) A fe Personality and Consumer Behavior ARKETERS have long tried to appeal to con- sumers in terms of their personality charac- teristics. They have intuitively felt that what consumers purchase, and when and how they consume, are likely to be influenced by their personality fac- tors. For this reason, marketing and advertising people have frequently depicted (or incorporated) specific personality traits or characteristics in their marketing and advertising messages. Some recent examples are an appeal to other. Girectedness forthe Tata Tea “aago re” campaign, an ap- Peal to low dagmatismlor open mindedness) for HSBC ‘Worlds Local Bank” campaign (headline: Diferent People Different Solutions), ‘an appeal to drivers! cence snonconformity or sensation seeking with the Hye? ot headline: "The Greatest Explorers Hod No Maps" aa appeal by BEDAT & Co wristwatches to consumer foe uniqueness (headline: "Very Famous Among: People"—www.bedat.com). Figure 5.1 presensa would be particularlyappealing to enthusiasiews | involved collectors (e.g., some stamp, coin, ai lectors). This personality trait is known as “fixate tion.” Its discussed in greater detail later inthe! This chapter provides the reader with anu! of how personality and self-conceptarerelatedt## ects of consumer behavior. It examines vial reviews several major personality theories # how these theories have stimulated marketing study of consumer personality. The chapters Portant topics of brand personality, how Ht ’ cepts of self and self-image influence Co" oe and behavior. The chapter concludes with" “ual personality or virtual self Scanned with CamScannerLearnine Objectives I To Understand tow Personality Reflects Consumers’ inner Differences, 2) To Understand How Freudian, Neo-Freadian, and Tait Theories Each Explain the influence of Personality on Consumers’ Attitudes and Behavior, Ta Understand How Consumers Can Cy, 0 _ ting a Particular Set of Persy, sh Soi) To Understand How Personality Reflects Consumers’ Identities Reflecting a of Per on Responses to Productand Marketing Messages. To Understand How Marketers See) ‘i kt Cr, "Brand Personalities-Like Traits, le Understand Hw the Products ang “That Consumers Use Enhance Theip Sl age What Is Personality? corists in a variety of ways So mality has been approached by theorists in a varie — LEARNING aaa eer tcane of heredity and early childhood experiences on Personligt aaa here have stressed broader social and environmental influences and te ane Objective opment; others have stress it wer time. Some theorists prefer to view person, ersonalites develop continuously over i ler ev ea To Understand How — rifed wholesothers focus on mite wide on wr me er tt |. However, Personality Reflects {0 arrive ata singe definion, However, we propre tat personality cin be tne ‘hs inner poychologiel characterises fro es ee Differences. ‘The emphasis in this definition is on inner characi thos: specie quit utes, traits factor, and mannerisms that distinguish one individual from other individ discussed later in the chapter, the deeply ingrained characteristics that we call personaly, likely to influence the individual's product choices: They affect the way consumers rey marketers’ promotional efforts, and when, where, and how they consume particular pas or services. Therefore, the identification of specific personality characteristics associated wit, consumer behavior has proven to be highly useful in the development ofa firms mare xs mentation strategies THE NATURE OF PERSONALITY In the study of personality, three distinct properties are of central importance: (1) peril reflects individual differences; (2) personality is consistent and enduring; and (3) personality change. Personality Reflects Individual Differences Because the inner characteristics that constitute an individual’s personality area uniqae ination of factors, no two individuals are exactly alike. Nevertheless, many individuals! similar in terms of a single personality characteristic but not in terms of others. For isi Stine People ean be described as “high” in consumer ethnocentrism (eg. ilingnss © _ 4 foreign-made product), whereas others can be described as “low in ehnocentin ¢ afraid or reluctant to buy a foreign-made product), Personality is a useful concept bi enables us to categorize consumers se to different groups on the basis of one ot £2 traits If each person were different in terms of all Personality traits it would be impos, group consumers into Segments, and there would be little reason for marketers Products and promotional campaigns targeted to particular segments. Personality Is Consistent Preto and Enduring ing" .n individual’ ; An ini tals peony tends to be both consistent and enduring, Indeed, mes sou: eerste as always cared a great deal about her clothes from the ira - © contention that personality has both consistency at © 0 Scanned with CamScannerPersonality and Consumer Behavior 121 Both qualities are essential if marketers are to explain or predict consumer behavior in terms of personality. Although marketers cannot change consumers’ personalities to conform to their products, if they know which personality characteristics influence specific consumer responses, they can attempt to appeal to the relevant traits inherent in their target group of consumers. Even though consumers’ personalities may be consistent, their consumption behavior of- ten varies considerably because of the various psychological, sociocultural, environmental, and situational factors that affect behavior. For instance, although an individual's personality may be relatively stable, specific needs or motives, attitudes, reactions to group pressures, and even responses fo newly available brands may cause a change in the person's behavior. Personality is only one of a combination of factors that influence how a consumer behaves. Personality Can Change Under certain circumstances personalities change For instance, an individual's personality may be altered by major life events, such as marriage, the birth of a child, the death of a parent, or a change of job and/or profession. An individual's personality changes not only in response to abrupt events but also as part of a gradual maturing process—“She’s more mature, and now she’s willing to listen to points of view other than those she agrees with,” says an aunt after not seeing her niece for several years. ‘There is also evidence that personality stereotypes may change over time. More specif- ically, although it is felt that men’s personality has generally remained relatively constant over the past 50 years, women's personality has seemed to become increasingly more mas- culine and should continue to do so over the next 50 years. This prediction indicates a convergence in the personality characteristics of men and women. The reason for this shift is that women have been moving more and more into occupations that have traditionally been dominated by men and, therefore, have increasingly been associated with masculine personality attributes. Theories of Personality LeaRNING Objective [RE ti onderstand tow Freudian, Neo-Freudian, and Trait Theories Each Explain the influence of Personality on Consumers’ Attitudes and Behavior ‘This section reviews three major theories of personality: (1) Freudian theory, (2) neo-Freudian. theory, and (3) trait theory.These theories have been chosen for discussion from among many theories of personality because each has played a prominent role in the study of the relation- ship between consumer behavior and personality. FREUDIAN THEORY ‘Sigmund Freud's psychoanalytic theory of personality is one of the cornerstones of modern psy- chology-This theory was built on the premise that unconscious needs or drives, especially sexual and other biological drives, are at the heart of human motivation and personality, Freud con- structed his theory on the basis of patients’ recollections of early childhood experiences, analy- sis of their dreams, and the specific nature oftheir mental and physical adjustment problems. Id, Superego, and Ego Based on his analyses, Preud proposed that the human personality co systems: the id, the superego, and the ego, The id was conceptualized as a "warehouse {ive and impulsive drives—basic physiological needs such as thirst, hunger, and sex-for which ‘he individual secks immediate satisfaction without concern for the specific means of satisfaction. {In contrast tothe i, the superego is conceptualized as the individual's internal expression of society's moral and ethical codes of conduct. The superego's roe is to see that the individual es needs in a socially acceptable fashion. Thus, the superego is a kind of “brake” that re- Strains or inhibits the impulsive forces of the id. “888 Kind of " Finally, the ego is the individual's that attempts to balance the impulsive ‘sof three conscious control. It functions as an internal monitor demands of the id and the sociocultural constraints of 2 interrelationships among the three interacting systems. mn addition to specifying a structure for personality, Freud emphasised tla oa ini aka Scanned with CamScanner