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COVID-19 Induced Changes in Consumer Behavior

January 2021
Open Journal of Business and Management 09(05):2425-2451

DOI:10.4236/ojbm.2021.95131

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Open Journal of Business and Management, 2021, 9, 2425-2451

https://www.scirp.org/journal/ojbm

ISSN Online: 2329-3292

ISSN Print: 2329-3284

DOI:

10.4236/ojbm.2021.95131 Sep. 18, 2021 2425

Open Journal of Business and Management

COVID-19 Induced Changes in Consumer

Behavior

Michael Gerlich

Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, UK

Abstract

Using literature survey and analysis, this study assessed consumption beha-

vior changes induced by the COVID-19 pandemic and the possibility of re-

taining them after the pandemic. Financial

uncertainty and loss of welfare

sources triggered saving behaviors. Some

people binged on media products

offering anxiety-

mitigating and therapeutic benefits. While such behaviors

could decrease once the virus is eliminated and its stressors disappear, som

routines could continue. Certain val

ues affecting the nature and frequency of

consumption could also change, thus increasing the speed of individual cus-

tomers’ habit formation. To make accurate long-

term strategic decisions

without suffering losses, the restaurant sector and other businesses must ad-

just to new operational conditions by analyzing changing revenues and possi-

ble lasting effects of changing consumer behavior.

Keywords

Consumer Behavior Changes, COVID-19, Economic Changes,

Psychological Behavior

1. Introduction

Since the outbreak of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic early

last year, it has affected every possible aspect of life. Its pernicious impact did not

spare even consumption, whose determinants were affected, including people’s

health and financial well-being, which have suffered paradoxically, despite pan-

demic containment efforts. In the study by Cariappa et al. (2020) on an Indian

sample, 59.53% of the respondents pointed to the lockdown having impacted

them, varying from mild to severe in most cases. While 3.3% described them-

selves as having been severely affected, an estimated 10% reported moderate to

severe impact. This impact was predictable, given that the economy underper-

How to cite this paper:

Gerlich, M. (2021).

COVID

-19 Induced Changes in Consum-

er Behavio

Open Journal of Business and

Management

, 9,

2425-2451.

https://doi.org/10.4236/ojbm.2021.95131

Received:

July 25, 2021

Accepted:

September 15, 2021

Published:

September 18, 2021

21 by author(s) and

Scientific

Research Publishing Inc.

This work is licensed under the Creative

Commons Attribution International

License (CC BY

4.0).

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Open Access

M. Gerlich

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Management

formed owing to the lockdown, as shown by Verschuur et al. (2021) study,

whose application of empirical vessel-tracking data found that the international

maritime trade suffered losses between 7% and 9.6% in the first eight months of

2020 alone, equivalent to $225 - 412 billion in value losses. Since consumption

was a variable linked to people’s incomes that were affected, it did not remain

static, but fluctuated. Cariappa et al. (2020) reported that 92.01% acknowledged

a recognizable change in their shopping behaviors. An estimated 90% of res-

pondents associated this change with infection risks and the strict lockdown.

When it comes to actual changes, Kumar and Abdin’s (2021) India-based study

predicted the persistence of the essentials-only consumption pattern that emerged

following the spell of panic-buying, corroborated by the majority of respondents’

inputs. These comprise just a few of the several studies that show the pandemic’s

impactful nature and confirm that there has been a change in consumer beha-

vior. The change occurs based on mechanisms, such as classical and operant

conditioning, as well as the social learning and risk perception theories, which

can determine the permanence of people’s behavioral shifts, in terms of their

consumption in the wake of the pandemic.

Hence, this study’s major goal is to identify whether consumer changes are

induced by the pandemic and measures necessitated by it, such as lockdowns, or

whether the complexion of the consumer market is changing in terms of prefe-

rences and buying enthusiasm or intensity.

The following part of the article will introduce the research questions and re-

search approach.

2. Research Questions and Research Approach

Based on a wide set of findings, the following issues were derived and examined:

1) whether saving behavior is a temporary phenomenon made relevant by the

persistent pandemic;

2) whether COVID-19 has had a reverse impact by boosting consumption be-

haviors, and

3) whether such behaviors are here to stay;

4) the trend of excessive media consumption and panic-buying, including

their persistence against all odds;

5) the shift to home cooking and the prospects of the pre-pandemic business

pace being resumed in the restaurant sector;

6) the changes of values—an essential issue—in the face of an existential crisis

that can end the era of consumerism;

7) the chances of new consumption habits being retained.

This study used the literature survey method that involved searching for lite-

rature deemed relevant, assessing their sources, identifying key debates and

themes, transferring the information selected, and its thematic synthesis. The

method of analysis made it possible to draw inferences from the secondary lite-

rature compiled. This study is mainly based on secondary research in the form

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of a literature review and published statistics. Its findings have turned out to be

contrary to the major limitations encountered in the course of this study, in-

cluding the relative deficit of quality sources. A literature review can broadly be

described as a more or less systematic way of collecting and synthesizing pre-

vious research (Baumeister & Leary, 1997; Tranfield et al., 2003). An integrative

review approach (Torraco, 2005) has been used for the purpose of combining

different perspectives.

3. Results

3.1. Saving Behavior—A New Behavioral Mainstay?

When a crisis having adverse financial implications presents itself, many people

tend to adopt saving behaviors. Jin et al. (2021) pointed out that based on an in-

spection of individuals’ psychology, it was possible to assert that consumers

generally put their enhanced savings on display in the course of a pandemic due

to perceived risks, while their spending was inversely proportional to their vo-

lume of savings/willingness. However, the study by Jin et al. (2021) did not link

people’s saving behaviors to their staying at home, thus reducing the relevance of

individual acquisitions, including in the fashion category. It was unlike Daven-

port et al. (2020), who attributed it to lockdown-induced forced saving, whereas

Christelis et al. (2020) applied the concept of precautionary savings. Sometimes,

researchers tend to point to saving by using consumption and spending. Coffey

et al. (2020), for example, talked about a decrease in consumption associated

with social distancing and business closedowns, while Baker and Yannelis

(2017), Baker (2018), Gelman et al. (2020), and Garmaise et al. (2020) shared an

understanding that consumers respond to adverse shocks through a decrease in

spending owing to the onset of falling expectations concerning future income

prospects, financial constraints, and enhanced uncertainties (cited in Chrono-

poulos et al., 2020: p. 6).

Likewise, Jin et al. (2021) did not provide any accurate prediction of how the

spending situation would unfold in the period following the suppression of the

virus. This fact indicates that studies centered on the long-term impact of the

COVID-19 severity are yet to focus on the spending and saving behavior of

people following the culmination of the global pandemic. This observation

seems valid, as there are plenty of media reports in circulation. Hannon’s (2021)

article in the Wall Street Journal stated that consumption revival could accele-

rate the economy but refrained from making specific predictions. However, Jim

Glassman (2021), JP Morgan’s Managing Director and Head Economist,

sounded more certain that many consumers were well-placed to step up spend-

ing once the pandemic dies down. This prediction makes sense, as Slovic et al.

