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Haggling Spoken Here: Gender, Class, and Style in US Garage Sale Bargaining
... Hence, buyers who are sensitive enough to these price fairness concerns will negotiate less aggressively, and may even forgo engaging in profitable negotiations and simply purchase the good, when the posted price if fair. These implications of the model are consistent with survey evidence of negotiation behavior documented in Kristensen andGärling (1997c, 2000), Maxwell, Nye, and Maxwell (1999), and Herrmann (2004). I also show that the model of price fairness concerns developed in this essay differs from the existing distributional and reciprocal approaches of modeling fairness concerns in the literature. ...
... For example, Maxwell, Nye, and Maxwell (1999) find evidence that buyers who are primed to con-sider price fairness are more willing to make concessions and are more satisfied in a simulated bilateral negotiation over a used car. Herrmann (2004) surveys buyers about their negotiation behavior at garage sales and finds that buyers indicated that they tend to engage in negotiations when prices are high, and refrain when prices are low. specifically, Herrmann finds that "sixty three percent of questionnaired respondents indicated that they refrained from bargaining because 'prices are reasonable'" Specifically, the model posits that buyers receive disutility from engaging in negotiations, and aggressively negotiating, with the seller when the price is fair. ...
... For these buyers, forgoing negotiations and paying the posted price results in a higher utility than acquiring the good via negotiations. The idea that buyers forgo profitable negotiating opportunities because the posted price is fair is consistent with the survey evidence in Kristensen andGärling (1997b, 2000), and Herrmann (2004). Specifically, Herrmann's finding that people do not bargain because "prices are reasonable" is consistent with the implications of the PF model. ...
... The answer is that, after the negotiation, the outcome can generate satisfaction that is important to bargainers (Patton and Balakrishnan, 2010). Notwithstanding, the fact remains that some buyers feel that bargaining is always disappointing, embarrassing (Herrmann, 2004; Schneider et al., 1999), and some even loathe it (Lee, 2000). Therefore, it is intriguing to understand buyer success and failure in bargaining and its consequences. ...
... Bargaining skills can be learned and skilled the bargainer is more likely to bargain when there is a perceived chance for success (Herrmann, 2004). We can see that bargaining exists in services such as transportation, the sale of durable items such as houses, automobiles, gadgets, and even non-durable items such as garments and food products (Alserhan, 2009). ...
... We can see that bargaining exists in services such as transportation, the sale of durable items such as houses, automobiles, gadgets, and even non-durable items such as garments and food products (Alserhan, 2009). As in the marketing context, a buyer and a seller create an interactive practice to reach a mutual price for merchandise, where each party brings decisions and values to the process determining the worth of an item (Herrmann, 2004). Alserhan (2009) also mentions that, in the process of buying and selling, the seller expects the buyer to bargain and therefore will overstate the initial price. ...
This study aims to investigate the process of buyers’ subsequent attitudes and subsequent actions and their relationships depended on the bargaining outcomes. Depth interviews were employed in order to explore the success, the failure, and the consequent actions in dyadic bargaining under the condition of one buyer and one
seller. Ten international respondents were invited to be interviewed. Approximately one hour of each interview is taken, while English is the medium of the interviews. After the interviews, respondents were given five USD as an incentive. The results show that successful bargainers tended to be younger people and easterner, compared
to unsuccessful bargainers who tended to be older people and westerner. When buying product in computer and vehicle category, it might provide higher chance in getting the discount, while buying product in garment category gave the partial tendency to win the bargain. Since garment seems to have fewer profit margins when
compared to the other category like computer or vehicle, it thus is obligatory for the seller to avoid discounting this kind of product. During the interviews, author found that confident interviewees shared their successful bargaining experiences; whereas, interviewees with very calm and quiet attitude seemed to express about their
unsuccessful bargaining stories. This research also provides insights of buyer as bargainer profoundly. It therefore helps the seller, especially in computer, garment, and vehicle industry, knows how to balance mutual-interest and maintain the strong relationship with customer.
... On the other hand, according to self-construal theory men value independence and more individualistic goals. With this in mind, it has been found that men often view shopping as a competitive sport with the end goal of getting the most information and the lowest price possible (Hermann, 2004). In a landmark study looking at male shopping behavior, Otnes and McGrath (2001) went so far as to assert that male shoppers shop to "try to defeat retailers who reap profits from high markups (p. ...
... With men valuing independence and getting the lowest price, it could be argued that male consumers would not necessarily value one-on-one help unless it can help them achieve getting the best product at the lowest price (Melnyk, van Osselaer, and Bijmolt, 2009). Therefore, men may show more loyalty to retailers with low prices, such as national discount store chains (Hermann, 2004). ...
... Whilst other authors have examined pricing structures in charity shops (Horne and Maddrell 2002;Chattoe 2006) and how prices are decided between paid staff and volunteers ), very few have explored the process of negotiation of pricing with customers (haggling) despite this being noted as being a key characteristic of other second-hand shopping spaces such as the car boot, jumble or yard sale (Herrmann 2004) (Gregson and Crewe 2003;Gregson and Crewe 1997). Using data collected from a micro-ethnography on the shop floor of two UK charity shops in the North of England in a post-recession economic climate (2011), this article seeks to shed further light on the cultural significance of this unexplored aspect of 'everyday' shopping experience (Edwards and Gibson 2017) during unsettled times, by examining various instances of haggling that took place, and their significance in relation to established charity shop professionalisation processes. ...
... McRobbie's famous work on ragmarkets (1989) in arguing that second-hand sites lack the systems of "control, order and rationality", usually associated with first-hand shops. In particular, car boot, jumble and garage sales, antique fairs, auctions, flea markets and other 'informal' sites of second-hand sale-including charity shops-are commonly understood as locations where haggling over prices is an established part of any sale (Gregson and Crewe 1997 p. 249;Herrmann 2004). Such bartering over second hand items and their value has also become normalised in online consumer-to-consumer consumption spaces such as Gumtree, Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace and eBay. ...
This article uses a micro-ethnographic approach to investigate the shop-floor presence of ‘professionalisation’ in the UK charity shop sector. Previous literature on charity retail has described how business-like, professionalising practices have invaded their operations (Gregson and Crewe 2003, p. 75). However, these arguments focus upon top-down processes, without observing how these are played out by actors within the physical space of the charity shop itself. A key component of second-hand culture is the variable nature of value within it – and value is all the more unpredictable in a time of global flux. Using the examples of price negotiation and haggling behaviours on the charity shop floor, this study concludes that professionalisation of charity retail is tempered by customer/worker interaction and social imperatives. Thus, charity shops house a hybrid of professionalised and non-professionalised actions and behaviours that demonstrate the value systems and humanity of shop actors. These ‘participant-driven experiences’ of value negotiation enable those on the shop floor to challenge the ‘iron cage’-like characteristics (Weber, 1977) that have infiltrated the 21st century second-hand world: bureaucracy, rationality and impersonality.
... On the other hand, according to self-construal theory men value independence and more individualistic goals. With this in mind, it has been found that men often view shopping as a competitive sport with the end goal of getting the most information and the lowest price possible (Hermann, 2004). In a landmark study looking at male shopping behavior, Otnes and McGrath (2001) went so far as to assert that male shoppers shop to "try to defeat retailers who reap profits from high markups (p. ...
... With men valuing independence and getting the lowest price, it could be argued that male consumers would not necessarily value one-on-one help unless it can help them achieve getting the best product at the lowest price (Melnyk, van Osselaer, and Bijmolt, 2009). Therefore, men may show more loyalty to retailers with low prices, such as national discount store chains (Hermann, 2004). ...
The importance of loyalty to retailing cannot be understated as it hasbeen shown that a 5% increase in customer retention (i.e. loyalty) canincrease a company's profit by up to 25-95% (Reichheld and Sasser,1990; Reichheld,1993). Due to the importance of loyalty to the success ofa retailer, academicians and practitioners alike have long studied how tokeep customers loyal. As in many areas of consumer behavior, it has beenfound that male and female consumers have differing needs andmotivations when it comes to store loyalty. It has been found that womenvalue interrelationships and social interaction while shopping amd alsowant to be valued as an individual. As such, retailers who treat women asindividuals (individualized sales and discounts, personalized marketingcommunications, personalization of products, etc.) while also ensuringsales staff and personalized service is available will be more successful inkeeping women customers loyal. Conversely, it has been shown that menwant low prices, information on products (especially on complexproducts such as electronics and cars) and value status for visible rewardsprograms (such as "gold cards"). Until all is known about shopping loyalty and the differences between men and women in the shoppingenvironment... every man for himself!
... The answer is that, after the negotiation, the outcome can generate satisfaction that is important to bargainers (Patton and Balakrishnan, 2010). Notwithstanding, the fact remains that some buyers feel bargaining is always disappointing or embarrassing (Herrmann, 2004). ...
