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Chapter 8

Consumer Behavior,Consumer Behavior,Eighth EditionEighth Edition

SCHIFFMAN & KANUK

Consumer Attitude Formation and Change

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Attitudes

A learned predisposition to

behave in a consistently favorable or

unfavorable manner with respect to a

given object.

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Attitudes

• Attitudes are not directly observable

• Attitude must be inferred from what people say or what they do

• Example : determining that a consumer is specifically using a product and even recommends it to friends. Here the consumer possesses a positive attitude

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What are Attitudes?

• The attitude “object”• Attitudes are a learned predisposition• Attitudes have consistency• Attitudes occur within a situation

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The attitude “OBJECT”

• It include specific consumption-or marketing related concepts such as product, product category ,brand, service, possessions, product use, causes or issues, people, ads, internet site, price, medium

• Example: in conducting attitude research we tend to be object specific. i.e consumer attitude towards three major brands of cell phones

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ATTITUDES ARE LEARNED PREDISPOSITIONS

• Attitudes are always learned

• Attitudes are relevant to purchase behavior

• Attitudes reflect either favorable or an unfavorable evaluation of the attitude object

• Attitudes have a motivational quality

• Attitudes may repel the consumer away from a particular behavior

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ATTITUDES HAVE CONSISTENCY

• Attitudes are relatively consistent with the behavior they reflect

• Attitudes are not necessarily permanent

• possible situational influences on consumer attitudes and behavior must be considered

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Figure 8.1 Wendy’s

Offers Salads To

Differentiate Itself

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Structural Models of Attitudes

• Tricomponent Attitude Model• Muliattribute Attitude Model• The Trying-to-Consume Model• Attitude-toward-the-Ad Model

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Figure 8.2 A Simple Representation of the Tricomponent Attitude Model

ConationConation

AffectAffect

Cognition

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The Tricomponent Model

• Cognitive Component– The knowledge and perceptions that are acquired by a

combination of direct experience with the attitude object and related information from various sources.

• This knowledge and resulting perceptions commonly take the form of beliefs.

• The consumer believes that the attitude object possesses various attributes and that specific behavior will lead to a specific outcomes.

• Example. A consumer's belief system for two methods of broad band internet access

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The Tricomponent Model

• Affective Component– A consumer’s emotions or feelings about a

particular product or brand.– The extent to which the individual rates the

attitude object as “favorable or unfavorable”, “good or bad”

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The Tricomponent Model

• Conative Component– The likelihood or tendency that an individual

will undertake a specific action or behave in a particular way with regard to the attitude object.

– Conative component is an expresssion of consumer's intention to buy.

– Examples: I definitely/probably/am uncertain whether will buy it etc

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Multiattribute Multiattribute Attitude Attitude ModelsModels

Attitude models that examine the

composition of consumer attitudes in terms of selected product attributes or

beliefs.

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Multiattribute Attitude Models

• The attitude-toward-object model– Attitude is function of evaluation of product-

specific beliefs and evaluations.– Consumers generally have favorable attitudes

towards those brands that they believe have an adequate level of attributes that they evaluate as +ive, otherwise -ive.

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Multiattribute Attitude Models

• The attitude-toward-behavior model– Is the attitude toward behaving or acting with

respect to an object, rather than the attitude toward the object itself

• Theory-of-reasoned-action model– A comprehensive, integrative model of

attitudes

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Attitude-Toward-Behavior

Model

A model that proposes that a consumer’s attitude toward a

specific behavior is a function of how

strongly he or she believes that the action will lead to a specific

outcome (either favorable or

unfavorable).

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Theory of Reasoned

Action

A comprehensive theory of the interrelationship

among attitudes,intentions, and

behavior.

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Figure 8.4 A Simplified Version of the Theory of Reasoned Action

Beliefs that the behavior

leads to certain

outcomes

Beliefs that the behavior

leads to certain

outcomes

Evaluation of the

outcomes

Evaluation of the

outcomes

Beliefs that specific

referents think I

should or should not

perform the behavior

Beliefs that specific

referents think I

should or should not

perform the behavior

Motivation to comply with the specific

referents

Motivation to comply with the specific

referents

Subjective norm

Subjective norm

Attitude toward the behavior

Attitude toward the behavior

IntentionIntention

BehaviorBehavior

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Theory of Trying to Consume

An attitude theory designed to account for the many cases where the action or

outcome is not certain but instead reflects

the consumer’s attempt to consume

(or purchase).

