Social Influence on Consumer Behaviour
1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study Broadly defined, the social environment consists with social relations between and among individuals and groups of individuals, from small interest groups contained of a few individuals to whole nations. Individuals interact with others in their particular social environment directly or indirectly by observing the dealings of others. People develop the capacity to estimate their behavior by experiencing the costs of having acted in ways that break social norms which is the expectation of the society in which they live. Social values set the person and symbolize the values and morality of what in the greater society is usually measured “good” and “desirable.” Social norms are rules or expectations through which a society guides the behavior of its members and often echo social values. Social norms are mechanisms of social control which promote conformity. There is a video showing an experiment on social influence and conformity in the Annexture 1.
The macro social environment includes both indirect social interactions among very large groups of people. Three social environments culture, subculture and social class powerfully influence the values, norms, and behaviors including the financial behaviors of individuals.
The micro social environment includes face-to-face social interactions between individuals and among groups of people, including family and reference groups, which include friends, peer groups, and other groups with whom people share common interests. Other social entities transfer values, symbolic meanings, and behavioral norms from the macro social environment to individuals. These include media such as TV programs, newspapers, magazines, film, literature, music and all manner of Internet communications; organizations including religious, charitable and educational institutions, police and the courts, governments, and commercial and retail businesses.
Socio-cultural influences evolve from
1.1 Background of the Study Broadly defined, the social environment consists with social relations between and among individuals and groups of individuals, from small interest groups contained of a few individuals to whole nations. Individuals interact with others in their particular social environment directly or indirectly by observing the dealings of others. People develop the capacity to estimate their behavior by experiencing the costs of having acted in ways that break social norms which is the expectation of the society in which they live. Social values set the person and symbolize the values and morality of what in the greater society is usually measured “good” and “desirable.” Social norms are rules or expectations through which a society guides the behavior of its members and often echo social values. Social norms are mechanisms of social control which promote conformity. There is a video showing an experiment on social influence and conformity in the Annexture 1.
The macro social environment includes both indirect social interactions among very large groups of people. Three social environments culture, subculture and social class powerfully influence the values, norms, and behaviors including the financial behaviors of individuals.
The micro social environment includes face-to-face social interactions between individuals and among groups of people, including family and reference groups, which include friends, peer groups, and other groups with whom people share common interests. Other social entities transfer values, symbolic meanings, and behavioral norms from the macro social environment to individuals. These include media such as TV programs, newspapers, magazines, film, literature, music and all manner of Internet communications; organizations including religious, charitable and educational institutions, police and the courts, governments, and commercial and retail businesses.
Socio-cultural influences evolve from
References: 1. Consumer Behaviour Notes 2. Future Marketers Magazine 3. www.indiamarks.com 4. www.wikipedia.com 5. Research articles on Social Influence 6. YouTube videos on related materials