... By exploring one day consisting of one buyer and one seller in a market place, there must be at least a relationship (either positive or negative) between them. For the buyer and seller, bargaining is bound to values, personal judgment, bargaining skill, and feelings (Herrmann, 2004). We can assume that a bargaining is comprised of the seller determining the lowest acceptable price, and the buyer determining the highest acceptable price (White and Neale, 1994). ...
This research aims to investigate the bargaining attitude and bargaining intention (intention to re-bargain) driven by culture of Thai and Chinese consumers when buying apparel product. The survey took place in major apparel markets in Bangkok such as Chatuchak Market, Center One, and so on, according to their bargaining-prone environment. The opinionnaires were conveniently distributed to Thai and Chinese consumers. With samples of 198 Thai consumers and 116 Chinese consumers, the results generated by Structural Equation Modeling show that both Thai and Chinese consumers’ bargaining attitude affected bargaining intention and their culture affected both bargaining attitude and intention. For managerial and marketing application, as international companies go global and companies in the Asia-Pacific region continue to export and become more international, culture will become more and more important. The apparel shop who tends to be flexible with the price will be the winner. For the limitations, this research did not include age as a factor driving bargaining attitude and bargaining intention; that was, it could harm the generalization of the results. For future research, it will be interesting to compare the results of different countries to see if there are highly significant differences.
... Similarly, Kristensen (2000) finds that buyers are more willing to buy at the posted price when the price is fairer. Herrmann (2004) examines negotiation behaviour at garage sales and finds that buyers indicated that they engage in negotiations when prices are high, and avoid when prices are low. ...
There are different ways products are priced. Prices of some
products are fixed and some are negotiable. This paper compares the effect of
fixed pricing and negotiable pricing on purchase decision. The paper also
compares the effect of different demographic variables on fixed and negotiable
price. The results of our empirical study, conducted on locally manufactured
apparels, reveal that people evaluate fixed prices more favourably as compared
to negotiable price. Furthermore, it was found that demographic variables affect
negotiable price, and people with different levels of education and income had
differences of opinion in evaluating negotiable price. However, the majority of
respondents were in favour of non-negotiable/fixed price. Hence, it could be
concluded from the results that if organisations shift from negotiable price to
fixed price, the inclination of customers towards their products increases. The
sellers of locally manufactured apparels in particular and fast moving consumer
goods in general can significantly improve their sales volume by shifting to
non-negotiable/fixed price policy.
... Untersuchungen hierzu begannen in den 1970er Jahren mit der sogenannten Consumer Odyssee (Belk, 1975) und daran anschließenden Ethnografien auf amerikanischen Märkten (Belk, Wallendorf, & Sherry, 1989), in Garagenverkäufen (Herrmann & Soiffer, 1984;Herrmann, 2004) und in Einkaufs-und Erlebniszentren (Kozinets et al., 2002;Nuttavuthisit et al., 2001). Dies hat auch zu Ethnografien geführt, die sich beispielsweise mit der Bestimmung von Preisen auf Straßenmärkten (Varman & Costa, 2008, 2009) und mit der temporalen Organisation von Preisnennungen und -anfragen beschäftigt haben. ...
Straßenmärkte erfreuen sich einer fortdauernden Beliebtheit bei Touristen wie Einheimischen. Diese Beliebtheit speist sich unter anderem daher, dass es Orte sind, an denen Menschen miteinander in Interaktion treten. Sie geben an, dass die informelle Kommunikation mit Händlern einer der Gründe ist, der ihre regelmäßigen Marktbesuche motiviert (de la Pradelle 2006; Watson und Studdert 2006).
... In their investigations of markets, economic sociologists have looked at how market actors coordinate their activities and resources in the processes of production, consumption and distribution. While in recent years researchers have been particularly interested in financial markets (Knorr-Cetina and Preda 2006), there is also considerable sociological research on other kinds of market, including farmers' markets (Pradelle 2006), flea and street markets (Belk et al. 1988; and garage sales (Herrmann and Soiffer 1984;Herrmann 2004). In this section, our discussion will show how studies from both SI and EMCA contribute to debates in the new economic sociology and related theoretical developments. ...
... The analysis provides English translation and notes the role and connotations of Arabic formulaic expressions and the sociocultural values communicated by them in Jordanian bargaining encounters. We focus on the discursive, (Herrmann, 2004), bilingual and multilingual contexts (Canagarajah, 1995;Ayoola, 2009;Moseti, 2010), politeness (Alo, 2015), indexical sociolinguistic practices (McFadden, 2011), and localness versus cosmopolitanism (Hawkins, 2010). ...
This article investigates bargaining exchanges between salesmen and female customers in modern urban women's clothing stores in northern Jordan. Thirty-five audio-recorded interactions of bargaining exchanges were analyzed, informed by a theoretical view of genre as culturally conventionalized discursive ways of achieving communicative ends within a community. In addition to identifying their generic structure, the analysis reveals that these encounters are discursively characterized by three features: ‘stylized’ or ‘mock’ conflict talk, sociability talk, and flirtation talk. The latter discursive aspect suggests how this traditional genre has evolved in a modern setting, which locates this genre somewhere between tradition and modernity and shows how members of a community play an active role in shaping, interpreting, and developing a genre over time. The bargaining encounters involve participants’ particular manipulations of interactional resources: the salesmen used extensive bargaining strategies to gain bargaining power and finalize the sales transaction, such as displaying exaggerated hospitality and generosity and praising the goods’ quality, while women customers used counterstrategies such as justifying why they deserve a lowered price and downplaying or criticizing the design or quality of the goods. The study relates these interactions to increased female agency and participation in public discourse in Jordanian society.
... Middle Eastern or Arabic consumers bargain to establish a long-term relationship with the seller. Herrmann (2004) suggests that in the USA, the cultural norm is of posted prices, and bargaining is often considered embarrassing or unsavory. However, she suggests that opinions about bargaining vary greatly, and some consumers do tend to "love" the practice. ...
Organized retail stores offer discounts (price, freebies, coupons etc.) and introduce store-brands (Dhar and Hoch 1997) to attract the value conscious customers. Research done on the western consumer has studied how a deal prone customer differs from a store-brand (SB) prone customer (Lichtenstein et al. 1995; Ailawadi et al. 2001). In India, the traditional neighborhood stores use a third mechanism to attract value conscious consumers—Bargaining (or haggling). Customers haggle for a variety of reasons—ranging from economic to psychological (Jones et al. 1997; Sharma et al. 2000). Though haggling is a prevalent phenomenon in the Eastern economies, it has not been studied in the literature.
While research in the past has looked at the role of benefits and demographics (Ailawadi et al. 2001; Lichtenstein et al. 1993; Urbany et al. 1991), personality orientation has not been used to explain deal-proneness or store-brand proneness. Personality orientations have been found to impact the bargaining-proneness of consumers (Mowen 1999) and their buying behavior (Butori 2010).
This paper explores how a deal prone, store brand prone and bargaining prone customer is psychographically different from each other. We study psychological benefits—value consciousness and price mavenism, personality orientation—need for special treatment (distinctiveness and play) and demographics.
We found the Indian deal-prone consumer is value conscious and price maven. This behavior is similar to the research done on the US consumers (Ailawadi 2001). We observe a distinct departure from the US literature on SB prone customers. The Indian SB customer is not characterized by value consciousness but are price mavens. The retailers position SBs not as a cheap alternative, but introduce them in categories where the national brands are not at all present (Deloitte 2013). Traditionally, grocery products in India have been purchased from the neighborhood store (unorganized sector). The comfortable and upmarket ambiance of the stores in malls gives the customer a feeling of being ‘exclusive’ or special. This explains the positive relationship between need for special treatment (NST)—distinctiveness and the negative relationship with NST—play. Bargaining-prone customers have a positive relationship with play orientation. These consumers enjoy the process of negotiating. Indian bargaining-prone consumers are value conscious and price mavens. They consider themselves well informed on price perhaps they feel price knowledge to be a prerequisite for effective bargaining. We find that women have higher likelihood of being deal-prone. SB prone consumers are likely to be younger and have higher incomes. Interestingly, none of the demographics seem to explain bargaining-proneness.
... Middle Eastern or Arabic consumers bargain to establish a long-term relationship with the seller. Herrmann (2004) suggests that in the USA, the cultural norm is of posted prices, and bargaining is often considered embarrassing or unsavory. However, she suggests that opinions about bargaining vary greatly, and some consumers do tend to "love" the practice. ...
Purpose
– The paper aims to study how deal- and bargaining-prone customers are different from each other. This paper brings out this difference based on psychographics encompassing values – consciousness, price mavenism and personality orientations – needed for special treatment (distinctiveness and play).
