations:

• Culture, as a ??omplex whole,?? is a system of interdependent components.

• Knowledge and beliefs are important parts.? In the U.S., we know and believe
that a person who is skilled and works hard will get ahead. In other countries, it
may be believed that differences in outcome result more from luck.? ??hunking,??
the name for China in Chinese, literally means ??he Middle Kingdom.?? The
belief among ancient Chinese that they were in the center of the universe greatly
influenced their thinking.
• Other issues are relevant.? Art, for example, may be reflected in the rather
arbitrary practice of wearing ties in some countries and wearing turbans in
others.? Morality may be exhibited in the view in the United States that one
should not be naked in public.? In Japan, on the other hand, groups of men and
women may take steam baths together without perceived as improper.? On the
other extreme, women in some Arab countries are not even allowed to reveal their
faces.? Notice, by the way, that what at least some countries view as moral may in
fact be highly immoral by the standards of another country.? For example, the law
that once banned interracial marriages in South Africa was named the ??
mmorality Act,?? even though in most civilized countries this law, and any degree
of explicit racial prejudice, would itself be considered highly immoral.

Culture has several important characteristics:? (1)? Culture is comprehensive.? This

means that all parts must fit together in some logical fashion.? For example, bowing and
a strong desire to avoid the loss of face are unified in their manifestation of the
importance of respect.? (2)? Culture is learned rather than being something we are born
with.? We will consider the mechanics of learning later in the course.? (3)? Culture is
manifested within boundaries of acceptable behavior.? For example, in American
society, one cannot show up to class naked, but wearing anything from a suit and tie to
shorts and a T-shirt would usually be acceptable.? Failure to behave within the prescribed
norms may lead to sanctions, ranging from being hauled off by the police for indecent
exposure to being laughed at by others for wearing a suit at the beach.? (4)? Conscious
awareness of cultural standards is limited.? One American spy was intercepted by the
Germans during World War II simply because of the way he held his knife and fork while
eating.? (5)? Cultures fall somewhere on a continuum between static and dynamic
depending on how quickly they accept change.? For example, American culture has
changed a great deal since the 1950s, while the culture of Saudi Arabia has changed
much less.

Dealing with culture.? Culture is a problematic issue for many marketers since it is
inherently nebulous and often difficult to understand.? One may violate the cultural
norms of another country without being informed of this, and people from different
cultures may feel uncomfortable in each other?? presence without knowing exactly why
(for example, two speakers may unconsciously continue to attempt to adjust to reach an
incompatible preferred interpersonal distance).

Warning about stereotyping.? When observing a culture, one must be careful not to
over-generalize about traits that one sees.? Research in social psychology has suggested a
strong tendency for people to perceive an ??utgroup?? as more homogenous than an ??
ngroup,?? even when they knew what members had been assigned to each group purely
by chance.? When there is often a ??rain of truth?? to some of the perceived differences,
the temptation to over-generalize is often strong.? Note that there are often significant
individual differences within cultures.

Cultural lessons.? We considered several cultural lessons in class; the important thing
here is the big picture.? For example, within the Muslim tradition, the dog is considered a
??irty?? animal, so portraying it as ??an?? best friend?? in an advertisement is counter-
productive.? Packaging, seen as a reflection of the quality of the ??eal?? product, is
considerably more important in Asia than in the U.S., where there is a tendency to focus
on the contents which ??eally count.?? Many cultures observe significantly greater levels
of formality than that typical in the U.S., and Japanese negotiator tend to observe long
silent pauses as a speaker?? point is considered.

Cultural characteristics as a continuum.? There is a tendency to stereotype cultures as

being one way or another (e.g., individualistic rather than collectivistic).? Note, however,
countries fall on a continuum of cultural traits.? Hofstede?? research demonstrates a wide
range between the most individualistic and collectivistic countries, for example??ome fall
in the middle.

