consumer behavior research proposal

OPINION article

Proposal for lines of research into consumer behavior: examples in the tourism industry.

• 1 Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Social Science, University of Castilla La Mancha, Ciudad Real, Spain
• 2 Department of Business Management, Faculty of Business and Economics, Rovira i Virgili University, Reus, Spain

Introduction

Departing from the high relevance that loyalty plays in the promotion of tourist destinations, the study of the variables that result in loyalty is key. For this reason, there are myriads of studies devoted to the analysis of the variables that result in loyalty, especially considering either or both attitudinal and behavioral loyalty; in turn, relatively less frequent are the studies that also/instead consider active and passive loyalty. Within this research line, we go one step further and propose the importance of focusing on the study of the variables that are conducive to attitudinal and behavioral loyalty; moreover, within attitudinal loyalty, we also acknowledge the distinction of two further types of loyalty, that is, active attitudinal and passive attitudinal loyalty. This opinion paper aims at adding knowledge to the field of consumer behavior in tourism, proposing the importance of studying the variables that are able to drive loyalty in a very differentiated way (active attitudinal loyalty, passive attitudinal loyalty, and behavioral loyalty).

Proposing a New Research Line

Loyalty is a key variable in all economic sectors and industries, so there is no doubt that looking for loyalty is a key priority. In fact, it has been largely proven how loyalty is essential for achieving key company indicators such as long-term competition, profitability, and survival ( Jacoby and Chestnut, 1978 ; Dick and Basu, 1994 ; Garbarino and Johnson, 1999 ; Uncles et al., 2003 ; Rundle-Thiele, 2005 ; Kim and Li, 2009 ). In the tourism industry, loyalty is generally regarded as the best predictor for future tourist behavior, as well as a source of success in the market, in addition to providing competitive superiority ( Kim and Brown, 2012 ; Sun et al., 2013 ; Gursoy et al., 2014 ; Maghsoodi et al., 2016 ; Almeida-Santana and Moreno-Gil, 2018 ; Cossío-Silva et al., 2019 ). Hence, a key objective for tourist destinations is to attract and retain their target market ( Gursoy et al., 2014 ; Cossío-Silva et al., 2019 ). These considerations are of special relevance for countries such as Spain, where tourism is one of the main industries, and the economy relies, to a great extent, on tourism ( Balaguer and Cantavella-Jorda, 2002 ; Camisón et al., 2016 ).

In the marketing literature, several research studies showed how within loyalty, a further distinction between attitudinal loyalty and behavioral loyalty could be made (e.g., Day, 1969 ; Jacoby, 1971 ; Jacoby and Kyner, 1973 ; Lutz and Winn, 1974 ; Dick and Basu, 1994 ; Yoon and Kim, 2000 ; Bowen and Chen, 2001 ; Chaudhuri and Holbrook, 2001 ; Lam et al., 2004 ; Söderlund, 2006 ). In general, while attitudinal loyalty refers to positive attitudes held by customers toward a particular brand or store, behavioral loyalty refers to repeat purchases by a customer at a specific brand or store ( Day, 1969 ; Dick and Basu, 1994 ). While it is common to encourage the design of strategies to boost both types of loyalty, it has been observed how sometimes, attitudes might not necessarily lead to repeat patronage. In fact, previous research suggested that attitudinal loyalty not in the presence of re-patronage behavior, and re-patronage not in the presence of attitudinal loyalty, could be conceptualized ( Day, 1969 ; Dick and Basu, 1994 ; Reynolds and Beatty, 1999 ). These latter phenomena are sometimes due to custom, chance, or other factors ( Day, 1969 ). In either case, it is very important to refer to both types of loyalty, that is, attitudinal and behavioral loyalty, as two separate constructs, despite the fact of such constructs being inter-related ( Dick and Basu, 1994 ; Bemmaor, 1995 ; Chandon et al., 2005 ; Liu, 2007 ). This perspective is also acknowledged in the tourism literature, where a vast number of studies (e.g., Faullant et al., 2008 ; Wang et al., 2010 ; Kursunluoglu, 2011 ; Forgas-Coll et al., 2012 ; Prayag and Ryan, 2012 ; Zhang et al., 2014 ; Llodrà-Riera et al., 2015 ) also consider loyalty as a two-dimensional variable, that is, a variable that consists of two separate and inter-related constructs of both attitudinal and behavioral loyalty.

Relatively less analyzed is the further distinction between two other types of loyalty, that is to say, active loyalty and passive loyalty. One of the studies that considered this distinction in the services literature is the research of Ganesh et al. (2000) . In this work, loyalty could be considered as either active or passive depending on the predisposition of clients to collaborate with the company. From this point of view, active loyalty was then conceptualized as word-of-mouth communication (WOM), requiring an active compromise reflecting the emotional bonds with the client. Sharing this perspective, Kandampully et al. (2015) suggested that active loyalty was exhibited by those clients that had both a firm compromise and a strong will to serve as ambassadors of the brand, supporting the products and services of the company with a positive WOM. In this regard, social media technologies fostered the development of research oriented to assess both active and passive loyalty. For example, Van Asperen et al. (2018) considered two types of clients' participation in social media: the consumption of social media as passive participation and contribution in social media as active participation. This differentiation could be the key to understand why a recommendation succeeded or, the other way around, failed.

There is no doubt that this proposed research line is of key importance. Departing from the high relevance that loyalty plays in the promotion of tourist destinations, given its connections to long-term profit variables such as long-term competitiveness, profitability, and survival, the study of the variables that result in loyalty is key, especially in countries such as Spain, where tourism is without a doubt the main industry, and the economy relies, to a greater extent, on tourism ( Nowak et al., 2007 ). Spain's economic growth has been positively affected by the persistent expansion of inbound tourism in recent decades ( Sokhanvar, 2019 ). For example, the results obtained in 2018 in terms of the number of foreign visitors to this country were 89,856 million, a 1.1% increase in arrivals over the previous year, which represents an increase in international tourist spending by 3.3% ( Ministerio de Energía y Turismo, 2019 ). These data make Spain as the second country in the world in terms of foreign tourist arrivals ( World Tourism Organization, 2019 ).

Loyalty is often measured by the joint use of its behavioral and attitudinal components. In some markets, such as tourism, repeat visits (behavioral loyalty) may be limited due to other variables, such as “search for variety.” However, a tourist who does not repeat a visit to the same destination may have an important attitudinal loyalty toward that destination and be willing to strongly recommend his visit. Therefore, this opinion paper has been aimed at showing how in the field of consumer behavior in tourism marketing, it is still possible to propose new future lines of research. One of them is to analyze the differences between active and passive attitude loyalty. Although some previous work in this area had shown differences between the active and passive behavior of consumers as opposed to the use of information sources ( Ganesh et al., 2000 ; Kandampully et al., 2015 ), the difference between active and passive attitudinal loyalty had not been addressed. It is especially relevant to carry out work aimed at analyzing this line of research, especially given the relevance that the development of social networks can give to it.

Author Contributions

All authors listed have made a substantial, direct and intellectual contribution to the work, and approved it for publication.

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Acknowledgments

This research has been financed by Research Group Grants from the University of Castilla-La Mancha. Co-financed by the European Union through the European Regional Development Funds. Research Group: Observatory of Innovation in Commercial Distribution (OIDC).

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Keywords: active attitudinal loyalty, passive attitudinal loyalty, behavioral loyalty, tourist destination image, tourist loyalty

Citation: Blazquez-Resino JJ, Gutiérrez-Broncano S and Arias-Oliva M (2020) Proposal for Lines of Research Into Consumer Behavior: Examples in the Tourism Industry. Front. Psychol. 11:64. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00064

Received: 09 November 2019; Accepted: 10 January 2020; Published: 19 February 2020.

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Copyright © 2020 Blazquez-Resino, Gutiérrez-Broncano and Arias-Oliva. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) . The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

*Correspondence: Juan Jose Blazquez-Resino, Juan.Blazquez@uclm.es

Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

The past, present, and future of consumer research

• Published: 13 June 2020
• Volume 31 , pages 137–149, ( 2020 )

Cite this article

• Maayan S. Malter   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-0383-7925 1 ,
• Morris B. Holbrook 1 ,
• Barbara E. Kahn 2 ,
• Jeffrey R. Parker 3 &
• Donald R. Lehmann 1  

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In this article, we document the evolution of research trends (concepts, methods, and aims) within the field of consumer behavior, from the time of its early development to the present day, as a multidisciplinary area of research within marketing. We describe current changes in retailing and real-world consumption and offer suggestions on how to use observations of consumption phenomena to generate new and interesting consumer behavior research questions. Consumption continues to change with technological advancements and shifts in consumers’ values and goals. We cannot know the exact shape of things to come, but we polled a sample of leading scholars and summarize their predictions on where the field may be headed in the next twenty years.

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1 Introduction

Beginning in the late 1950s, business schools shifted from descriptive and practitioner-focused studies to more theoretically driven and academically rigorous research (Dahl et al. 1959 ). As the field expanded from an applied form of economics to embrace theories and methodologies from psychology, sociology, anthropology, and statistics, there was an increased emphasis on understanding the thoughts, desires, and experiences of individual consumers. For academic marketing, this meant that research not only focused on the decisions and strategies of marketing managers but also on the decisions and thought processes on the other side of the market—customers.

Since then, the academic study of consumer behavior has evolved and incorporated concepts and methods, not only from marketing at large but also from related social science disciplines, and from the ever-changing landscape of real-world consumption behavior. Its position as an area of study within a larger discipline that comprises researchers from diverse theoretical backgrounds and methodological training has stirred debates over its identity. One article describes consumer behavior as a multidisciplinary subdiscipline of marketing “characterized by the study of people operating in a consumer role involving acquisition, consumption, and disposition of marketplace products, services, and experiences” (MacInnis and Folkes 2009 , p. 900).

This article reviews the evolution of the field of consumer behavior over the past half century, describes its current status, and predicts how it may evolve over the next twenty years. Our review is by no means a comprehensive history of the field (see Schumann et al. 2008 ; Rapp and Hill 2015 ; Wang et al. 2015 ; Wilkie and Moore 2003 , to name a few) but rather focuses on a few key thematic developments. Though we observe many major shifts during this period, certain questions and debates have persisted: Does consumer behavior research need to be relevant to marketing managers or is there intrinsic value from studying the consumer as a project pursued for its own sake? What counts as consumption: only consumption from traditional marketplace transactions or also consumption in a broader sense of non-marketplace interactions? Which are the most appropriate theoretical traditions and methodological tools for addressing questions in consumer behavior research?

2 A brief history of consumer research over the past sixty years—1960 to 2020

In 1969, the Association for Consumer Research was founded and a yearly conference to share marketing research specifically from the consumer’s perspective was instituted. This event marked the culmination of the growing interest in the topic by formalizing it as an area of research within marketing (consumer psychology had become a formalized branch of psychology within the APA in 1960). So, what was consumer behavior before 1969? Scanning current consumer-behavior doctoral seminar syllabi reveals few works predating 1969, with most of those coming from psychology and economics, namely Herbert Simon’s A Behavioral Model of Rational Choice (1955), Abraham Maslow’s A Theory of Human Motivation (1943), and Ernest Dichter’s Handbook of Consumer Motivations (1964). In short, research that illuminated and informed our understanding of consumer behavior prior to 1969 rarely focused on marketing-specific topics, much less consumers or consumption (Dichter’s handbook being a notable exception). Yet, these works were crucial to the rise of consumer behavior research because, in the decades after 1969, there was a shift within academic marketing to thinking about research from a behavioral or decision science perspective (Wilkie and Moore 2003 ). The following section details some ways in which this shift occurred. We draw on a framework proposed by the philosopher Larry Laudan ( 1986 ), who distinguished among three inter-related aspects of scientific inquiry—namely, concepts (the relevant ideas, theories, hypotheses, and constructs); methods (the techniques employed to test and validate these concepts); and aims (the purposes or goals that motivate the investigation).

2.1 Key concepts in the late - 1960s

During the late-1960s, we tended to view the buyer as a computer-like machine for processing information according to various formal rules that embody economic rationality to form a preference for one or another option in order to arrive at a purchase decision. This view tended to manifest itself in a couple of conspicuous ways. The first was a model of buyer behavior introduced by John Howard in 1963 in the second edition of his marketing textbook and quickly adopted by virtually every theorist working in our field—including, Howard and Sheth (of course), Engel-Kollat-&-Blackwell, Franco Nicosia, Alan Andreasen, Jim Bettman, and Joel Cohen. Howard’s great innovation—which he based on a scheme that he had found in the work of Plato (namely, the linkages among Cognition, Affect, and Conation)—took the form of a boxes-and-arrows formulation heavily influenced by the approach to organizational behavior theory that Howard (University of Pittsburgh) had picked up from Herbert Simon (Carnegie Melon University). The model represented a chain of events

where I = inputs of information (from advertising, word-of-mouth, brand features, etc.); C = cognitions (beliefs or perceptions about a brand); A = Affect (liking or preference for the brand); B = behavior (purchase of the brand); and S = satisfaction (post-purchase evaluation of the brand that feeds back onto earlier stages of the sequence, according to a learning model in which reinforced behavior tends to be repeated). This formulation lay at the heart of Howard’s work, which he updated, elaborated on, and streamlined over the remainder of his career. Importantly, it informed virtually every buyer-behavior model that blossomed forth during the last half of the twentieth century.

