MKT201 - Week 5
Motivation and Values
(Ch. 4)
Motivation: Introduction
• What are the forces that drive people to buy and
use products (or Not to buy/use)?
? Emotional response
? Values
? Priorities
? Beliefs?
• To under Motivation is to understand why
consumers do what they do.
The Motivation Process
• Motivation:
– The processes that lead people to behave as
they do. It occurs when a need arises that a
consumer wishes to satisfy.
• Utilitarian need: Provides a functional or practical
benefit
• Hedonic need: An experiential need involving
emotional responses or fantasies
• Goal:
– The end state that is desired by the consumer
(desired end state).
The Motivation Process
• Drive:
– The degree of arousal present due to a discrepancy
between the consumer’s present state and some ideal
state
(note: the discrepancy leads to a creation of tension )
• Want:
– A manifestation of a need created by personal and
cultural factors
• Motivation can be described in terms of:
– Strength: The pull it exerts on the consumer
– Direction: The particular way the consumer
attempts to reduce motivational tension
The Motivation Process
Tension
To fulfill a need
Motivational Strength
Drive = degree
of arousal
Motivational Direction
The way to reduce
the tension
Behavior
Creation of
want is affected
by personal and
cultural factors
Want
Goal
Desired end
state
Ads Reinforce Desired States
• This ad for exercise
shows men a desired
state (as dictated by
contemporary Western
culture), and suggests a
solution (purchase of
equipment) to attain it.
Motivational Strength
• Biological Versus Learned Needs
• Early work attribute behaviour to instinct
• Tautology (circular explanation for behavior related
to instinct; e.g. buying status-associated products
because … motivated to attain status)
– Drive Theory
• Focus on biological needs
• Homeostasis (balance – eliminate unpleasant state)
– Expectancy Theory
• Focus on cognitive factors (expectations of achieving
desirable outcomes)
Motivational Strength
The Degree to Which a Person is Willing to Expend
Energy to Reach One Goal as Opposed to Another.
Biological Vs. Learned Needs
Drive Theory
Focuses on Biological
Needs that Produce
Unpleasant States of
Arousal, i.e. Hunger.
Homeostasis: Behavior
Which Tries to Reduce or
Eliminate This Unpleasant
State and Return to
Balance.
Expectancy Theory
Behavior is Largely
Pulled by Expectations
of Achieving Desirable
Outcomes - Positive
Incentives - Rather Than
Pushed From Within.
Motivational Direction
Needs Versus Wants
Specific Way a Need is Satisfied (the Want)
Depends on: Individual’s Unique History, Learning
Experiences and Cultural Environment.
Types of Needs
Biogenic
Food, water, air, shelter
Psychogenic
Objective, tangible 
product attributes
Power, affiliation
Utilitarian
Hedonic
Calories, miles per L
Excitement,
fantasy
Instant Gratification of Needs
• We expect today’s technical products to satisfy our
needs – instantly.
Motivational Conflicts
• Goal valence (+ve or –ve)
– Positively-valued goal:
approach
– Negatively-valued goal:
avoid
• (socially disapproved
products e.g. deodorant,
mouthwash)
• Positive and negative
motives often conflict
with one another
Motivational Direction
Types of Motivational Conflicts
Approach-Approach
Two Desirable
Approach-Avoidance
Alternatives
Negative
Avoidance-Avoidance
Consequences
Two Undesirable
Burger Vs Noodle
Consequences
Ice-Cream Vs Slim body
Theory of Cognitive
Dissonance
(psychological
inconsistency
between 2 or more
beliefs/behaviors
Repairing old car Vs
Buying new car
Solutions to Approach-Avoidance Conflict
(good food without the calories)
Negative Consequences
• The Partnership for a
Drug-Free America
points out the negative
consequences of drug
addiction for those who
are tempted to start.
Classifying Consumer Needs
• Henry Murray’s NEED dimensions:
– Autonomy: Being independent
– Defendance: Defending the self against criticism
– Play: Engaging in pleasurable activities
• Thematic Apperception Technique (TAT):
(personality tests with ambiguous pictures)
– (1) What is happening?
– (2) What led up to this situation?
– (3) What is being thought?
– (4) What will happen?
– People freely project their subconscious needs
onto the stimulus (or picture)
Classifying Consumer Needs (cont.)