Hofstede?? Dimensions.? Gert Hofstede, a Dutch researcher, was able to interview a

large number of IBM executives in various countries, and found that cultural differences
tended to center around four key dimensions:
 • Individualism vs. collectivism:? To what extent do people believe in individual
responsibility and reward rather than having these measures aimed at the larger
group?? Contrary to the stereotype, Japan actually ranks in the middle of this
dimension, while Indonesia and West Africa rank toward the collectivistic side.?
The U.S., Britain, and the Netherlands rate toward individualism.
• Power distance:? To what extent is there a strong separation of individuals based
on rank?? Power distance tends to be particularly high in Arab countries and some
Latin American ones, while it is more modest in Northern Europe and the U.S.
• Masculinity vs. femininity involves a somewhat more nebulous concept.?? ??
asculine?? values involve competition and ??onquering?? nature by means such as
large construction projects, while ??eminine?? values involve harmony and
environmental protection.?? Japan is one of the more masculine countries, while
the Netherlands rank relatively low.? The U.S. is close to the middle, slightly
toward the masculine side. ( The fact that these values are thought of as ??
asculine?? or ??eminine?? does not mean that they are consistently held by
members of each respective gender??here are very large ??ithin-group??
differences.? There is, however, often a large correlation of these cultural values
with the status of women.)
• Uncertainty avoidance involves the extent to which a ??tructured?? situation with
clear rules is preferred to a more ambiguous one; in general, countries with lower
uncertainty avoidance tend to be more tolerant of risk.? Japan ranks very high.?
Few countries are very low in any absolute sense, but relatively speaking, Britain
and Hong Kong are lower, and the U.S. is in the lower range of the distribution.

Although Hofstede?? original work did not address this, a fifth dimension of long term
vs. short term orientation has been proposed.? In the U.S., managers like to see quick
results, while Japanese managers are known for take a long term view, often accepting
long periods before profitability is obtained.

High vs. low context cultures:? In some cultures, ??hat you see is what you get??�?he
speaker is expected to make his or her points clear and limit ambiguity.? This is the case
in the U.S.??f you have something on your mind, you are expected to say it directly,
subject to some reasonable standards of diplomacy.? In Japan, in contrast, facial
expressions and what is not said may be an important clue to understanding a speaker??
meaning.? Thus, it may be very difficult for Japanese speakers to understand another??
written communication.? The nature of languages may exacerbate this phenomenon??hile
the German language is very precise, Chinese lacks many grammatical features, and the
meaning of words may be somewhat less precise.? English ranks somewhere in the
middle of this continuum.

Ethnocentrism and the self-reference criterion.? The self-reference criterion refers to

the tendency of individuals, often unconsciously, to use the standards of one?? own
culture to evaluate others.? For example, Americans may perceive more traditional
societies to be ??ackward?? and ??nmotivated?? because they fail to adopt new
technologies or social customs, seeking instead to preserve traditional values.? In the
1960s, a supposedly well read American psychology professor referred to India?? culture
of ??ick?? because, despite severe food shortages, the Hindu religion did not allow the
eating of cows.? The psychologist expressed disgust that the cows were allowed to roam
free in villages, although it turns out that they provided valuable functions by offering
milk and fertilizing fields.? Ethnocentrism is the tendency to view one?? culture to be
superior to others.? The important thing here is to consider how these biases may come in
the way in dealing with members of other cultures.

It should be noted that there is a tendency of outsiders to a culture to overstate the

similarity of members of that culture to each other.? In the United States, we are well
aware that there is a great deal of heterogeneity within our culture; however, we often
underestimate the diversity within other cultures.? For example, in Latin America, there
are great differences between people who live in coastal and mountainous areas; there are
also great differences between social classes.