(2004) regarded the perception of risks as a situational psychological variable

(cited in Jin et al., 2021). Consequently, if the situation changed, the perception

of risks by an individual would also change (Jin et al., 2021). Slovic (2000) cited

the risk perception theory, which can lend validity to this prediction. Based

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thereon, the closer a disaster is, the higher will be the perception of risks (cited

in Jin et al., 2021). Arias et al. (2017) also defined the proximity of threats as a

factor that influences the perception of risks among people exposed to potential

threats. The same can be said of Kinateder et al. (2015), who correlated the ex-

tent of proximity with that of intentions and preparedness, which virtually im-

plies risk perception, as people would not prepare themselves if they did not

sense the proximity of danger. Based on this theory, Jin et al. (2021) predicted

that the easing of COVID-19 will eliminate individuals’ risk perceptions, as well

as its impact on consumer spending and saving behaviors. Hence, it was con-

cluded that the impact of the pandemic’s severity on consumer spending and

saving behaviors would be short-term, without transcending the chronological

confines of the pandemic (Jin et al., 2021). Still, one can disagree regarding the

probability of such behavior changes once the virus has been eradicated.

The problem is that COVID eradication is not a spatially homogeneous and

simultaneous process or achievement, that gets rid of the virus with one wave of

a magic wand. No such outcome can be expected as some countries will fare

worse, given the low rate of vaccinations, whether it is due to logistic, corrup-

tion, or other factors. Even states scoring high on vaccinations may have some

pockets of infection left to battle, as a large number of people refuse to get vac-

cinated and even fully vaccinated citizens still can get infected and can transmit

the virus. In any case, just as the governments were unable to block the penetra-

tion of the virus in early 2020, the pandemic will continue at least temporarily, as

economic globalization and the circulation of goods will persist, if not grow in

intensity, being driven by economic losses and labor force decimation by the vi-

rus. Given that, media and healthcare ministries are mostly transparent, unless

in authoritarian states, people will know if the infection is still persisting in some

pockets. If so, they may not have fears, which leads them to abandon their re-

duced spending and enhanced saving behaviors.

There are further arguments to challenge the view of behavioral rollbacks and

the resumption of usual spending patterns. Another problem is that COVID-19

has ravaged many economies worldwide. Gorbiano (2020) offered very telling

evidence of its impact, referring to Sri Mulyani, the Minister of Finance of the

Indonesian Republic, who predicted that the pandemic would lead to the ranks

of the poor being replenished by 1.1 to 3.78 million people, while 2.9 to 5.2 mil-

lion were expected to enter the category of the unemployed. The first figures in

the datasets represent the blue-sky scenario of minimal projected adverse out-

comes (cited in Supriatna, 2020). Studies offering similar figures are aplenty, as

are those detailing losses sustained by different industries around the world, in-

cluding that by Ozili and Arun (2020) who pointed to $820 billion in losses faced

by the business travel industry, which is a prediction made as early as the begin-

ning of the outbreak. General figures, too, rationalize the unemployment and

poverty trends that seem bound to continue, and are none the more optimistic,

given that, Credit Suisse (2020) showed that the debt ratio as a percentage of

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GDP had climbed to around 28% in Spain, relative to about 14% observed in

2008-2009.

People do not reside in an information vacuum; they will be aware of how the

economic situation unfolds, given the high odds of poor development and their

welfare being directly dependent on economic health. Hence, they will not

struggle to understand that the economies around the world will have no way of

absorbing the large labor force once the pandemic is over, and their economies

are gradually getting back on track. Even if employed, people may not rest easy

about their financial security, as the labor surplus can feed the temptation of

employers to lower pay rates in the knowledge that galloping unemployment will

force talents on the payroll into accepting smaller paychecks if only to cling on

to their positions. There being no governmental intervention, this abuse can ac-

tually take place, leaving people fearing about their being fired. The long-term

impact of COVID-19 that can make its presence felt with time, gives employers

reasons to terminate their employees, despite their having recovered from the

crisis. Its long-term health impact that can interfere with people’s ability to re-

tain their jobs has already been well-documented. Del Rio et al. (2020) described

clinicians as observing and reading reports of patients with acute symptoms and

even considerable end-organ dysfunction, following the SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Among the organs affected were the brain, lungs, and heart, which are ascribed

to direct tissue invasion by the virus.

3.2. The Buying Spree—Why the Pandemic Can Become a Boon

for Some Producers/Retailers?

Conversely, producers and businesses can gain from the pandemic in terms of

consumption. According to Jin et al. (2021), the pandemic can enhance individ-

uals’ risk perception and stimulate saving versus spending behaviors. It is be-

lieved that due to a desire to ease their anxiety, many individuals would consume

before they save. This consumption behavior correlates well with the existing

academic literature. Hill et al. (1997) argued that people understand life to be fi-

nite in the face of a death threat, which prompts consumption, and a decrease in

savings (cited in Jin et al., 2021). According to Hill et al. (1997), the propensity

toward spending/saving behavior depends on materialism—the value orienta-

tion of individuals demonstrating the degree to which they perceive the purchase

of material ownership as an indication of accomplished life objectives (cited in

Jin et al., 2021). Belk (1985), Richins and Dawson (1992), and Chan and Pren-

dergast (2007) further explained that materialistic persons seek to secure happi-

ness and success by focusing on, and pursuing material wealth and property ac-

quisition (cited in Jin et al., 2021). Unsurprisingly, Ger and Belk (1996) ac-

knowledged that such highly materialistic individuals always tried to own more

things than others, even when perceiving the pandemic’s risks.

Another possible attention-worthy explanation is the therapeutic property of

shopping, that Atalay & Meloy (2011) referred to as the retail therapy, in which,

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individuals attempt to cheer themselves via the acquisition of self-treats. Nega-

tive moods serve as a driving force of the consumption behavior that results in a

greater rate of buying and the acquisition of unplanned treats. Mood improve-

ments, without the feelings of guilt and regret, which follow such unplanned

buying sprees, is a lasting positive effect of this therapy aimed at mood adjust-

ments (Atalay & Meloy, 2011). The pandemic brings many restrictions to life, at

the very least, to say nothing of its lethality and the consequent traumatizing

impact. Since people have mood swings, buying becomes a rational therapeutic

means and a response to mood declines. Gitimu and Waithaka (2019), who

concurred that retail therapy could improve bad moods, pointed to its ability to

fill life with value. It does so by enabling engagement in meaningful behaviors

(Gitimu & Waithaka, 2019). Yet, it may be short-lived, in that, it gives meaning

only during the activity’s time span. Moreover, this therapy can have even great-

er utility, and Lee (2015) generalizes its application range by claiming that it re-

pairs negative feelings, thereby implying their multitude.

