Consumer Attitudes and Behaviour - Essay Example

Task Consumer Attitudes and Behavior Introduction Consumer behavior can be referred to as the decision-making procedure as wellas the physical undertakings concerned with the acquisition, assessment, utilization and disposition of merchandise including services. In relation to the definition provided, all matters that are the purchase of merchandise and services and the processes involved in between before a certain commodity is purchase get taken into account. The process of purchasing a certain commodity has to commence or get set within the minds of such individuals, which later leads to the evaluation of alternatives in relation to the merits, and demerits of making a certain purchase decision. On top of the consumer behavior, consumer attitude becomes an equally significant component within a marketing environment. Consumer attitudes can be considered both an impediment as well as an advantage in marketing. An attitude exists as an evaluation of certain concepts or objects concerning a subject and gives the contentment through articulation. The attitude towards a certain object or service may satisfy an individual drive and at the same time affect the buying actions of consumers. The attitudes and behavior of consumers are better explained through the evaluation of certain theories and concepts that bear relations. The supposition takes into deliberation behavior as the fundamental determinant concerning the personal intention to carry out presented behavior. In the formulation of personal behaviors, certain personality assumptions are taken into thought. The three independent concepts that individual consider in formulating their behaviors include; the promptly reachable or salient beliefs regarding the perceived upshots of reflected guiding principles and beliefs that lead to the positive or negative attitude towards behavior (Fishbein, Ajzen, & Robert 2007, 5). The second consideration is the apparent normative prospects in relation to pertinent referent individuals. Outstanding normative beliefs, direct to the development of a subjective model that bears orientation on the expected societal pressure, on whether to perform or not carry out certain behaviors (Gambal 2006, 30). In the end, individuals are implicit to take into thought certain factors that may either promote or encumber their capacity to carry out certain behaviors. The factors that may bring promotion or hindrances to performance of behavior or rather the standard societal beliefs, direct to the development of expected behavioral standards. The perceived behavioral standards or limitations can also be regarded as the apparent capability to execute the behavior. In general terms, the favorable the mind-set and subjective standard in relation to behavior, and the superior professed behavioral control. This means that an individual’s intention gets stronger in the conduction of behavior (Fishbein, Ajzen, & Robert 2007, 5). The conjecture of reasoned action bears central application in marketing. The theory conceptualizes the practical functions concerning the attitudinal and normative factors. The attitudinal and normative factors are imperative components in the formation of intentions and get considered as separate but dependent they are also considered inseparable. The supposition in itself gyrates around the attitudinal and normative thinking, objectives as well as behaviors. The conjecture of planned behavior, which gets considered, as an extension of the conjecture of reasoned action, brings about the concepts or ideas of self worth or efficacy (Lefebvre 2000, 5). This connotes that it has an edge over the performance of behavior. In reference to the conjecture of reasoned action, the imperative predictor, the consequent behavior becomes an individual’s objective to take action. According to the conjecture, the behavioral intention obtains influence through an individual’s mind-set engaging in a certain conduct, as well as, the subjective model that the individual holds concerning behavior. With respect to the theory, attitude towards a certain object or concept gets determined through the evaluation of individual beliefs concerning the upshot and characteristics related to the demeanor or behavior (Vallerand et al 2001, 1). In accordance to the theory, subjective norms normally get founded on an individual’s normative values that better replicate the implication that the behaviors offer to the persons being referred. The significance or imperativeness of this to the people on scope may be either practical or unconstructive, and this individual may be within a wide range. In relation to the theory, the conduct of an individual can better be determined through intention to radiate that behavior. The personal attitude in relation to a certain behavior is normally considered as a function of the behavioral beliefs, concerning the apparent outcomes of carrying out the behaviors, and personal evaluations of the outcomes. The subjective norms have orientation towards the involved parties’ discernments taking into thought the actions of the referents persons. This suggests that the subjective norms remain a utility of the personal or normative beliefs concerning the thoughts of every referent and the stimulus to conform to the presented thoughts (Vallerand et al 2001, 1). In the case where people are presented with the ample level of real restrain over their conduct, they would be expected to perform their own intentions in instances where prospect comes up. With respect to the above statement, intention is often considered as the instantaneous precursor of conduct. However, useful considerations are offered to apparent behavioral control besides intention since most behaviors offer complications to implementation that often limit preferential control. Apparent behavioral control can be referred to be a replacement for actual control and can be utilized in the forecast of the conduct under consideration. Conjecture of reasoned action finds application in social marketing when coupled with conjecture of perceived behavior although they are considered inherent and imperfect (Lefebvre 2000, 4). In social marketing, the subjective norms and the referent become the spotlight in programs even if the hypothetical representations may be unusual to the schemers. In most social marketing programs, more stress is put on a certain part of the equation that the others and little concerns are kept regarding ways to transform the approaches regarding behavior. For example, a program carried out revealed that an intended audience supposed that a group that took a certain portions of fruits and vegetables daily as less proficient, reliable, calm and sociable than themselves (Lefebvre 2000, 4). The conjecture of reasoned action becomes salient in social marketing since it bears involvement in effecting behavioral changes. The theory bears outstanding application by utilizing public relations, promotion and research in an attempt to induce constructive social transformations. Social marketing aims at altering certain beliefs concerning behavior, that is often entrenched, since alteration of mind-sets and subjective norms become