Language issues.? Language is an important element of culture.? It should be realized

that regional differences may be subtle.? For example, one word may mean one thing in
one Latin American country, but something off-color in another.? It should also be kept
in mind that much information is carried in non-verbal communication.? In some
cultures, we nod to signify ??es?? and shake our heads to signify ??o;?? in other cultures,
the practice is reversed.? Within the context of language:

• There are often large variations in regional dialects of a given language.? The
differences between U.S., Australian, and British English are actually modest
compared to differences between dialects of Spanish and German.
• Idioms involve ??igures of speech?? that may not be used, literally translated, in
other languages.? For example, baseball is a predominantly North and South
American sport, so the notion of ??n the ball park?? makes sense here, but the
term does not carry the same meaning in cultures where the sport is less popular.
• Neologisms involve terms that have come into language relatively recently as
technology or society involved.? With the proliferation of computer technology,
for example, the idea of an ??dd-on?? became widely known.? It may take longer
for such terms to ??iffuse?? into other regions of the world.? In parts of the World
where English is heavily studied in schools, the emphasis is often on grammar and
traditional language rather than on current terminology, so neologisms have a
wide potential not to be understood.
• Slang exists within most languages.? Again, regional variations are common and
not all people in a region where slang is used will necessarily understand this.?
There are often significant generation gaps in the use of slang.

Writing patterns, or the socially accepted ways of writing, will differs significantly
between cultures.?
In English and Northern European languages, there is an emphasis on organization and
conciseness.? Here, a point is made by building up to it through background.? An
introduction will often foreshadow what is to be said.? In Romance languages such as
Spanish, French, and Portuguese, this style is often considered ??oring?? and ??
nelegant.?? Detours are expected and are considered a sign of class, not of poor
organization.? In Asian languages, there is often a great deal of circularity.? Because of
concerns about potential loss of face, opinions may not be expressed directly.? Instead,
speakers may hint at ideas or indicate what others have said, waiting for feedback from
the other speaker before committing to a point of view.

Because of differences in values, assumptions, and language structure, it is not possible to

meaningfully translate ??ord-for-word?? from one language to another.? A translator
must keep ??nspoken understandings?? and assumptions in mind in translating.? The
intended meaning of a word may also differ from its literal translation.? For example, the
Japanese word hai? is literally translated as ??es.?? To Americans, that would imply ??es,
I agree.?? To the Japanese speaker, however, the word may mean ??es, I hear what you
are saying?? (without any agreement expressed) or even ??es, I hear you are saying
something even though I am not sure exactly what you are saying.??

Differences in cultural values result in different preferred methods of speech.? In

American English, where the individual is assumed to be more in control of his or her
destiny than is the case in many other cultures, there is a preference for the ??ctive??
tense (e.g., ?? wrote the marketing plan??) as opposed to the passive (e.g., ??he marketing
plan was written by me.??)

Because of the potential for misunderstandings in translations, it is dangerous to rely on a

translation from one language to another made by one person.? In the ??ecentering??
method, multiple translators are used.?
The text is first translated by one translator??ay, from German to Mandarin Chinese.? A
second translator, who does not know what the original German text said, will then
translate back to German from Mandarin Chinese translation.? The text is then
compared.? If the meaning is not similar, a third translator, keeping in mind this
feedback, will then translate from German to Mandarin.? The process is continued until
the translated meaning appears to be satisfactory.

Different perspectives exist in different cultures on several issues; e.g.:

• Monochronic cultures tend to value precise scheduling and doing one thing at a
time; in polychronic cultures, in contrast, promptness is valued less, and multiple
tasks may be performed simultaneously.? (See text for more detail).
• Space is perceived differently.? Americans will feel crowded where people from
more densely populated countries will be comfortable.
• Symbols differ in meaning.? For example, while white symbols purity in the U.S.,
it is a symbol of death in China.? Colors that are considered masculine and
feminine also differ by culture.
• Americans have a lot of quite shallow friends toward whom little obligation is
felt; people in European and some Asian cultures have fewer, but more significant
friends.? For example, one Ph.D. student from India, with limited income, felt
obligated to try buy an airline ticket for a friend to go back to India when a
relative had died.
• In the U.S. and much of Europe, agreements are typically rather precise and
contractual in nature; in Asia, there is a greater tendency to settle issues as they
come up.? As a result, building a relationship of trust is more important in Asia,
since you must be able to count on your partner being reasonable.
• In terms of etiquette, some cultures have more rigid procedures than others.? In
some countries, for example, there are explicit standards as to how a gift should
be presented.? In some cultures, gifts should be presented in private to avoid
embarrassing the recipient; in others, the gift should be made publicly to ensure
that no perception of secret bribery could be made.

