Page 200 - Foundations of Marketing

Consumer Buying Behavior | Chapter 6 167

Table 6.5 Motivations for Unethical or Illegal Misbehavior

• Justifi cation/rationalization • The thrill of getting away with it

• Economic reasons • There is little risk of getting caught

• It is accepted by peers • People think they are smarter than others
Source: Kevin J. Shanahan and Michael J. Hyman, “Motivators and Enablers of SCOURing: A Study of Online Piracy in
the US and UK,” Journal of Business Research 63 (September–October 2010): 1095–1102.

profits. Participants in these crime rings have been spotted filling their carts and walking right
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out of stores. It has become such a problem that many stores now lock up their Tide detergent.
Experts estimate that organized retail crime alone costs businesses between $ 15 billion and
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$ 37 billion annually. Aside from selling goods on the black market, consumer motivation for
shoplifting includes the low risk of being caught, a desire to be accepted by a group of peers
(particularly among young people), and the excitement associated with the activity.
Consumer fraud includes purposeful actions to take advantage of and/or damage others.
Fraudulently obtaining credit cards, checks, bank accounts, or false insurance claims fall into
this category. Even large companies with sophisticated security systems can be vulnerable to
consumer fraud. Major banks, newspapers, governments, and even Twitter have been hacked
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and mined by criminals for the data their computer systems hold. Some consumers engage
in identity theft, which is a serious and growing legal problem—particularly as more shopping
is conducted online, where regulations and security are more difficult to enforce. A type of
consumer fraud that some consumers might not even consider a crime would be purchasing a
dress for a special event, wearing it once, and then returning it.
Piracy is copying computer software, video games, movies, or music. It is a growing
legal problem that some estimate costs the electronics and entertainment industries $ 59 billion
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annually, although the number is difficult to calculate precisely. The recording industry
broadcasts messages explaining why sharing music is not acceptable, but it remains a serious
problem. Understanding motivations for piracy can be helpful in developing a plan to combat
the issue (see Table 6.5 ).
Yet another area of concern with consumer misbehavior is abusive consumers. Rude cus-
tomers engage in verbal or physical abuse, can be uncooperative, and may even break policies.
Airlines remove abusive customers if they represent a threat to employees and other passen-
gers. Belligerently drunk customers, especially in environments such as bars and restaurants,
have to be removed in order to protect others. Understanding the psychological and social
reasons for consumer misconduct can be helpful in preventing or responding to the problem.

Chapter Review

1. Recognize the stages of the consumer buying resolve the problem or satisfy the need. In the internal search,
decision process. buyers search their memories for information about products
that might solve the problem. If they cannot retrieve from
The consumer buying decision process includes five stages:
memory sufficient information to make a decision, they seek
problem recognition, information search, evaluation of alter-
additional information through an external search. A success-
natives, purchase, and postpurchase evaluation. Not all deci-
ful search yields a group of brands, called a consideration
sion processes culminate in a purchase, nor do all consumer
set, which a buyer views as possible alternatives. To evaluate
decisions include all five stages. Problem recognition occurs
the products in the consideration set, the buyer establishes
when buyers become aware of a difference between a desired
certain criteria by which to compare, rate, and rank different
state and an actual condition. After recognizing the problem
products. Marketers can influence consumers’ evaluations by
or need, buyers search for information about products to help
framing alternatives. In the purchase stage, consumers select

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