Design/methodology/approach
– The measurement model was assessed using both exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis. The structural model was tested using structural equation modeling.
Findings
– This paper finds that value consciousness is a two-dimensional construct in the Indian context. This construct comprises two dimensions of value consciousness, including concern for price and concern for quality. The authors find that deal-prone customers are value conscious and price mavens. Bargaining-prone customers are value-conscious price mavens and have a high need for special treatment (play). Play orientation distinguishes between a deal-prone and a bargaining-prone customer.
Research limitations/implications
– The study was limited to grocery products. The consumers surveyed were urban and educated Indians.
Practical implications
– With the Indian markets being opened for Western retailers, it is imperative to study the Indian consumers. It is important to understand why the local neighborhood store is able to retain its customer base even when the organized fixed-price formats have been around for approximately 20 years.
Originality/value
– This is one of the few papers that tries to understand the Indian consumer’s buying behavior, especially with respect to their haggling nature. This paper further develops our understanding of the “deal proneness” and “bargaining proneness” constructs. The authors also study their differences based on psychographics.
... AU:2 As per the reference list, for reference citations (Herrman, 2003(Herrman, , 2004 author name has been changed from 'Herrmann' to 'Herrman'. Please check and confirm for correctness. ...
This chapter examines the selling practices of street vendors at a popular weekend market in Washington, DC. I discuss the role of social and moral norms in vendors' behavior toward one another, customers, and their work. Vendor success in this marketplace over the long term is influenced not only by their products and sales skills, but also by their understanding and acceptance of an ethical framework partly shaped by stories they tell about each other. As such, this study illustrates the embedded nature of sellers in marketplaces, as opposed to theoretical notions of how abstract individuals are supposed to act in a decontextualized ''market.'' Furthermore, stories that arise from encounters between vendors and customers add value to the products people buy. Objects in this marketplace, then, gain value not only through the interaction of supply and demand, but also through buyer and seller interaction, which provides a narrative base for future communication.
... The notion of the market itself and the practice of bargaining or more precisely interactions between people in commercial transactions can be considered communicative acts, which in turn might take different forms in various contexts and locales. Ample study has been conducted on different types of markets, ranging from the cornershop in Germany to a garage sale in the United States, to a public outdoor market in France, all of which contribute to the theorization of markets and how they are conceived of by their consumers/inhabitants (Dyers and Wankah, 2012;Everts, 2010;Gregson & Rose, 2000;Herrmann, 2004;de la Pradelle, 1995). ...
This article discusses the shopping experience of international language students theorized as an intercultural exchange and encounter in the Silk Street Market, Beijing. In this interaction the bargaining ritual constitutes the core activity. Students perform with varying degrees of success on this bargaining ritual, making use not only of their language knowledge of Chinese but also of their understanding of the language of the marketplace. The marketplace is conceived as a flexi-multilingual and multicultural setting, shaped by the users of the space including vendors and customers. The marketplace generates both misunderstandings and opportunities for students and vendors alike to get engaged in other cultures.
... Gender roles and negotiation roles also are relevant in household negotiations. Couples or roommates negotiate the division of household labor, parents negotiate childcare, lovers negotiate condom use (Wingood and DiClemente, 1997), shoppers negotiate at garage sales (Herrmann, 2004), students negotiate grades (Medved and Heisler, 2002), and unhappy spouses negotiate divorce settlements (Sheets and Braver, 1996). All these areas of negotiations have implications for fundamental life activities like satisfaction, access to resources, health, as well as work life. ...
Individual differences in negotiation and conflict attract attention, and gender, one of these differences, has emerged as an area of particular importance. The significance of gender in negotiation is due to the salience of male and female roles in society as well as the concern that negotiation gaps foster inequities between men and women in the workplace and other social spheres (Bowles and McGinn, 2008a). Our chapter overviews major research findings relating to how and why women, on average, experience negotiation differently than men. We use social role theories as an organizing framework to summarize findings. We also review contextual and environmental factors to consider in interpreting these findings. Social role theories clarify areas that enhance or ameliorate gender differences. Through this lens we review work on communication mode, negotiation tasks, framing, stereotype threat, advo-cacy roles, and ambiguity. In addition to considering workplace negotiations , we incorporate discussions of gendered negotiations at home, with family, in political settings, and in negotiation ethics. We conclude with ideas relating to future research. Although many thoughtful reviews have emerged relating to gender and negotiation (e.g.
... Hence, it is not surprising that men view shopping as a competition and they try to "defeat" retailers who reap profits from high markups (Otnes and McGrath, 2001). In fact, men are more likely to view getting the lowest price as a "sport to be won" and a "competitive game" (Herrmann, 2004). ...
Purpose
Prior research exploring the relationships among sacrifice, service quality, value, satisfaction, and behavioral intentions in service evaluation models did not consider customer characteristics. This study aims to test the moderating effects of two demographic variables (i.e. gender and age) on all the relationships in the “comprehensive” service evaluation model.
Design/methodology/approach
Responses from a diverse group of shoppers ( n =2,727) in six retail categories (cosmetics, electronics, fashion, jewelry, telecom services, and department stores) were examined using structural equation modeling.
Findings
The negative relationship between sacrifice and perceived value, and the positive association of perceived value and satisfaction with behavioral intentions, is stronger for the male and older customers; whereas the positive association of service quality with satisfaction and value is stronger for female and younger customers.
Research limitations/implications
The study examined behavioral intentions instead of actual behavior due to its cross‐sectional design. However, in the categories examined (cosmetics, fashion, department stores, etc.) where purchase frequencies range from moderate to high, behavioral intentions may highly correlate with actual behavior.
Practical implications
The findings help retail managers understand the differences in the influence of perceived sacrifice, value, service quality, and satisfaction on the behavioral intentions of customers, based on individual characteristics such as gender and age. They should be able to plan and prioritize their marketing activities for diverse customer segments.
Originality/value
The study offers new insights on the individual differences in the service expectations and perceptions, which in turn affect customer behavior and loyalty.
... Auf B2B-, aber auch auf vielen B2C-Märkten sind Kundenverhandlungen weit verbreitet (Fang 2006;Anderson und Narus 2004;Herrmann 2004 ...
... Men are likely to make explicit comparisons across retailers to obtain the best product/price deal, as if shopping were a competition to 'win' (Otnes & McGrath, 2001, p. 129). Indeed, Herrmann (2004) found that men are more likely to view obtaining the lowest price as a 'sport to be won' and a 'competitive game'. In this regard, men and women also seem to differ in terms of attitude toward risk. ...
This study sheds light on quick response(OR) code loyalty promotion in terms of gender. Based on self-construal and gender scheme theories, we posit that the level of both involvement and social anxiety plays a crucial role in the gender effects of loyalty formation for promoted services. A scenario-based study in Japan with 667 consumers is constructed and examines two types of services: bank and supermarket. The findings suggest that, for high involvement (bank), compared with women, males act as competitive gamers who assume greater risk and seek attractive rewards with which to beat corporations, even under high social anxiety conditions. This finding seems consistent with independent self-construal among males. However, there is no significant difference for low involvement (supermarket). The implications are discussed and limitations recognized.
... Since we wanted to avoid using the TKI or similar solutions, such as the Kraybill Conflict Style Inventory (Kraybill, 2005) or Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (Briggs and Myers, 1980), we decided to identify such a profile based on the visible demographic characteristics and psychological description of the user that are available within their pre-negotiation questionnaires. We assume then, having derived from the results of behavioural research on negotiation and the five-factor model (Mershon and Gorsuch, 1988;Paunonen and Ashton, 2001;Herrmann, 2004;Patton and Balakrishnan, 2010), that there is any relation between some personal characteristics of the negotiators and their negotiation profiles. To find the relation and describe it formally we will apply the case-based reasoning (see Section 3). ...
In this paper we analyze the problem of identifying the negotiation profile of the electronic negotiation
system users. Usually such a profile is identified by means of the specific questionnaire (e.g. the Thomas-Kilmann questionnaire), however it requires from the negotiator answering many troublesome questions which is tiring and may lead to unreliable results. On the other hand many behavioural and psychological studies confirm that there is a set of demographical and sociological characteristics that influence the human general behaviour. Deriving from these studies we try to determine such a profile by analyzing the general information provided by the pre-negotiation questionnaire the users fill while creating their negotiation accounts. Having the historical data of Inspire negotiation system we try to find links between a set of the data that describes the negotiators demographical features and their final negotiation profile using the notion of Gilboa and Schmeidler case-based reasoning (CBR). To determine all the parameters required for the case-based reasoning the statistical correspondence analysis on the set of the historical data is conducted in advance. The results of CBR-based profile identification are also presented and discussed.