To represent the link between cognitions and affect, buyer-behavior researchers used various forms of the multi-attribute attitude model (MAAM), originally proposed by psychologists such as Fishbein and Rosenberg as part of what Fishbein and Ajzen ( 1975 ) called the theory of reasoned action. Under MAAM, cognitions (beliefs about brand attributes) are weighted by their importance and summed to create an explanation or prediction of affect (liking for a brand or preference for one brand versus another), which in turn determines behavior (choice of a brand or intention to purchase a brand). This took the work of economist Kelvin Lancaster (with whom Howard interacted), which assumed attitude was based on objective attributes, and extended it to include subjective ones (Lancaster 1966 ; Ratchford 1975 ). Overall, the set of concepts that prevailed in the late-1960s assumed the buyer exhibited economic rationality and acted as a computer-like information-processing machine when making purchase decisions.

2.2 Favored methods in the late-1960s

The methods favored during the late-1960s tended to be almost exclusively neo-positivistic in nature. That is, buyer-behavior research adopted the kinds of methodological rigor that we associate with the physical sciences and the hypothetico-deductive approaches advocated by the neo-positivistic philosophers of science.

Thus, the accepted approaches tended to be either experimental or survey based. For example, numerous laboratory studies tested variations of the MAAM and focused on questions about how to measure beliefs, how to weight the beliefs, how to combine the weighted beliefs, and so forth (e.g., Beckwith and Lehmann 1973 ). Here again, these assumed a rational economic decision-maker who processed information something like a computer.

Seeking rigor, buyer-behavior studies tended to be quantitative in their analyses, employing multivariate statistics, structural equation models, multidimensional scaling, conjoint analysis, and other mathematically sophisticated techniques. For example, various attempts to test the ICABS formulation developed simultaneous (now called structural) equation models such as those deployed by Farley and Ring ( 1970 , 1974 ) to test the Howard and Sheth ( 1969 ) model and by Beckwith and Lehmann ( 1973 ) to measure halo effects.

2.3 Aims in the late-1960s

During this time period, buyer-behavior research was still considered a subdivision of marketing research, the purpose of which was to provide insights useful to marketing managers in making strategic decisions. Essentially, every paper concluded with a section on “Implications for Marketing Managers.” Authors who failed to conform to this expectation could generally count on having their work rejected by leading journals such as the Journal of Marketing Research ( JMR ) and the Journal of Marketing ( JM ).

2.4 Summary—the three R’s in the late-1960s

Starting in the late-1960s to the early-1980s, virtually every buyer-behavior researcher followed the traditional approach to concepts, methods, and aims, now encapsulated under what we might call the three R’s —namely, rationality , rigor , and relevance . However, as we transitioned into the 1980s and beyond, that changed as some (though by no means all) consumer researchers began to expand their approaches and to evolve different perspectives.

2.5 Concepts after 1980

In some circles, the traditional emphasis on the buyer’s rationality—that is, a view of the buyer as a rational-economic, decision-oriented, information-processing, computer-like machine for making choices—began to evolve in at least two primary ways.

First, behavioral economics (originally studied in marketing under the label Behavioral Decision Theory)—developed in psychology by Kahneman and Tversky, in economics by Thaler, and applied in marketing by a number of forward-thinking theorists (e.g., Eric Johnson, Jim Bettman, John Payne, Itamar Simonson, Jay Russo, Joel Huber, and more recently, Dan Ariely)—challenged the rationality of consumers as decision-makers. It was shown that numerous commonly used decision heuristics depart from rational choice and are exceptions to the traditional assumptions of economic rationality. This trend shed light on understanding consumer financial decision-making (Prelec and Loewenstein 1998 ; Gourville 1998 ; Lynch Jr 2011 ) and how to develop “nudges” to help consumers make better decisions for their personal finances (summarized in Johnson et al. 2012 ).

Second, the emerging experiential view (anticipated by Alderson, Levy, and others; developed by Holbrook and Hirschman, and embellished by Schmitt, Pine, and Gilmore, and countless followers) regarded consumers as flesh-and-blood human beings (rather than as information-processing computer-like machines), focused on hedonic aspects of consumption, and expanded the concepts embodied by ICABS (Table 1 ).

2.6 Methods after 1980

The two burgeoning areas of research—behavioral economics and experiential theories—differed in their methodological approaches. The former relied on controlled randomized experiments with a focus on decision strategies and behavioral outcomes. For example, experiments tested the process by which consumers evaluate options using information display boards and “Mouselab” matrices of aspects and attributes (Payne et al. 1988 ). This school of thought also focused on behavioral dependent measures, such as choice (Huber et al. 1982 ; Simonson 1989 ; Iyengar and Lepper 2000 ).

The latter was influenced by post-positivistic philosophers of science—such as Thomas Kuhn, Paul Feyerabend, and Richard Rorty—and approaches expanded to include various qualitative techniques (interpretive, ethnographic, humanistic, and even introspective methods) not previously prominent in the field of consumer research. These included:

Interpretive approaches —such as those drawing on semiotics and hermeneutics—in an effort to gain a richer understanding of the symbolic meanings involved in consumption experiences;

Ethnographic approaches — borrowed from cultural anthropology—such as those illustrated by the influential Consumer Behavior Odyssey (Belk et al. 1989 ) and its discoveries about phenomena related to sacred aspects of consumption or the deep meanings of collections and other possessions;

Humanistic approaches —such as those borrowed from cultural studies or from literary criticism and more recently gathered together under the general heading of consumer culture theory ( CCT );

Introspective or autoethnographic approaches —such as those associated with a method called subjective personal introspection ( SPI ) that various consumer researchers like Sidney Levy and Steve Gould have pursued to gain insights based on their own private lives.

These qualitative approaches tended not to appear in the more traditional journals such as the Journal of Marketing , Journal of Marketing Research , or Marketing Science . However, newer journals such as Consumption, Markets, & Culture and Marketing Theory began to publish papers that drew on the various interpretive, ethnographic, humanistic, or introspective methods.

2.7 Aims after 1980

In 1974, consumer research finally got its own journal with the launch of the Journal of Consumer Research ( JCR ). The early editors of JCR —especially Bob Ferber, Hal Kassarjian, and Jim Bettman—held a rather divergent attitude about the importance or even the desirability of managerial relevance as a key goal of consumer studies. Under their influence, some researchers began to believe that consumer behavior is a phenomenon worthy of study in its own right—purely for the purpose of understanding it better. The journal incorporated articles from an array of methodologies: quantitative (both secondary data analysis and experimental techniques) and qualitative. The “right” balance between theoretical insight and substantive relevance—which are not in inherent conflict—is a matter of debate to this day and will likely continue to be debated well into the future.

2.8 Summary—the three I’s after 1980

In sum, beginning in the early-1980s, consumer research branched out. Much of the work in consumer studies remained within the earlier tradition of the three R’s—that is, rationality (an information-processing decision-oriented buyer), rigor (neo-positivistic experimental designs and quantitative techniques), and relevance (usefulness to marketing managers). Nonetheless, many studies embraced enlarged views of the three major aspects that might be called the three I’s —that is, irrationality (broadened perspectives that incorporate illogical, heuristic, experiential, or hedonic aspects of consumption), interpretation (various qualitative or “postmodern” approaches), and intrinsic motivation (the joy of pursuing a managerially irrelevant consumer study purely for the sake of satisfying one’s own curiosity, without concern for whether it does or does not help a marketing practitioner make a bigger profit).

3 The present—the consumer behavior field today

3.1 present concepts.

In recent years, technological changes have significantly influenced the nature of consumption as the customer journey has transitioned to include more interaction on digital platforms that complements interaction in physical stores. This shift poses a major conceptual challenge in understanding if and how these technological changes affect consumption. Does the medium through which consumption occurs fundamentally alter the psychological and social processes identified in earlier research? In addition, this shift allows us to collect more data at different stages of the customer journey, which further allows us to analyze behavior in ways that were not previously available.

Revisiting the ICABS framework, many of the previous concepts are still present, but we are now addressing them through a lens of technological change (Table 2 )

. In recent years, a number of concepts (e.g., identity, beliefs/lay theories, affect as information, self-control, time, psychological ownership, search for meaning and happiness, social belonging, creativity, and status) have emerged as integral factors that influence and are influenced by consumption. To better understand these concepts, a number of influential theories from social psychology have been adopted into consumer behavior research. Self-construal (Markus and Kitayama 1991 ), regulatory focus (Higgins 1998 ), construal level (Trope and Liberman 2010 ), and goal systems (Kruglanski et al. 2002 ) all provide social-cognition frameworks through which consumer behavior researchers study the psychological processes behind consumer behavior. This “adoption” of social psychological theories into consumer behavior is a symbiotic relationship that further enhances the theories. Tory Higgins happily stated that he learned more about his own theories from the work of marketing academics (he cited Angela Lee and Michel Pham) in further testing and extending them.

3.2 Present Methods

Not only have technological advancements changed the nature of consumption but they have also significantly influenced the methods used in consumer research by adding both new sources of data and improved analytical tools (Ding et al. 2020 ). Researchers continue to use traditional methods from psychology in empirical research (scale development, laboratory experiments, quantitative analyses, etc.) and interpretive approaches in qualitative research. Additionally, online experiments using participants from panels such as Amazon Mechanical Turk and Prolific have become commonplace in the last decade. While they raise concerns about the quality of the data and about the external validity of the results, these online experiments have greatly increased the speed and decreased the cost of collecting data, so researchers continue to use them, albeit with some caution. Reminiscent of the discussion in the 1970s and 1980s about the use of student subjects, the projectability of the online responses and of an increasingly conditioned “professional” group of online respondents (MTurkers) is a major concern.

Technology has also changed research methodology. Currently, there is a large increase in the use of secondary data thanks to the availability of Big Data about online and offline behavior. Methods in computer science have advanced our ability to analyze large corpuses of unstructured data (text, voice, visual images) in an efficient and rigorous way and, thus, to tap into a wealth of nuanced thoughts, feelings, and behaviors heretofore only accessible to qualitative researchers through laboriously conducted content analyses. There are also new neuro-marketing techniques like eye-tracking, fMRI’s, body arousal measures (e.g., heart rate, sweat), and emotion detectors that allow us to measure automatic responses. Lastly, there has been an increase in large-scale field experiments that can be run in online B2C marketplaces.

3.3 Present Aims

Along with a focus on real-world observations and data, there is a renewed emphasis on managerial relevance. Countless conference addresses and editorials in JCR , JCP , and other journals have emphasized the importance of making consumer research useful outside of academia—that is, to help companies, policy makers, and consumers. For instance, understanding how the “new” consumer interacts over time with other consumers and companies in the current marketplace is a key area for future research. As global and social concerns become more salient in all aspects of life, issues of long-term sustainability, social equality, and ethical business practices have also become more central research topics. Fortunately, despite this emphasis on relevance, theoretical contributions and novel ideas are still highly valued. An appropriate balance of theory and practice has become the holy grail of consumer research.

The effects of the current trends in real-world consumption will increase in magnitude with time as more consumers are digitally native. Therefore, a better understanding of current consumer behavior can give us insights and help predict how it will continue to evolve in the years to come.

4 The future—the consumer behavior field in 2040

The other papers use 2030 as a target year but we asked our survey respondents to make predictions for 2040 and thus we have a different future target year.

Niels Bohr once said, “Prediction is very difficult, especially if it’s about the future.” Indeed, it would be a fool’s errand for a single person to hazard a guess about the state of the consumer behavior field twenty years from now. Therefore, predictions from 34 active consumer researchers were collected to address this task. Here, we briefly summarize those predictions.

4.1 Future Concepts

While few respondents proffered guesses regarding specific concepts that would be of interest twenty years from now, many suggested broad topics and trends they expected to see in the field. Expectations for topics could largely be grouped into three main areas. Many suspected that we will be examining essentially the same core topics, perhaps at a finer-grained level, from different perspectives or in ways that we currently cannot utilize due to methodological limitations (more on methods below). A second contingent predicted that much research would center on the impending crises the world faces today, most mentioning environmental and social issues (the COVID-19 pandemic had not yet begun when these predictions were collected and, unsurprisingly, was not anticipated by any of our respondents). The last group, citing the widely expected profound impact of AI on consumers’ lives, argued that AI and other technology-related topics will be dominant subjects in consumer research circa 2040.

While the topic of technology is likely to be focal in the field, our current expectations for the impact of technology on consumers’ lives are narrower than it should be. Rather than merely offering innumerable conveniences and experiences, it seems likely that technology will begin to be integrated into consumers’ thoughts, identities, and personal relationships—probably sooner than we collectively expect. The integration of machines into humans’ bodies and lives will present the field with an expanding list of research questions that do not exist today. For example, how will the concepts of the self, identity, privacy, and goal pursuit change when web-connected technology seamlessly integrates with human consciousness and cognition? Major questions will also need to be answered regarding philosophy of mind, ethics, and social inequality. We suspect that the impact of technology on consumers and consumer research will be far broader than most consumer-behavior researchers anticipate.

As for broader trends within consumer research, there were two camps: (1) those who expect (or hope) that dominant theories (both current and yet to be developed) will become more integrated and comprehensive and (2) those who expect theoretical contributions to become smaller and smaller, to the point of becoming trivial. Both groups felt that current researchers are filling smaller cracks than before, but disagreed on how this would ultimately be resolved.

4.2 Future Methods

As was the case with concepts, respondents’ expectations regarding consumer-research methodologies in 2030 can also be divided into three broad baskets. Unsurprisingly, many indicated that we would be using many technologies not currently available or in wide use. Perhaps more surprising was that most cited the use of technology such as AI, machine-learning algorithms, and robots in designing—as opposed to executing or analyzing—experiments. (Some did point to the use of technologies such as virtual reality in the actual execution of experiments.) The second camp indicated that a focus on reliable and replicable results (discussed further below) will encourage a greater tendency for pre-registering studies, more use of “Big Data,” and a demand for more studies per paper (versus more papers per topic, which some believe is a more fruitful direction). Finally, the third lot indicated that “real data” would be in high demand, thereby necessitating the use of incentive-compatible, consequential dependent variables and a greater prevalence of field studies in consumer research.