Now, it would be rational to respond to the findings retrieved. When it comes

to the viability of the behavior, therapeutic buying seems driven by external

stressors associated with the pandemic. While its elimination can remove the

stressors, which will make the buying behavior no longer necessary, what lies

ahead is not as simple. The impact of the pandemic has ripped apart national

economies, causing great havoc. Waitzkin (2020) confirmed its destructive im-

pact, using the concept of capitalism collapse, and so did Barlow et al. (2021) by

pointing to the global trade collapse, which will shatter financial security and re-

tain uncertainty. Similarly, the Financial Stability Board (2020) is among the

multiple sources confirming economic uncertainty induced by the pandemic.

Hence, the therapeutic utility of buying will stand, albeit to a lesser degree, as

pandemic dissipation will remove a portion of stressors, while the remaining

ones will be on the ebb due to gradual recovery. Although relevant, the very

presence of external stressors associated with financial instability will arguably

cripple/limit the ability of people to pursue such buying behaviors.

Additionally, economic winners of the pandemic were online shopping plat-

forms like Amazon (which increased its sale by up to 200% (Dastin & Rana,

2021) and supermarket chains (Mattinson, 2021).

3.3. Binge-Watching and Panic-Buying as Juncture-Induced

Behavioral Trends or the New Reality?

While on a consumption spree, people can hoard or otherwise access large

amounts of media and literature of a certain genre that can offer a coping poten-

tial. According to Lucken (2021), at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic was

raging, strong binge-watching gained the status of an acceptable pastime. The

time spent in this fashion ceased being regarded as time that was wasted (Luck-

en, 2021). Perhaps, for people who have temporarily shed the stigma of

time-wasting (which usually comes with excessive watching), the collateral feel-

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ing of shame feeds the enhanced consumption trend. Hence, the pandemic gave

this consumption intensity an air of legitimacy, apart from incentivizing its

choice, as a way to fill the free time vacuum when some employers were forced

into coming to a standstill. The volume of reading was not the only activity to

have changed since the pandemic’s outbreak, given that, the complexion of the

consumption market too, had changed. After the COVID-19 outbreak that came

to be classified as a global pandemic, there has been a shift in consumer prefe-

rences in the category of books. Although not necessarily seismic, this trend is

worth examining.

An overview of the literature consumption trends by Gamerman (2020)

showed an increase in the demand for books on pandemics. Thus, for example,

based on the data from NPD BookScan, the first two months of 2020 saw the

trade paperback sales of Stephen King’s “The Stand” rising by 25% despite its

having been first printed as far back as 1978, while sales of the hardcover of the

novel—centered on a weaponized fly decimating nearly all the humans and ani-

mals around the world—increased threefold during the comparable period.

Many readers were making efforts to compare the book with the present-day vi-

rus, so much so that the author himself saw it fit to take to Twitter, with an eye

to getting the idea refuted. When it comes to other books on pandemics, the

sales of “Station Eleven” by Emily St. John Mandel soared by 50%, while “World

War Z” experienced a lesser, albeit significant growth of 33%, which occurred in

the first two months of 2020. Overall, print sales of adult nonfiction on conta-

gious illnesses rose by 52% (Gamerman, 2020).

Another creative product, albeit in the cinematic domain, has soared in popu-

larity after the onset of the pandemic, although it was produced earlier. As re-

ported by Sperling (2020), the movie “Contagion” from 2011 was listed as #270

in the catalog of Warner Brothers, but from the end of December 2019 to the

beginning of 2020, it made its way to #2. That the film ranked second, with only

the Harry Potter film ahead of it, means that no other apocalyptic films could

beat it, while some likely films could not so much as come close to stirring up as

much interest. McGuire (2021) offered a causal insight into this trend, which can

shed light on why there is variability in the popularity of the genre, whose de-

mand seems to be peaking. Apparently, the movie was an instant hit even on its

release date, grossing $8 million when out in theaters and dominating the week-

end. To decipher its success, the study draws parallels with other films of the

same genre only to find a popularity clue in the way the film ended, as compared

with other alternatives in this genre. The disease did not lose its intensity merci-

lessly with the change of seasons, as compared with early plague narratives. In-

stead, a happy ending was achieved by designing a vaccine (McGuire, 2021).

In all likelihood, the film gained popularity, or at least maintained its mo-

mentum, when it became obvious that the COVID-19 pandemic is not a season-

al epidemiological phenomenon, and that it will not die down until conquered

via vaccination (this presumption is somewhat speculative as there is no tracker

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of film popularity). It could be that its proximity to the “Contagion” storyline

involving the vaccination-assisted end of the disease (which became manifest as

COVID-19 raged on), that can have made the movie more popular than others.

The relevance of virus-centered apocalyptic movies was lost to observations

made by people on COVID-19 not being seasonal in nature. Moreover, the film

can invite further parallels, including its etiology or origin-based similarity,

along with symptomatic commonness, its import from China (Hong Kong), qu-

arantines, and panic-buying, to name but a few. In retrospect, since to some ex-

tent, the film looks like a simulation of what is to happen in the future, its real-

ism, on which, many other apocalyptic movies lost, is what was likely to have

made it the most popular in its genre, at least, at the time of writing. Apart from

the film serving as a behavioral manual in its own right by showing how to be-

have during a pandemic, it could have been soothing to its audience by portray-

ing that a near-similar virus could be conquered, and that the vaccine which the

people are presently awaiting would also work. Thus understood, the film’s

fear-reducing leverage allows people to cope with panic unassisted, that is,

without human psychologists being involved.

It is not that the genre was not popular before the virus; it is just that it gained

significant momentum. Now, it remains to be understood what it was that got

people to increasingly switch to the apocalyptic genre by choice. One of the ma-

jor things that COVID-19 has done is changing people’s lives, at least in the fo-

reseeable future. Being lethal and highly contagious, the pandemic has made it

necessary for people to change their lifestyles in a way that left them lacking

access to their favorite entertainment and pastime options, which could not but

result in frustration and anger buildup. While overwhelmed by such emotions,

the body is likely to face the need to shed the adverse emotions, and aggression

venting could be the way, to do that which is within reach; still, it seems coun-

terproductive based on what researchers have had to say in this regard. While

Kirsh (2019) has acknowledged the widely held conviction of acting out, rumi-

nating, and venting being instrumental in the release of aggressive sentiments

and pent-up anger, no backing for such beliefs can be identified in empirical da-

ta. Far from supporting the catharsis effect of this way of coping with negative

emotions, scholars often suggest otherwise. Put differently, rather than decreas-

ing aggression, the release of pent-up energy by yelling or hitting objects does

little, other than enhancing aggressive sentiments and thoughts. Thus, an alter-

native to counterproductive anger wreaking emerges, as some people reportedly

entertain and share an understanding that cathartic behaviors are beneficial, and

hence, are in search of violent media, including zombie apocalypse tales (Kirsh,

2019). This interpretation falls in line with the stance of other researchers, in-

cluding Bushman (2002), who agreed that media violence offered an outlet for

aggressive drives based on the catharsis model (cited in Ferguson, 2010), as well

as Mack and Ott (2010) and Helfgott (2018), who regarded violent media ca-

tharsis as that which enabled engagement in fantasy aggression by viewers, re-

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moving the relevance of adopting aggressive behaviors.