... While many prior C2C studies have concentrated on online buying behavior or auction mechanisms such as bidding strategies and web assurance (e.g., Ariely and Simonson, 2003; Brown and Morgan, 2006; Jap, 2003; Liu, Fang, Dixon and Murphy, 2002 ), we aim to extend consumer online buying behavior to consumer online resale behavior by investigating another pivotal function of the C2C secondary market as a channel to sell unwanted goods, and the underlying resale behavior in a Chinese context covering the markets of Taiwan and China. Past studies related to consumer resale behavior can mainly be found in three streams of research: (1) consumer disposition behavior (Hanson, 1980; Harrelland, and McConocha, 1992; Jacoby, Berning and Dietvorst, 1977; Paden and Stell, 2005; Young and Wallendorf, 1989 ); (2) informal markets such as farmers' markets (Heisley, McGrath, and Sherry, 1991; Pyle, 1971; Sommer, Margaret, and Aitkens, 1980), garage sales (Herrmann, 1996Herrmann, , 1997Herrmann, , 2004Herrmann, , 2006 Herrmann and Soffer, 1984), and flea markets (Belk, Sherry, and Bruin, 2000; Sherry, 1990); and (3) consumers' extended selves related to physical belongings (Belk, 1988; Fernandez, 2005, 2007; Price, Arnould, and Curasi, 2000). Although scholars have studied market phenomena related to consumers acting as resellers, to our knowledge, most prior studies have been conducted in a Western culture context. ...
Tel.+886-3-463-8800 ext. 2684. The authors would like to thank Professor James W. Gentry, the editor of Academy of Marketing Science Review, and three anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments and suggestions. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Thanks to the Internet, an increasing number of consumers not only purchase but also resell merchandise through C2C websites. Resellable goods no longer seem to indicate unrecoverable costs but are considered to be liquid assets or an al-ternative cash account to consumers who master online resale. The value or benefit of a product would be deemed differ-ently when the owners are contemplating reselling such goods. The role of a consumer as a reseller is a relatively new concept. Studies of consumer behavior with regard to selling goals, knowledge, and skills differ tremendously from those of the traditional consumer buying and consumption behavior. Why and how consumers learn to be resellers is an interest-ing issue in C2C e-commerce research. Unfortunately, the behavior of consumer online resale has not been studied in-depth. This specific kind of consumer resale behavior differs from the behavior of retailers and cannot be analyzed from a retailer's perspective. In the present study, we focus on C2C consumer resale behavior instead of the bidding behavior of buyers by looking at the interaction between online and offline behavior rather than treating them as different boundaries. Further, we examine consumer disposition behavior and the linkage between the disposition and acquisition phases, rather than focusing on only one part. This exploratory study conducted in Taiwan and China aims to define and categorize consumer online resale behavior in order to provide a framework for further research. We use participant observations and consumer interviews to explore the background of consumer online resale situations in order to elucidate our research questions for the nature and representa-tion of consumer resale behavior in C2C secondary markets and the possible implications for researchers and marketers. After collecting interview data consisting of 131 online resale transactions reported by 25 consumers from Taiwan and China, we discuss issues related to consumer online resale by conceptually defining and specifying types of consumer online resale behavior with a taxonomy. Then we present a conceptual model of consumer online resale behavior and de-velop corresponding research propositions from the preliminary findings of an exploratory qualitative study. The concep-tual model introduces the possible relationships between types of consumer online resale behavior and their impacts on purchase and online resale decisions. Finally, we provide the conclusions and managerial implications of the study, as well as outline directions for further research.
... From a theoretical perspective this model highlights some potential theoretical underpinnings of college-age Gen-Y's consumption behaviors. Socialization theory (Moschis, 1981), uncertainty reduction theory (Berger, 1987), reactance theory (Brehm, 1966), self-discrepancy theory (Higgins, 1987), social comparison theory (Festinger, 1954), feelings of accomplishment (Herrmann, 2004;Otnes and McGrath, 2001) and using possessions to connect to one's past (Belk, 1990) were all presented to explain these participants' consumption behaviors. Additionally, organizing the findings into a conceptual model provides a framework on which future research on the consumption motivations of Gen-Y (and other groups for that matter) can be built. ...
Generation Y (individuals ages 14–31 in 2008) are in the marketplace with the numbers and the purchasing power to have an unprecedented impact on the economy. Despite the potential of this group as a whole, especially the middle-aged members of this generation (ages 18–22) who are in the highly coveted college-student market, much is unknown about the motivations behind these individuals' consumption behavior and preferences. This study attempts to address this gap in the literature by exploring the antecedents of the consumption behavior of college-aged Generation Y individuals. The findings indicate that issues relating to socialization, uncertainty reduction, reactance, self-discrepancy, and feelings of accomplishment and connectedness drive Y consumers' product purchases and retail patronage. This article discusses these issues as well as their theoretical and managerial implications.
... 129). " Similarly, Herrmann (2004, p. 69) found that men are more likely to view getting the lowest price as a " sport to be won " and a " competitive game " . Multifactorial gender identity theory further posits that gender differences are not only due to gender identity differences (e.g., communal vs. agentic orientations), but also include personality, attitudinal and behavioral differences (Spence 1984). ...
The aim of this research is to gain a deeper understanding of local merchant loyalty. Gender theories and shopping motivation literature were used to hypothesize drivers of consumer local merchant loyalty. Survey data from a nationwide random sample of consumers was employed to test the hypotheses. Results indicate gender significantly influences shopping motives and shopping motivation differences influence local merchant loyalty. Academic and managerial implications are discussed. (c) 2006 New York University. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
... As the American cost of living increases while earning potentials decline, we may observe families beginning to alter their consumption patterns to accommodate such social change. For example, the failure of income to keep pace with rising housing costs may push individuals to look for creative ways to stretch the family dollar without accumulating greater debt (Herrmann 2003Herrmann , 2004Herrmann , 2006 Herrmann & Soiffer, 1984). Thompson County (a pseudonym), where this study was conducted, is a possible example for these creative consumption patterns. ...
Using survey data from a western U.S. county (N = 595), we examined how lower, middle, and higher income families negotiate a period of economic stress-the closing of a major employer in the community-through their shopping patterns. Specifically, we examined their participation in local thrift economies such as yard sales and secondhand stores. We found that lower and middle income households shop more frequently at these venues. They also tend to shop more for furniture and clothing, whereas higher income households tend to shop for antiques and trinkets. These relationships varied across the type of thrift economy examined. Overall, findings support the argument that engagement in thrift economies may constitute one mechanism families use during periods of economic stress.
... While many prior C2C studies have concentrated on online buying behavior or auction mechanisms such as bidding strategies and web assurance (e.g., Ariely and Simonson, 2003;Brown and Morgan, 2006;Jap, 2003;Liu et al., 2002), we aim to investigate another pivotal function of the C2C secondary market, as a channel to sell unwanted goods, and the underlying resale behavior. Past studies related to consumer resale behavior can mainly be found in three streams of research: (1) consumer disposition behavior (Hanson, 1980;Harrelland and McConocha, 1992;Jacoby et al., 1977;Paden and Stell, 2005;Young and Wallendorf, 1989);(2) informal markets: farmers' market ( Heisley et al., 1991;Pyle, 1971;Sommer et al., 1980), garage sales (Herrmann, 1996(Herrmann, , 1997(Herrmann, , 2004(Herrmann, , 2006Herrmann and Soffer, 1984), and flea markets Bruin, 2000;Sherry, 1990); and (3) consumers' extended self related to physical belongings (Belk, 1988;Fernandez, 2005, 2006; Price et al., 2000). Although scholars have studied market phenomena related to consumers acting as resellers, none have focused on consumers' online resale behavior, and knowledge about the specificity and meaning of various types of consumer online resale remains primitive. ...
The terms talent management and human capital management have become commonplace in the vocabularies of government and non-profit human resources managers because they provide a better description of the evolution of public personnel management and non-profit human resources administration. In the US Government, human resources management is no longer just about processing benefits forms and hiring new staff. Today’s government organizations have job titles like chief human capital officer, chief learning officer, organizational development specialist, and knowledge management coordinator. Effective leaders understand that growing organizations, that are healthy and efficient, demands the consistent and planned development of new leaders. With so many US federal government employees ready for retirement, this has important implications for all government agencies as it relates to leadership development, knowledge extension, succession planning, and organizational knowledge retention. If long term success requires more leaders at each level, then teaching, mentoring, coaching and cultivating others is critical to employee retention and development. The ability to nurture employees requires a well defined methodology for mentoring. In most government agencies, leadership enhancement is based on developing a set of core skills of what are the values of a good leader. A successful mentoring program can facilitate this process.
