Ethnic,

Religious
and Group
Influences
>>>Class, Age and Gender

SAM PAGADUAN
Consumer Behavior
 In the United States in 2008 the
combined
purchasing power of Hispanics,
African
Americans, Asians and Native
Americans
was $2.45 trillion; this accounted for
22.7% of all purchases in the USA.
 CONTEXT IDEA
• refers to how abstract or literal communication tends to be
within that group.
• Social scientists, particularly Edward Hall, who popularised
the idea in the 1950s, describe some cultures as high
context and others as low context.
• ‘High-context’ cultures tend to focus on the streams of
information that surround an event or situation in order to
determine meaning from the context in which it occurs.
High-context cultures are more common in eastern cultures
and are also more common where the population is relatively
homogeneous.
• ‘Low-context’ cultures, predominantly northern European
ethnic groups, tend to filter out conditions surrounding an
event to focus as much as possible on words and objective
facts.
 SHARED
BACKGROUND
Members of high-context groups tend to rely on shared
background to explain many situations. This shared
background could apply to a whole nation or, just as
easily, a homogenous class of college students.
 Characteristics of High and Low Cultural Context
Overtness of messages
Locus (placement) of control
and attribution for failure
Use of non-verbal
communication
Expression of reaction
Cohesion and separation
of groups
People bonds
Level of commitment
to relationships
Flexibility of time
Many covert and implicit messages, with use
of metaphor and reading between the lines.
Inner locus of control and personal acceptance
for failure.
Much nonverbal communication.
Reserved, inward reactions.
Strong distinction between ‘in-group’ and
‘out-group’. Strong sense of family.
Strong people bonds with affi liation to family
and community.
High commitment to long-term relationships.
Relationships more important than task.
Time is open and fl exible. Process is more
important than product.
 Characteristics of Low Cultural Context
Overtness of messages Many overt and explicit messages that are simple and clear.

Locus (placement) of control Outer locus of control and blame of

and attribution for failure others for failure.

Use of non-verbal More focus on verbal communication than body language.

communication

Expression of reaction Visible, external, outward reaction.

Cohesion and separation Flexible and open grouping patterns,

of groups changing as needed.
Fragile bonds between people with
People bonds little sense of loyalty.

Level of commitment Low commitment to relationship.

to relationships Task more important than relationships.

Flexibility of time Time is highly organised. Product is more

important than process.
 ACCULTURATION
This is the adaptation to
one country’s culture by someone from
another country. Many immigrants hold on
to the beliefs and practices from their original
culture and do not fully adopt the practices
of their new home.

ASSIMILATION
Quick adoption of new norms. absorb and integrate
(people, ideas, or culture) into a wider society
or culture

ACCOMODATION
THEORY
This theory states that attempts made by a
communicator to make themselves more like
the people they are addressing are noticed
and appreciated by the audience
RELIGIOUS
SUBCULTURE
S
• Religion impacts on the values and behavior of many individuals.
It establishes a set of beliefs and dictates norms of behavior.

• In some societies these are so binding that deviating from these

norms is punishable by law.

• In other smaller religious subcultures, such as Catholics in the

United States, behavior that is considered out of the norm can
result in social censure.

• Religion can impact on an individual consumer’s decision making

on anything from the food they eat, to the clothes they wear.

• Given the number of consumers for whom religion is important,

some marketers have chosen to specifi cally target these groups
with their marketing efforts.

• Two key areas where religion could impact marketing activities

are promotion and the product itself.
How can marketers target religious
subcultures?
• There are numerous Christian
television stations on which
marketers can buy advertising
space.
• There are many stores that sell
halal foods targeted to Muslims and
kosher foods targeted to Jewish
consumers.
• Products are manufactured for sale
on special religious holidays like Eid
ul-Fitr celebrated by Muslims, Divali
celebrated by Hindus and
 REFERENCE
GROUP

A reference group is a group that serves as a point of comparison (or reference) for an individual. The
group’s beliefs and behaviours establish norms of behaviour for the individual and can affect
everything from the food they purchase to the activities that they enjoy.
Types of
REFERENCE
GROUP
 aspirational reference groups
groups to which we would like to
belong, but currently are not members

associative reference groups

formal or informal groups to which
we belong

dissociative reference groups

groups to which we do not want to
belong that have values and attitudes
that we do not wish to emulate.
 How reference groups influence
behavior
• Individuals take cues from reference groups when they are purchasing anything
from clothing to automobiles.
• Reference groups influence consumers in two main ways: normative influence and
informational influence.
• informational influence when someone else provides information to the consumer
that the consumer then considers when making a purchase decision.
• normative influence when a consumer performs an action in order to conform to
another person’s expectations
 That’s all.
Thank you ☺
END
Benefits and
Compensation
While the management of
benefits and compensation is a
given for human resources, the
globalization of companies in the
twenty-first century has meant
that HR must now adapt to new
ways of providing benefits to an
organization's employees.
Ensuring Legal Compliance
The final function of human resource management is perhaps the
least glamorous but arguably of utmost importance. Ensuring
legal compliance with labor and tax law is a vital part of ensuring
the organization's continued existence.
 What Is Strategic International
Human Resource Management?
A cohesive, holistic plan designed by HR to manage its global
human capital is termed a global Human Resource strategy.
Working hard with the management, HR aims to create a
cohesive, holistic plan to manage its human capital that aligns
with its philosophy and purpose. If done right, the HR strategies
for planning for global organizations become a pivotal player in
the growth and strength of an organization. 
As crucial as it sounds, it isn't a one plan fits all kind. Thus,
we have created a step-by-step guide that encompasses proven
practices to help you tailor a global human resource strategy for
your company.
 5 Steps in Designing a Global
Human Resource Strategy
Setting Goals and
Choosing Activities Finding Managing
that Best Align with Employee Employee Employee
the Company’s Talent Engagement Retention 
Goals Activities

01 02 03 04 05
Global hiring  Compensation Challenging work
Functional Management
and benefits environment
Hiring without a local tools
Up skilling and Transparent and
entity
Multidivisional Enhanced hiring
filling skill gaps steady
communication
practices Payroll
Flatarchy Compliance with local regulation Mobility pyramid Internal recruitment
and career growth
labor laws 
Regular hiring
Matrix Employment contract
Leadership capital