Demographics
Demographics are clearly tied to subculture and segmentation. Here, however,
we shift our focus from analyzing specific subcultures to trying to understand
the implications for an entire population of its makeup.

Some articles of possible interest:

Coffee, Lipsticks, and the Economy

The 2008 Tax Rebate and Consumer Behavior
Gasoline Prices and Consumer Behavior

Several issues are useful in the structure of a population. For example, in some
rapidly growing countries, a large percentage of the population is concentrated
among younger generations. In countries such as Korea, China, and Taiwan, this
has helped stimulate economic growth, while in certain poorer countries, it
puts pressures on society to accommodate an increasing number of people on a
fixed amount of land. Other countries such as Japan and Germany, in contrast,
experience problems with a "graying" society, where fewer non-retired people
are around to support an increasing number of aging seniors. Because Germany
actually hovers around negative population growth, the German government
has issued large financial incentives, in the forms of subsidies, for women who
have children. In the United States, population growth occurs both through
births and immigration. Since the number of births is not growing, problems
occur for firms that are dependent on population growth (e.g., Gerber, a
manufacturer of baby food).

Social class is a somewhat nebulous subject that involves stratifying people into
groups with various amounts of prestige, power, and privilege. In part because
of the pioneering influence in American history, status differentiations here are
quite vague. We cannot, for example, associate social class with income,
because a traditionally low status job as a plumber may today come with as
much income as a traditionally more prestigious job as a school teacher. In
certain other cultures, however, stratification is more clear-cut. Although the
caste system in India is now illegal, it still maintains a tremendous influence on
that society. While some mobility exists today, social class awareness is also
somewhat greater in Britain, where social status is in part reinforced by the
class connotations of the accent with which one speaks.

Textbooks speak of several indices that have been used to "compute" social
class in the United States, weighing factors such as income, the nature of one’s
employment, and level of education. Taken too literally, these indices are not
very meaningful; more broadly speaking, they illustrate the reality that social
status is a complex variable that is determined, not always with consensus
among observers, by several different variables.
Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning
?Segmentation, targeting, and positioning together comprise a three stage process.? We
first (1) determine which kinds of customers exist, then (2) select which ones we are best
off trying to serve and, finally, (3) implement our segmentation by optimizing our
products/services for that segment and communicating that we have made the choice to
distinguish ourselves that way.

Segmentation involves finding out what kinds of consumers with different needs exist.?
In the auto market, for example, some consumers demand speed and performance, while
others are much more concerned about roominess and safety.? In general, it holds true
that ??ou can?? be all things to all people,?? and experience has demonstrated that firms
that specialize in meeting the needs of one group of consumers over another tend to be
more profitable.

Generically, there are three approaches to marketing.? In the undifferentiated strategy, all
consumers are treated as the same, with firms not making any specific efforts to satisfy
particular groups.? This may work when the product is a standard one where one
competitor really can?? offer much that another one can??.? Usually, this is the case only
for commodities.? In the concentrated strategy, one firm chooses to focus on one of
several segments that exist while leaving other segments to competitors.? For example,
Southwest Airlines focuses on price sensitive consumers who will forego meals and
assigned seating for low prices.? In contrast, most airlines follow the differentiated
strategy:? They offer high priced tickets to those who are inflexible in that they cannot
tell in advance when they need to fly and find it impractical to stay over a Saturday.?
These travelers??sually business travelers??ay high fares but can only fill the planes up
partially.? The same airlines then sell some of the remaining seats to more price sensitive
customers who can buy two weeks in advance and stay over.
Note that segmentation calls for some tough choices.? There may be a large number of
variables that can be used to differentiate consumers of a given product category; yet, in
practice, it becomes impossibly cumbersome to work with more than a few at a time.?
Thus, we need to determine which variables will be most useful in distinguishing
different groups of consumers.? We might thus decide, for example, that the variables
that are most relevant in separating different kinds of soft drink consumers are (1)
preference for taste vs. low calories, (2) preference for Cola vs. non-cola taste, (3) price
sensitivity??illingness to pay for brand names; and (4) heavy vs. light consumers.? We
now put these variables together to arrive at various combinations.
Several different kinds of variables can be used for segmentation.?