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to understand how the degree of congruence between buyers’ and sellers’ intentions to negotiate impacts buyers’ postpurchase emotions and attitudes. In addition, the study examines whether buyers’ self-confidence and negotiation expertise can increase buyers’ perceptions of control and regret, as well as buyers’ postpurchase satisfaction and enjoyment with the purchase. Traditionally, marketplace exchanges have been classified as either fixed price or negotiated. The present research treats marketplace exchanges along a continuum of intention congruence to test the relationships between intention congruence and outcome variables of control, regret, satisfaction and enjoyment with the purchase.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors studied the perceived difference between buyers' and sellers' intentions to negotiate and how the difference impacts buyers' postpurchase attitudinal and emotional outcomes. A mail survey of automobile buyers resulted in a sample of 291 respondents. An automobile is a significant and irreversible purchase for a buyer. Thus, automobile markets often host transactions that evoke dissonance and regret for buyers if things go awry. In addition, buyers and sellers vary considerably in their desire to negotiate, thus reflecting a range of intention congruence in negotiation. Therefore, a survey of automobile buyers was considered appropriate for testing the effects of intention congruence on buyers’ postpurchase outcomes.
Findings
Results indicate that when buyers are willing to negotiate but sellers do not reciprocate equally, buyers feel less in control of a transaction. Contrarily, buyers experienced greater control and lesser regret when buyers’ perceptions of sellers’ intention to negotiate exceeded buyers’ own intentions to negotiate. Results also suggest that when buyers’ intentions to negotiate were congruent with buyers’ perception of sellers’ intention to negotiate, greater dyadic levels of negotiation marginally lowered buyers’ perceived regret. Overall, an intention-congruence perspective adds to the current understanding of negotiated exchanges and is a meaningful approach for improving postpurchase outcomes for buyers.
Research limitations/implications
The study used only the consumers’ perspective of negotiation. Although this is supported by studies in power and dependence because the consumers’ perspective is valuable and valid, a true dyadic measurement of the negotiation process can only be obtained if the sellers’ view is also incorporated. This remains a key limitation of this study.
Practical implications
The results suggest that sellers may be better off honoring buyers’ intentions to negotiate. Intention incongruence negatively impacted buyer satisfaction when buyers perceived sellers to be less eager to negotiate. However, where sellers seem more eager to negotiate, incongruity favored buyers and positively impacted buyers’ postpurchase outcomes. Thus, for sellers, it is worthwhile to consider adding policies that honor negotiation.
Originality/value
Past research classifies marketplaces exchanges as either fixed price or negotiated. The present study uses intention congruence as a continuum between transaction partners. The intention congruence approach allows a closer examination of both the symmetry and strength of intentions to negotiate in a dyadic exchange. Given that markets are comprised of buyers and sellers who display considerable variability in intentions to negotiate, examining intention congruence allows for a more realistic study of negotiation behavior in business-to-consumer marketplaces.
Bringing together a diverse collection of studies from a team of international scholars, this pioneering volume focuses on interactions in shops, exploring the dynamics of conversation between sellers and customers. Beginning with the emergence of a 'need' for a product before the request to a seller is actually made, all the way through to the payment phase, it explores the rich and deeply methodical practices employed by customers and sellers as they go about the apparently mundane work of buying and selling small items. It looks at how seller and customer interact both verbally, and by means of manipulating the material objects involved, across a range of different kinds of purchase. Providing new insights into multimodal human interaction and the organisation of the commercial activity, it aims to bring about a new understanding of the fundamental ways in which economic value, possession and ownership is achieved.
While post-migrant generation Moroccans from Europe often are able to converse competently enough in Moroccan languages to bargain in shops during visits to Morocco, many report that they are not given the ‘local’, ‘right’ prices because they are ‘smelled’ as outsiders. During fieldwork following these diasporic visitors in Morocco, several participants strategically shopped for goods with a ‘local’ friend or family member who might negotiate on their behalf for the ‘right’ price. This strategy was seen as a way to circumvent or ameliorate the ways the diasporic client might be negatively categorized as an outsider, especially in terms of his or her language use. Yet, examining these events in recorded detail indicates that diasporic clients are often bargaining for themselves as competent speakers, but are sometimes not able to skillfully bargain politely. In these moments, proxy bargainers intervene when debate and tension increases during bargaining and diasporic visitors do not adequately perform politeness – specifically by deploying religious speech – to soften and minimize tension. Analysis of these interactions indicates how diasporic branching of linguistic practice contrasts communicative skills of mobile populations with subtle, place-based competences, and how the mismatch between these can negatively mark diasporic visitors.
Growth in online marketing has been unprecedented, and mainstream shopping is shifting from traditional stores to online shopping channels. However, many aspects of online consumer behaviour remain unaddressed. In particular, the effects of gender differences in visual attention on shopping attitudes are a great challenge in online retailers’ attempts to understand consumers’ cognitive processing and strategies. This study was designed to investigate the effects of gender on visual attention to online shopping information, and its influence on attitudes about the products displayed. Using an eye tracking approach, the results identified significant gender differences in visual attention to online shopping information and shopping attitudes about the products presented. Female participants attended visually to most of the online shopping information areas to a greater degree than did males, and their attitudes about products were influenced to some degree by visual attention to the consumer opinion areas. Although males’ visual attention was lower than females, their shopping attitudes were influenced extensively by visual attention to product information and consumer opinion areas.
Gender theories developed from traditional fixed and negotiated price shopping have largely been untested in the context of online auctions. The present study intends to fill this gap. Specifically, this study compares male and female online bidders based on their motivations, psychographics, and purchasing behavior. Our results show that females are more likely than males to be enjoyment seekers, information seekers, bargain hunters, variety seekers, and impulsive buyers. Female online bidders also have a higher level of risk aversion and need for uniqueness, but exhibit a lower level of social interaction than males. This study also finds that males are more likely to purchase electronics and computers, whereas females are more likely to purchase books, clothing, jewelry, and toys through online auctions. Based on these results, theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.
Australia has recently seen an upsurge in translation and interpreting activity on the back of successive waves of refugees and illegal immigrants from war-torn countries in the Middle East, Horn of Africa, Afghanistan, and South East Asia. Ensuing demands have resulted in a flourishing translation market and have turned translation into a lucrative business for many translation service providers, old and new. However, in an unregulated industry that is subject to seasonal fluctuation, most translation and interpreting work has been traditionally carried out by freelancers or “contractors” on behalf of these providers. In a fledgling profession still in the process of defining itself, sustainability and professional recognition become inseparably intertwined and the question of viability becomes a real one in an unstable market.
Asia nowadays becomes significantly more powerful in various aspects ranging from economic to sociopolitical influences. Thus, it is essential to recognize the Asian perspectives and practices, especially in apparel bargaining behavior, action, intention to re-bargain, and repurchase Intention between Thai and Chinese consumers. This research aims to study the impact of subjective norm, bargaining behavior, bargaining action, intention to re-bargain, and repurchase intention on the process of apparel bargaining. The difference in bargaining behavior/attitude, action, and intention to re-bargain of Thai consumers and the Chinese is studied as well. This research employs structural equation modeling (SEM) and thence uses 400 samples of Thai consumers and Chinese consumers. Only Thai respondents and Chinese respondents who are at least 20 years old and have already spent time in Thailand for at least three days are recruited. The survey takes place in major market in Bangkok, Chatuchak Market and etc. according to its bargaining-prone environment. The self-administrative opinionnaires are distributed to Thai consumers and Chinese consumers. The outcomes of this research are to give sellers in Thailand a guideline to adapt price tactic/negotiation style to suit with culture which international consumers are belonged to; to increase the mutual understanding in price negotiation between sellers and buyers; and to educate reader about cultural differences among diversified buyers.
Marketplace exchange is implicitly both economic and social. Participants in marketplace encounters assemble into multidimensional categories of familiarity and difference, both through the material culture object for sale and through the interaction between vendors and clients within their transactions. This paper brings attention to the latter through microanalysis of one example from a corpus of recorded marketplace interactions of Moroccan diasporic visitors from Europe with marketplace vendors. This example illustrates a repeatedly observed bargaining strategy: to explicitly or implicitly claim the category of ‘a son/daughter of this country’ (weld/bint el-bled) as an argument to lower prices. While vendors did not straightforwardly refute this category of ‘descendant’, they often did respond by introducing other— sometimes seemingly contradictory—categorical differentiations they found relevant to finding a price. This article explores how vendors and diasporic customers negotiate these categories, and how categorization become significant for the emergent value of the goods under negotiation. Through turn-by-turn analysis, I demonstrate how interlocutors engage with ideas of ‘Moroccanness’ beyond ethnonational discourses of belonging, in that ‘doing being Moroccan’ while bargaining becomes a negotiation of being ‘Moroccan’ geographically, socially and economically, as resident in or out of Morocco.