As a result, young scholars would benefit from developing a “toolkit” of methodologies for collecting and analyzing the abundant new data of interest to the field. This includes (but is not limited to) a deep understanding of designing and implementing field studies (Gerber and Green 2012 ), data analysis software (R, Python, etc.), text mining and analysis (Humphreys and Wang 2018 ), and analytical tools for other unstructured forms of data such as image and sound. The replication crisis in experimental research means that future scholars will also need to take a more critical approach to validity (internal, external, construct), statistical power, and significance in their work.

4.3 Future Aims

While there was an air of existential concern about the future of the field, most agreed that the trend will be toward increasing the relevance and reliability of consumer research. Specifically, echoing calls from journals and thought leaders, the respondents felt that papers will need to offer more actionable implications for consumers, managers, or policy makers. However, few thought that this increased focus would come at the expense of theoretical insights, suggesting a more demanding overall standard for consumer research in 2040. Likewise, most felt that methodological transparency, open access to data and materials, and study pre-registration will become the norm as the field seeks to allay concerns about the reliability and meaningfulness of its research findings.

4.4 Summary - Future research questions and directions

Despite some well-justified pessimism, the future of consumer research is as bright as ever. As we revised this paper amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, it was clear that many aspects of marketplace behavior, consumption, and life in general will change as a result of this unprecedented global crisis. Given this, and the radical technological, social, and environmental changes that loom on the horizon, consumer researchers will have a treasure trove of topics to tackle in the next ten years, many of which will carry profound substantive importance. While research approaches will evolve, the core goals will remain consistent—namely, to generate theoretically insightful, empirically supported, and substantively impactful research (Table 3 ).

5 Conclusion

At any given moment in time, the focal concepts, methods, and aims of consumer-behavior scholarship reflect both the prior development of the field and trends in the larger scientific community. However, despite shifting trends, the core of the field has remained constant—namely, to understand the motivations, thought processes, and experiences of individuals as they consume goods, services, information, and other offerings, and to use these insights to develop interventions to improve both marketing strategy for firms and consumer welfare for individuals and groups. Amidst the excitement of new technologies, social trends, and consumption experiences, it is important to look back and remind ourselves of the insights the field has already generated. Effectively integrating these past findings with new observations and fresh research will help the field advance our understanding of consumer behavior.

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Malter, M.S., Holbrook, M.B., Kahn, B.E. et al. The past, present, and future of consumer research. Mark Lett 31 , 137–149 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11002-020-09526-8

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Proposal for Lines of Research Into Consumer Behavior: Examples in the Tourism Industry

Juan jose blazquez-resino.

1 Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Social Science, University of Castilla La Mancha, Ciudad Real, Spain

Santiago Gutiérrez-Broncano

Mario arias-oliva.

2 Department of Business Management, Faculty of Business and Economics, Rovira i Virgili University, Reus, Spain

Introduction

Departing from the high relevance that loyalty plays in the promotion of tourist destinations, the study of the variables that result in loyalty is key. For this reason, there are myriads of studies devoted to the analysis of the variables that result in loyalty, especially considering either or both attitudinal and behavioral loyalty; in turn, relatively less frequent are the studies that also/instead consider active and passive loyalty. Within this research line, we go one step further and propose the importance of focusing on the study of the variables that are conducive to attitudinal and behavioral loyalty; moreover, within attitudinal loyalty, we also acknowledge the distinction of two further types of loyalty, that is, active attitudinal and passive attitudinal loyalty. This opinion paper aims at adding knowledge to the field of consumer behavior in tourism, proposing the importance of studying the variables that are able to drive loyalty in a very differentiated way (active attitudinal loyalty, passive attitudinal loyalty, and behavioral loyalty).

Proposing a New Research Line

Loyalty is a key variable in all economic sectors and industries, so there is no doubt that looking for loyalty is a key priority. In fact, it has been largely proven how loyalty is essential for achieving key company indicators such as long-term competition, profitability, and survival (Jacoby and Chestnut, 1978 ; Dick and Basu, 1994 ; Garbarino and Johnson, 1999 ; Uncles et al., 2003 ; Rundle-Thiele, 2005 ; Kim and Li, 2009 ). In the tourism industry, loyalty is generally regarded as the best predictor for future tourist behavior, as well as a source of success in the market, in addition to providing competitive superiority (Kim and Brown, 2012 ; Sun et al., 2013 ; Gursoy et al., 2014 ; Maghsoodi et al., 2016 ; Almeida-Santana and Moreno-Gil, 2018 ; Cossío-Silva et al., 2019 ). Hence, a key objective for tourist destinations is to attract and retain their target market (Gursoy et al., 2014 ; Cossío-Silva et al., 2019 ). These considerations are of special relevance for countries such as Spain, where tourism is one of the main industries, and the economy relies, to a great extent, on tourism (Balaguer and Cantavella-Jorda, 2002 ; Camisón et al., 2016 ).

In the marketing literature, several research studies showed how within loyalty, a further distinction between attitudinal loyalty and behavioral loyalty could be made (e.g., Day, 1969 ; Jacoby, 1971 ; Jacoby and Kyner, 1973 ; Lutz and Winn, 1974 ; Dick and Basu, 1994 ; Yoon and Kim, 2000 ; Bowen and Chen, 2001 ; Chaudhuri and Holbrook, 2001 ; Lam et al., 2004 ; Söderlund, 2006 ). In general, while attitudinal loyalty refers to positive attitudes held by customers toward a particular brand or store, behavioral loyalty refers to repeat purchases by a customer at a specific brand or store (Day, 1969 ; Dick and Basu, 1994 ). While it is common to encourage the design of strategies to boost both types of loyalty, it has been observed how sometimes, attitudes might not necessarily lead to repeat patronage. In fact, previous research suggested that attitudinal loyalty not in the presence of re-patronage behavior, and re-patronage not in the presence of attitudinal loyalty, could be conceptualized (Day, 1969 ; Dick and Basu, 1994 ; Reynolds and Beatty, 1999 ). These latter phenomena are sometimes due to custom, chance, or other factors (Day, 1969 ). In either case, it is very important to refer to both types of loyalty, that is, attitudinal and behavioral loyalty, as two separate constructs, despite the fact of such constructs being inter-related (Dick and Basu, 1994 ; Bemmaor, 1995 ; Chandon et al., 2005 ; Liu, 2007 ). This perspective is also acknowledged in the tourism literature, where a vast number of studies (e.g., Faullant et al., 2008 ; Wang et al., 2010 ; Kursunluoglu, 2011 ; Forgas-Coll et al., 2012 ; Prayag and Ryan, 2012 ; Zhang et al., 2014 ; Llodrà-Riera et al., 2015 ) also consider loyalty as a two-dimensional variable, that is, a variable that consists of two separate and inter-related constructs of both attitudinal and behavioral loyalty.

Relatively less analyzed is the further distinction between two other types of loyalty, that is to say, active loyalty and passive loyalty. One of the studies that considered this distinction in the services literature is the research of Ganesh et al. ( 2000 ). In this work, loyalty could be considered as either active or passive depending on the predisposition of clients to collaborate with the company. From this point of view, active loyalty was then conceptualized as word-of-mouth communication (WOM), requiring an active compromise reflecting the emotional bonds with the client. Sharing this perspective, Kandampully et al. ( 2015 ) suggested that active loyalty was exhibited by those clients that had both a firm compromise and a strong will to serve as ambassadors of the brand, supporting the products and services of the company with a positive WOM. In this regard, social media technologies fostered the development of research oriented to assess both active and passive loyalty. For example, Van Asperen et al. ( 2018 ) considered two types of clients' participation in social media: the consumption of social media as passive participation and contribution in social media as active participation. This differentiation could be the key to understand why a recommendation succeeded or, the other way around, failed.

There is no doubt that this proposed research line is of key importance. Departing from the high relevance that loyalty plays in the promotion of tourist destinations, given its connections to long-term profit variables such as long-term competitiveness, profitability, and survival, the study of the variables that result in loyalty is key, especially in countries such as Spain, where tourism is without a doubt the main industry, and the economy relies, to a greater extent, on tourism (Nowak et al., 2007 ). Spain's economic growth has been positively affected by the persistent expansion of inbound tourism in recent decades (Sokhanvar, 2019 ). For example, the results obtained in 2018 in terms of the number of foreign visitors to this country were 89,856 million, a 1.1% increase in arrivals over the previous year, which represents an increase in international tourist spending by 3.3% (Ministerio de Energía y Turismo, 2019 ). These data make Spain as the second country in the world in terms of foreign tourist arrivals (World Tourism Organization, 2019 ).

Loyalty is often measured by the joint use of its behavioral and attitudinal components. In some markets, such as tourism, repeat visits (behavioral loyalty) may be limited due to other variables, such as “search for variety.” However, a tourist who does not repeat a visit to the same destination may have an important attitudinal loyalty toward that destination and be willing to strongly recommend his visit. Therefore, this opinion paper has been aimed at showing how in the field of consumer behavior in tourism marketing, it is still possible to propose new future lines of research. One of them is to analyze the differences between active and passive attitude loyalty. Although some previous work in this area had shown differences between the active and passive behavior of consumers as opposed to the use of information sources (Ganesh et al., 2000 ; Kandampully et al., 2015 ), the difference between active and passive attitudinal loyalty had not been addressed. It is especially relevant to carry out work aimed at analyzing this line of research, especially given the relevance that the development of social networks can give to it.

Author Contributions

All authors listed have made a substantial, direct and intellectual contribution to the work, and approved it for publication.

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Acknowledgments

This research has been financed by Research Group Grants from the University of Castilla-La Mancha. Co-financed by the European Union through the European Regional Development Funds. Research Group: Observatory of Innovation in Commercial Distribution (OIDC).

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Methodological proposals for the study of consumer experience

Qualitative Market Research

ISSN : 1352-2752

Article publication date: 10 September 2018

Issue publication date: 10 September 2018

As the consumer experience literature broadens in scope – specifically, from dyads to ecosystems and from provider-centric to consumer-centric perspective – traditional data collection methods are no longer adequate. In that context, the paper aims to discuss three little-used data collection methods that can contribute to this broader view of consumer experience.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper identifies methodological requirements for exploring the broadened view of consumer experience and reviews data collection methods currently in use.

The paper elaborates tailored guidelines for the study of consumer experience through first-hand, systemic and processual perspectives for three promising and currently underused data collection methods: phenomenological interviews, event-based approaches and diary methods.

Research limitations/implications

Although the list of identified methods is not exhaustive, the methods and guidelines discussed here can be used to advance empirical investigation of consumer experience as more broadly understood.

Practical implications

Practitioners can apply these methods to gain a more complete view of consumers’ experiences and so offer value propositions compatible with those consumers’ lifeworlds.

Originality/value

The paper principally contributes to the literature in two ways: by defining the methodological requirements for investigating consumer experience from consumer-centric, systemic and processual perspectives, and by specifying a set of data collection methods that meet these requirements, along with tailored guidelines for their use.

Consumer experience

• Phenomenology
• Consumer-centric

Becker, L. (2018), "Methodological proposals for the study of consumer experience", Qualitative Market Research , Vol. 21 No. 4, pp. 465-490. https://doi.org/10.1108/QMR-01-2017-0036

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2018, Larissa Becker.

Published by Emerald Publishing Limited. This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) licence. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this licence may be seen at http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode

Introduction

from dyads to ecosystems; and

from provider- to consumer-centric perspectives on the journey.

Recent studies contend that consumer experiences emerge in dynamic service systems involving a multiplicity of actors offering resources that consumers integrate into their experiences ( Akaka et al. , 2015 ; Jaakkola et al. , 2015 ). Institutions and institutional arrangements coordinate the interactions between these actors and influence the consumer experience ( Akaka et al. , 2015 ). Complementing this systemic perspective, some authors have highlighted the need for a more consumer-centric perspective on the journey, where the consumer rather than the service becomes the central focus of study ( Heinonen et al. , 2010 ). On this view, a consumer journey can be defined as the process through which the consumer pursues goals in their lifeworld (the journey to a healthier lifestyle) as distinct from the customer journey involved in purchasing something, such as an object of consumption or a specific service ( Lemon and Verhoef, 2016 ) Furthermore, a consumer journey implies a processual rather than static perspective on experience.

Given this shift in perspective, consumer experience is defined here as emotional/affective, cognitive, sensorial, relational/social and physical/behavioral responses to stimuli during the consumer journey (adapted from Lemon and Verhoef, 2016 ). While some authors define experience as a response to activities, events and interactions ( McColl-Kennedy et al. , 2015a ), the systemic view of consumer experience includes interactions with other actors, resource integration and institutions and institutional arrangements as influences on the experience ( Akaka et al. , 2015 ; Vargo and Lusch, 2016 ). In short, a broad definition of consumer experience is likely to include activities, events, interactions with multiple actors, resources and institutions beyond common dimensions of experience (i.e. consumer’s responses).

phenomenological interviews,

event-based approaches; and

diary methods.

The paper contributes to the literature in two principal regards. First, it defines the methodological requirements for studying consumer experience in light of the directions of recent literature. Second, it identifies data collection methods that meet these requirements and elaborates specific guidelines for their use in consumer experience research. The findings will be of use to other researchers studying consumer experience through consumer-centric, systemic and processual lenses. Practitioners can also use these methods to obtain knowledge that allows them to offer better value propositions that align with consumers’ lifeworlds.