possible with alter of beliefs. Once the mind-sets and subjective norms are altered, intention can easily be altered meaning that behavior can ultimately be altered. TRA has for long been utilized as a tool for forecasting behavior, although in the recent times research has shown its effectiveness in the transformation of individual bearing different behaviors through utilization of persuasive information that is often obtained by utilization of the theory (Lefebvre 2000, 4). The Health Eating Policy for the university can better be analyzed by taking different factors into thought mostly the intentions, beliefs, subjective norms, attitudes and promotion in terms of social marketing. The mentioned factors profoundly contribute to the prediction of behavioral transformations within a projected group of populace. The university recognizes the need to keep their students and staff in a healthy manner through incorporation of the same in their strategic arrangement. The university through their support of the healthy existence scheme presents an intention to convert every person within the community into a healthy population. The step can be considered imperative, although not equally imperative to providing the population with the beliefs that, eating healthy foods becomes paramount in the maintenance of excellent mental and bodily health. The information provided above can be taken imperative mostly to students, who require excellent mental fitness to allow them perform better in their undertakings. It can also be equally relevant for the staff members, who also have to be mentally fit to perform efficiently, and obtain bodily fitness required, as one ages, to prohibit any health predicaments in the future. The presented beliefs are meant to trigger behavioral changes amongst students and staff within the university. The beliefs that healthy eating brings about proper health both mentally and physically coupled with the belief that, it maintains dedication to sustainability and the ecosystem are meant to alter mind-sets and subjective norms. The university through its programs aims at changing attitudes towards certain food habits since attitudes are usually learned and are not behaviors. The programs aim at transforming any unconstructive attitudes or mindsets into affirmative attitudes to allow for the behavioral changes at personal levels. Utilizing the three components of attitude that is cognition, affect and conation, the Hierarchy of Effects can be made concerning the policy or rather can be altered to suit behavioral changes. The policy aims at altering the beliefs that student, and staff has developed through utilization of one component of Katz’s Functional Theory of Attitudes, that is the knowledge function. The knowledge function within the university’s context becomes more imperative than other components, thus providing the best option to fight against other attitudes developed for a different reason. The attitudes are often developed through focus on beliefs concerning the apparent upshots on behavior. Although most people take into thought the salient beliefs, they possess dissimilar assessment than attitudes (Vallerand et al 2001, 101). The policy aims at altering the subjective norms that hinder most people from having healthier food alternative. The policy provides dissimilar food options where people are provided with organic foods, canned or bottled drinks instead of fizzy drinks to induce the transformations towards a healthy living. The alteration of the mindsets and such subjective norms as mentioned before will serve to alter intention. The incorporation of sporting activities will also serve to change people attitude towards exercises and help in promotion of the intended purpose of exercising. Like most social marketing agendas, promotion can be considered an essential component that helps in improving the objective group, with the intended information to induce changes. The policy has developed different ways through which it promotes its ideas of well eating. The policy through its campaigns aims at providing the populace involved in the program with the information passed to live a healthful life. The policy through vast events and diverse programs intend to reach out to every person to make their ideas, and concepts concerning the healthy eating program. The undertakings are meant to remove the attitudes within the populace, alter subjective norms, eliminate salient beliefs, and alter intentions to effect behavioral transformations. The aims of the policy are informative on ways through which the university aims at altering the necessary aspects towards the accomplishment of the behavioral changes. The policy overtook all the events in and around the university towards achieving the sole goal. The activities undertaken have orientation towards providing constructive mind-sets towards the healthy eating policy. The promotion of healthy eating aims at providing the populace with the mindsets towards the intention of the whole policy. At a larger scale, the effects or consequences of the promotion can be better felt to every place in and around the university. Just like the salient beliefs, the populace will also obtain the intended messages or information and help in bringing about behavioral transformation. Conclusion Considering that most aspects the TRA has been considered in the policy, the transformation in the eating behaviors and engagement in activities for students and staff may be achieved. The process of behavioral transformation being utilized together with other concepts in the theory, and other models can be considered adequate to effect the behavioral changes within the university. However, the task of predicting behavior can be considered complex taking into thought dissimilar obstacles to prediction of actions. These impediments may comprise; the linkage between the behavioral intention and actual behavior that is likely to wane with time. The dissimilar stage of specificity that exists between dissimilar contexts as well as the unprecedented situational contexts and environmental proceedings also affects the perceived outcomes. Other factor that serve as obstacles include; novel facts, constancy of the presented intentions and the assumption that behavior is not constantly intentional all these factor may lead to unintended results. Bibliography Gambal, Vincent Paul (2006). Public Information Campaigns: An Application of the Theory of Reasoned Action. Accessed on Jan 12, 2012 < http://www.udel.edu/communication/web/thesisfiles/gambalthesis.pdf > Lefebvre, R. C. (2000). Handbook of Marketing and Society, Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications. Accessed on Jan 12, 2012 http://socialmarketing.blogs.com/Publications/Theoretical_Models_in_Social_Marketing.pdf Fishbein, Martin, Ajzen, Icek & Robert C (2007). Hornik. Prediction and change of health behavior: applying the reasoned action approach. USA: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc. Vallerand, Robert J. et al (2001). Ajzen and Fishbein’s Theory of Reasoned Action as Applied to Moral Behavior: A Confirmatory Analysis. Accessed on Jan 12, 2012. http://www.er.uqam.ca/nobel/r26710/LRCS/papers/56.pdf Read More