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Figure 8.5 Ad

Illustrating the Theory of Trying to

Consume

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Table 8.6 Selected Examples of Potential Impediments That Might Impact Trying

POTENTIAL PERSONAL IMPEDIMENTSPOTENTIAL PERSONAL IMPEDIMENTS“I wonder whether my fingernails will be longer by the time of my wedding.”“I want to try to lose fifteen pounds by next summer.”“I’m going to try to get tickets for a Broadway show for your birthday.”“I’m going to attempt to give up smoking by my birthday.”“I am going to increase how often I go to the gym from two to four times a

week.”“Tonight, I’m not going to have dessert at the restaurant.”

POTENTIAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPEDIMENTSPOTENTIAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPEDIMENTS“The first ten people to call in will receive a free T-shirt.”“Sorry, the shoes didn’t come in this shipment from Italy.”“There are only three bottles of champagne in our stockroom. You better

come in sometime today.”“I am sorry. We cannot serve you. We are closing the restaurant because of a

problem with the oven.”

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Attitude-Attitude-Toward-Toward-the-Ad the-Ad ModelModel

A model that proposes that a consumer forms

various feelings (affects) and judgments

(cognitions) as the result of exposure to an

advertisement, which, in turn, affect the consumer’s attitude toward the ad and attitude toward the brand.

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Figure 8.6 A Conception of the Relationship among Elements in an

Attitude-Toward-the-Ad Model

Exposure to an Ad

Judgments about the Ad (Cognition)

Beliefs about the Brand

Attitude toward the Brand

Attitude toward the Ad

Feelings from the Ad (Affect)

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Issues in Attitude Formation

• How attitudes are learned• Sources of influence on attitude formation• Personality factors

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Figure 8.8Encouraging

Trial

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Strategies of Attitude Change

• Changing the Basic Motivational Function• Associating the Product With an Admired

Group or Event• Resolving Two Conflicting Attitudes• Altering Components of the Multiattribute

Model• Changing Beliefs About Competitors’

Brands

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Four Basic Attitude Functions

• The Utilitarian Function• The Ego-defensive

Function• The Value-expressive

Function• The Knowledge Function

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Figure 8.9 Clorox Uses A

Utilitarian Appeal

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Figure 8.10 Suave Uses

Ego Defensive Appeal

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Figure 8.11 AC Delco Uses

a Value-Expressive

Appeal

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Figure 8.12 A Knowledge

Appeal

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Elaboration Elaboration Likelihood Likelihood

Model Model (ELM)(ELM)

A theory that suggests that a person’s level

of involvement during message processing is

a critical factor in determining which

route to persuasion is likely to be effective.

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Why Might Behavior Precede Attitude Formation?

• Cognitive Dissonance Theory

• Attribution Theory

Behave (Purchase)Behave (Purchase)

Form AttitudeForm AttitudeForm Attitude

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Cognitive Dissonance

Theory

Holds that discomfort or dissonance occurs when

a consumer holds conflicting thoughts about a belief or an

attitude object.

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Figure 8.17 Reducing Cognitive

Dissonance

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Postpurchase Dissonance

Cognitive dissonance that occurs after a

consumer has made a purchase

commitment. Consumers resolve

this dissonance through a variety of

strategies designed to confirm the wisdom

of their choice.

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Attribution Attribution TheoryTheory

A theory concerned with how people assign casualty to events and

form or alter their attitudes as an outcome of assessing their own

or other people’s behavior.

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Issues in Attribution Theory

• Self-perception Theory– Foot-In-The-Door Technique

• Attributions Toward Others• Attributions Toward Things• How We Test Our Attributions

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Self-Self-Perception Perception

TheoryTheory

A theory that suggests that consumers

develop attitudes by reflecting on their own

behavior.

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Defensive Defensive AttributionAttribution

A theory that suggests consumers are likely to accept credit for

successful outcomes (internal attribution) and to blame other

persons or products for failure (external

attribution).

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Criteria for Causal Attributions

• Distinctiveness• Consistency Over Time• Consistency Over Modality• Consensus