Aside from venting negative emotions in a non-violent way, people may in-

creasingly resort to such media to achieve another essential goal. According to

Kirsh (2019), the portrayal of violent fantasies, including those in video games,

movies, television, and books, can assist people to calm themselves in the face of

real-life violence, consequently diminishing their fears and anxieties. Being

shocked by an image in the safe context of fantasy can allow people to avoid be-

ing shocked in reality (Kirsh, 2019). This observation is as close as the researcher

came to explaining how anxiety reduction could be achieved, to enable coping.

Somewhat similar is the view of Srivner and Christensen (2021), who claimed

that some of the horror movies feature decreased anxiety, while concurrently

building resilience skills, including the cognitive ones that enable coping with

fear and anxiety. Lincoln (1998) too, offered a brilliant rationale behind the pop-

ularity of such movies: they indicated that a cataclysmic change resulted in weak

people being exalted and mighty ones being humbled (cited in Hamonic, 2017).

Yet, this revanchist driver addressing frustration over the socioeconomic gap is

universal, or such that, may not necessarily gain particular relevance during

crises like the pandemic (although adverse welfare shocks can aggravate frustra-

tion). Actually, it must be that the perception of the current harsh reality can

become easier when genre viewers compare it with that portrayed in such horror

films. Current issues can appear dwarfed, in relation to those faced by cinematic

characters; hence, life is easier to live, even despite, there being a large-scale

pandemic and collateral issue.

There is actual evidence of the fear-reducing potential of exposure to violent

media content, according to Kirsh (2019), and a case in point, visualizing the

trend, comes from the Columbine massacre. Andrew, whose relation to the

tragic event was not identified, was said to have become anxiously preoccupied

with school shootings. Still, his fears associated with this type of traumatizing

events were rather quick to abate as a result of his watching a gory and violent

movie called “Natural Born Killers”. Consequently, the consumption of zom-

bie-themed entertainment could have comparable outcomes. Still, it was also

noted that the ability to have the emotional adjustment effect was contingent on

the characteristics of individuals, and the gratifications sought by them, in the

process of such media consumption (Kirsh, 2019).

It is good that people have more sense than to resort to aggressive outbursts;

still, the question is whether the consumption trend will stand going forward,

particularly when the pandemic draws to a close. On the one hand, the negative

stressor that feeds the watching impulse will be mostly gone by then. The very

relevance of watching such movies can fall apart, with old preferences dusted off

by consumers, including comedies. On the other hand, the reality may be more

intricate than presumed. When the pandemic ends, at least some people may

still stick with the apocalyptic genre, for example, those who might have devel-

oped sympathy for a certain character, such as Rick Grimes from the TWD un-

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iverse, or another protagonist from the crew of survivors, or an antagonist like

Negan, although the reasons for their continued preference could be different.

An important impact of the pandemic is to ensure the exposure of consumers,

who would not otherwise taste the genre to the product. Once they get to do so,

while in the midst of the pandemic, it could create a testing imperative or im-

pulse, and they can become fans of that genre, never to abandon it. With regard

to reasons, aside from the personal emotional attachment to any character, there

can arise positive associations with a book/film since the new-gained horror ge-

nre consumption habit allowed reducing negative conditions and became a cop-

ing means.

Here, a behavioral theory, such as classical conditioning, may be at work.

Berkley and Kaplan (2019), who explained the mechanism also identified res-

pondents of Pavlovian conditioning—a learning procedure, in which, a pre-

viously neutral stimulus was paired with a powerful stimulus. Based on the

learning process that stems from pairing, the neutral stimulus starts evoking a

response that is associable with that elicited by the powerful stimulus (Berkley &

Kaplan, 2019). In the current context, the apocalyptic genre was a neutral sti-

mulus that was not used to incentivize a positive outcome, such as the reduction

of negative emotions, until consumption. This first-ever consumption expe-

rience, when followed by emotional state adjustments, is likely to have led many

to develop positive associations with what previously left them indifferent, with

the result that the genre will be sought if only to achieve the same emotionally

stable conditions that enhance satisfaction and happiness. Still, this quest can be

conditioned, that is, the relevance and frequency of the genre’s consumption

may depend on the presence of negative emotions, although many viewers and

readers may consume it, regardless of finding some enjoyment in aspects beyond

its emotional impact, which can be the narrative, characters, etc. Hence, the ha-

bit of reading/watching the apocalyptic genre that sometimes wanders into the

horror category may persist, proving itself more viable than growling and scrat-

ching characters in the films and TV series now preferred more than earlier.

People who indulge in binging are currently not only hooked on media prod-

ucts and literature, but also on groceries and other goods, which are still high on

the agenda of at least some people, who would just as soon stock up on them,

rather than run the risk of missing out on critical commodities. The study by

O’Connell et al. (2020) confirmed the panic-buying trend by examining other

researchers’ findings. For example, Keane and Neal (2020) found a spike in

searches for terms like “toilet paper” based on Google search data (cited in

O’Connell et al., 2020), while Baker et al. (2020), Cox et al. (2020), and Hacioglu

et al. (2020) pointed to a significant increase in grocery spending (cited in

O’Connell et al., 2020). In digital terms, grocery store sales experienced a 77%

upswing during a single week in March 2020 itself (Yoon, 2020). Apparently,

high prices build an impression of commodities being in short supply, which

makes individuals panic. Whilst in this mode, the judgment of individuals gets

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clouded, which leads to irrational consumer choices, such as stocking up. The

role of high prices is likely, as confirmed by Cariappa et al. (2020), who pointed

to Indian respondents, of whom 75.31% faced an increase in food prices and

acknowledged limited access to food markets, while Dastagiri (2019) acknowl-

edged the influence of prices that may act as price signals or the information

conveyed to producers and consumers.

However, as with the apocalyptic genre of literature and cinema, the removal

of a stressor, such as the pandemic, will render stocking useless, as consumers

will realize that there are no longer any reasons for logistic and supply disrup-

tions over the standstill of production facilities, which is normally responsible

for the stimulation of an erratic buying behavior devoid of rationality. Hence,

panic-buying is but a temporary issue, barely visible even at this juncture, since

the pandemic and its threats have crystallized, with people aware of what to ex-

pect, in the sense, that there is no uncertainty as was the case when the world

was months into what eventually became a global pandemic. Now that the world

has adjusted itself to the new living and operational conditions, uncertainties

and the respective fears are too distant to cause the former panic buying, even

pending the final eradication of COVID-19.

