THE INFLUENCE OF SPECIFIC EMOTIONS ON DECISION – MAKING AND BEHAVIOUR

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CHAPTER 3 THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CLOTHING PURCHASING DECISION AND EVALUATIVE CRITERIA

INTRODUCTION

Female clothing shopping behaviour in a multicultural consumer society such as South Africa is a very complex phenomenon (Du Preez & Visser, 2003:15). This is because different consumers present various psychological as well as social needs, which may differ tremendously (Schiffman & Wisenblit, 2015:33). For retailers and any other business, the key to a successful marketing strategy is based on a thorough understanding of consumer behaviour (Neal et al., 2006:5). According to Erasmus (2013a:12), consumer behaviour is a simple term that describes many mental and physical processes associated with consumer decision making. In relation to clothing, it entails the way female consumers deal with clothing purchases in different contexts with the aim of satisfying their clothing needs and requirements. However, in the early stages when consumer behaviour was being developed, the field was often referred to as buyer behaviour, reflecting an emphasis on the interaction between consumers and producers at the time of purchase (Solomon & Rabolt, 2009:26). Although the exchange, in which giving and receiving of some values remains an important part of consumer behaviour, most marketers now recognize that consumer behaviour is an ongoing process.
Different authors have given various definition to the consumer behaviour discipline. Cant and Van Heerden (2013:55), defines consumer behaviour as the “study of individual, groups or organizations and the processes they use to select, secure, use and dispose of products, services, experiences or ideas to satisfy needs and the impact that these processes have on the consumer society”. In other words consumer behaviour includes all the activities and influences that occur before, during and after the purchase itself (Cant & Van Heerden, 2013:54). Alternatively, Hoyer, MacInnis and Pieters (2013:3), state that consumer behaviour “reflects the totality of consumers’ decisions with respect to the acquisition, consumption, and disposition of goods, services, activities, experiences, people and ideas by human decision-making units over time”. Similarly, Schiffman and Wisenblit (2015:30), refer to consumer behaviour as “the study of consumers’ actions during searching for, purchasing, using, evaluating, and disposing of products and services that they expect will satisfy their needs”. These definitions indicate that there are wide scopes of influences on consumer behaviour and that it encompasses a variety of activities that consumers carry out and a number of roles that they play (Parumasur & Roberts-Lombard, 2012:2). However, the fundamental basis for marketers according to Blythe (2013:7), is to understand how female consumers make decisions concerning spending their available resources (i.e. time, money, effort) on clothing products that retailers offer to be purchased. This bring us to the key question that will be discussed in this chapter:
What is the link between clothing purchasing decision and evaluative criteria preferences and the evaluative criteria that are used by female consumers in their clothing purchasing decision?
Before this question is addressed in some detail, it is important to clarify the concept consumer decision making and the views that explain consumer decision making. Of the consumer decision views, it is appropriate to point out the cognitive views which typically are models that illustrate that consumer decision making is a complex process that involve five stages, including the prepurchase alternative evaluation stage. However, as it will be discussed later, pre-purchase alternative evaluation is the focus of the current study.

CONSUMER DECISION MAKING

Consumers are constantly making decisions regarding every aspect of their everyday lives (Schiffman & Wisenblit, 2015:366). A decision, according to Schiffman and Wisenblit (2015:366), is a selection of an option between two or more alternative choices. When a female consumer has a choice between purchasing a certain clothing item and not purchasing it, they find themselves in a position to make a purchase decision. Parumasur and Roberts-Lombard (2012:250) went further to explain that consumer decision making is similar to problem solving. A problem arises when a consumer seeks a goal or particular end-state, but is uncertain as to the best solution to the problem. In this case it can be a female consumer who seeks certain attributes in a dress that will satisfy her clothing needs in terms of body shape or personal values. In consumer decision making, this means, the ‘need’ that a female consumer seeks to achieve through a clothing item becomes a problem and the solution is the act that includes evaluating among the alternatives and making a purchasing decision. Thus a decision, which can also be referred to as a solution is a course of action that provides a desired result to the perceived state of need (Parumasur & Roberts-Lombard, 2012:2). Understanding the needs that trigger consumers to make a purchase, affect their decision-making processes, and may lead to variations in choice for different individuals, are very important (Karimi, 2013:54). The success of clothing manufacturers and retailers depends on the production of clothing products with sought after attributes. This can happen if they have a knowledge of female consumers’ needs they seek through clothing.

