It is also important to remember that in realizing the bandwagon, snob, and Veblen effects, the basic assumption that the consumers' consumption behavior is independent of the consumption of others, must be ignored.
The bandwagon effect is seen in cases where individuals are trying to "fit in". This effect is shown when the demand of a certain good is increased, based on the assumption or knowledge that other consumers are also consuming that same good. This effect is most easily described using the example of fashion or clothing. People most often like to have the latest fashions, and wear what is in style. They look to people whom they admire, or see what their favorite celebrities, or even their friends are wearing. The individual's desire (demand) to also own and wear the latest fashions will be increased, because they have observed those fashions as what is popular. This is a very simple way to explain the bandwagon effect, and it is an example that most people have witnessed or experienced themselves. The graph (figure 1) displaying the bandwagon effect on the demand curves of several individuals and the market demand, shows that the market demand curve is very elastic. That is, it is sensitive to price change, and also to the quantity demanded. This means that if many people are consuming a good the demand is affect greater than if less people were consuming the good. To further clarify, take the example of attending college. In an environment where most of an individual's peers are going to attend college, the individual will see college as the right thing to do, and also attend college to be like his peers. However, in an environment where most of an individual's peers are not going to attend college, the individual will have a decreased demand for college, and is unlikely to attend. This brings up the next point concerning the bandwagon effect; the taboo effect. Essentially the taboo effect displays the same type of consumer behavior, but in the opposite direction. Therefore, if one notices that a group is not consuming a certain good, that one will see the good as a "social taboo" and also not consume the good. The social taboo effect on demand is a special case. In the graph (figure 2) the demand curve crosses the x-axis into negative territory. This is implying that the consumer would have to be compensated, or paid to even consider consuming a certain good.
It often leads to people adjusting responses to stimuli just because they believe that if everyone else has the same response they must have it too. This is shown in "Asch Experiment" after McLeod explained how the dot of light never moved, he mentioned, "The participants are then asked to estimate how far the dot of light moves. These estimates are made out loud, and with repeated trials, each group of three converges on an estimate. The main finding of the study was that groups found their own "social norm" of perception." (McLeod 2) This shows that when placed in an environment where some people have a different opinion than others, the popular opinion takes over and everyone's opinion becomes uniform because people doubt themselves when they are alone on an opinion, leading to conformity. People in environments like this should try to keep their own opinions as to prevent the spread of conformity when uniqueness is
Being a bad influence is a lot like being a daisy in a sunflower field. In order to get what they want, they both spread everywhere. Spreading the bad idea and seed throughout. Throughout time peers and ourselves have influenced us to want money or just to seem cool.
People are often deceived by some famous brands, which they will buy as useless commodities to feel they are distinctive. People require brands to experience the feeling of being special. People spend their money to have something from famous brands, like a bag from Coach or Louis Vuitton which they think they need, yet all that is just people’s wants. Steve McKevitt claims that people give more thought on features or brands when they need to buy a product, “It might even be the case that you do need a phone to carry out your work and a car to get around in, but what brand it is and, to a large extent, what features it has are really just want” (McKevitt, 145), which that means people care about brands more than their needs. Having shoes from Louis Vuitton or shoes that cost $30 it is designed for the same use.
Cialdini, Robert B, & Trost, Melanie R. (1998). Social Influence: Social Norms, Conformity, & Compliance. Interpersonal Phenomena. Retrieved from: angel.elmira.edu/section/default.asp?id=w114_PSY3010_01.
The astute reader may notice that this review does not include any papers that did not find a false consensus effect. The reason for this is not that this paper is not representative of the literature, but rather, that it is. The uniformity of the literature suggests that the phenomenon is fairly common. Some interesting arguments as to why this is are motivational or cognitive in nature. The motivational premise is based in the idea that people are motivated to believe that they have a place in their social environment. This argument is a based in self-justification, in that if many people share a given belief or behavior, it makes it easier to justify that this attitude or behavior is either right, or not as bad as it might seem.
Our behavior is an obvious effect of how groups affect us. Social facilitation for example occurs when an indivisual changes their performance because others are around (Cacioppo & Freberg, 2014). When Dap and Half-Pint where in the library, Half- Pint acted in a calm relatable matter, yet around the Gamma recruits he conformed to the dumb things they did. Social loafing also affects people within a group. Social loafing is the reduced motivation and effort shown by individuals working in a group as opposed to working alone (Cacioppo & Freberg, 2014). An example of social loafing would be when Dap’s group decided to march in the parade, the people supporting him wouldn’t need to apply as much effort to protest together than they would alone. School Daze also conveys the message of being lost in the crowd, which is Deindividuation. Deindividuation is the lost of personal identity within the crowd (Cacioppo & Freberg, 2014). Sororities and fraternities have the idea that all members are one. Last, but not least a group can affect one’s attitude, or the way you feel about something. The common attitudes of the sororities and fraternities lead to prejudice. Prejudice is a prejudgment, usually negative, of another person on the basis of his or her membership in a group. In School Daze, Rachael and Jane had a rivalry because they had two different points of view on hair, causing the entire group to dislike each other because they were apart of a separate group. As the saying goes, you are the company you
unfair and quite ridiculous. One might be influenced to buy a cologne, or a grill, but to be
... of consumer behaviour, lays emphasis on the objectivity of science and the consumer as a reasonable and sensible decision maker. While, the interpretive point of view is in contrast to that of the positivist, in that it emphasises on the importance of the subjective meaning of the consumers individual experience, hence, it suggest that whichever behaviour a consumer performs is subject to diverse interpretations to a certain extent than just a single explanation to it.
D., & Akert, R. M., 2013). Normative social influence typically occurs in public compliance with the group’s behavior and beliefs in which people would follow along with what others were doing. This concept can be linked to my experience of why I decided to enter the fitness world. This concept can be used to interpret and make sense of my experience and feelings because the fitness world was the new thing among people my age so, I went along with the group’s norm to avoid rejection and
Conformity is a concept that has intrigued psychologists for decades; a concept that has been the foundation of numerous studies, books, and that has been subtly woven into the media. Most of the research done on conformity has to do with what can cause conforming behavior and when conforming behavior is most prevalent. There are generally two types of influences that can cause conforming behavior, informational social influences and normative social influence. Both deal with the when and why of conformity in society and what situations typically cause a group or one or two people to conform. The most powerful and dangerous type of conformity is conformity to authority, which can cause people to obey orders that they would normally not follow in any other situation. With that being said, informational social influence can fuel conforming behavior, especially in instances when the situation is a crisis, ambiguous, and when other people in the situation have authority or expertise.
Consumers with brand loyalty are indifferent with too many choices in shopping as they tend to ignore other brands and chooses product from their preferred brand.
4. Research shows that consumer behavior is clearly influenced by self-concept, the way a person feels and thinks about himself or herself.
However, the abuse of this trend is causing some fatigue and distrust among consumers, especially when certain product categories are falling far short of what the consumer is expecting.
in this segment are often brand conscious and enjoy the latest fads and trends. They...
Every consumer has a unique set of needs and resources, so no two consumers will place the same customer value on the same product or service.