3.4. Homemade Cooking—A New Reality? Is There a Life for

Restaurants Post-COVID-19?

Aside from the apocalyptic content, people may take to watching what will allow

them to cook wonderful dishes, even in the absence of any previous habit or

skills, which has another consumption implication. In 2017, the share of su-

per-consumers who were used to cooking a lot and who loved to do so was only

two-thirds of its 1997 level and represented only 10% of the American popula-

tion. Cooking virtually experienced the shift that sewing faced in its time, in the

sense that what used to be almost everyone’s routine was reduced to a hobby

enjoyed by a small minority (Yoon, 2020). This analogy has found reflection in

many sources, including those by Wolf (2014), who described home sewing and

knitting as largely instinct based, and Hua (2018), who confirmed the loss of in-

terest in cooking in counties, such as the UK, which holds especially good for

young people. However, the decadence of home cooking did not prove irreversi-

ble, and the pandemic marked the end of the negative trend, whose persistence

had translated into the demise of the old habit, and paradoxically enhanced the

viability of consumption at restaurants and other facilities in the same format.

Yoon (2020) reported a 66% decrease in restaurant sales over the course of a sin-

gle week in March in the US. Although smaller, the decline still stood at an im-

pressive 48% in the following month (Yoon, 2020). In China, restaurants fared

far worse as their sales declined by 95%, and neither were car sales in a better

shape, with a 92% fall in rate (Rezaei, 2021). India comes close to matching this

impact in the restaurant sector, if not overshooting the rate, since Debt (2020),

who citing the National Restaurant Association of India, put the cumulative loss

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of local restaurants at an estimated $9 billion in the pandemic year (cited in

Goyal & Gupta, 2020). This cross-country variability in impact is likely due to

the nature of the response determined by the political model of the state and the

democracy index, as China seems to have managed to activate the level of discip-

line not enjoyed in the West, where people are used to exercising constitutional

freedom. In addition, the religion-driven culture of obedience and the

face-saving personal imperative is likely to have facilitated the observation of

state-sanctioned regulations by the residents. In any case, the pan-global down-

ward consumption spiral could be associated directly with the virus whose era-

dication should reboot the interest of restaurant-goers. There is empirically

backed substance to this belief as Williamson (2020) found that 45.87% of res-

pondents expressed intense unwillingness to resort to in-seat dining until a vac-

cine was endorsed and rolled out.

Yet, aside from indicating the impact of restrictions, the decline can also be

symptomatic of the acquisition of cooking skills by Americans, which is what

presents a reason for concern. Hence, the curve may not change its trajectory

much, since the pandemic created an opportunity for people to dust off their

mothballed cooking habits and master the art of cooking. Since many individu-

als who were reluctant to cook or who procrastinated mastering cooking em-

braced the routine, there is the possibility of at least some restaurants facing an

existential threat. A survey performed by Hunter, a food and beverage marketing

communications firm, and cited by Yoon (2020) reported 54% of Americans to

be cooking more. The results were compared with behavioral trends prior to the

COVID-19 outbreak (Yoon, 2020). The comparison also showed that the baking

frequency increased by 46% (Shoup, 2020). As such, one could dismiss this fig-

ure, which is too generalized, but it may include respondents who cook nowa-

days, not being able to afford going to restaurants owing to financial struggles

induced by the pandemic. Alternatively, they could find themselves compelled to

sit at home because of the lockdown, or they can work from home without eat-

ing at restaurants adjacent to their offices, being relevant. Hence, the removal of

these factors can cause these consumers to return to restaurants. Still, optimism

aside, cooking can have been found too enjoyable for the routine to be ditched.

Although Williamson (2020) predicted a 10% increase in the intention to cook

more meals at home, this figure may fall short of the likely number of home

cooking enthusiasts. Hunter’s survey, which was cited by Yoon (2020) found

that 35% of respondents derived pleasure from cooking more than ever before.

Shoup (2020) raised the share of those enjoying the routine to 73%, also adding

that the kitchen-based confidence of 75% had mounted, which could be due to

50 % being able to learn more about cooking. Given these positive dynamics, if

the number of cooking enthusiasts should increase by thrice its current number

without declining, restaurants could face adverse repercussions (Yoon, 2020). In

fact, upwards of 51% of those who were cooking more expressed their resolve to

persist with the habit even once the crisis was over, which may be due to the

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benefits that cooking has to offer, including money saving, healthy eating, expe-

rimenting, and relaxation acknowledged by 58%, 52%, 50%, and 50% of the res-

pondents, respectively (Shoup, 2020). The overall sentiment is not surprising, as

eating with family and cooking tends to become a new entertainment activity,

with coffee shops and restaurants closed down, as follows from Qataris’ percep-

tion of this new pastime (Ben Hassen et al., 2020), which seems a universal ra-

ther than a location-specific trend.

The development of an interest in cooking does not necessarily emerge unin-

duced. In fact, the mechanism of operant conditioning might be at work that

could drive even adults to adopt the rewarding behavior of routinely cooking,

and to keep practicing it even after the pandemic ends. Kratcoski (2018) ex-

plained this mechanism as a method of learning, which takes place via punish-

ments and rewards for behaviors, and an association is believed to be built be-

tween certain behaviors and the results that ensue. The behavior modification

concept follows the underlying scholarly principle of cause and effect. Individu-

als learn that specific behaviors will result in either a negative or positive out-

come, based on their past experience of known repercussions (Kratcoski, 2018).

A positive outcome or reinforcement could be tangible or otherwise. When in-

tangible, it could come in the shape of an approving look or praise (Vito et al.,

2006), and this may be what could follow when the skills relating to mastery of

home cooking are put to good use. Gaining the praise of family members en-

courages the person cooking to adopt this routine, only if it retains the ability to

elicit approval and praise. To make certain that they do master culinary skills

and gain a praise-winning level of mastery, people forced into quarantine can

learn from the best. When they do, the process is compatible with the major

postulates of the social learning theory, that according to Edinyang (2016), posits

that people can assimilate, master, and replicate new behavior through the ob-

servation of others. This adoption is especially likely, when observational expe-

riences are positive and when they contain rewards associated with the behavior

(Edinyang, 2016). While watching cookery programs on TV, viewers can hear

cooks getting a round of applause for their dishes, which could plant the idea in

the newly made amateur home cooks’ minds that comparable gastronomical

success would draw a similar positive response. It spurs their acquisition of skills

through observation and subsequent practice during the pandemic period.