• Demographic variables essentially refer to personal statistics such as income,

gender, education, location (rural vs. urban, East vs. West), ethnicity, and family
size.? Campbell?? soup, for instance, has found that Western U.S. consumers on
the average prefer spicier soups??hus, you get a different product in the same cans
at the East and West coasts.? Facing flat sales of guns in the traditional male
dominated market, a manufacturer came out with the Lady Remmington, a more
compact, handier gun more attractive to women.? Taking this a step farther, it is
also possible to segment on lifestyle and values.??
• Some consumers want to be seen as similar to others, while a different segment
wants to stand apart from the crowd.?
• Another basis for segmentation is behavior.? Some consumers are ??rand loyal??
�?.e., they tend to stick with their preferred brands even when a competing one
is on sale.? Some consumers are ??eavy?? users while others are ??ight?? users.?
For example, research conducted by the wine industry shows that some 80% of
the product is consumed by 20% of the consumers??resumably a rather
intoxicated group.?
• One can also segment on benefits sought, essentially bypassing demographic
explanatory variables.? Some consumers, for example, like scented soap (a
segment likely to be attracted to brands such as Irish Spring), while others prefer
the ??lean?? feeling of unscented soap (the ??vory?? segment).? Some consumers
use toothpaste primarily to promote oral health, while another segment is more
interested in breath freshening.

In the next step, we decide to target one or more segments.? Our choice should generally
depend on several factors.? First, how well are existing segments served by other
manufacturers?? It will be more difficult to appeal to a segment that is already well
served than to one whose needs are not currently being served well.? Secondly, how large
is the segment, and how can we expect it to grow?? (Note that a downside to a large,
rapidly growing segment is that it tends to attract competition).? Thirdly, do we have
strengths as a company that will help us appeal particularly to one group of consumers??
Firms may already have an established reputation.? While McDonald?? has a great
reputation for fast, consistent quality, family friendly food, it would be difficult to
convince consumers that McDonald?? now offers gourmet food.? Thus, McD?? would
probably be better off targeting families in search of consistent quality food in nice, clean
restaurants.
Positioning involves implementing our targeting.? For example, Apple Computer has
chosen to position itself as a maker of user-friendly computers.? Thus, Apple has done a
lot through its advertising to promote itself, through its unintimidating icons, as a
computer for ??on-geeks.?? The Visual C software programming language, in contrast, is
aimed a ??echies.??

Michael Treacy and Fred Wiersema suggested in their 1993 book The Discipline of
Market Leaders that most successful firms fall into one of three categories:

• Operationally excellent firms, which maintain a strong competitive advantage by

maintaining exceptional efficiency, thus enabling the firm to provide reliable
service to the customer at a significantly lower cost than those of less well
organized and well run competitors.? The emphasis here is mostly on low cost,
subject to reliable performance, and less value is put on customizing the offering
for the specific customer.? Wal-Mart is an example of this discipline.? Elaborate
logistical designs allow goods to be moved at the lowest cost, with extensive
systems predicting when specific quantities of supplies will be needed.
• Customer intimate firms, which excel in serving the specific needs of the
individual customer well.? There is less emphasis on efficiency, which is
sacrificed for providing more precisely what is wanted by the customer.?
Reliability is also stressed.? Nordstrom?? and IBM are examples of this
discipline.
• Technologically excellent firms, which produce the most advanced products
currently available with the latest technology, constantly maintaining leadership
in innovation. ?These firms, because they work with costly technology that need
constant refinement, cannot be as efficient as the operationally excellent firms and
often cannot adapt their products as well to the needs of the individual customer.?
Intel is an example of this discipline.
Treacy and Wiersema suggest that in addition to excelling on one of the three value
dimensions, firms must meet acceptable levels on the other two.? Wal-Mart, for example,
does maintain some level of customer service.? Nordstrom?? and Intel both must meet
some standards of cost effectiveness.? The emphasis, beyond meeting the minimum
required level in the two other dimensions, is on the dimension of strength.
Repositioning involves an attempt to change consumer perceptions of a brand, usually
because the existing position that the brand holds has become less attractive.? Sears, for
example, attempted to reposition itself from a place that offered great sales but
unattractive prices the rest of the time to a store that consistently offered ??veryday low
prices.?? Repositioning in practice is very difficult to accomplish.? A great deal of money
is often needed for advertising and other promotional efforts, and in many cases, the
repositioning fails.