VIEWS FOR EXPLAINING CONSUMER DECISION MAKING

According to Schiffman and Kanuk (2010:482), there are four views, namely; (1) economic view (2) passive view (3) cognitive view and (4) emotional view that explain how and why consumers behave as they do in a purchasing situation. These views, also referred to as models, depict consumer decision making in distinctly different ways. The existence of these views have been fundamental in terms of the theory of consumer decision making that is used today (Erasmus, 2013:329). A brief overview of each of these views are discussed next.

 Economic view

The assumption of an economic view, is that consumers are rational in their decisions (Shiffman & Kanuk, 2010:480) who are aware of all the information of the products they want to purchase (Paramasur & Roberts-Lombard, 2012:259) and the information gathered enables them to make informed purchasing decision (Solomon & Rabolt, 2009:288). Moreover, according to Asamoah and Chovancova (2011:1), this view suggests that consumers are clear about their desires and needs and are able to determine the best way to satisfy them, hence consumers are seen to be capable of ranking each alternative in terms of its benefits and disadvantages and, therefore, decides accordingly (Bettman, Luce & Payne, 1998:187).
This assumption however, is not always supported, it has been argued that a rational consumer is unrealistic and it is totally impossible to be completely rational in decision making for the reason that consumers, in most cases, do not have access to “all the information”, do not have time for such an extensive process, and are not skilled and motivated enough to make the “perfect” decision (Schiffman & Kanuk, 2010:480). Despite these criticisms, the economic view has made a remarkable contribution to the study of consumer decision making (Bettman et al., 1998:187) by showing that consumers make use of the available information to assist them in their purchasing decision. Bettman et al. (1998:188) further point out that consumers are most likely to have well-articulated preferences when they are familiar and experienced with the preference object, in such cases, the rational choice perspective may be most applicable when consumers are aware of what they need to purchase.

Passive view

The opposite of the economic view is the passive view that depicts consumers as impulsive and irrational in their decision making (Schiffman & Kanuk, 2010:480). In this view, it is assumed that consumers are limited in the amount of information to which they can pay attention, store or recall, hence, they can be manipulated and are vulnerable to marketers (Paramasur & Roberts-Lombard, 2012:259). According to Schiffman and Kanuk (2010:480), this view is largely unrealistic as consumers are rarely objects of manipulation. The authors further explain that the principle limitation of the passive view is that it fails to recognize that consumers play an equal, if not dominant role in many purchasing situations, by seeking information about product alternatives and selecting the product that appears to offer the greatest satisfaction.

Cognitive view

According to Schiffman and Kanuk (2010:481), from a cognitive view, consumers are characterized as thinking problem solvers. This view focuses on the processes by which consumers seek and evaluate information about selected products and retail outlets. The information may be gathered from the environment, social influences, personal needs, attitude and perceptions and experiences (Paramasur & Roberts-Lombard, 2012:259). As such the information processing leads to the formation of preferences and ultimately to purchase intention. The cognitive view describes consumers who fall between the extremes of the economic and passive views, who do not have complete knowledge about alternatives and therefore cannot make perfect decisions, but who actively seek information in order to make a satisfactory decision. Additionally, this view also assumes that consumers are rational, logical in decision making, assumptions which have already been questioned by several authors (Schiffman, 2010:480). Consistent with the cognitive view is the assumption that a great deal of consumer behaviour is goal oriented (Bagozzi, 1997:539).