This psychological excursus aside, the trends of cooking mastery and enjoy-

ment may transform into actual losses faced by the hospitality sector. William-

son (2020) found that over 50% of respondents had no intentions of revisiting

restaurants in the post-pandemic period. Still, the future picture of the industry

status quo is far from simple, as seen in the visiting intention stratification based

on facility type that follows. Even if consumers are willing to grace some restau-

rants with their presence, they will be very selective, as Williamson (2020)

showed that the decrease ranged between 4% and 44% for food trucks and buffet

style facilities, respectively, which caused the study to predict great struggles for

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the latter category of restaurants owing to the shifting desires of their clientele.

The other notable popularity losses that could affect the industry in the time to

come are quick service, fast-casual, and casual categories, whose pre-pandemic

popularity levels are down by 18%, 14%, and 13%, respectively. The buffet model

is expected to fare the worst since it has entered a strong decline phase despite

being characterized by cheapness. The researcher was surprised not to have ob-

served a shift in consumers’ intent toward food trucks, since the model offers

them the opportunity to either take food home or eat it outside. Instead, fine

dining gained in popularity by 8%. Fine dining is an eating style usually occur-

ring at expensive restaurants where particularly good food is served to visitors,

often in a formal fashion.

It would be appropriate to interpret these findings, including examining the

reasons for the buffet concept now being increasingly shunned, which could be

due to the exposure of ready-cooked food to bacteria that could emanate from

visitors’ sneezing, etc., while helping themselves to some of the dishes left unco-

vered (see Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 2021). Likewise,

food trucks too might not conjure up associations of safety, since cramped space

may be belied to offer little room to observe all the hygienic standards, despite

food being served in the open without there being too many people, rather than

in a poorly ventilated room, as is the case in traditional restaurants (see Euro-

pean Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), 2020) warning about

the danger of poor ventilation as a precondition for transmission of respiratory

infections]. By comparison, in the case of fine dining, since the service is elabo-

rate, consumers are likely to be convinced that their food will be safe. However,

the probable reason for this category having experienced only a meager increase

is because such food service comes at a high price. This tendency arguably comes

as no surprise, given the financial impact of the pandemic that is likely to have

boosted price sensitivity across the wide spectrum of consumers. This safe-

ty-centered way of thinking is likely in the wake of the lethal pandemic, in which

contagion is greatly facilitated through non-compliance with the hygiene rules

by many. This factor is likely to be all-important, since despite the cheapness of

buffet-style facilities, the concept has not been spared even at the current junc-

ture of financial uncertainty. Thus, it has become the signature feature normally

drawing specific consumers to an undesired bargain. Williamson (2020) was so

pessimistic regarding the buffet model that neither food maintenance at safe

temperatures nor sneeze guards are believed to be capable of enhancing the per-

ception of this model as safe. Furthermore, this study refrained from speculating

about the dining public’s potential returns on the risk-averse clusters, while the

respective prediction was consigned to the industry and academics, as such, who

could attempt to answer the question.

Overall, it is worth noting that these changes in values acting as consumption

behavior determinants have altered the position of consumer needs in the re-

spective hierarchy. Jung et al. (2015) opined based on Maslow’s hierarchy of

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needs, that by virtue of comprising the heart of physiological needs (the topmost

tier of the pyramid), food stands as the main choice-shaping factor, with price

and service quality being secondary. The next comes safety, as the second tier

(cited in Hsu et al., 2018). Love and esteem represent the third and fourth tiers

of needs, respectively (Hsu et al., 2018). Hence, it could be that safety has gained

supremacy in the wake of the pandemic, and health fears have been instilled into

consumers, which has put more crowded restaurants with perceived lower hy-

giene standards on the margin of the gastronomical landscape. However, the

hierarchy of needs may not be an undisputable navigator, as its tiers can be un-

even in terms of need seniority/relevance, with observable demographic differ-

ences. Voon (2012), who studied various kinds of restaurants arrived at the con-

clusion that service quality was a key determinant in restaurant choice, which

holds good for young consumers as it is regarded as a way of being respected,

although food quality was also stressed by this consumer cluster, as in the case of

fine dining restaurants (cited in Hsu et al., 2018). With this finding in view, it

would be rational to opine that the shift in consumer behavior related to choos-

ing the restaurant type is likely to be demographically variable, as youth seek re-

spect ensured by food quality. This driver is focal for younger consumers, since

they are yet to achieve a standing in society, as well as the financial means that

will command respect. Hence, restaurant-based quality makes them feel that

they are esteemed and serves as a compensatory factor. However, the question is

whether younger consumers will be able to afford fine dining, particularly since

the crisis seems to have curbed financial opportunities for many. Even if

youngsters are preferred by businesses for positions, in an effort to save funds

amidst operational uncertainties where the lack of experience will not send the

stock falling, yet, they will not be entitled to significant salaries that would suf-

fice to pay for fine dining.

One of the studies, however, has presented results that seem to cast doubts

even on the viability of fine dining, while simultaneously offering a glimmer of

hope to cheaper restaurant options. Madeira et al. (2020) referred to the stance

of numerous famous entrepreneurs and chefs, including Martin Berasategui, the

owner of a three-star Michelin restaurant in Spain, who had voiced their con-

cerns about reopening, since they expect a lack of clients owing to the anxiety

about visiting facilities. Although Berasategui (2020) has ranked the fear of re-

turn to restaurants as the biggest challenge to be overcome by consumers (cited

in Madeira et al., 2020), this obstacle is not insurmountable. José Avillez (2020),

a top-profile chef in Portugal heading Belcanto, a local two-star Michelin res-

taurant, that employs 500 workers in its different restaurants, warned that re-

covery would be a matter of a long time (cited in Madeira et al., 2020). While va-

riable spatially across consumer groups and the willingness to pay is expected to

increase by 6% in the post-pandemic period (Pope, 2021), Klein (2021) has of-

fered an even more optimistic forecast, suggesting that customers’ bills will

climb to twice their pre-pandemic value, given that the respective businesses are

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maintaining high standards of cleanliness.

Hence, on the path to recovery, safety of the services will play an essential role.