The study examines the post-socialist ownership history of an extremely valuable Gabor Roma prestige object: a silver-footed beaker. The resulting object biography sheds light on the role of the prestige economy constructed around silver objects in the creation, materialization, and renegotiation of social differences among the Gabor Roma in Romania. The analysis also reveals that this economy is a contemporary, secondhand culture based on patina-oriented consumption, similar to other economies of inalienable possessions (family heirlooms, etc.) or communities of competing collectors specializing in personal belongings of celebrities. The object biography further demonstrates how the second-handedness and ownership history of silver prestige objects are constructed through various ideologies and practices (sale, inheritance, economic brokerage, proprietary contests, etc.).
Que faire des objets uses qui ont accompagne notre quotidien, des objets que l’on ne souhaite plus conserver mais que l’on se refuse a jeter ? Apres un temps d’usage et d’usure, se pose la question de leur devenir et par la, celle de leur transmission. Ce texte porte sur l’analyse de ventes, de ce qui en Suede, se nomme les Loppis. Situees en milieu rural, ces ventes sont effectuees durant l’ete par des particuliers qui proposent leur vieux objets a vendre pendant plusieurs jours, voire semaines, dans leur grange ou leur jardin. Comparables aux ventes de garage en Amerique du Nord, aux vide-greniers ou brocantes en Europe, les Loppis ont la particularite d’engager les acheteurs a la recherche hasardeuse des lieux ou elles se trouvent. Cette logique circulatoire et incertaine conduit a des echanges, des partages – d’espaces (on vient chez les gens) et de paroles (on parle avec eux) – qui tendent a se substituer a un echange monetaire. Les objets s’y echangent pour peu d’argent. Ils sont davantage transmis que vendus. Ainsi est assure un devenir a des objets dont le travail de conservation se trouve delegue a un autre, de passage.
PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine how consumers set bargaining goal when they negotiate price of relatively less expensive shopping products with salesperson. The impact of bargaining goal on bargaining outcomes is also discussed. Design/methodology/approachTo increase realism and external validity, actual transactions in the shopping malls of two cities of China were observed unobtrusively, followed by a matched survey with the consumer to collect data on variables that could not be observed. FindingsProduct knowledge, presence of purchase plan and shopping companion, posited to reflect consumer's bargaining power, are found to influence the bargaining goal set by the consumer. Satisfaction toward the transaction outcome depends on the extent of goal achievement rather than the ultimate concession obtained or the perceived fair price of the product, and such satisfaction affects future patronage likelihood. Originality/valueA different research methodology is used to study retail price negotiation. Instead of only using student subjects to understand how consumers negotiate price in a hypothetical setting, the current study collected data from actual transactions. This enables us to study how contextual variables such as shopping companion and purchase plan affect negotiation goal which in turn influences satisfaction and future patronage. A comparison of the reference standards adopted for evaluating bargaining outcome is also performed.
The fate of everyday objects, when they reach the end of their lives - worn out, and sometimes even broken - varies a great deal. In some cases, their remains are exhibited in museums as instances of our heritage; in others, they end up in garages and attics, or are simply disposed of. This paper focuses on the social operations surrounding the redefinition of their status as second-hand objects. We pay special attention to what happens when they are requalified as objects of memory in yard sales. Over the past thirty years, such markets - where personal stories change hands - have become favoured destinations for Sunday outings in France. They are open-air museums, where new memories are cobbled together from old objects. We attempt to show what is at stake in these transactions and transitions through a presentation of a book and an exhibition (2011-2012) devoted to French yard sales.
This article explores how special monies are used in two different sites of the alternative economy, the U.S. garage sale and a local barter currency called Ithaca HOURS, and how they are socially demarcated as special styles of exchange. Although characterized by different flows, money in both venues create value in the interstices of the mainstream economy; stretch the value of money, while allowing direct negotiation; foster justice in the marketplace; build community; encourage good ecological practice; and enable participants to at times "beat the system" of the prevailing economy. HOURS and garage sales, while not capable of superceding global capitalism, rely on and complement the mainstream economic order, and both sites afford glimpses of more humane and empowering ways to exchange goods and services.
The focus of this research istowardexamining the teenager's preferences and choice behavior; furthermore assess the preferences of the teens towards branded and unbranded products and their awareness regarding branded/Unbrandedproducts. Information was collected from 320 different school students in Pakistan related to the mature group 13-19 years old. The main purpose of the research was concentrated in the preferred vs. non preferred products. Analysis of databe conducted by using statistical analysis software SPSS. Results showed that a female teenager is more socially influenced, fashion, leisure and puzzled over-choice as compared to male. Young males were found considerably more probable to rely on media, uncompromising worker & brand conscious and spontaneous customer. The Implications of this research must include parents as well as children; brand marketing should not only for parents, but also the children.
In 1990s, Taiwanese government has announced “Go-south policy” which aimed to promote economic and trade investment between Taiwan and ASEAN countries. As a result, this policy not only strengthened the business relationship between Taiwan and ASEAN but also the sharing of technology as well. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to examine whether the Self-Service Technology (SST) of a university can influence the efficiency and productivity leads to student satisfaction in Taiwanese context. A survey was conducted using a sample of students from three universities in Taiwan. Linear regression analysis was used to prove the hypotheses of the research. The characteristics of SST (time-saving, usefulness, convenience, efficiency and self-control) confirmed the positive effects of efficiency and productivity. Students’ efficiency and productivity are significantly related to students’ satisfaction. Students that have a privilege of having a school SST can make them more satisfied. The study examines the factors contributing to positive effects on students’ usage of their school SST specifically about their E-Learning websites and school E-mail system. School officials should emphasize SST in order to escalation to students’ efficiency and productivity, in turn will influence students to continue the use of school SSTs rather social media that does not make good use of time to do schoolwork. Finally, since Taiwan and ASEAN has some shared similarity in cultural value; especially ethnic Chinese in ASEAN. Therefore, the authors suggest universities in ASEAN to promote SST in order to enhance students’ performance.
Compared to monoracials, multiracials appear (a) to be more concerned about acceptance within their select social groups and within society at large and (b) to have higher differentiation and uniqueness needs. Artworks help consumers successfully fulfill these needs, and multiracials are heavily dependent on artworks in their (racial) identity negotiations. In addition to these needs, familial background, school, and technical qualities of artworks serve as antecedents to artwork consumption. Multiracial identity influences artwork consumption both directly and indirectly. The indirect influence is mediated by social acceptability, group identification, and uniqueness needs. Artwork consumption serves multiracials in two ways: pleasure/escape and communication/identity negotiation.
This research studies how current social and environmental concerns about consumption are reviving the topic of meaning in consumption practices. In a postmodern world characterized by symbolism in consumption and a global “crisis of meanings”, ethical and responsible consumption behaviors are studied through their contribution to identity construction. A responsible consumption typology based on the meanings given by the narrators is suggested; it distinguishes the acts of “moral conformity” from the deep critical postures, the latter of which derive either from political essence or a desire for liberation from the consumption “system”.
India's dynamic turn toward globalization brings new eating practices driven by desires for status and convenience. Traditional expectations of women as keepers of domestic culture persist as fears of a possible loss of Indianness are projected onto women. In the reflexive identity processes of urban middle-class Hindu women, new normative beauty ideals are often impossible to attain, resulting in Western-style food-related health problems. Awareness of these risks may be deflected by matrimonial, body image, and time pressures, as depicted in a preliminary model of food globalization and women's identities.
The aim of this paper is to suggest some potential linkages between Consumer Culture Theory (CCT hereafter) and the evolving Service-Dominant logic (S-D hereafter) propounded by Vargo and Lusch in a series of publications (Vargo & Lusch, 2004, 2006a, 2006b). I begin by discussing why this alliance makes sense. To do this, I review the CCT roots of several foundational propositions for the S-D logic Vargo and Lusch (2004) offer. Then I offer a suggestion for rethinking the notion of consumer itself. And finally, I discuss some potential changes in preferred constructs that I believe are necessary to fulfill the theoretical promise of the CCT perspective, and follow on from embracing a CCT/S-D perspective.
This paper explores the phenomenon of collecting a plethora of memorabilia associated with a specific brand – in this case, the British Royal Family (BRF) brand. We explore the lifeworld of “Elizabeth,” an über-collector of BRF memorabilia, and describe how her collection can be interpreted as extensions of three separate identities – Collector, Business Owner, and Media Expert. Within these three identities, Elizabeth expressed different emergent roles to the various social networks within whom she interacted (e.g., as a collector, she often acted as “Rescuer,” taking in others’ BRF collections in order to preserve them). We illuminate these different roles and offer suggestions for future research.