The article is structured as follows. After reviewing the literature on consumer experience, highlighting its current directions, three methodological requirements are identified: (1) first-hand description of experience, (2) description of multiple relevant actors and institutions in the consumer’s ecosystem; and (3) capture of the processual nature of consumer experience.

The methods currently used to study consumer experience are then reviewed and analyzed, and guidelines are presented for using three neglected data collection methods that fulfill the three requirements: (1) phenomenological interviews, (2) event-based approaches; and (3) diary methods.

The final part discusses the study’s significance for researchers and practitioners.

Among the various accounts of experience in the marketing literature, Helkkula (2011) identified three major types: outcome-based characterizations treat experience as a variable in a causal model; processual characterizations emphasize the temporal dimension of experience in terms of its phases or stages; and phenomenological characterizations focus on subjective, context-specific experiences while also acknowledging their social aspects. Jaakkola et al. (2015) also distinguished a number of research streams; for example, service management focuses on the creation of superior customer experiences; service innovation and design focuses on shaping the user experience and service-dominant logic (S-D logic) and interpretive consumer research emphasize phenomenological characterizations of experience. While sometimes acknowledging other actors (other customers in the service encounter), the service , customer , online and brand experience research streams focus mainly on the customer-service provider dyad and consider experience in terms of the response to companies’ specific elements such as service ( Grace and O’Cass, 2004 ) or brand-related stimuli ( Brakus et al. , 2009 ). On the other hand, consumer or consumption experience focuses on consumption and what consumers do in their everyday lives ( Addis and Holbrook, 2001 ). Consumer experience is the subject of consumer research ( Holbrook and Hirschmann, 1982 ; Carú and Cova, 2003 ) and of marketing logics such as S-D logic ( Vargo and Lusch, 2016 ) and customer-dominant logic (C-D logic) ( Heinonen et al. , 2010 ).

As an alternative to the information processing perspective, Holbrook and Hirschman’s consumer research paradigm offered an experiential view, in which consumers were seen to value fantasies, feelings and fun, as well as emotions, meanings and aesthetic criteria ( Holbrook and Hirschmann, 1982 ). Following that landmark publication, many authors began to explore extraordinary experiences ( Arnould and Price, 1993 ). Beyond that, others have proposed a broader view, incorporating ordinary, everyday or routine experiences such as eating at a friend’s house ( Carú and Cova, 2003 ). Some have gone further still, suggesting that all experiences are consumption experiences ( Woodward and Holbrook, 2013 ). This more consumer-centric view of experience emphasizes the consumption situation beyond the company-customer dyad – for example, Addis and Holbrook (2001) proposed that many products and services together create the overall consumption experience.

According to Akaka et al. (2015) , S-D logic complements interpretive consumer research by adopting a holistic view within an ecosystem perspective, where actors integrate resources from other actors to create value in interactions coordinated by institutions and institutional arrangements ( Vargo and Lusch, 2016 ). C-D logic advances a consumer-centric view, in which the customer rather than the service is central ( Heinonen et al. , 2010 ). These logics are of interest in the present context because of their shared assumption that the consumer as active agent integrates resources to create their own experience. On this view, experiences are phenomenologically determined within the customer’s context or lifeworld ( Akaka et al. , 2015 ; Jaakkola et al. , 2015 ). Together, these research streams show how conceptions of experience have been expanding in two related directions: from dyads to ecosystems and from a provider-centric to a consumer-centric perspective on the journey.

From dyads to ecosystems

Where an experience is evaluated holistically, it is reasonable to suppose that more than a single company will be involved ( Addis and Holbrook, 2001 ). Tax et al. (2013 , p. 457) proposed the idea of the service delivery network (SDN) as “two or more entities that, in the eyes of the customer, are responsible for the provision of a connected, overall service”. In their study of gap year travel, Baron and Harris (2010) expanded the domain of experience to include a network of organizations such as universities, accommodation, banks and tour companies, all of which form part of the experience.

Proposing a systemic perspective on consumer experience, Jaakkola et al. (2015) and McColl-Kennedy et al. (2015b) suggested looking beyond the dyadic interactions between provider and consumer to study the interactions between the consumer and multiple actors. McColl-Kennedy et al. (2015a , p. 251), for instance, highlighted the role of interactions with other actors (including “other customers, organizations, friends and family”) during the consumer experience. The S-D logic literature in particular has seen conceptual developments in relation to service systems and experience. For example, Akaka and Vargo (2015) showed how the context of experience has evolved from service encounters (i.e. dyadic interactions between customer and frontline employees) to ecosystems (defined as systems of resource-integrating actors connected through institutions and institutional arrangements) ( Vargo and Lusch, 2016 ) at micro, meso and macro contextual levels ( Akaka et al. , 2015 ). The micro contextual level includes the consumer-company dyad whereas the meso contextual level includes those actors’ networks. The macro contextual level encompasses the shared networks and institutions that coordinate the interactions between actors ( Akaka et al. , 2015 ; Vargo and Lusch, 2016 ). Although some empirical studies have identified other actors as elements of the customer experience ( Tax et al. , 2013 ), many knowledge gaps remain regarding the influence of these actors and interactions with them. In addition to methods for identifying other actors, researchers need methods for investigating how the focal consumer’s experience is affected by them, their resources and the institutions that coordinate the interactions.

From provider-centric to consumer-centric journeys

As noted earlier, the main body of the consumer experience literature examines the customer journey, comprising points of direct and indirect interaction with the company (known as “touchpoints”). Although some researchers acknowledge that certain touchpoints may not be under the company’s control ( Lemon and Verhoef, 2016 ), the journey remains provider-centric in the sense that it is centered on an object of consumption (buying and using a product). According to McColl-Kennedy et al. (2015b) , this view is no longer adequate.

Recent studies have highlighted the importance of understanding the customer’s processes and activities. For example, according to Heinonen et al. (2010) , the customer experience is actively formed by the customer, who selects companies and partners to integrate into their processes. As the customer experience is part of the customer’s ongoing life, Heinonen et al. (2010) claimed that service providers should offer value propositions that adapt to customers’ processes and to activities that may not always be immediately apparent. As noted earlier, this view of experience as process means that the customer is in control and chooses actors that will help them to achieve their goals. However, despite proposals to adopt a more consumer-centric approach to journeys, most such studies are largely conceptual (e.g., Heinonen et al. , 2010 ).

Methodological requirements for studying consumer experience

provide a first-hand description of the experience;

provide a description of multiple relevant actors and institutions in the consumer’s ecosystem; and

capture the processual nature of the consumer experience.

First-hand description of experience

A phenomenological characterization of experience informs S-D logic ( Vargo and Lusch, 2016 ), the Nordic school ( Helkkula and Kelleher, 2010 ) and the original propositions of the experiential view ( Holbrook and Hirschmann, 1982 ). Phenomenological research explores experiences from the participant’s (first-person) perspective as it emerges in context ( Thompson et al. , 1989 ). Shifting the scope of consumer experience from a focus on the provider to a consumer-centric perspective requires an equivalent shift in methods.

When consumers describe their experiences in their own words, they foreground events, activities and interactions with actors that seem most important from their point of view. By implication, these elements need not necessarily be linked to a single service provider. For example, Mickelsson (2013) identified a series of activities that formed part of the gambling experience (reading blogs and magazines, talking to friends) but were not connected to the gambling company. As investigation of the consumer experience must allow consumers to express themselves freely , surveys and interviews concerning a specific object of consumption are inadequate. Instead, truly consumer-centric methods must allow different actors, activities and events to emerge naturally in the consumer’s description.

Description of multiple relevant actors and institutions in the consumer’s ecosystem

The systemic nature of the experience also has methodological implications. Specifically, the method must enable the researcher to identify the actors, resources and institutions that form the consumer’s ecosystem at the micro, meso and macro contextual levels ( Akaka et al. , 2015 ). In many cases, the methods used in studies of consumer experience do not allow the respondent to refer to all relevant actors and influences; for example, interviews and surveys are confined to the dyadic relationship between company and consumer and questions about single service providers cannot adequately capture other relevant actors and institutions in the consumer’s ecosystem.

When collecting and analyzing data, the researcher must keep in mind that a systems perspective makes no distinction between producer and consumer ( Vargo and Lusch, 2016 ) – in other words, every actor can supply resources to the consumer (who may also assume the role of producer) and so contribute to the consumer experience ( Vargo and Lusch, 2016 ). Research methods must therefore enable the researcher to identify those actors, as well as the resources and mechanisms through which they influence the experience. In addition, the method must allow institutions and institutional arrangements to emerge in the consumer’s descriptions. Importantly, combining this requirement with first-hand description of the experience means that the ecosystem will be described from the consumer’s perspective.

Capture of processual nature of consumer experience

Consumer-centric and systemic perspectives further imply that experience has a processual nature that must also be captured. Interpreting the consumer experience as a process – seen here as a sequence of events over time – entails a number of assumptions ( Pettigrew, 1990 ). First, any changes that occur during the consumer experience should be studied in their proper context at the micro, meso and macro levels of analysis proposed by Akaka et al. (2015) . A second assumption relates to temporal interconnectedness: that past experiences shape present and future experiences, encompassing both the chronology of events and their underlying logics and structures. Jaakkola et al. (2015) highlighted the importance of these temporal patterns in understanding the consumer experience. A third assumption is that processes shape and are shaped by their context – that is, consumer experiences are shaped by contextual factors, but they can also change that context as they develop. Finally, explanations of change are not linear or causal but holistic and multifaceted ( Pettigrew, 1990 ) – in other words, changes have multiple causes at different levels of analysis.

Because current methods such as cross-sectional surveys and interviews cannot adequately capture how an experience evolves over time, Jaakkola et al. (2015) and McColl-Kennedy et al. (2015b) have suggested the use of longitudinal research designs. However, because many process researchers use a combination of retrospective and real-time data collection methods, a study need not necessarily be longitudinal to capture the processual dimension ( Bizzi and Langley, 2012 ; Halinen et al. , 2013 ); the most important requirement is to capture the sequence of events over time and in context.

Current methods in marketing studies of experience

The author read 43 articles about experience to become familiar with the topic and to assist methodological decisions (e.g. choosing keywords).

The author searched relevant terms (e.g. consumer experience and customer experience) in the title, abstract and keywords of articles in the EBSCO and ScienceDirect databases, which yielded 1,128 articles.

The author excluded any articles that were not peer-reviewed, written in English or published in a marketing journal, reducing the sample to 698 articles.

a focus on experience;

experience related to B2C; and

a characterization of experience. On that basis, the sample was further reduced to 142 articles.

Because the literature review was conducted for the purposes of another paper, five articles were excluded on the grounds of unclear classification by research stream.

Following a search for references in the included articles, eight were added ( Booth et al. , 2012 ), yielding a final sample of 145 articles, of which 104 were empirical.

A list of the methods currently used in the marketing literature to study experience is presented in Table I ; a list of the 104 empirical articles used to classify these methods is supplied in the Appendix.

Of the 104 empirical studies, 54 used quantitative methods and 42 used surveys, which remains the most common method of studying experience in the marketing literature. Studies that characterize experience in terms of the response to a company or its elements commonly adopt quantitative methods; these include studies of services management, branding and retailing, which tend to favor surveys ( Brakus et al. , 2009 ; Grace and O’Cass, 2004 ). This aligns with Helkkula’s (2011) findings about outcome-based characterizations of experience, which focus on relationships between experience and other variables.

A range of qualitative methods were also identified, among which the most common were interviews and case studies ( Table I ). However, it is important not to assume that a qualitative approach will always meet the requirements for studying consumer experience as more broadly defined. For instance, Walls et al. (2011) used interviews to collect data on consumer experiences of luxury hotels. However, the interview script confined respondents to particular aspects of the experience, such as physical environment and human interaction. While perfectly adequate for the stated goals, this illustrates how a qualitative approach to data collection may not necessarily capture the broader aspects of the consumer experience.

It is also important not to assume that qualitative always means interpretive . O’Shaughnessy (2010) claimed that interpretive methods are more appropriate for social science studies, as interpretation and context cannot be separated. Both interpretive consumer research ( Arnould and Price, 1993 ) and S-D logic ( Helkkula and Kelleher, 2010 ; McColl-Kennedy et al. , 2015a ) commonly use interpretive methods of data collection, yielding a more consumer-centric view. At the same time, studies of experience that use a phenomenological characterization are largely conceptual ( Helkkula, 2011 ), and the few empirical studies that might meet the stated requirements offer little guidance on data collection to other researchers, as this is not their goal. Given the need for methodological approaches that can fully capture the consumer experience ( Jaakkola et al. , 2015 ), this paper identifies three especially promising methods of data collection that can contribute to a broader understanding of consumer experience and provides tailored guidelines for their use in consumer experience research.

Guidelines for three data collection methods

This section reviews the literature (both within and outside marketing) on three underused data collection methods with significant potential for studying consumer experience in its broader sense: phenomenological interviews, event-based approaches and diary methods. Although other methods may also meet the requirements, these three were chosen for the following reasons. First, they fulfill all three requirements for studying consumer experience as defined. Second, as compared to other qualitative methods, they have less often been used in empirical studies of consumer experience. Finally, as methods of data collection , they can be used within various approaches (such as case studies or ethnographies) or in combination with other methods.