• Specific Needs and Buying Behavior:
– Need for achievement: To attain personal
accomplishment
– Need for affiliation: To be in the company of others
– Need for power: To control one’s environment
– Need for uniqueness: To assert one’s individual identity
• Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs:
– A hierarchy of biogenic and psychogenic needs
that specifies certain levels of motives.
(gardening may satisfy needs at every level!!)
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
Figure 4.2
Criticisms of Maslow’s Hierarchy
• The application is too simplistic:
– It is possible for the same product or activity to satisfy
every need.
• It is too culture-bound:
– The assumptions of the hierarchy may be restricted to
Western culture
• It emphasizes individual needs over group needs
– Individuals in some cultures place more value on the
welfare of the group (belongingness needs) than the
needs of the individual (esteem needs)
Classifying Consumer Needs (cont.)
S5
• Paradise: Satisfying Needs?
– Distinct differences regarding the
conceptualization of paradise between
American and Dutch college students
Dutch Conception of Paradise
• A Dutch respondent’s collage emphasizes this person’s
conception of paradise as a place where there is interpersonal
harmony and concern for the environment.
Consumer Involvement
• Involvement:
– Defined as a person’s perceived relevance of the
object based on his/her inherent needs, values, and
interests.
• Object: A product or brand, an ad, or a
purchase situation
Conceptualizing Involvement
Figure 4.3
Consumer Involvement
• Levels of Involvement: Inertia (resistance) to
Passion
– Type of information processing depends on the
consumer’s level of involvement
• Simple processing: Only the basic features of
the message are considered
• Elaboration: Incoming information is linked to
preexisting knowledge
Increasing Involvement through Ads
• The Swiss Potato Board
is trying to increase
involvement with its
product. The ad reads,
“Recipes against
boredom.”
Consumer Involvement (cont’d)
• Involvement as a Continuum:
– Ranges from disinterest to obsession
• Inertia (Low involvement consumption):
– Consumer lacks the motivation to consider alternatives
• Flow State (High involvement consumption):
– Consumer is truly involved with the product, ad or web
site
• Cult Products:
– Command fierce (intensive) consumer loyalty, devotion,
and perhaps even worship by consumers who are highly
involved in the product or with a brand
(from Apple computers to Harley-Davidson motorcycles)
Example of a Cult Product: Jones Soda
The Many Faces of Involvement
1. Product Involvement
Related to a Consumer’s
Level of Interest in
a Particular
Product.
(Advertising
Involvement)
2. Message-Response
Involvement
Refers to a Consumer’s
Interest in Processing
Marketing
Communications.
3. Purchase Situation
Involvement
Refers to the differences
That may occur when buying
The same object for
4. Ego-Involvement
different context
Refers to the Importance
of a Product to a
Consumer’s
Self-Concept.
TV – low
involvement;
Print ad – high
involvement
wedding gift, someone you
like, someone you don’t like
Emotions versus Cognitions
• Many marketing
messages, such as this ad
for a cosmetic company
in Taiwan, focus on
emotions rather than
cognitions.
Customizing for Product Involvement
Measuring Involvement:
Developing Involvement Profiles
Personal Interest in a Product
Category
Negative Consequences of a Poor
Product Choice
Probability of Making a Bad Purchase
Pleasure Value of the Product Category
Sign Value of the Product Category
(? Related to self or not)
Table 4.1 A Scale to Measure
Involvement
To Me (Object to be Judged) Is
1. important
_:_:_:_:_:_:_
unimportant
2. boring
_:_:_:_:_:_:_
interesting
3. relevant
_:_:_:_:_:_:_
irrelevant
4. exciting
_:_:_:_:_:_:_
unexciting
5. means nothing
_:_:_:_:_:_:_
means a lot
6. appealing
_:_:_:_:_:_:_
unappealing
7. fascinating
_:_:_:_:_:_:_
mundane
8. worthless
_:_:_:_:_:_:_
valuable
9. involving
_:_:_:_:_:_:_
uninvolving
10. not needed
_:_:_:_:_:_:_
needed
High Involvement (personal interest)
Strategies to Increase Involvement
(relationship &
loyalty)
5. Build a Bond
With the
Consumer
4. Include
Celebrity
Endorsers
1. Appeal to
Hedonic Needs
Increasing
Consumers’
Attention
2. Use Novel
Stimuli
3. Use Prominent
Stimuli
(e.g. large &
loud)
Consumer Values
• Value: a belief that some
condition is preferable to its
opposite
– E.g., freedom is preferable to
slavery; looking younger is
preferable to looking older
• Products/services = help in
attaining value-related goal
• We seek others that share our
values/beliefs
– Thus, we tend to be exposed to
information that supports our
beliefs
Core Values
• Every culture has its own set of values
– E.g., individualism vs. collectivism
• Value system
• Enculturation (learning of values and systems of own
culture) vs. Acculturation (learning of … another
culture)
– Socialization agents: parents, friends, teachers
– Media as agent
• Discussion: Core values evolve over time. What
do you think are the 3–5 core values that best
describe Hong Kong today?