This article presents an analysis of a seemingly mundane consumption object, the Mars Coat King, a manual grooming device employed within Afghan hound breeding and exhibition cultures, to develop current conceptualizations of the consumption object in consumer culture theory (CCT). In doing so it extends theory of the ontology of, and relation between, subject and object into the realms of the post-humanist. The chapter illustrates how by employing post-humanist theory, the consumption object can be conceptualized as a mutable, contradictory and active entity within complex consumption cultures and when conceptualized as such, can enrich understanding of consumption objects within consumer research.
The Melungeons, a person-of-color ethnic group dwelling in southern Appalachia, have recently discovered their multi-racial, non-Christian ancestry. We describe the process of ethnogenesis via consumption undertaken by Melungeons to connect their identities to this newfound ancestry. We also examine the social evolution of the Melungeon ethnic label to become a valued personal possession and the public identification of certain physical features as markers of Melungeon ethnicity. It is proposed that these may serve as exemplars for consumer behaviors among other mestizo ethnic groups.
In this article, we meta-analytically examine experimental studies to assess the moderating effect of provocation on gender differences in aggression. Convergent evidence shows that, whereas unprovoked men are more aggressive than women, provocation markedly attenuates this gender difference. Gender differences in appraisals of provocation intensity and fear of danger from retaliation (but not negative affect) partially mediate the attenuating effect of provocation. However, they do not entirely account for its manipulated effect. Type of provocation and other contextual variables also affect the magnitude of gender differences in aggression. The results support a social role analysis of gender differences in aggression and counter A. H. Eagly and V. Steffen's (1986) meta-analytic inability to confirm an attenuating effect of provocation on gender differences in aggression.
Typically, the auction house salesroom has been conceived of as an exemplary market: a place in which ultimate price is fixed by persons at a particular moment. This perspective relies on a static a-historical view of an isolated marketplace. This study views the auction sale of tribal art as one part of a wider economic set, within which objects and persons interact to momentarily assign price (or not). It thereby expands the common anthropological use of the notion of a ‘tournament’ of value (Appadurai, 1986). A brief background to the history of the auction and of the tribal art market precedes an examination of the auction as a ‘distributed object’ (Gell, 1998): a series of events from catalogue and viewing, to the performance of sale. Within each of these situations, price is shown to be fixed by ambiguous and malleable processes of valuation over space and time.
To study interpersonal bargaining in an environment of increased realism, a shopping simulation game allowing for face-to-face dyadic interaction was created to test the hypothesis that pretransactional expectations concerning the willingness of a seller to bargain, as well as whether or not price concessions are received through bargaining, will affect postpurchase consumer satisfaction, 64 male college students served as Ss. Levels of expectation were controlled through pre-experimental instructions, whereas participation in bargaining was manipulated by programming the behavior of confederate salesmen. Results of a multivariate ANOVA indicate that both expectation of a seller's willingness to bargain and the receipt of price concessions through bargaining were independent factors that affected postpurchase satisfaction. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
In this article, we examine ideological statements reflected in, and to a small extent created by, people's participation in garage sales.¹ Although the article touches upon the economics of garage sales, its focus is on ideology, about how people understand what they are doing when they buy and sell, and how this relates to their more general perception of the social world and their position in it. The way people discuss their participation in garage sales tells a great deal about how they understand their worlds: patterns of work and consumption, claims (especially by women and the aged) that their daily activities have more dignity than is normally afforded them within society, a felt need for moral and practical networks.
The U.S. garage sale incorporates elements of both gift and commodity exchange in a dynamic tension, one that complicates traditional characterizations of gift and commodity as oppositional and mutually exclusive. Despite its apparently marketlike mechanisms, much of garage sale exchange also partakes of the character of gift giving. The elasticity in pricing in this home-based exchange allows sellers to take social relations into account, so that objects that change hands become hybrid varieties of “inalienable commodities.”
A model of initial salary detemination for professional and managerial employees is developed. That part of the model which concentrates on the role of employee salary negotiation behaviors and attitudes was investigated using a sample of 117 individuals. Significant variance in salary bargaining attitudes and behaviors was found; attitudinal and demographic differences between negotiators and non-negotiators were determined. Additionally, negotiating behavior was found to be positively related to salary, but only slightly related to salary growth.
Contrary to theoretical expectations, measures of willingness-to-accept greatly exceed measures of willingness-to-pay. This paper reports several experiments that demonstrate that this "endowment effect" persists even in market settings with opportunities to learn. Consumption objects (e.g., coffee mugs) are randomly given to half the subjects in an experiment. Markets for the mugs are then conducted. The Coase theorem predicts that about half the mugs will trade, but observed volume is always significantly less. When markets for "induced-value" tokens are conducted, the predicted volume is observed, suggesting that transactions costs cannot explain the undertrading for consumption goods. Copyright 1990 by University of Chicago Press.
Previous work on the endowment effect has demonstrated that current ownership status affects object valuation and that this effect occurs instantaneously on possession of an object. The current work presents findings from four studies which indicate that the history of past ownership can also affect object valuation. For objects currently in one's possession, we find that valuation increases with duration of ownership. For objects not in one's possession, previous ownership experience increases valuation, and the increase appears to be related to the duration of ownership before loss. In addition, the perceived attractiveness of objects, although not instantly affected by endowment, is found to increase with duration of ownership. Copyright 1998 by the University of Chicago.
In this article, we meta-analytically examine experimental studies to assess the moderating effect of provocation on gender differences in aggression. Convergent evidence shows that, whereas unprovoked men are more aggressive than women, provocation markedly attenuates this gender difference. Gender differences in appraisals of provocation intensity and fear of danger from retaliation (but not negative affect) partially mediate the attenuating effect of provocation. However, they do not entirely account for its manipulated effect. Type of provocation and other contextual variables also affect the magnitude of gender differences in aggression. The results support a social role analysis of gender differences in aggression and counter A. H. Eagly and V. Steffen's (1986) meta-analytic inability to confirm an attenuating effect of provocation on gender differences in aggression.
Two analyses were conducted to examine gender differences in global self-esteem. In analysis I, a computerized literature search yielded 216 effect sizes, representing the testing of 97,121 respondents. The overall effect size was 0.21, a small difference favoring males. A significant quadratic effect of age indicated that the largest effect emerged in late adolescence (d = 0.33). In Analysis II, gender differences were examined using 3 large, nationally representative data sets from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). All of the NCES effect sizes, which collectively summarize the responses of approximately 48,000 young Americans, indicated higher male self-esteem (ds ranged from 0.04 to 0.24). Taken together, the 2 analyses provide evidence that males score higher on standard measures of global self-esteem than females, but the difference is small. Potential reasons for the small yet consistent effect size are discussed.
Typically, the auction house salesroom has been conceived of as an exemplary market: a place in which ultimate price is fixed by persons at a particular moment. This perspective relies on a static a-historical view of an isolated marketplace. This study views the auction sale of tribal art as one part of a wider economic set, within which objects and persons interact to momentarily assign price (or not). It thereby expands the common anthropological use of the notion of a 'tournament' of value (Appadurai, 1986). A brief background to the history of the auction and of the tribal art market precedes an examination of the auction as a 'distributed object' (Gell, 1998): a series of events from catalogue and viewing, to the performance of sale. Within each of these situations, price is shown to be fixed by ambiguous and malleable processes of valuation over space and time.
A critical feature of bazaar economies is that price and other economic information is differentially allocated and difficult to acquire. Bargaining is ubiquitous in such economies because it is the arena for information testing; prices in concluded negotiations directly reflect the quality of the information which the buyer has previously obtained. An analysis of bargaining in Javanese market places suggests that the widely used model of negotiated price fixing developed by Cassady requires untenable assumptions about the way in which market traders calculate prices and bids, and explains only the last stage in a three-stage bargaining process. An alternative model puts more emphasis on unequal access to price information and on differences between buyer's and seller's bargaining strategies to explain variations in the duration and intensity of haggling.
Although bargaining is often used in the purchase of high-priced items, Americans are ambivalent about the practice of haggling. The U.S. garage sale is one of the few venues where numbers of Americans bargain for low- to moderately priced goods, but common understandings about garage-sale bargaining are unevenly shared among American participants, who are accustomed to fixed-price merchandise. Students and foreign-born participants from cultures with more robust bargaining styles afford a contrast with the preferred American pattern of socially engaged bargaining, allowing the underlying normative patterns and strategies for American garage-sale bargaining to emerge. The polarization that can ensue from bargaining negotiations also highlights the under-documented cultural values of friendliness and pleasantness that ideally surround commercial transactions in the United States.
Interpretation which attribute the structure and organization of peasant markets to deficiencies in the flow of information draw their explanatory power from the assumption that peasant trading practices, such as the use of bargaining rather than posted prices, are less efficient than trading practices in industrialised economies. An examination of the ways in which information about prices is allocated and acquired in Javanese markets, set within a discussion of current studies in the economics of information, suggests that this assumption is untenable. It also suggests that in all economies `prices' should be treated not as unproblematic brute facts, but as cultural constructs requiring detailed analysis.