Phenomenological interviews

The first of the three selected methods is the phenomenological interview. Although Thompson et al. (1989) suggested the use of this method to study consumer experiences, only one of the 104 analyzed articles ( Major and McLeay, 2013 ) explicitly mentioned its use as the main method of data collection. This suggests that phenomenological interviews have unused potential in this context. The phenomenological interview can be defined as an unstructured, open-ended, dialogical interview informed by the philosophical assumptions of phenomenology ( Bevan, 2014 ; Stern et al. , 1998 ; Thompson et al. , 1989 ); its purpose is to obtain a first-hand, free-form description of a domain of experience, contextualized in the consumer’s lifeworld ( Bevan, 2014 ; Stern et al. , 1998 ; Thompson et al. , 1989 ).

One broadly similar method is the narrative interview; both are phenomenological in nature and elicit descriptions of participants’ stories, so satisfying the first requirement. The key difference is that while the narrative interview is more closely related to story-telling, beginning from one main question ( Roederer, 2012 ) with specific supplementary questions only when necessary ( Juntunen, 2014 ), the phenomenological interview is more conversational.

Another data collection method that resembles the phenomenological interview in some respects is the unstructured interview. However, while it is safe to say that every phenomenological interview follows an unstructured script, not every unstructured interview is phenomenological at the level of philosophical assumptions. For instance, in a phenomenological interview, the participant must have lived the experience ( Thompson et al. , 1989 ), and the focus is on the contextualized description of that experience rather than rationalizations ( Thompson et al. , 1989 ), which may not be the case in an unstructured interview.

Guidelines for using phenomenological interviews

selection of participants;

primacy of subjective experience; and

contextual factors.

First, because the goal of this type of interview is to obtain a first-hand description of a domain of experience ( Thompson et al. , 1989 ), interviewees must have lived the phenomenon under investigation ( Thompson et al. , 1989 ). For example, to investigate how a consumer experiences a journey to a healthier lifestyle, the researcher must select participants who have undergone or are undergoing this journey, as this philosophical position takes the subjective experience to be the reality ( Thompson et al. , 1989 ).

Second, the phenomenological tradition asserts the primacy of subjective experience over theoretical assumptions ( Horrigan-Kelly et al. , 2016 ). The researcher must therefore take care to set aside any theoretical assumptions, hypotheses or frameworks when formulating the interview script ( Thompson et al. , 1989 ) or at least be reflexive about them, assigning primacy to the subjective experience ( Horrigan-Kelly et al. , 2016 ). Either way, the researcher must remain open to emerging themes ( Horrigan-Kelly et al. , 2016 ; Thompson et al. , 1989 ). Consequently, the structure of the interview is very open and is dictated by the respondent ( Thompson et al. , 1989 ); the interviewer’s role is to ask open and unstructured questions, resulting in a conversation rather than the questions and answers typical of an interview ( Stern et al. , 1998 ; Thompson et al. , 1989 ). This conversational approach can be achieved if the researcher really listens to the participant, reacting to their descriptions and adding or deleting questions as the conversation proceeds, without being restricted by the interview script or prior assumptions.

Finally, because the goal of the interview is to obtain a first-hand description of an experience in context ( Bevan, 2014 ; Stern et al. , 1998 ; Thompson et al. , 1989 ), the researcher must strive to understand what the experience means in the consumer’s lifeworld. Encouraging detailed description of the experience typically foregrounds these contextual factors during the interview.

Granted the need for an unstructured approach, Bevan (2014) developed a method that maintained the phenomenological interview’s conversational style while organizing it in three parts: contextualization, apprehending the phenomenon and clarifying the phenomenon. Contextualization means taking account of the context in which the experience gains its meaning ( Bevan, 2014 ). The interviewer’s role is to set a meaningful context within which the respondent can describe their experience ( Thompson et al. , 1989 ), and this should provide a point of departure for the interview ( Bevan, 2014 ). For instance, in relation to a journey to a healthier lifestyle, the researcher might begin by asking about the participant’s background and any unhealthy habits they previously had.

Apprehending the phenomenon means focusing on the experience of interest to obtain a clear description of events and activities. This can be achieved by asking descriptive questions, followed by structural questions to clarify the phenomenon (“Could you please describe what you mean by […] ?”) ( Bevan, 2014 ). Why questions should be avoided because they change the focus from description to rationalization, which is not the goal of the phenomenological interview ( Thompson et al. , 1989 ). In addition, the interviewer should not ask questions that are too abstract, focusing instead on specific events to elicit rich descriptions of experiences ( Thompson et al. , 1989 ).

Clarifying the phenomenon involves imaginative variation, adding questions that vary in structure as a means of clarifying the phenomenon ( Bevan, 2014 ). During the interview, the interviewer should formulate questions based on the consumer’s reflections, asking for further descriptions ( Bevan, 2014 ; Stern et al. , 1998 ). For example, if the interviewee reports that it is important for them to go to the gym with a partner, the researcher might ask them to imagine what would happen if they went alone.

Another important point here is that interviewer and interviewee are equal in status; the interviewee is the expert in relation to their own experience, and the researcher should not try to direct the interview or impose theoretical assumptions. If this happens, the data should be excluded ( Thompson et al. , 1989 ). For that reason, data analysis is as important as the interview itself when using a phenomenological approach. Following the first interview and before proceeding to another, researchers should listen to the interview and transcribe it to check whether they are adopting a conversational approach or imposing their own theoretical assumptions.

Satisfying the methodological requirements

Given that the phenomenological interview must allow themes to emerge, assigning primacy to participants’ subjective experience rather than to theoretical assumptions ( Horrigan-Kelly et al. , 2016 ; Thompson et al. , 1989 ), this method fully satisfies the first requirement: a first-hand description of experience. Furthermore, according to Stern et al. (1998 , p. 198), the phenomenological interview produces a “narrative unit encompassing past, present, and future”. By analyzing these narratives, the researcher can better understand both the consumer’s experience and their relationships with others ( Stern et al. , 1998 ), shedding light on the systemic structure of the consumer experience. It is assumed that relevant institutions may also emerge in the descriptions of interactions with other actors. Although the interview should follow a largely unstructured script, the researcher can elicit descriptions of any institutions that seem relevant for the consumer. This fulfills the second requirement: the description of multiple relevant actors and institutions in the consumer’s ecosystem. Finally, because a narrative can be viewed as a process, this method can capture the processual dimension of consumer experience.

Event-based approaches

The second proposed method of data collection is the event-based approach, referring here to methods that focus on events or incidents as a means of understanding the consumer experience. Interviews are most often used to collect data ( Åkesson et al. , 2014 ; Helkkula and Pihlström, 2010 ); of the 104 articles analyzed here, two used sequential incident technique ( Stein and Ramaseshan, 2016 ); one used critical incident technique (CIT) ( Grove and Fisk, 1997 ), and one used an experience-based event technique ( Åkesson et al. , 2014 ). However, these articles explored events or incidents that related to an object of consumption (the journey with a company or the use of a service) rather than the journey the consumer undertakes to achieve a goal (i.e. the consumer journey ), as it is proposed here.

Guidelines for using event-based approaches

delimitation of events;

temporal aspects; and

elicitation of events during the interview.

To begin, the researcher must define the central process under investigation ( Halinen et al. , 2013 ) to determine what events to look for ( van de Ven, 1992 ). Generally speaking, events can be defined as outcomes of human action or changes caused by nature ( Hedaa and Törnroos, 2008 ). To study the consumer experience as defined here, it is suggested that the researcher should focus on events or incidents that relate to the consumer’s pursuit of their goal in their lifeworld – in other words, the consumer journey is the process. Revisiting the example of a journey to a healthier lifestyle, the event might be defined in terms of its contribution to the goal, allowing the participant to describe the most relevant events from their own perspective. In contrast to existing studies that focus on events associated with using a specific service ( Åkesson et al. , 2014 ), this makes it possible to obtain a description of events that are not necessarily related to a single company but include other actors and contexts.

Second, as event-based methods require in-depth description and the participant needs to be able to recall the event, researchers should recruit participants who have lived the experience recently to guard against faulty memory and rationalization effects ( Flanagan, 1954 ). To this end, the researcher might, for example, establish a temporal limit or recruit participants currently living the experience under investigation. Ideally, a combination of real-time and retrospective data collection methods could be used to capture events over time ( Bizzi and Langley, 2012 ; Halinen et al. , 2013 ). Scheduling follow-up interviews with participants currently living the experience would facilitate collection of real-time data, maximizing the potential of this method to capture the processual dimension of the consumer experience ( Bizzi and Langley, 2012 ).

Finally, researchers should elicit detailed descriptions of the events. Based on an extensive review of the literature on CIT, Butterfield et al. (2005) noted that the method has evolved to illuminate the context and to capture the meaning of events, in line with a contextualist phenomenological approach. By connecting events and incidents to the consumer’s goal, participants can describe events in relation to multiple actors and different contextual levels. To that end, researchers should explore events in depth during the interview, with an emphasis on context ( Hedaa and Törnroos, 2008 ; van de Ven, 1992 ). For instance, Gremler (2004) suggested that researchers should look beyond cognition, collecting data on emotional aspects of the events and exploring why those specific events occurred. By remaining flexible when collecting data on events, further events can also be explored ( Halinen et al. , 2013 ).

According to Gremler (2004) , event-based approaches involve the collection of descriptions of events from the participants’ perspective without reference to prior hypotheses. This method therefore satisfies the first requirement: obtaining a first-hand description of the experience. In addition, the event-based method can satisfy the second criterion: description of multiple relevant actors and institutions in the consumer’s ecosystem. According to Hedaa and Törnroos (2008) , a contextualized description of events allows the description of actors and their subsequent reactions to events (i.e. acts and activities). Process researchers have proposed guidelines for using event-based approaches to identify how a phenomenon develops in a multi-layered context at micro, meso and macro contextual levels ( Halinen et al. , 2013 ; Makkonen et al. , 2012 ). However, although the participant can be expected to describe interactions with a multiplicity of actors, the researcher must keep in mind that this technique may not provide a holistic perspective; for example, it may be challenging to obtain descriptions of institutional logics.

When describing events in sequence, the event-based approach helps the researcher to understand the processual and dynamic aspects of the consumer experience. As noted before, process researchers define process in terms of events ( Pettigrew, 1990 ), which satisfies the third requirement for investigating the broader aspects of consumer experience. Using multiple event-based interviews over time maximizes this method’s capacity to fulfill the third requirement (although this is not essential). Finally, an additional advantage of event-based approaches is that the researcher can address relevant issues by focusing exclusively on specific events ( Åkesson et al. , 2014 ), saving time during interviews and when analyzing the data ( Helkkula and Pihlström, 2010 ).

Diary methods

The third proposed data collection method is the diary. Carú and Cova (2008) suggest the use of personal introspection to study the consumer experience, where consumers analyze and report their individual experiences. To date, however, the diary method has attracted little interest in the marketing literature ( Patterson, 2005 ); of the 104 analyzed articles, none used a longitudinal diary as the main data collection technique. In general, participants are invited to write about their experiences at a point in time. For instance, Ryynänen et al. (2016) collected data online by asking participants in a data collection community to write about a personally meaningful consumer experience involving packaging.

In a non-research context, a diary can be defined as a personal record of events, thoughts and observations ( Patterson, 2005 ); in a research context, it is an instrument for self-reporting events, thoughts and observations (i.e. ongoing experiences) ( Bolger et al. , 2003 ). In research terms, the record of these ongoing experiences constitutes a narrative ( Livholts and Tamboukou, 2015 ), providing an account of a sequence of significant events ( Kenten, 2010 ). Although Hurmerinta and Paavilainen-Mäntymäki (2013) contended that this method is closely linked to ethnography, the diary is discussed here as a data collection method rather than as a methodological approach.

Guidelines for using diary methods

choosing the diary design,

choosing the means of reporting,

giving instructions; and

maintaining the participant’s motivation.

First, the researcher has to select the appropriate type of diary for collecting the data in light of the research goals, choosing between solicited ( Kenten, 2010 ) and unsolicited diaries ( Livholts and Tamboukou, 2015 ). Solicited diaries ask participants to report their experiences for the purposes of the research whereas unsolicited diaries are not produced in the research context. Researchers can make use of several forms of online diary or other tools for personal introspection available online – for example, Helkkula and Kelleher (2010) studied narratives found in blogs. While this approach can provide more naturalistic data, it is important to keep in mind that the participant may be presenting an ideal self online ( Zhao et al. , 2008 ) (although, of course, this may also arise in the case of non-naturalistic data). Granted the benefits of the unsolicited approach, the following guidelines apply to solicited diaries.

There are at least three types of diary designs: interval-, signal- and event-contingent ( Bolger et al. , 2003 ). The interval-contingent design requires participants to report in their diaries at specified regular intervals. In the signal-contingent design, researchers emit a signal that prompts participants to report in their diaries, and the event-contingent design requires participants to report in their diaries on each occurrence of the event being studied.

In addition to choosing a diary design, the researcher must choose the most appropriate means of reporting the experiences. Participants may not be used to writing every day or may find this inconvenient. As the introspective narrative can take the form of text diary, audio diary or video diary ( Bolger et al. , 2003 ; Carú and Cova, 2008 ), researchers can use devices such as audio recorders to capture “real-time” descriptions ( Bolger et al. , 2003 ; Hurmerinta and Paavilainen-Mäntymäki, 2013 ).

As a third guideline, it is important to give clear instructions to participants ( Carú and Cova, 2008 ; Kenten, 2010 ); for instance, the event-contingent design requires researchers to provide a clear definition of the focal event ( Bolger et al. , 2003 ). On the downside, Patterson (2005) noted that instructions that are too restrictive can stifle descriptions and cause participants to lose interest in reporting their experiences. Hurmerinta and Paavilainen-Mäntymäki (2013 , p. 201) provided an example of good instructions, asking entrepreneurs to “write freely, either in the form of a diary or as short notes or log entries, about how you search, create, observe, analyze and exploit business and internationalization opportunities in practice, as part of your daily business activities and routines”. These instructions are clear without being so specific as to limit the participant’s motivation and creativity, and they include a clear definition of the focal event.