Emotional view

The emotional view suggests that consumers make purchasing decisions based on their emotions with less emphasis on the search for pre-purchase information and evaluating the alternatives before buying (Schiffman & Kanuk, 2010:482). However, this does not necessarily mean that emotional decisions are not rational, for at times some purchases may afford emotional satisfaction. For example if a female consumer purchases an item of clothing to make them feel better, is a rational decision. Emotions have attracted little attention in decision making until recently. Indeed many researchers such as Keltner and Lerner, (2010); Loewenstein and Lerner (2003) and Frijda, (1988) have argued that emotions are the dominant driver in most meaningful decisions, including clothing purchasing decisions. The influence of emotion on the purchasing decision is discussed extensively in Chapter six of this thesis.
It is necessary to consider the above mentioned views, as each may contribute to an understanding of the complex nature of decision making in a clothing purchasing situation. However, when purchasing clothing, women normally engage in a series of cognitive and behavioural activities (Yurchisin & Johnson, 2010:57). Ideally, the cognitive view, best represents the clothing consumer behaviour that rationally evaluates products in order to arrive at the optimum decision (Paramasur & Roberts-Lombard, 2012:259). In other words female consumers think of the implication of the attributes in terms of what they aspire to achieve through clothing, that is they are goal oriented. The present study, therefore, discusses the clothing purchasing decision in the cognitive view. The following section briefly overviews the cognitive models of consumer. The term model of consumers refers to a view or perspective as to how and why individuals behave as they do (Schiffman & Kanuk, 2010:482).

THE COGNITIVE MODELS OF CONSUMER DECISION MAKING

Since the 1960s, many influential consumer decision making models have been developed in the various fields of consumer behaviour (Milner & Rosenstreich, 2013:6). These models, labeled the “grand models” of consumer decision making with a rational problem solving approach (Muhammadi & Mohamed, 2011:151) acknowledge a broad range of both internal and external influences in guiding the decision (Paramasur & Roberts-Lombard, 2012:251). The grand models among others include: the Howard-Sheth (1969) model; the Engel-Kollat-Blackwell (1995) model; Nicosia’s (1966) model; the Schiffman and Wisenblit (2015) model and the Hawkins, Best and Coney (1989) model (Erasmus 2013:331; Milner & Rosenstreich 2013:6). Of these so called grand models, the consumer decision model proposed by Engel-Kollat and Blackwell (EKB) (1995), presented previously in Chapter 2, has been widely cited and regularly updated to provide a full account of the influences on consumer behaviour (Bray, 2011:23). Moreover the EKB has been used in several studies to describe the consumer decision making process for clothing purchases (May-Plumlee & Little, 2006; Shim & Drake, 1990; Cassill & Drake, 1987). The components of the decision process in this consumer model are input, information processing, decision process and variables influencing the decision process, of which the decision process component was the main focus of this study. This study examined the decision process component. Typically, the grand models are based on the theory that illustrates that consumer decision making is a complicated process involving five sequential stages, (1) problem recognition; (2) the information search; (3) the alternative evaluation; (4) the purchasing decision and (5) post-purchase evaluation (Blythe, 2013:273) as out lined in Figure 3.1.

PRE-PURCHASE ALTERNATIVE EVALUATION OF CLOTHING PRODUCTS

Newcomb (2009:14) as well as De Klerk and Lubbe (2008:36), mention that a critical and an important stage in the EBM (1995) model is the evaluation of the product alternatives according to a set of evaluative criteria considered by the consumer. When female consumers shop for clothing in a clothing retailer, they are faced with various clothing products with different dimensions such as colours, sizes, designs and prices available to choose from. It is impractical to evaluate all the clothes in the store, consequently consumers develop evaluative criteria to help narrow down the choices. Evaluative criteria are thus the various dimensions a consumer looks for in a product in response to a particular type of need (Neal et al., 2006:123) and they are used to compare clothing products before a choice can be made. Schiffman and Kanuk (2010) further point out that the criteria that female consumers use to evaluate the clothing products among the alternatives constitute of “evoked sets”. Usually these are expressed in terms of important clothing product attributes.
However, according to May-Plumlee and Little (2006:59), evaluative criteria may vary in number and importance, with some criteria exerting more influence than others and even non-negotiable. Moreover, specific criteria may differ from decision to decision based on individual customer preferences and characteristics as well as the purchase situation (i.e. the type of product being evaluated, the variety of available alternatives and consumer experience and involvement (Newcomb, 2009:46). Whatever the case, Erasmus (2013:343) states that, evaluative criteria limits the number of products that are scrutinized before a final decision is made among the clothing products that have potential of being selected. Given a competitive marketplace where the objective is to provide consumers with clothing products that will be chosen among the alternatives, it is essential that the evaluative criteria considered by female consumers be understood by clothing manufacturers so as to deliver desirable products.
It is worthwhile to mention to the reader that the term evaluative criteria, product features, product characteristics and attributes are used interchangeably in this thesis. Generally these terms basically refer to the same concept.