The survey results cited by Klein (2021) showed that sanitization standards

ranked fourth, whereas prices ranked tenth. Pope (2021) seems even more con-

vinced when it comes to supremacy of cleanliness within the set of consumer

values guiding buying decisions, and reported that with the rotation of consum-

ers’ values, sanitation and cleanliness would transition to the top of the hie-

rarchy of choice factors in terms of importance. With this change, the price of

menu items as a factor has been ousted (Pope, 2021). Still, industry profession-

als, such as chefs, consider prices an essential factor, and rightfully so, given the

financial impact of the pandemic on people’s welfare and the corresponding un-

certainty, that usually stimulates saving behavior. Restaurants can further boost

the perception of service safety by going cyber and arranging deliveries. Brewer

and Sebby (2021), who assessed the impact of online restaurants’ menus on

consumers’ buying intentions, indicated that the information and visual appeal

of such menus played a key role in consumers’ intentions, especially when they

perceived the COVID-19 risk. The convenience of online food ordering and the

desire for food has a direct influence on consumers. This stance is concordant

with earlier findings, including by Dixon et al. (2009) of growing online food

ordering popularity being partly driven by precision, speed, and ease of the me-

thod (cited in Brewer & Sebby, 2021). This trend does not suggest that the price

factor falls into commercial oblivion. For a restaurant to discount its way into

consumers’ minds and eventually to keep them interested, could follow, accord-

ing to Chef Joan Roca (2020)—head of El Celler de Can Roca, a restaurant in

Spain with three Michelin stars—who considers that these businesses will be

better off reconsidering the business model and providing low-priced menus if

they are to survive (cited in Madeira et al., 2020). According to Brehaut (2020),

some restaurants have already adapted to new operational conditions. One such

instance is Noma—a two-star Michelin restaurant in Denmark owned by Chef

René Redzepi and once regarded as the world’s best restaurant—that has trans-

formed itself into a wine bar selling hamburgers, for no reason other than to

survive (cited in Madeira et al., 2020).

3.5. Existentialism and the Change of Values—Consumerism No

More?

The lack of good food may eventually help individuals to shed the existential cri-

sis that has crept in, which has its own negative consumption implications.

Blough and Brazeau (2021) associated COVID-19 altering people’s lives, with an

existential crisis of American society that is expected to drag on for years to

come. Shiraev (2016) explained an existential crisis as a period when individuals

question the foundations of their life, asking whether their lives have any value,

purpose, or meaning. When life is believed to lack purpose or meaning, the con-

cept of existential nihilism is also applied, which Bates (2016) associated with

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Friedrich Nietzsche, who correlated existential suffering with the loss of control

and powerlessness. Blough and Brazeau (2021) suggested that after experiencing

an existential crisis, individuals are unlikely to revert to old norms. Ducharme

(2020) arrived at a similar conclusion on COVID-19 having sourced a val-

ue-changing existential crisis, drawing an analogy between it and other crises

that were said to get people analyzing and modifying their values.

Thus, as averred by Ducharme (2020), subsequent to natural disasters, indi-

viduals may grow more religious, which is deemed a coping strategy. Pew Re-

search Center’s survey, which accumulated upwards of 3700 answers, reflects the

perceived sense of urgency to elicit lessons from the pandemic that are not only

practical, such as the importance of wearing masks. The respondents also singled

out personal and spiritual lessons, such as believing in the relevance of valuing

intimacy and humankind, and praying harder and more often (Ducharme,

2020). While the extent to which this survey is representative is not obvious, its

sample was not small, and it does point to the wake-up call provided by the

pandemic that seems to mark the shift of values towards greater religiosity and

interpersonal relations, rather than consumption. Thus, change can eventually

become a value or norm as essential as consumerism, that Prabhu (2021) defined

as an economic and social order which encourages and supports the purchase of

services and commodities in ever-rising amounts. The researcher also used the

concept of crazy consumerism, as if to show, that the philosophy has grown out

of proportion, becoming a near-cultic obsession. In its stead may come values

and philosophies, such as the ascetic way of living and minimalism, which Wa-

tanabe (2020) has defined as promoting the things one values the most and re-

moving everything that distracts one from what is important.

It is now essential to respond to these findings. While one could expect people

to lose interest in more extravagant and less practical categories of goods, such

as luxury items, yet, its buyers stem from the wealthy social stratum that seems

unaffected by the virus, which makes the change of values less likely in this con-

sumer category. Godfrey (2021) points to the worst wealth gap and the immuni-

ty of richer individuals to the financial impact of the pandemic, and Picchi

(2021) shows a much-improved financial situation of the rich, with billionaires

having grown 54% wealthier during the depressing COVID-10 period. Instead,

an existential crisis could have changed less wealthy individuals’ consumption

habits in one of the following ways. The crisis of existentialism can see people

lose confidence in their power, which can breed skepticism about the future and

the need to gain money that is instrumental in buying. Hence, they may forsake

buying, for the most part, resorting to minimalism or purpose-driven or selec-

tive buying of what is functional and relevant. Furthermore, people may begin to

wonder what good it is to act altruistically, if despite buying and distributing

goods among the needy, their karma does not improve, and they do not obtain

divine protection for being kind. However, if existentialism leads to people be-

coming more religious, and if this religiosity manifests itself through sharing

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with others, the consumption habit may not suffer. As for the factor’s longevity

in influencing consumption behaviors, for the most part, one should expect the

existential crisis to die down with time, as stressors driving disillusionment and

devaluing life vanish or lose intensity with the passage of time.

4. Discussion

The Pandemic’s Persistence—Is It Enough for a New Habit to

Rise? Can Every Consumption Behavior Be Perpetuated?

As shown in the multiple scenarios above, the behavior of consumers changes in

one way or another. The longevity of this change, or rather its permanence, de-

pends on how habitual it becomes. Lally and Gardner (2013) and Wood and

Neal (2007) defined habit as a learned action executed with minimal cognitive

input (cited in Harvey et al., 2020: p. 3). Behaviorists, such as Hull (1943), Skin-

ner (1938), and Thorndike (1998), indicated that habits developed and gained

strength via the repetitions of reinforced responses and associative learning

(cited in Harvey et al., 2020: p. 3), while cognitive scholars, such as Schneider

and Schiffrin (1977) and Wason and Evans (1974), pointed to the relevance of

automaticity in habit formation (cited in Harvey et al., 2020: p. 3). One of the

studies that dwelt on this aspect measured the median time needed for one to

develop a habit. Lally et al. (2010) provided comprehensive insights into how

long it takes for a habit to form. A trial spanning a total of three months in-

volved 96 participants who picked behaviors related to drinking, eating, or other

activities to be performed on a daily basis in a single context. Participants

reached 95% of their asymptote of automaticity in periods ranging from 18 to

254 days. Judah et al. (2018) and Keller et al. (2021) confirmed the same dura-

tion range, whereas Lieber (2016) pointed to the likelihood of the same share of

habit formation. Hence, there is a great deal of variation in the time required for

individuals to reach their automaticity limits, which can turn out to be very

time-consuming (Lally et al., 2010). However, the media period of habit estab-

lishment stands at 66 days, according to Au (2012), Dean (2013), and Protzman

et al. (2017), and Keller et al. (2021).