Finally, when using this method, it can be challenging to maintain participant motivation. To address this issue, as well as ensuring that instructions are not too restrictive, researchers should meet participants and provide feedback about diary completion ( Hurmerinta and Paavilainen-Mäntymäki, 2013 ). Participants in diary studies have provided positive feedback on the method, noting in particular that they were more aware of their own thoughts, feelings and behaviors ( Hurmerinta and Paavilainen-Mäntymäki, 2013 ; Kenten, 2010 ), and this could be used to encourage diary completion. To motivate more frequent reporting, it may also help to use a means of delivery that is familiar to the participant (e.g., an audio device).

The diary method is useful when collecting data on everyday experiences ( Kenten, 2010 ) and has several strengths. First, it does not impose any theoretical framework on participants or on the data they provide ( Hurmerinta and Paavilainen-Mäntymäki, 2013 ). Because it is also phenomenological in nature ( Bolger et al. , 2003 ), this method strongly fulfills the first-hand description requirement. However, researchers must ensure that their instructions do not impose theoretical assumptions or expectations that might lead the participant. Second, the diary is an appropriate means of studying multi-layered and multi-actor processes ( Makkonen et al. , 2012 ). By allowing the description of various actors and institutions to emerge, it satisfies the second requirement. Finally, as compared to retrospective data, the diary reduces the risk of memory error ( Bolger et al. , 2003 ; Kenten, 2010 ). It also provides an excellent means of investigating temporal dynamics and processes in real time ( Bolger et al. , 2003 ), making it the most powerful method here in meeting the third requirement.

Empirical studies of experience have been growing at an exponential rate. Nevertheless, this paper corroborates previous evidence that quantitative studies (and especially surveys) prevail in studies of experience ( Jaakkola et al. , 2015 ). In this regard, Jaakkola et al. (2015) noted that such studies have generally adopted a narrow view (e.g., service encounters, static points in time). In the interest of advancing the study of consumer experience, the present article identifies the shift from dyads to ecosystems and from a provider-centric to a consumer-centric view of the journey. Adopting a broad definition of consumer experience, the paper also identifies three methodological requirements: first-hand description of the experience, description of multiple relevant actors and institutions in the consumer’s ecosystem and capture of the experience’s processual nature. Finally, the paper draws on relevant literature within and outside marketing to propose tailored guidelines for three data collection methods meeting these requirements that are little used in the study of consumer experience. Table II summarizes these findings, including the extent to which each method satisfies the methodological requirements. It is worth noting that in assessing fulfillment of the third methodological requirement, a cross-sectional design is assumed for the phenomenological interview and event-based approach; both satisfy this requirement more convincingly if data are collected using a longitudinal design ( Bizzi and Langley, 2012 ).

The paper’s first contribution is to define the methodological requirements for studying consumer experience in its broad sense. This has implications for selecting data collection methods when studying experience, which should align both with the research question(s) and with conceptual requirements. By adopting the broader view of consumer experience and the associated methodological requirements, researchers can adapt existing data collection methods to study consumer experience from a consumer-centric, systemic and processual perspective. By following these methodological requirements, researchers can develop their own guidelines to address these aspects of consumer experience phenomenon in empirical studies.

Who are the relevant actors for the consumer journey and experience?

In creating their experience, how does the consumer integrate and apply resources from different actors?

How does the consumer experience divergent and convergent institutions (e.g. norms and rules) when interacting with other actors?

What touchpoints beyond the company’s control (e.g. customer-owned, partner-owned and social touchpoints) are relevant to the experience?

When do experiences emerge among customers beyond the service setting?

How do the dimensions of consumer experience influence the consumer’s actions during their journey?

How does experience evolve and change over time?

Researchers in other fields can also benefit from these methods, as the literature review on which these guidelines are based extends beyond the marketing domain. For instance, despite its many strengths, the diary method has attracted little interest from marketing researchers ( Patterson, 2005 ). Although the guidelines offered here are tailored to the consumer experience research, they can also be adapted to explore other marketing and consumer-related phenomena.

Practitioners too can use these guidelines to collect data on their consumers’ experiences. Using consumer-centric, systemic and processual lenses to understand the consumer experience, marketing practitioners can offer better value propositions to their customers – for example, by providing complementary resources that the consumer may have difficulty finding in their own ecosystems, or by partnering with other actors of relevance for the consumer.

It is important to note that this account of relevant data collection methods is not exhaustive. The three methods discussed here were suggested because they fulfill the three requirements for studying consumer experience in its broader sense, but the choice ultimately depends on the research questions guiding the study in question. Ideally, these methods can be triangulated to gain a fuller understanding of the given phenomenon ( Given, 2008 ), as for example in an ethnography or case study, where researchers might combine phenomenological interviews with diaries. While the phenomenological interview provides a retrospective account of the consumer experience in relation to major events, the diary provides more detailed real-time data. If the goal of the study is to understand the given ecosystem and its institutions (requirement 2), a research design that incorporates a multi-actor perspective may be useful, again depending on the study’s goals. Finally, real-time longitudinal designs have greater potential to capture a phenomenon’s processual aspects ( Bizzi and Langley, 2012 ). While the diary method provides real-time data, the use of phenomenological interviews or event-based approaches can be incorporated into a longitudinal design – for example, by repeating interviews at pre-established intervals.

While conceptual studies have traced the shift from dyads to networks and from provider-centric to consumer-centric perspectives, empirical studies are less common. As research interest in this topic continues to grow, methodological discussions can make a significant contribution to the literature. It is hoped that other researchers will use the methods and guidelines discussed here to produce empirical studies of consumer experience as more broadly defined.

List of methods used to study experience in marketing

Summary of results

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Acknowledgements

The author thanks Elina Jaakkola, Aino Halinen-Kaila and Rami Olkkonen as well as two anonymous reviewers for their invaluable comments in this paper.

Corresponding author

About the author.

Larissa Becker is a doctoral candidate at the Department of Marketing and International Business, Turku School of Economics, University of Turku, Finland. Her research interests are consumer journey and consumer experience, especially in the context of transformative journeys. Her research interests are customer experience, consumer journeys, and service-dominant logic.

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Consumer Behavior Research

Exploring the Depths of Consumer Insights for Strategic Business Growth

In an era where understanding consumer behavior is more than a competitive edge, it’s a survival imperative, NielsenIQ (NIQ) and GfK emerge as pivotal allies. This expertise is essential for businesses in B2C commerce, retail, and beyond, aiming to navigate the complex consumer landscape for informed, strategic decision-making.

Definition and Importance of Consumer Behavior Research

Consumer behavior research is the study of how individuals make decisions to spend their resources on consumption-related items. It involves understanding the what, why, when, and how of consumer purchases. This field is crucial for businesses as it sheds light on consumer preferences, buying patterns, and decision-making processes. By understanding these aspects, companies can tailor their products and marketing strategies effectively, ensuring alignment with consumer needs and market trends, ultimately leading to increased customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Overview of the Impact of Consumer Behavior Research on Marketing Strategies

The insights from consumer behavior research are instrumental in shaping targeted marketing strategies. By understanding consumer motivations and behaviors, businesses can create more relevant and engaging marketing messages, leading to improved customer engagement and retention. This research helps in segmenting the market, identifying potential customers, and understanding the factors that drive consumer decisions. It also aids in predicting future trends, enabling companies to stay ahead of the curve. Effective use of consumer behavior research can lead to the development of products and services that meet the evolving needs of consumers, thereby enhancing brand loyalty and market share.

Consumer and shopper insights

Understand consumer and shopper behavior, demographics, and loyalty with modern, representative consumer panels and customer survey capabilities.

Understanding Consumer Behavior

These diverse influences combine to form unique consumer profiles, which businesses must understand to effectively target their marketing efforts..

Factors Influencing Consumer Behavior

Consumer behavior is influenced by a complex interplay of psychological, social, cultural, and personal factors. Psychological factors include perceptions, attitudes, and motivation, which guide consumers’ emotional and cognitive responses. Social factors encompass family, friends, and societal norms that shape buying habits through peer influence and social trends. Cultural factors involve the broader societal beliefs, values, and customs that dictate consumer behavior in a particular region. Personal factors such as age, occupation, lifestyle, and economic status also significantly impact consumer choices. These diverse influences combine to form unique consumer profiles, which businesses must understand to effectively target their marketing efforts.

The Role of Consumer Behavior in Decision Making

Consumer behavior plays a critical role in the decision-making process. It involves understanding how consumers decide upon their needs and wants, choose among products and brands, and determine their purchase methods. This knowledge is vital for businesses to design and position their offerings in a way that resonates with the target audience. Understanding consumer behavior helps in predicting how consumers will respond to marketing messages and product features, enabling businesses to tailor their strategies to meet consumer needs effectively. It also assists in identifying opportunities for new product development and market expansion.

Consumer Behavior Theories and Models

Consumer behavior theories and models provide frameworks for understanding and predicting consumer actions. The Stimulus-Response Model, for instance, illustrates how marketing stimuli and environmental factors influence consumer responses. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs explains consumer motivation in terms of fulfilling basic to complex needs. The Theory of Reasoned Action and the Theory of Planned Behavior focus on the relationship between attitudes, intentions, and behaviors. The Consumer Decision Model outlines the cognitive process involving need recognition, information search, evaluation of alternatives, purchase decision, and post-purchase behavior. These models help businesses in developing strategies that align with consumer psychology and behavioral patterns. They also assist in segmenting the market and targeting consumers with personalized marketing approaches, enhancing the effectiveness of marketing campaigns and product offerings.

Research Methods in Consumer Behavior Research

Customer analytics is vital for businesses across various sectors, including FMCG, sales, and e-commerce. It enables companies to create personalized experiences, improve customer engagement, and boost retention, ultimately leading to increased revenue. By understanding consumer behavior through data analysis, businesses can make informed decisions that resonate with their target audience.

Quantitative Research Methods

Quantitative research methods in consumer behavior research involve structured techniques like surveys and questionnaires to collect numerical data. These methods are useful for gauging consumer attitudes, preferences, and behaviors across larger populations. Statistical analysis of this data helps in identifying trends, testing hypotheses, and making generalizations about consumer behavior. Quantitative research is valuable for businesses as it provides measurable and comparable insights that can guide strategic decision-making. It helps in understanding the magnitude of consumer responses to various marketing stimuli and in assessing the potential market size for new products or services.

Qualitative Research Methods

Qualitative research methods in consumer behavior focus on understanding the deeper motivations, thoughts, and feelings of consumers. Techniques like in-depth interviews, focus groups, and observational studies provide rich, detailed insights that are not typically captured through quantitative methods. This approach is crucial for exploring the underlying reasons behind consumer choices, preferences, and attitudes. Qualitative research helps businesses in gaining a deeper understanding of consumer experiences, emotions, and perceptions, which can be invaluable in developing more effective marketing strategies, product designs, and customer service approaches. It allows companies to explore new ideas and concepts with consumers, gaining insights that can lead to innovation and differentiation in the market.

Experimental Research in Consumer Behavior

Experimental research in consumer behavior involves manipulating one or more variables to observe the effect on another variable, typically consumer behavior or attitudes. This method is used to establish cause-and-effect relationships, providing insights into how changes in product features, pricing, or marketing strategies might influence consumer behavior. Controlled experiments, often conducted in laboratory settings or as field experiments, allow researchers to isolate the effects of specific variables. This type of research is particularly valuable for testing new products, pricing strategies, and marketing messages before full-scale implementation. It helps businesses in making informed decisions based on empirical evidence, reducing the risks associated with new initiatives.

Factors Affecting Consumer Behavior

Psychological factors.

Psychological factors play a significant role in shaping consumer behavior. These include individual motivations, perceptions, attitudes, and beliefs. Motivation drives consumers to fulfill their needs and desires, influencing their buying decisions. Perception, how consumers interpret information, can significantly impact their choices, as it shapes their understanding of products and brands. Attitudes and beliefs, formed through experiences and social influences, guide consumer preferences and loyalty. Understanding these psychological factors is crucial for businesses as they influence how consumers view and interact with products and services. By aligning marketing strategies with consumer psychology, businesses can more effectively influence purchasing decisions and build stronger customer relationships.

Social Factors

Social factors significantly influence consumer behavior, encompassing the impact of society, family, and peer groups. Family members and friends can influence buying decisions through recommendations or shared experiences. Social groups, including social networks and communities, also play a role in shaping consumer preferences and behaviors. The influence of social media has become particularly significant, as it not only connects consumers but also serves as a platform for sharing opinions and experiences about products and services. Understanding these social dynamics is important for businesses as they can leverage social influences through targeted marketing strategies, influencer partnerships, and social media campaigns. Recognizing the power of social factors can help businesses in building brand awareness and loyalty among consumer groups.

Cultural Factors

Cultural factors are deeply ingrained elements that influence consumer behavior, including values, beliefs, customs, and traditions. These factors vary across different regions and societies, affecting how consumers perceive and interact with products and services. Cultural influences can determine consumer preferences, buying habits, and brand perceptions. For instance, color symbolism, dietary preferences, and language can all vary significantly between cultures, impacting marketing strategies and product development. Businesses must understand and respect these cultural nuances to effectively cater to diverse consumer markets. Adapting products and marketing messages to align with cultural values and norms can significantly enhance a brand’s appeal and acceptance in different markets.