 EVALUATIVE CRITERIA USED IN CLOTHING PURCHASING DECISION

Given the importance of appropriate clothing to the success of any clothing manufacturing firm and retailers, it is not surprising that clothing researchers have conducted extensive studies that have looked at evaluative criteria that consumers use when making clothing purchasing decisions. Newcomb (2009:46) further points out that research into the clothing attributes used as evaluative criteria is imperative due to the high number and variety of attributes that consumers may choose to use in an evaluation. According to May-Plumlee and Little (2006:59), evaluative criteria used by consumers in making clothing purchase may take the form of product or marketing characteristics, and even feelings associated with ownership of the product such as prestige or image. Moreover, clothing researchers usually organise evaluative criteria into unique categories according to the researcher’s point of view (Park & Sullivan, 2009:184). This could be based on dimensions of clothing research, individual research objectives and presentations requirements (Newcomb, 2009:47). For example, Abraham-Murali and Littrell (1995), in their study on consumer’s conceptualization of apparel attributes, classified clothing evaluative criteria into four dimensions, namely; physical appearance, physical performance, expressive and extrinsic. Forney et al. (2005) also extracted four evaluative dimension for their study on fashion brand extension when purchasing casual apparel and casual home furnishings, including; image, quality, colour/style and design/beauty. On the other hand, Jenkins and Dickey (1976) separated clothing evaluative criteria into two categories: product-related and person-related. While Lamb and Kallal (1992), in developing a model for apparel design suggested three evaluative dimensions: functional, expressive and aesthetic. Furthermore, Park and Sullivan (2009) classified evaluative criteria into utilitarian and aesthetic attributes, whereas several researchers such as Rahman (2011); Jin, Park, and Ryu (2010); Eckman et al. (1990); Newcomb (2009); MayPlumlee and Little (2006:59); and De Klerk and Tselepis (2007) have classified assortment of attributes into intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic attributes are those inherent in the product, while extrinsic attributes are those that do not form part of the physical product but are supplied by retailers and manufacturers (Forney et al., 2005:154), but are used by consumers to evaluate products and make purchase decisions (Abraham-Murali & Littrell, 1995:71). Basically, these can all be summarized as intrinsic and extrinsic categories (Eckman et al., 1990:14).
Although both intrinsic and extrinsic attributes are used by consumers in their evaluation of clothing products (Hugo & Van Aardt, 2012:461), Fiore and Damhorst (1992:169) are of the opinion that extrinsic attributes (i.e. price, brand, country of origin) have been frequently examined. However, research suggests that intrinsic attributes, when compared to extrinsic attributes, are more influential and predominant in the evaluation of overall clothing product quality (Eckman et al., 1990:14; Fiore & Damhorst, 1992:168), hence may influence the female clothing purchasing decision. Furthermore, Rahman (2009:358) mentions that modern consumers increasingly base their clothing selection on aesthetic values, which can elicit positive and negative experiences to the consumers and beholders alike, thus may influence their evaluation and purchasing decision. Moreover, researchers agree that clothing evaluation involves the consideration of an item’s ability to satisfy basic function of dress such as appropriateness or appearance (Newcomb, 2009:49). This study, therefore, approaches evaluative criteria from the perspective of intrinsic clothing product characteristic. Specifically, this study will determine female consumers’ important intrinsic evaluative criteria when shopping for clothing in general.