Garage sales are to be found in virtually all American communities, conducted and attended by a complete cross section of the populace. After discussing the evolution of the garage sale, its transformation and institutionalization, this article presents elaborated typologies of modes of garage sale participation. Roughly ranked by degree of economic rationality, the typologies demonstrate the complexity and contradiction of modes of garage sale participation. The garage sale is born of affluence, the rise of disposable consumer goods. But, it is argued, the garage sale and other forms of informal economic activity constitute survival strategies utilized by an ever-widening range of participants spurred by long-term economic crises.
Focusing on the price-setting activities of vendors, this article provides valuable insight into the social dynamics of the marketplace. In contrast to rational-economic assumptions, this inquiry examines pricing as a problematic, processual, and negotiable activity. Consideration is given to the fundamental role buyers play in shaping vendors' prices.
Transactions in the U.S. garage sale range from the commercial to the giftlike, in a Maussian sense. As two-thirds of the participants, women create a sense of community through garage sale exchange. This article explores how women, partly differentiated along lines of race and class, solidify their personal relationships, transmit something of themselves with their possessions, transform their own lives in the process, and contribute to a broader spirit of community through the generalized reciprocity and even moral economy that manifests in giftlike exchange. There is an important link, both material and symbolic, between women's relational skills, their association with the home and the moral, and the creation of community in the garage sale.
A laboratory study examined effects of friendship on expectations of pricing in personal business transactions. Friends expect to pay more but charge less for a variety of commodities than do strangers. Remarkably, without discussion, friends agree on prices for commodities, whereas strangers do not. The result was replicated in a second study and extended to other commodities. The effect may be due to cognitive scripts for transactions with friends.
Several researchers have proposed that power, rather than gender, accounts for women using more powerless language than men. The present study examined the specific interaction context of bargaining and compared power with gender as potential predictors of the use of threats, one particular form of powerful language. Grounded in an interactional/social exchange view of power as dependence in social transactions, this study represented a marked departure from past studies of gender-based language. The results largely supported power rather than gender as the best predictor of the use of powerful language in an interactional context involving bargaining.
L'A. montre qu'aux Etats-Unis les deux tiers des vendeurs de voitures ou des commercants sont des femmes. Il souligne que la plupart des agences des concessionnaires de voitures sont des residences privees. Il estime que les activites commerciales sont situees dans le prolongement du travail domestique traditionnellement effectue par les femmes et non par les hommes. L'A. etudie les differences que l'on peut observer entre hommes et femmes en ce qui concerne les methodes de vente, les relations avec les clients. Il montre que les hommes recherchent surtout l'argent et les femmes le developpement de relations sociales au-dela d'un niveau informel
Bargaining takes place in free markets, as in the s¯uqs of the Middle East, where prices fluctuate and where the buyers and sellers meet with opposed economic interests. It brings order to such markets by enabling the buyer and the seller to develop lasting economic relationships between them, based on mutual trust. Should the bargaining partners, buyer or seller, fail to establish such trust by the use of culturally determined polite formulas, conflict between them arises and no transaction takes place.
Marginal and/or resistant consumption practices have been neglected in current geographical debates on consumption and retailing. This has resulted in partial and skewed theorizations of exchange within contemporary consumption. Consumption spaces such as car boot sales represent sites in which the conventions of the marketplace are suspended or abandoned, and replaced by forms of sourcing, commodity circulation, transaction codes, pricing mechanisms and value quite different from those which typify more conventional retail malls and department stores. Drawing on the anthropological literature on traditional and peasant markets, we argue that exchange within the car boot sale is socially, culturally and geographically embedded and we emphasize the intrinsic importance of fun and sociality to such activities. Marginal spaces such as the car boot sale offer both some important clues into the potential for rethinking marketplace dynamics, notably with respect to our understandings of value, and some intriguing possibilities for consumer politics.
The study of one type of second-order market, personal sales, indicated that various consumer attitudes and merchandising
strategies were related to utilization of this market. Similarities and differences between this market and other second-order
markets were also noted.
In this paper, bargaining processes in the second-hand market for consumer durables will be investigated. The principal aim of this study is to empirically estimate the predicted negotiated price, based on the reservation prices and the corresponding probabilities of reaching an agreement as perceived by the potential buyers and sellers. To predict the outcome of the bargaining process, we distinguish two curves: the buyers' curve, which shows the buyers' perceived probabilities of prices acceptable to the seller(s) and the sellers' curve, which does likewise for the sellers. The intersection point of these two curves indicates the predicted price at which the joint probability of reaching an agreement is at a maximum. Alternatively, a predicted price has been computed from the intersection of the cumulative distributions of buyers' and sellers' reservation prices. Finally, the predicted prices of different types of second-hand goods are compared to the prices realized on the market, called observed prices.
The economic theory of the consumer is a combination of positive and normative theories. Since it is based on a rational maximizing model it describes how consumers should choose, but it is alleged to also describe how they do choose. This paper argues that in certain well-defined situations many consumers act in a manner that is inconsistent with economic theory. In these situations economic theory will make systematic errors in predicting behavior. Kanneman and Tversey's prospect theory is proposed as the basis for an alternative descriptive theory. Topics discussed are: undeweighting of opportunity costs, failure to ignore sunk costs, scarch behavior choosing not to choose and regret, and precommitment and self-control.
The concept of embeddedness has general applicability in the study of economic life and can alter theoretical and empirical approaches to the study of economic behaviors. Argues that in modern industrial societies, most economic action is embedded in structures of social relations. The author challenges the traditional economic theories that have both under- and oversocialized views of the conception of economic action and decisions that merge in their conception of economic actors atomized (separated) from their social context. Social relations are assumed to play on frictional and disruptive, not central, roles in market processes. There is, hence, a place and need for sociology in the study of economic life. Productive analysis of human action requires avoiding the atomization in the extremes of the over- and undersocialized concepts. Economic actors are neither atoms outside a social context nor slavish adherents to social scripts. The markets and hierarchies problem of Oliver Williamson (with a focus on the question of trust and malfeasance) is used to illustrate the use of embeddedness in explicating the proximate causes of patterns of macro-level interest. Answers to the problem of how economic life is not riddled with mistrust and malfeasance are linked to over- and undersocialized conceptions of human nature. The embeddedness argument, on the contrary, stresses the role of concrete personal relations and networks (or structures) in generating trust and discouraging malfeasance in economic life. It finds a middle way between the oversocialized (generalized morality) and undersocialized (impersonal institutional arrangements) approaches. The embeddedness approach opens the way for analysis of the influence of social structures on market behavior, specifically showing how business relations are intertwined with social and personal relations and networks. The approach can easily explain what looks otherwise like irrational behavior. (TNM)
Thesis (Ph. D.)--State University of New York at Binghamton, 1990. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 745-771).
The ethnographic case study presented in this article illustrates the institutional complexity and sociocultural significance of a midwestern American flea market. A conception of market place structure and function that incorporates informal and festive dimensions of consumer behavior is advanced. The article explores the relationship of primary and secondary economic activity. Buyer and seller behavior, marketplace ambience, the social embeddedness of consumption, and experiential aspects of consumption are considered at length. Copyright 1990 by the University of Chicago.
Meta-analysis has increasingly been used as an explanatory research tool. The present investigation was designed to illustrate the potential limitations of meta-analysis for making causal inferences. Several meta-analytic investigations have led others to conclude that gender differences are getting smaller over time, however, there has been little concern regarding changes in research methodology over time. The present findings indicate that the gender differences in aggression appear to be remarkably stable when changes in study characteristics over time are controlled. The authors discuss the implications for the use of meta-analytic procedures to make causal inferences and the implications for understanding the causes of gender differences.
More than three hundred paired audits at new-car dealerships reveal that dealers quoted significantly lower prices to white males than to black or female test buyers using identical, scripted bargaining strategies. Ancillary evidence suggests that the dealerships' disparate treatment of women and blacks may be caused by dealers' statistical inferences about consumers' reservation prices, but the data do not strongly support any single theory of discrimination. Copyright 1995 by American Economic Association.
Although there have been numerous investigations into the relationship between gender and bargaining competitiveness over the past several decades, few conclusions have been reached. The results of 62 research reports on the relationship between gender and competitive behavior in dyadic bargaining interactions were examined by meta-analytic review. The average weighted effect size indicated that women appear to behave more cooperatively in negotiations than men, but this difference is slight. Results suggest that constraints on negotiators (imposed by abstract bargaining paradigms and restrictions on communication) lessen gender differences in negotiation behavior. Women were significantly more competitive than men when competing against an opponent who pursued a "tit-for-tat" bargaining strategy.