Personal Factors

Personal factors, including age, gender, occupation, lifestyle, and economic status, also significantly influence consumer behavior. These factors determine individual needs, preferences, and purchasing power. For example, younger consumers may prioritize trendy and innovative products, while older consumers might value functionality and durability. Lifestyle choices, such as health consciousness or environmental awareness, can also drive consumer preferences and choices. Economic factors, such as income and economic conditions, influence consumers’ ability to purchase and their sensitivity to price changes. Understanding these personal factors is crucial for businesses to segment their market effectively and tailor their products and marketing strategies to meet the specific needs of different consumer groups.

Consumer Purchase Decision Making

Stages of the consumer purchase decision-making process.

The consumer purchase decision-making process typically involves several key stages: problem recognition, information search, evaluation of alternatives, purchase decision, and post-purchase behavior.

In the problem recognition stage, consumers identify a need or desire.

During the information search, they seek out information about products or services that can fulfill their need. In the evaluation stage, consumers compare different options based on attributes such as price, quality, and brand reputation.

The purchase decision involves choosing a product and making the purchase. Finally, in the post-purchase stage, consumers evaluate their satisfaction with the purchase, which can influence future buying decisions and brand loyalty.

Understanding these stages is essential for businesses to effectively influence consumers at each step, from raising awareness to ensuring post-purchase satisfaction.

Influences on Consumer Purchase Decisions

Consumer purchase decisions are influenced by a multitude of factors, including product attributes, brand reputation, marketing messages, social influences, and personal preferences. Product features such as quality, price, and usability are key determinants of consumer choices. Brand reputation, built over time through consistent quality and marketing efforts, also significantly impacts purchase decisions. Marketing messages and advertising play a crucial role in shaping consumer perceptions and driving demand. Social influences, including recommendations from family and friends, as well as online reviews and influencer endorsements, can sway consumer decisions. Personal factors such as individual needs, preferences, and financial constraints also play a critical role. Businesses must consider these diverse influences when developing products and crafting marketing strategies to effectively appeal to their target audience.

Impulse Buying Behavior

Impulse buying behavior refers to unplanned purchases made by consumers, often driven by emotional factors rather than rational decision-making. This type of behavior is typically triggered by external stimuli such as attractive product displays, promotional offers, or persuasive sales tactics. Emotional responses, such as excitement or the desire for instant gratification, also play a significant role in impulse buying. Retailers often leverage this behavior by strategically placing impulse items near checkout areas or using limited-time offers to create a sense of urgency. Understanding the triggers of impulse buying can help businesses in designing marketing strategies and store layouts that encourage such purchases, potentially increasing sales and customer engagement.

Online Shopping and Consumer Behavior

Impact of online shopping on consumer behavior.

The rise of online shopping has significantly impacted consumer behavior, offering convenience, a wider selection of products, and often competitive pricing. Online shopping has changed the way consumers research products, compare prices, and make purchasing decisions. The ease of access to a vast array of products and the ability to shop at any time have increased the frequency and diversity of purchases. Online reviews and ratings have also become important factors in the decision-making process, as consumers increasingly rely on the opinions of others. Additionally, the personalized shopping experiences offered by many online retailers, through targeted recommendations and tailored marketing messages, have further influenced consumer buying habits. Understanding these shifts in consumer behavior is crucial for businesses to adapt their strategies for the digital marketplace, ensuring they meet the evolving needs and expectations of online shoppers.

Factors Influencing Online Buying Behavior

Several factors influence online buying behavior, including website usability, product variety, pricing, customer reviews, and the overall shopping experience. A user-friendly website with easy navigation and a seamless checkout process is crucial for attracting and retaining online shoppers. A diverse product range and competitive pricing are also key factors in attracting consumers. Customer reviews and ratings significantly impact purchase decisions, as they provide social proof and reduce perceived risk. The overall shopping experience, including customer service, delivery options, and return policies, also plays a vital role in influencing online buying behavior. Security and privacy concerns are additional considerations, as consumers are increasingly aware of data protection and online fraud. Businesses must address these factors to create a compelling online shopping experience that meets consumer expectations and drives online sales.

Comparison of Online and Offline Consumer Behavior

Online and offline consumer behaviors exhibit distinct differences, influenced by the unique aspects of each shopping environment. Online shopping offers convenience, a broader selection, and often more competitive pricing, leading to different purchasing patterns compared to offline shopping. Consumers tend to spend more time researching and comparing products online, while offline shopping is often driven by immediate needs and sensory experiences. The tactile experience and instant gratification of offline shopping are not replicable online, but the online environment offers personalized recommendations and a wealth of product information. Offline shopping also provides opportunities for personal interaction and immediate problem resolution, which can enhance customer satisfaction. Understanding these differences is crucial for businesses to tailor their strategies for each channel, ensuring a cohesive and complementary shopping experience that meets the needs and preferences of consumers in both online and offline environments.

Consumer Satisfaction and Loyalty

Importance of customer satisfaction in consumer behavior research.

Customer satisfaction is a critical component of consumer behavior research, as it directly impacts repeat purchases and brand loyalty. Satisfied customers are more likely to become repeat buyers, recommend the brand to others, and provide positive reviews. Customer satisfaction is influenced by various factors, including product quality, customer service, and overall shopping experience. Understanding and measuring customer satisfaction helps businesses identify areas for improvement, enhance customer experiences, and build long-term relationships with consumers. High levels of customer satisfaction lead to increased customer loyalty, which is essential for business growth and sustainability.

Factors Influencing Customer Satisfaction

Customer satisfaction is influenced by a range of factors, including product quality, price, service quality, brand image, and customer expectations. Product quality is a primary determinant of satisfaction, as consumers expect products to perform as advertised. Price also plays a role, as consumers evaluate the value they receive relative to the cost. Service quality, encompassing customer service interactions and the overall shopping experience, significantly impacts satisfaction levels. A positive, helpful, and efficient service experience can enhance satisfaction, while negative experiences can lead to dissatisfaction. Brand image, shaped by marketing communications and past experiences, influences consumer expectations and perceptions. Meeting or exceeding these expectations is key to achieving high levels of customer satisfaction. Additionally, personal factors such as individual needs, preferences, and past experiences also influence satisfaction. Businesses must consider these diverse factors to effectively meet consumer needs and enhance satisfaction levels.

Relationship Between Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty

The relationship between customer satisfaction and loyalty is strong and direct. Satisfied customers are more likely to develop a sense of loyalty to a brand, leading to repeat purchases and positive word-of-mouth recommendations. Loyalty is not just about repeat buying; it also involves an emotional connection and a preference for the brand over competitors. Satisfied customers are also more likely to be forgiving of minor issues and are less sensitive to price changes. Conversely, dissatisfied customers are more likely to switch to competitors and share negative experiences with others. Building customer loyalty requires consistently meeting or exceeding customer expectations, providing high-quality products and services, and maintaining positive customer relationships. Loyal customers are valuable assets to businesses, as they tend to have a higher lifetime value, lower acquisition costs, and can become brand advocates, promoting the brand through their networks.

Consumer Research and Marketing Strategies

Utilizing consumer research to develop effective marketing programs.

Consumer research is a vital tool for developing effective marketing programs. By understanding consumer needs, preferences, and behaviors, businesses can create targeted marketing strategies that resonate with their audience. Consumer research helps in identifying market segments, understanding consumer pain points, and uncovering opportunities for product development or enhancement. It also provides insights into the most effective channels and messages for reaching the target audience. Utilizing consumer research in marketing program development ensures that strategies are data-driven and customer-centric, increasing the likelihood of success. It enables businesses to tailor their marketing efforts to the specific needs and preferences of different consumer segments, improving engagement and response rates. Additionally, ongoing consumer research allows businesses to adapt their marketing strategies in response to changing consumer trends and market conditions, ensuring continued relevance and effectiveness.

Targeting Specific Consumer Segments Based on Research Findings

Targeting specific consumer segments based on research findings is a key strategy for effective marketing. Consumer research provides detailed insights into different consumer groups, including their demographics, psychographics, behaviors, and preferences. By analyzing this data, businesses can identify distinct segments within their target market, each with unique needs and characteristics. Targeting these segments with tailored marketing messages and product offerings increases the relevance and appeal of the brand to each group. For example, a segment characterized by health-conscious consumers would respond more positively to marketing messages emphasizing the health benefits of a product. Segment-specific targeting allows businesses to allocate marketing resources more efficiently, focusing on the most promising segments with the highest potential for conversion and loyalty. It also enhances the customer experience by providing consumers with products and marketing messages that are more closely aligned with their individual needs and preferences.

Adapting Marketing Strategies to Consumer Behavior Trends

Adapting marketing strategies to consumer behavior trends is essential for businesses to stay relevant and competitive. Consumer behavior is constantly evolving, influenced by factors such as technological advancements, cultural shifts, and economic changes. By staying attuned to these trends, businesses can anticipate changes in consumer needs and preferences, and adjust their marketing strategies accordingly. This may involve adopting new marketing channels, such as social media or influencer marketing, to reach consumers where they are most active. It could also mean developing new products or services that align with emerging consumer trends, such as sustainability or personalization. Adapting marketing strategies to consumer behavior trends requires a proactive approach, with ongoing research and analysis to identify emerging patterns. Businesses that successfully adapt to these trends can capture new market opportunities, enhance customer engagement, and maintain a competitive edge.

Case Studies in Consumer Behavior Research

Analysis of real-life examples and their implications.

Real-life case studies in consumer behavior research provide valuable insights into the practical application of theoretical concepts and the effectiveness of different marketing strategies. For example, a case study in the automotive industry might analyze how consumer preferences for eco-friendly vehicles have influenced car manufacturers’ product development and marketing strategies. In the retail sector, a case study could examine the impact of online shopping on brick-and-mortar stores and how these businesses have adapted to the digital era. These case studies offer concrete examples of how businesses have successfully navigated changes in consumer behavior, providing lessons and strategies that can be applied in other contexts. They also highlight the importance of consumer research in identifying market trends, understanding consumer needs, and developing effective marketing strategies. By analyzing real-life examples, businesses can gain a deeper understanding of consumer behavior, learn from the successes and challenges of others, and apply these insights to their own strategies.

Examination of Successful Marketing Campaigns Based on Consumer Behavior Research

Examining successful marketing campaigns that are based on consumer behavior research can provide valuable insights into effective marketing practices. These case studies demonstrate how a deep understanding of consumer needs, preferences, and behaviors can be leveraged to create impactful marketing campaigns. For instance, a campaign that effectively uses consumer data to personalize messages and offers can result in higher engagement and conversion rates. Another example might be a campaign that taps into current consumer trends, such as sustainability or wellness, to resonate with the target audience. Analyzing these successful campaigns can reveal key strategies and tactics that businesses can adopt, such as the use of specific channels, messaging techniques, or promotional offers. These case studies also highlight the importance of data-driven decision-making in marketing, showing how consumer research can inform and guide successful marketing initiatives.

Motivating Consumers and New Product Adoption

Strategies to motivate consumers to adopt new products.

Motivating consumers to adopt new products is a critical challenge for businesses. Effective strategies for encouraging new product adoption include leveraging social proof, offering free trials or samples, and creating educational content. Social proof, such as customer testimonials or influencer endorsements, can reduce perceived risk and increase consumer confidence in trying a new product. Free trials or samples allow consumers to experience the product firsthand, reducing barriers to adoption. Educational content, such as how-to guides or product demonstrations, can help consumers understand the value and benefits of the new product. Additionally, businesses can use targeted marketing campaigns to reach early adopters and innovators who are more likely to try new products and spread the word to others. Creating a sense of urgency or exclusivity around the new product, through limited-time offers or exclusive access, can also motivate consumers to adopt the product more quickly.

Innovations in Consumer Behavior Research for New Product Development

Innovations in consumer behavior research are playing a crucial role in new product development. Advanced analytics and data mining techniques allow businesses to analyze large datasets and uncover deep insights into consumer needs and preferences. Social listening tools enable companies to monitor social media and online conversations, gaining real-time insights into consumer opinions and trends. Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technologies are being used to test consumer reactions to new products in simulated environments, providing valuable feedback before market launch. Behavioral economics principles, such as understanding cognitive biases and decision-making processes, are also being applied to better predict consumer responses to new products. These innovations in consumer behavior research provide businesses with more accurate and comprehensive data, enabling them to develop products that are closely aligned with consumer needs and preferences, increasing the likelihood of market success.

Social Media and Consumer Behavior

Influence of social media on consumer behavior.

Social media has a profound influence on consumer behavior, shaping how consumers discover, research, and share information about products and services. Platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter serve as important channels for brand communication and engagement. Consumers use social media to seek recommendations, read reviews, and gather opinions from their networks, which significantly influences their purchasing decisions. Brands leverage social media for targeted advertising, influencer partnerships, and content marketing, creating opportunities for direct interaction and engagement with consumers. Social media also facilitates the spread of trends and viral content, quickly influencing consumer preferences and behaviors. The interactive and dynamic nature of social media means that consumer opinions and trends can rapidly change, requiring businesses to be agile and responsive in their social media strategies. Understanding the influence of social media on consumer behavior is essential for businesses to effectively engage with their audience and influence purchasing decisions.

Role of Social Media in Shaping Consumer Perceptions and Purchase Decisions

Recap of the importance of consumer behavior research.