Intrinsic evaluative criteria

As already mentioned, intrinsic criteria refer to inherent product, are created during manufacturing and cannot be changed or manipulated without also changing the characteristic of the garment itself (Eckman et al., 1990:14; Abraham-Murali & Littrell, 1995:66). Certain intrinsic attributes of clothing products, such as the fabric, the style and design, the construction and size could influence how the clothing product will be evaluated in terms of its functionality and aesthetic aspects (De Klerk & Tselepis, 2007:416). Thus the intrinsic attributes of clothing products can include two subcategories of aesthetic and functional product characteristics (Newcomb, 2009:50).

TABLE OF CONTENTS
DECLARATION
ACKOWLEDGEMENTS
SUMMARY
LIST OF TABLES
LIST OF FIGURES
LIST OF APPENDICES
CHAPTER 1    THE STUDY IN PERSPECTIVE
1.1 BACKGROUND AND MOTIVATION
1.2 THE SIGNIFICANCE OF BODY SHAPE ON EVALUATIVE CRITERIA
1.3 THE SIGNIFICANCE OF PERSONAL VALUES ON EVALUATIVE CRITERIA
1.4 EMOTIONS IN CLOTHING PURCHASING DECISION AND BEHAVIOUR
1.5 PROBLEM STATEMENT
1.6 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
1.7 RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOY
1.8 ETHICAL CONSIDERTION
1.9 PRESENTATION AND STRUCTURE OF THE THESIS
1.10 DEFINITION OF TERMS
1.11 CITATION MANAGEMENT AND REFERENCING METHOD
1.12 FOR CONSIDERATION
CHAPTER 2    CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK FOR THE STUDY
2.1    INTRODUCTION
2.2    CONSUMER DECISION MAKING
2.3    CONSUMER DECISION MAKING MODEL
2.4    PRE-PURCHASE ALTERNATIVE EVALUATION STAGE OF DECISION MAKING PROCESS
2.5    BODY SHAPE AND CLOTHING PURCHASING DECISION
2.6    PERSONAL VALUES AND CLOTHING PURCHASING DECISION
2.7    EMOTIONS AND CLOTHING PURCHASING DECISION
2.8    PROPOSED CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
2.9    SUMMARY
CHAPTER 3    THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CLOTHING PURCHASING  -DECISION AND EVALUATIVE CRITERIA
3.1    INTRODUCTION
3.2    CONSUMER DECISION MAKING
3.3    VIEWS FOR EXPLAINING CONSUMER DECISION MAKING
3.4    THE COGNITIVE MODELS OF CONSUMER DECISION MAKING
3.5    PRE-PURCHASE ALTERNATIVE EVALUATION OF CLOTHING PRODUCTS
3.6    EVALUATIVE CRITERIA USED IN CLOTHING PURCHASING DECISION
3.7    EVALUATIVE CRITERIA FOR CURRENT STUDY
3.8    EVALUATIVE CRITERIA IN CLOTHING PURCHASING DECISION
3.9    SUMMARY
CHAPTER 4    THE INFLUENCE OF BODY SHAPE ON THE CLOTHING – PURCHASING DECISION
4.1    INTRODUCTION
4.2    BODY SHAPE AND CLOTHING PURCHASING DECISION
4.3    CLASSIFICATION SYSTEMS OF BODY SHAPE
4.4    JUSTIFICATION FOR USING LIDDELOW’S (2011) BODY SHAPES
4.5    THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN BODY SHAPE AND CLOTHING FIT
4.6    BODY SHAPE AND CLOTHING FIT PROBLEMS
4.7    SUMMARY
CHAPTER 5    THE INFLUENCE OF PERSONAL VALUES ON THE CLOTHING –  PURCHASING DECISION
5.1    INTRODUCTION
5.2    DEFINING PERSONAL VALUES
5.3    PERSONAL VALUES IN RELATION TO CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
5.4    THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CLOTHING PURCHASING DECISION AND PERSONAL VALUES
5.5    PERSONAL VALUES SCALES
5.6    KAHLE’S LOV SCALE APPLIED IN CLOTHING RESEARCH