To effectively attempt repositioning, it is important to understand how one?? brand and

those of competitors are perceived.? One approach to identifying consumer product
perceptions is multidimensional scaling.? Here, we identify how products are perceived
on two or more ??imensions,?? allowing us to plot brands against each other.? It may
then be possible to attempt to ??ove?? one?? brand in a more desirable direction by
selectively promoting certain points.? There are two main approaches to multi-
dimensional scaling.? In the a priori approach, market researchers identify dimensions of
interest and then ask consumers about their perceptions on each dimension for each
brand.? This is useful when (1) the market researcher knows which dimensions are of
interest and (2) the customer?? perception on each dimension is relatively clear (as
opposed to being ??ade up?? on the spot to be able to give the researcher a desired
answer).? In the similarity rating approach, respondents are not asked about their
perceptions of brands on any specific dimensions.? Instead, subjects are asked to rate the
extent of similarity of different pairs of products (e.g., How similar, on a scale of 1-7, is
Snicker?? to Kitkat, and how similar is Toblerone to Three Musketeers?)? Using a
computer algorithms, the computer then identifies positions of each brand on a map of a
given number of dimensions.? The computer does not reveal what each dimension
means??hat must be left to human interpretation based on what the variations in each
dimension appears to reveal.? This second method is more useful when no specific
product dimensions have been identified as being of particular interest or when it is not
clear what the variables of difference are for the product category.

Information Search and Decision

Making
Problem Recognition.? One model of consumer decision making involves several steps.
The first one is problem recognition??ou realize that something is not as it should be.?
Perhaps, for example, your car is getting more difficult to start and is not accelerating
well.??? The second step is information search??hat are some alternative ways of solving
the problem?? You might buy a new car, buy a used car, take your car in for repair, ride
the bus, ride a taxi, or ride a skateboard to work.? The third step involves evaluation of
alternatives.? A skateboard is inexpensive, but may be ill-suited for long distances and
for rainy days.?? Finally, we have the purchase stage, and sometimes a post-purchase
stage (e.g., you return a product to the store because you did not find it satisfactory).? In
reality, people may go back and forth between the stages.? For example, a person may
resume alternative identification during while evaluating already known alternatives.

Consumer involvement will tend to vary dramatically depending on the type of product.?
In general, consumer involvement will be higher for products that are very expensive
(e.g., a home, a car) or are highly significant in the consumer?? life in some other way
(e.g., a word processing program or acne medication).

It is important to consider the consumer?? motivation for buying products.? To achieve

this goal, we can use the Means-End chain, wherein we consider a logical progression of
consequences of product use that eventually lead to desired end benefit.? Thus, for
example, a consumer may see that a car has a large engine, leading to fast acceleration,
leading to a feeling of performance, leading to a feeling of power, which ultimately
improves the consumer?? self-esteem.? A handgun may aim bullets with precision, which
enables the user to kill an intruder, which means that the intruder will not be able to harm
the consumer?? family, which achieves the desired end-state of security.? In advertising,
it is important to portray the desired end-states.? Focusing on the large motor will do less
good than portraying a successful person driving the car.

Information search and decision making.? Consumers engage in both internal and
external information search.?
Internal search involves the consumer identifying alternatives from his or her memory.?
For certain low involvement products, it is very important that marketing programs
achieve ??op of mind?? awareness.? For example, few people will search the Yellow
Pages for fast food restaurants; thus, the consumer must be able to retrieve one??
restaurant from memory before it will be considered.? For high involvement products,
consumers are more likely to use an external search.? Before buying a car, for example,
the consumer may ask friends?? opinions, read reviews in Consumer Reports, consult
several web sites, and visit several dealerships.? Thus, firms that make products that are
selected predominantly through external search must invest in having information
available to the consumer in need??.g., through brochures, web sites, or news coverage.