Consumer behavior research is essential for businesses seeking to understand and effectively respond to the evolving needs and preferences of their target audience. It provides valuable insights into why consumers make certain choices, what influences their purchasing decisions, and how they interact with brands. This research is crucial for developing effective marketing strategies, creating products that meet consumer needs, and enhancing the overall customer experience. By staying informed about consumer behavior trends and applying these insights, businesses can improve customer engagement, increase brand loyalty, and drive growth. In today’s competitive marketplace, a deep understanding of consumer behavior is a key differentiator, enabling businesses to create more personalized, relevant, and impactful marketing initiatives.

Future Directions and Emerging Trends in Consumer Behavior Research

The future of consumer behavior research is marked by rapid advancements in technology and data analytics, leading to more sophisticated and nuanced understanding of consumer preferences and behaviors. Emerging trends include the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to analyze consumer data, providing deeper and more predictive insights. The integration of biometric data, such as eye tracking and facial recognition, offers new ways to understand consumer responses to marketing stimuli. The growing importance of sustainability and ethical considerations is also influencing consumer behavior, leading to increased demand for eco-friendly and socially responsible products. Additionally, the rise of the experience economy is shifting focus from product features to customer experiences, requiring businesses to create more immersive and engaging customer interactions. Staying abreast of these trends and continuously innovating in consumer behavior research will be crucial for businesses to remain relevant and competitive in the changing market landscape.

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Consumer Behavior Research Paper Topics

Consumer behavior research paper topics are essential to students studying this field. This comprehensive guide from iResearchNet provides a comprehensive list of consumer behavior research paper topics divided into 10 categories, expert advice on selecting a relevant topic, and a step-by-step guide on writing a successful research paper. Additionally, iResearchNet offers writing services with expert degree-holding writers, custom written works, in-depth research, custom formatting, top quality, customized solutions, flexible pricing, short deadlines, timely delivery, 24/7 support, absolute privacy, easy order tracking, and a money-back guarantee. By following the expert advice provided and using iResearchNet’s writing services, students can produce high-quality research papers that make meaningful contributions to the field of consumer behavior.

Understanding Consumer Behavior Research

Consumer behavior research is an essential field of study that explores the processes and activities that individuals undertake when making decisions related to purchasing goods and services. This field is particularly important for marketers, advertisers, and sales professionals who seek to understand how consumers make purchasing decisions and how they can influence these decisions.

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For students studying consumer behavior, research papers are a common assignment that require them to explore various topics related to this field. However, selecting a relevant and feasible research paper topic can be challenging. Furthermore, writing a successful research paper requires attention to detail and adherence to academic standards. This comprehensive guide from iResearchNet is designed to assist students in selecting appropriate consumer behavior research paper topics and providing expert advice on how to write a successful research paper. The guide also provides information on iResearchNet’s writing services, which offer students a valuable resource for producing high-quality research papers that meet the academic standards of their instructors. By following the guidelines and using iResearchNet’s writing services, students can produce research papers that make meaningful contributions to the field of consumer behavior.

100 Consumer Behavior Research Paper Topics

Consumer behavior research encompasses a wide range of topics, each of which explores different aspects of how individuals make decisions related to purchasing goods and services. Here are ten categories of consumer behavior research paper topics that students can consider when selecting a research topic, along with ten sample topics for each category:

Perception and consumer behavior:

• The impact of package design on consumer perception of food products
• The effect of product display on consumer attention and purchase intention
• The role of brand familiarity in consumer perception of luxury goods
• The influence of product color on consumer perception and behavior
• The effect of music in advertising on consumer perception and recall
• The impact of celebrity endorsement on consumer perception of products
• The effect of font type on consumer perception of brand personality
• The role of scent in retail environments on consumer behavior
• The influence of product label claims on consumer perception of health and wellness
• The impact of product design on consumer perception of eco-friendliness

Motivation and consumer behavior:

• The influence of brand personality on consumer motivation to purchase
• The role of scarcity in marketing on consumer motivation and behavior
• The impact of rewards and incentives on consumer motivation and loyalty
• The effect of social proof on consumer motivation to purchase
• The influence of emotions on consumer motivation to purchase
• The role of self-congruity in consumer motivation and brand preference
• The impact of brand trust on consumer motivation to purchase
• The effect of personalized marketing on consumer motivation and engagement
• The influence of product involvement on consumer motivation and purchase intention
• The role of value perception in consumer motivation and price sensitivity

Attitudes and consumer behavior:

• The impact of brand image on consumer attitudes and loyalty
• The role of social responsibility in consumer attitudes towards brands
• The influence of culture on consumer attitudes towards luxury goods
• The effect of perceived risk on consumer attitudes and behavior
• The impact of celebrity endorsement on consumer attitudes towards products
• The role of nostalgia in shaping consumer attitudes towards brands
• The influence of brand authenticity on consumer attitudes and behavior
• The effect of word-of-mouth communication on consumer attitudes and behavior
• The impact of service quality on consumer attitudes and loyalty
• The role of price perception in shaping consumer attitudes towards products

Learning and consumer behavior:

• The impact of advertising on consumer learning and recall
• The role of sensory marketing in consumer learning and behavior
• The influence of online reviews on consumer learning and purchase decisions
• The effect of product placement in movies on consumer learning and recall
• The impact of social media on consumer learning and brand awareness
• The role of brand familiarity in consumer learning and recall
• The influence of product packaging on consumer learning and memory
• The effect of information overload on consumer learning and decision making
• The impact of brand slogans on consumer learning and recall
• The role of perceived value in consumer learning and purchase behavior

Memory and consumer behavior:

• The influence of brand familiarity on consumer memory and recall
• The role of nostalgia in consumer memory and brand preference
• The impact of product design on consumer memory and recall
• The effect of advertising repetition on consumer memory and brand awareness
• The influence of mood on consumer memory and recall of advertising
• The role of social media in consumer memory and brand awareness
• The impact of story-telling in advertising on consumer memory and recall
• The effect of novelty in advertising on consumer memory and recall
• The influence of age on consumer memory and recall of advertising
• The role of emotions in consumer memory and recall of advertising

Culture and consumer behavior:

• The impact of cultural differences on consumer behavior and preferences
• The role of religion in shaping consumer behavior and preferences
• The influence of gender roles on consumer behavior and preferences
• The effect of country-of-origin on consumer behavior and brand perception
• The impact of subcultures on consumer behavior and preferences
• The role of ethnicity in shaping consumer behavior and preferences
• The influence of language on consumer behavior and perception
• The effect of cross-cultural marketing on consumer behavior and perception
• The impact of cultural values on consumer behavior and decision making
• The role of consumer ethnocentrism in shaping consumer behavior and preferences

Emotions and consumer behavior:

• The impact of emotions on consumer decision making and behavior
• The role of mood on consumer decision making and purchase intention
• The influence of emotional branding on consumer behavior and loyalty
• The effect of emotional appeals in advertising on consumer behavior
• The impact of emotions on consumer satisfaction and loyalty
• The role of self-expression in shaping consumer emotional responses to brands
• The influence of nostalgia on consumer emotional responses to brands
• The effect of humor in advertising on consumer emotional responses and behavior
• The impact of product design on consumer emotional responses and behavior
• The role of perceived authenticity in shaping consumer emotional responses to brands

Social Influence and consumer behavior:

• The impact of social norms on consumer behavior and preferences
• The role of social comparison in shaping consumer behavior and preferences
• The influence of reference groups on consumer behavior and brand perception
• The effect of social media on consumer behavior and decision making
• The impact of social identity on consumer behavior and brand loyalty
• The role of social class in shaping consumer behavior and preferences
• The influence of social networks on consumer behavior and brand perception
• The effect of social proof in marketing on consumer behavior and preferences
• The impact of peer pressure on consumer behavior and decision making
• The role of social responsibility in shaping consumer behavior and brand perception

Decision Making and consumer behavior:

• The impact of information overload on consumer decision making
• The role of decision heuristics in shaping consumer behavior and preferences
• The influence of product complexity on consumer decision making and preferences
• The effect of decision context on consumer decision making and behavior
• The impact of decision fatigue on consumer behavior and decision making
• The role of decision-making style in shaping consumer behavior and preferences
• The influence of decision-making strategies on consumer behavior and preferences
• The effect of cognitive dissonance on consumer behavior and decision making
• The impact of choice architecture on consumer decision making and behavior
• The role of decision framing in shaping consumer behavior and preferences

Ethics and consumer behavior:

• The impact of corporate social responsibility on consumer behavior and brand perception
• The role of ethical consumption in shaping consumer behavior and preferences
• The influence of perceived ethicality on consumer behavior and brand loyalty
• The effect of green marketing on consumer behavior and purchase intention
• The impact of fair trade on consumer behavior and brand perception
• The role of animal welfare in shaping consumer behavior and preferences
• The influence of social justice issues on consumer behavior and brand perception
• The effect of cause-related marketing on consumer behavior and brand loyalty
• The impact of transparency in marketing on consumer behavior and trust
• The role of consumer activism in shaping consumer behavior and preferences

These ten categories provide a broad range of consumer behavior research paper topics for students to explore within the field of consumer behavior. By selecting a topic that aligns with their interests and research goals, students can produce a high-quality research paper that contributes to the knowledge base of consumer behavior.

Choosing a Consumer Behavior Topic

Choosing a topic for a research paper in consumer behavior can be a challenging task, especially given the vast array of potential topics. To help students navigate this process, it is important to consider a few key factors when selecting a topic.

• First , it is essential to choose a topic that aligns with your interests and passions. When you are passionate about a topic, it is easier to stay engaged throughout the research process and to produce high-quality work. Additionally, having a personal connection to the topic can inspire new and unique perspectives, leading to original research.
• Second , consider the relevance and significance of the topic. The best research papers are those that make a meaningful contribution to the field of consumer behavior. Look for topics that are timely, relevant, and offer a new perspective on existing theories or practices. A topic that is of current interest to industry professionals, policymakers, or academics can also provide opportunities for real-world impact.
• Third , consider the available resources and access to data. Research papers require a significant amount of data and research, so it is important to choose a topic that allows for access to relevant data and resources. Consider the availability of data sources, academic journals, and industry reports that may be needed to support your research.
• Fourth , consider the scope and focus of the research paper. A topic that is too broad or too narrow can make the research process more challenging. It is essential to identify a specific research question or hypothesis that can be effectively addressed within the scope of the research paper. Additionally, it is important to consider the level of analysis, such as individual or group-level behaviors, and whether the research will be qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods.
• Fifth , consider seeking guidance from your instructor or a research advisor. They can provide valuable insight and feedback on potential topics and can help guide the research process. Additionally, they may be able to offer suggestions for data sources or research methodologies that can strengthen the research paper.

Ultimately, the key to choosing a successful topic for a consumer behavior research paper is to identify a topic that aligns with your interests, offers relevance and significance, has available data sources and resources, has a focused research question or hypothesis, and seeks guidance from a research advisor or instructor. By carefully considering these factors, students can select a topic that inspires them and leads to a high-quality research paper.

How to Write a Consumer Behavior Research Paper

When it comes to writing a research paper on consumer behavior, there are several key steps to follow to ensure a successful outcome. Here are some tips to help guide you through the writing process:

• Develop a clear and concise research question : The first step in writing a research paper on consumer behavior is to develop a clear and concise research question. This question should be focused and specific, and should guide your research and analysis throughout the writing process.
• Conduct a thorough literature review : Before beginning your research, it is important to conduct a thorough literature review to identify existing theories and research related to your topic. This review will help you to identify any gaps in the existing research that your paper can address.
• Choose appropriate research methods : There are a variety of research methods that can be used in consumer behavior research, including surveys, experiments, and case studies. Choose the appropriate method(s) based on your research question and the data you are trying to collect.
• Collect and analyze data : Once you have identified your research question and chosen your research method, it is time to collect and analyze your data. This may involve conducting surveys or experiments, analyzing existing data sets, or conducting interviews or focus groups.
• Organize and present your findings : After analyzing your data, it is important to organize your findings in a clear and concise manner. This may involve creating charts or graphs to visually represent your data, or using tables to compare and contrast your findings. It is also important to provide a clear and concise summary of your findings in your conclusion.
• Use appropriate formatting and citation styles : When writing a research paper on consumer behavior, it is important to use appropriate formatting and citation styles. Most papers in this field will use either APA or MLA style formatting and citations.
• Revise and edit your paper : Once you have completed your first draft, it is important to revise and edit your paper to ensure clarity, conciseness, and accuracy. This may involve reorganizing sections, cutting out extraneous information, or rephrasing sentences for clarity.

By following these steps, you can produce a high-quality research paper on consumer behavior that contributes to the field and provides valuable insights for academics, policymakers, and industry professionals alike.

iResearchNet Writing Services

At iResearchNet, we understand the challenges that students face when it comes to writing high-quality research papers on consumer behavior. That’s why we offer custom writing services designed to help students produce well-researched, well-written papers on any topic related to consumer behavior.

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Whether you need help developing a research question, conducting a literature review, or writing the final paper, our team of expert writers can help. Contact us today to learn more about our custom writing services for consumer behavior research papers.

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In conclusion, writing a research paper on consumer behavior can be a challenging task, but it is also a rewarding one. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can produce a high-quality research paper that contributes to the field and provides valuable insights for academics, policymakers, and industry professionals alike.

Remember to choose a clear and concise research question, conduct a thorough literature review, choose appropriate research methods, collect and analyze data, and organize and present your findings in a clear and concise manner. Additionally, using appropriate formatting and citation styles and revising and editing your paper are also important steps in producing a successful research paper on consumer behavior.

If you need additional help with your research paper, iResearchNet offers custom writing services designed to help students produce high-quality, well-researched papers on any topic related to consumer behavior. Our team of expert writers has the knowledge and expertise to help you produce a paper that meets your specific needs and exceeds your expectations.

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