5.7    SUMMARY
CHAPTER 6    THE INFLUENCE OF SPECIFIC EMOTIONS ON DECISION – MAKING AND BEHAVIOUR
6.1    INTRODUCTION
6.2    AN OVERVIEW OF CONTEMPORARY APPROACHES TO EMOTIONS
6.3    APPRAISAL THEORY APPROACHES TO EMOTIONS
6.4   THE INFLUENCE OF EMOTIONS ON THE PURCHASING DECISION – BEYOND  VALENCE APPROACHES
6.5    THE APPRAISAL TENDENCY FRAMEWORK (ATF
6.6    APPRAISAL TENDENCIES
6.7    EXTENDING THE ATF TO CLOTHING PURCHASING DECISION
6.8    POSITIVE EMOTIONS AND CONSUMER RESEARCH
6.9    SUMMARY
CHAPTER 7    RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
7.1    INTRODUCTION
7.2    RESEARCH APPROACH
7.3    PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
7.4    RESEARCH DESIGN
7.5    PILOT TESTING THE DATA COLLECTING INSTRUMENT
7.6    RECOMMENDATION FOR THE MAIN STUDY DATA COLLECTION INSTRUMENT
7.7    SAMPLING TECHNIQUES FOR THE MAIN STUDY
7.8    SAMPLE RECRUITMENT
7.9    DATA COLLECTION PROCEDURES
7.10 INSTRUMENT FOR THE MAIN STUDY
7.11    VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY OF THE INSTRUMENT
7.12    DATA ANALYSIS
7.13    ETHICAL CONSIDERATION
7.14    SUMMARY
CHAPTER 8    RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
8.1 INTRODUCTION
8.2    DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTIC OF THE SAMPLE
8.3    SUMMARY OF DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SAMPLE
8.4    THE MOST IMPORTANT AND DETERMINANT EVALUATIVE CRITERIA USED  FEMALE
8.5    SUMMARY OF RESEARCH OBJECTIVE ONE
8.6    THE EXTENT TO WHICH EVALUATIVE CRITERIA PREFERENCES ARE  INFLUENCED BY
8.7    SUMMARY OF RESEARCH OBJECTIVE TWO
8.8    THE EXTENT TO WHICH EVALUATIVE CRITERIA PREFERENCES ARE  INFLUENCED BY PERSONAL VALUES (Research Objective 3
8.9    SUMMARY OF RESEARCH OBJECTIVE THREE
8.10   THE INFLUENCE OF SPECIFIC NEGATIVE AND POSITIVE EMOTIONS ON           CLOTHING PURCHASING DECISION AND BEHAVIOUR (Research Objective 4)
8.11    SUMMARY OF OBJECTIVE FOUR
CHAPTER 9    CONCLUSION OF THE STUDY
9.1 INTRODUCTION
9.2    DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS OF THE RESPONDENTS
9.3   THE MOST IMPORTANT AND DETERMINANT EVALUATIVE CRITERIA USED          BY FEMALE CONSUMERS WHEN PURCHASING CLOTHING           (Research Objective 1)
9.4    THE EXTENT TO WHICH EVALUATIVE CRITERIA PREFERENCES ARE           INFLUENCED BY PERCEIVED BODY SHAPE (Research Objective 2
9.5    THE EXTENT TO WHICH EVALUATIVE CRITERIA PREFERENCES ARE          INFLUENCED BY PERSONAL VALUES (Research Objective 3
9.6    THE INFLUENCES OF SPECIFIC NEGATIVE AND POSITIVE EMOTIONS ON          CLOTHING PURCHASING DECISION AND BEHAVIOUR (Research Objective 4
9.7    THE DEVEOLPMENT OF THE CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK OF FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE FEMALE CONSUMERS’ CLOTHING PURCHASING DECISION   AND BEHAVOUR (Research Objective 5
9.8    CONTRIBUTION OF THE STUDY
9.9    RECOMMENDATIONS
9.10   LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY
9.11   FURTHER STUDIES
REFERENCE LIST

GET THE COMPLETE PROJECT
The development of a conceptual framework of female clothing evaluative criteria preferences during the purchasing decision that includes body shape, personal values and emotions