A compensatory decision involves the consumer ??rading off?? good and bad attributes
of a product.? For example, a car may have a low price and good gas mileage but slow
acceleration.? If the price is sufficiently inexpensive and gas efficient, the consumer may
then select it over a car with better acceleration that costs more and uses more gas.?
Occasionally, a decision will involve a non-compensatory strategy.? For example, a
parent may reject all soft drinks that contain artificial sweeteners.?? Here, other good
features such as taste and low calories cannot overcome this one ??on-negotiable??
attribute.

The amount of effort a consumer puts into searching depends on a number of factors such
as the market (how many competitors are there, and how great are differences between
brands expected to be?), product characteristics (how important is this product?? How
complex is the product?? How obvious are indications of quality?), consumer
characteristics (how interested is a consumer, generally, in analyzing product
characteristics and making the best possible deal?), and situational characteristics (as
previously discussed).

Two interesting issues in decisions are:

 • Variety seeking (where consumers seek to try new brands not because these
brands are expected to be ??etter?? in any way, but rather because the consumer
wants a ??hange of pace,?? and
• ??mpulse?? purchases??nplanned buys. This represents a somewhat ??uzzy??
group.? For example, a shopper may plan to buy vegetables but only decide in the
store to actually buy broccoli and corn.? Alternatively, a person may buy an item
which is currently on sale, or one that he or she remembers that is needed only
once inside the store.

A number of factors involve consumer choices.? In some cases, consumers will be more
motivated.? For example, one may be more careful choosing a gift for an in-law than
when buying the same thing for one self.? Some consumers are also more motivated to
comparison shop for the best prices, while others are more convenience oriented.?
Personality impacts decisions.? Some like variety more than others, and some are more
receptive to stimulation and excitement in trying new stores.? Perception influences
decisions.? Some people, for example, can taste the difference between generic and name
brand foods while many cannot.? Selective perception occurs when a person is paying
attention only to information of interest.? For example, when looking for a new car, the
consumer may pay more attention to car ads than when this is not in the horizon.? Some
consumers are put off by perceived risk.? Thus, many marketers offer a money back
guarantee.? Consumers will tend to change their behavior through learning??.g., they will
avoid restaurants they have found to be crowded and will settle on brands that best meet
their tastes.? Consumers differ in the values they hold (e.g., some people are more
committed to recycling than others who will not want to go through the hassle).? We will
consider the issue of lifestyle under segmentation.

Families and Family Decision Making

The Family Life Cycle. Individuals and families tend to go through a "life
cycle:" The simple life cycle goes from
For purposes of this discussion, a "couple" may either be married or merely
involve living together. The breakup of a non-marital relationship involving
cohabitation is similarly considered equivalent to a divorce.

In real life, this situation is, of course, a bit more complicated. For example,
many couples undergo divorce. Then we have one of the scenarios:

Single parenthood can result either from divorce or from the death of one
parent. Divorce usually entails a significant change in the relative wealth of
spouses. In some cases, the non-custodial parent (usually the father) will not
pay the required child support, and even if he or she does, that still may not
leave the custodial parent and children as well off as they were during the
marriage. On the other hand, in some cases, some non-custodial parents will be
called on to pay a large part of their income in child support. This is
particularly a problem when the non-custodial parent remarries and has
additional children in the second (or subsequent marriages). In any event,
divorce often results in a large demand for:

• Low cost furniture and household items

• Time-saving goods and services

Divorced parents frequently remarry, or become involved in other non-marital

relationships; thus, we may see

Another variation involves

Here, the single parent who assumes responsibility for one or more children
may not form a relationship with the other parent of the child.

Integrating all the possibilities discussed, we get the following depiction of the
Family Life Cycle:

Generally, there are two main themes in the Family Life Cycle, subject to
significant exceptions:

• As a person gets older, he or she tends to advance in his or her career

and tends to get greater income (exceptions: maternity leave, divorce,
retirement).