Core Values
• Cleanliness is a core
value in many cultures.
Application of Values to
Consumer Behavior
• Useful distinctions in values for consumer
behavior research
– Cultural Values (e.g. security or happiness)
– Consumption-Specific Values (e.g. convenient
shopping or prompt service)
– Product-Specific Values (e.g. ease-of-use or
durability)
• Virtually all consumer research is ultimately
related to identification and measurement of
values.
Emotions versus Cognitions
• The positive value we place on the activities of large
corporations is changing among some consumers who prefer
to go “anticorporate.” This ad for a coffee shop in Boulder,
Colorado reflects that sentiment.
Measuring Cultural Values
- Attempts to measure cultural values and apply the
knowledge to marketing strategy
(1) The Rokeach Value Survey
– Terminal Values (comfortable life, …),
the desired end states
–
Instrumental Values (ambitious, …)
composed of actions needed to achieve
the terminal values.
Measuring Cultural Values (cont’d)
(2) The List of Values (LOV) Scale
• Isolate values endorsed by different consumer
segments (sense of belonging, excitement,
security, etc.)
(3) The Means-End Chain Model
• Technique - Laddering (associations
between product attributes and desired
end states)
– Means-End Conceptualizations of the
Components of Advertising (MECCAS)
(one application of laddering technique)
Laddering Technique: Secretaries’ Hierarchical Value
Map for Overnight Delivery Services (Federal Express)
Measuring Cultural Values (cont’d)
(4) Syndicated Surveys
• Track changes in values
• Large-scale commercial surveys
• Voluntary simplifiers:
– Believe that once basic needs are sated/satisfied, additional
income does not add to happiness. (Time Magazine:
US$50,000 earners are happier than US$100,000 earners)
• Examples:
–
–
–
–
VALS 2
GlobalScan
New Wave
Lifestyles Study
Applications of Values to
Consumer Behavior
List of Values (LOV)
Identifies Nine Consumer Segments Based on Values They Endorse
Means-End Conceptualization of the Components of Advertising Strategy
(MECCAS)
Message
Elements
Features
Consumer
Benefit
Executional
Framework
style/tone
Leverage
Point
value-product
Syndicated Surveys
VALS 2
Driving
Force
end value in ad
Some Advertisements
Appeal to People’s
Values to Persuade
Them to Change Their
Behaviors
Cask & Cream
Reversing a Trend
of Self-Denial, This
Ad Illustrates a
Shift in Values
Toward Pleasure
and Self-indulgence
(lenient, easy)
Harley-Davidson motorcycles
http://www.harleydavidson.com/wcm/Content/Pages/home.jsp?locale=en_US
Harley-Davidson motorcycles
Brand Images:
Independent
Freedom
Individuality
Self expression
Adventurous
Experience of life
Materialism
• Materialism:
– The importance people attach to worldly
possessions
– Tends to emphasize the well-being of the
individual versus the group
– People with highly material values tend to be less
happy
– America is a highly materialistic society
– There are a number of anti-materialism
movements
Values of Materialists
• Materialists value visible symbols of success such as
expensive watches.
Discussion Question
• Materialists are more
likely to consume for
status. Can you think of
products and brands that
convey status?
• There is a movement
away from materialism
in our culture. Can you
think of products, ads,
or brands that are antimaterialistic?
Discussion Question
• There is a movement
away from materialism
in our culture. Can you
think of products, ads,
or brands that are antimaterialistic?
Flamp (fosfor Lamp),
1998
Design: Martí Guixé
Production: H20
(Home-2-Office)
Consumer Behavior in the
Aftermath of 9/11
• Need for balance…
– 9/11 & consumer values
• Redirecting focus from
luxury goods to
community/family
• Terror Management
Theory
• Consumer privacy vs.
security
Discussion
• How do you think consumers have changed
as a result of 9/11?
– Are these long-term changes or will we start to
revert back to our pre-2001 mindset?