Interpretive consumer research usually proceeds with a minimum of structure and preconceptions. This book presents a more structured approach than is usual, showing how a simple framework that embodies the rewards and costs associated with consumer choice can be used to interpret a wide range of consumer behaviours from everyday purchasing and saving, innovative choice, imitation, ‘green’ consumer behavior, to compulsive behaviors such as addictions (to shopping, to gambling, to alcohol and other drugs, etc). Foxall takes a qualitative approach to interpreting behavior, focusing on the epistemological problems that arise in such research and emphasizing the emotional as well as cognitive aspects of consumption. The author argues that consumer behaviour can be understood with the aid of a very simple model that proposes how the consequences of consumption impact consumers’ subsequent choices. The objective is to show that a basic model can be used to interpret consumer behaviour in general, not in isolation from the marketing influences that shape it, but as a course of human choice that is dynamically linked with managerial concerns.

This book explores key factors associated with consumer behaviour, from both a theoretical and practical perspective. It particularly focuses on the consumer in the 21st century – educated and conscious, but also impatient, disloyal and capricious. The book is divided into three main parts: the first part discusses the theoretical and legal aspects of consumers’ behaviour, analysing the government's role in regulating consumer behaviour and the role of the European Union. The second part then examines organisational strategies, such as omni-channel retailing and branding products. And lastly, the third part describes consumer behaviours in the context of individual products and services, from coffee to energy.

Evaluating the ways in which we construe consumer choice, this book examines the psychology, methods and realities of the role it plays for today’s consumer. Confronted by competing brands and products, services, and e-tailed opportunities that are but a click away, how does the consumer choose among them to achieve the particular array of goods to suit their lifestyle? Consumer researchers often seek to explain consumer choice by attributing it to beliefs, desires, attitudes, and intentions in the absence of any theoretical justification. Perspectives on Consumer Choice is the outcome of a research program that employs cognitive explanations in a responsible and disciplined way to genuinely elucidate consumer choice in social scientific terms. Employing a reasoned approach to understanding consumption, this book builds upon theoretical and empirical research in economic psychology, behavioral economics and philosophy as well as marketing and consumer research.

This is a reprint of a formerly published book. It deals with the psychology and behavior that motivates people to make the purchase and consumer choices that they do.The book makes a major new contribution to our understanding of consumer decision-making.

Product Assortment and Consumer Choice: An Interdisciplinary Review examines existing literature and builds on the current theoretical developments across different research domains to develop a set of research propositions delineating the impact of product assortment on consumer choice. Taking a consumer's perspective to examine how product assortment influences decision making and choice, this monograph defines the consumer aspect of assortment research to answer three key questions. First, how do consumers perceive the variety of items in an assortment? The first part of this review examines factors that influence consumer perceptions of the variety of an assortment. In particular, it investigates how factors such as assortment size, the degree of distinctiveness of assortment options, the dispersion of option frequencies, and the organization of the assortment influence consumer perceptions of assortment variety. Second, how do consumers choose an item from a given assortment? The second part discusses factors that influence consumer choice of an item from a given assortment. It examines the impact of assortment size on the purchase likelihood from a given assortment, the number of options purchased, and the particular options chosen from the assortment. Third, how do consumers choose among assortments? The third part examines factors that influence consumer choice among assortments. In particular, it investigates how assortment size, assortment structure, and purchase quantity influence consumers' choice of an assortment. Conceptual analysis of the existing research in each of these three areas is summarized in a series of research propositions that integrate current findings and offer directions for future research. Product Assortment and Consumer Choice: An Interdisciplinary Review concludes with a discussion of the theoretical contributions and managerial implications of existing product assortment research and identify venues for further investigation.

Whether we're buying a pair of jeans, ordering a cup of coffee, selecting a long-distance carrier, applying to college, choosing a doctor, or setting up a 401(k), everyday decisions—both big and small—have become increasingly complex due to the overwhelming abundance of choice with which we are presented. As Americans, we assume that more choice means better options and greater satisfaction. But beware of excessive choice: choice overload can make you question the decisions you make before you even make them, it can set you up for unrealistically high expectations, and it can make you blame yourself for any and all failures. In the long run, this can lead to decision-making paralysis, anxiety, and perpetual stress. And, in a culture that tells us that there is no excuse for falling short of perfection when your options are limitless, too much choice can lead to clinical depression. In The Paradox of Choice, Barry Schwartz explains at what point choice—the hallmark of individual freedom and self-determination that we so cherish—becomes detrimental to our psychological and emotional well-being. In accessible, engaging, and anecdotal prose, Schwartz shows how the dramatic explosion in choice—from the mundane to the profound challenges of balancing career, family, and individual needs—has paradoxically become a problem instead of a solution. Schwartz also shows how our obsession with choice encourages us to seek that which makes us feel worse. By synthesizing current research in the social sciences, Schwartz makes the counter intuitive case that eliminating choices can greatly reduce the stress, anxiety, and busyness of our lives. He offers eleven practical steps on how to limit choices to a manageable number, have the discipline to focus on those that are important and ignore the rest, and ultimately derive greater satisfaction from the choices you have to make.

At present, about 45 million Americans are over the age of 65, and by 2020, one out of every six Americans will be 65 or older. These statistics are reflective of a worldwide phenomenon in developing and developed countries alike unrivalled since the Industrial Revolution. This edited volume, written by experts in many fields, examines the economic and psychological research on how aging consumers behave, make decisions, and choose in the marketplace. The book takes stock of what is known, identifies gaps and open questions, and outlines an agenda for future research. It covers topics from the individual to the societal level of analysis.