It is important to note that there are a range of factors determining the like-

lihood of habit acquisition. Verplanken (2006) indicated that a higher level of

automaticity could be achieved by simpler behaviors, as compared with complex

ones (cited in Lally et al., 2010: p. 1000), which resembles the finding of Chen et

al. (2020), who differentiated between easy and more complex tasks that could

take up to 18 and 254 days, respectively. Since none of the behaviors presented

qualify as complex ones (e.g., buying), the odds of habit development should be

higher, and it could be considered as another essential determinant of habit

formation. According to Lally et al. (2010), omissions also serve as an essential

determinant of habit formation. While it was found that missing a single oppor-

tunity for behavioral performance did not materially influence the process of

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habit establishment, James (1890) asserted that habit acquisition was about un-

interrupted performance (cited in Lally et al., 2010: p. 1000). Others who vir-

tually did so were: Bhatia (1973), who stressed the importance of an uninter-

rupted continuity of performance as a way of boosting a specific behavior mode,

Dudley and Goodson (1986), who linked habit strengthening directly to unin-

terrupted repetition, and Miller (2003), who mentioned the need for uninter-

rupted and regular repetition of acts. Yet, Lally et al. (2010) doubted the feasibil-

ity of the criterion of habit formation in the real world, claiming that at almost

all times there are occasions when the behavior is not performed. This attitude

somewhat resembles the skepticism of Wood and Rünger (2016), who claimed

that habits might not take shape with complex tasks, in which different response

choices result in different rewards.

Even so, individuals tend to develop habits regardless of the circumstances

(Lally et al., 2010). Still, interruptions cannot be overly frequent or extensive;

else, individuals are likely to be hard-pressed to acquire any given habit. This

presumption makes sense, as Armitage (2005), who reported the results of a

study that examined the acquisition of exercise habits over a period of three

months, found behavior performance lapses to be negative predictors of future

performance, when behavior was evaluated in weekly blocks, although a lapse

implies non-visiting for a seven-day time (cited in Lally et al., 2010). This

lapse-based finding is concordant with the stance of other researchers, including

Teta and Teta (2016) and Straza (2017) regarding loop interruption as central to

habit disruption. Hence, the duration of the lapse in habit performance played a

role as it spanned as many as seven days. Still, unlike exercising, which is not all

too critical, meeting a basic physiological need like eating is more essential. Since

restaurants had forcedly been stop short of meeting their customers’ needs of

being fed, people were forced to switch back to home cooking without the habit

being discontinued. The habit formation scenarios inspected earlier, deserve

examination in terms of habit formation in a more elaborate way. Moreover,

uninterrupted repetition is not the sole determinant of habit establishment, as

NIH News in Health (2012) showed that enjoyable or good events could also

launch the reward centers of the brain, thereby giving rise to a habit eventually.

According to Carter (2019), the reward is the third element of the habit loop,

alongside a cue and a routine. Satisfied, the reward gets the brain to remember

the loop (Carter, 2019), and a positive reward in the shape of praise or improved

familial relations that may follow. For example, as a result of cooking mastery,

may do away with the need to repeat the action scores of times for a habit to

arise.

In the case of the pandemic, while some people might develop habits, such as

home cooking, in the space of 18 days, others would not have done so until 254

days, after the onset of the routine activity got repeated, without significant in-

terruptions. In the context of the pandemic, it implies that lockdowns that often

are not overly extensive will lead only some consumers to develop the complete

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habit of home cooking. Many others may have the formation process disrupted

by the reopening of these businesses, which can tempt them to revisit, which

they will do, depending upon their household’s financial health. Since reinforced

responses along with associative learning repetitions are involved, classical and

operant conditioning may be at work, since positive associations with a neutral

stimulus of a new consumer choice and positive reinforcement via the intangible

reward of praise, for example, could be the habit development and strengthening

ways singled out by the behaviorists.

Overall, the imposition of restrictions that paved the way for the development

of habits, such as home cooking, was uneven, being determined by the epidemi-

ological state of affairs. In other words, restrictions interfering with consumers’

ability to frequent restaurants, for example, will be lifted every now and then in

different countries, and it is likely to be even more, in economies dominated by

the service sector, which normally leads to gross underperformance when ar-

rested by domestic clientele and foreign visitors’ poor or nonexistent mobility.

Hence, in more service-oriented economies whose individual status was deter-

mined by the dearth of natural endowments (resources) and/or the limited abil-

ity to deploy smokestack industry facilities, the frequency of removing restric-

tions on the operational capability of restaurants is likely to have been higher,

and this interruption of restrictions should keep local residents from having ha-

bits become deep-seated or permanent. Further, the financial factor should not

be overlooked, as uncertainty and income loss/contraction cannot but influence

habits, regardless of how uninterrupted the operational restrictions are. Thus,

closedowns are not solely responsible for contributing to the uninterrupted na-

ture of the cooking habit, given the potency of the financial factor, which pre-

sumes that the habit in question is unlikely to go if the uninterruptedness of its

performance is to be considered as a habit formation factor/mechanism. When it

comes to the watching/reading habit related to the apocalyptic genre that some-

times borders on the horror category, non-interruption, may be the reason for

the consumption habit and preference shift not to become permanent unless ex-

ternal stressors abate, thereby rendering it less necessary for one to be watch-

ing/reading such content. If people find enjoyment therein, aside from the im-

perative of emotional adjustments, that may cause them to consume the cine-

matic and literary genre, the lack of emotional disturbance will not lead to their

abandoning their consumption habits. However, if present, it will doubly

prompt consumers to ramp up their reading or watching of the respective genre.

In fact, at times, one cannot help but wonder, if some people are particularly

keen on seeing others develop habits during the pandemic, such that they disre-

gard the pleas of healthcare regulators and agencies by walking around un-

masked or throwing crowded parties at their mansions. This situation calls for

restrictive measures to return, be they lockdowns or other limitations, feeding

the relevance of the repetition of routine actions necessitated by the pandemic

and its threats, pending habit emergence, which can be that of cooking.

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5. Conclusion

Hence, this study’s aim to examine the type of changes in the consumer behavior

induced by COVID-19 has been achieved, with the following set of findings.

The COVID-19 pandemic has proven to be impactful, as seen in the changes

in consumer behavior. Predictably, one of the changes has been the activation of

the saving mode, which seems to be induced by financial uncertainty and the

actual loss of welfare sources. While it is presumed that the saving behavior will

go away, it is doubtful that it will disappear in the foreseeable future, not only

due to the difficulties faced by countries to gain a proper vaccination pace, but

also because economies have been dealt a heavy blow. This setback creates a

disbalance between the job demand and job offers and provides a fertile ground

for pay abuse on the part of employers. Hence, the disappearance of saving be-

havior is contingent on the success of COVID-19 eradication and economic re-

covery, which should drive a perceptual change in financial security. A some-

what surprising finding was that some people venture to spend much, which has

certain therapeutic or coping benefits; yet, this behavioral trend is characteristic

of materialistic individuals who are intent on the acquisition of material assets.

One does not necessarily have to be materialistic to mass-consume in the pan-

demic as consumers have switched increasingly to the apocalyptic genre in me-

dia and literature, as if aware of its cathartic or therapeutic effects. In fact, people

are unlikely to have such knowledge unless experts or all-round binge eaters

provide it. Most likely, noticing the relief that comes with reading books in that

genre or watching movies and/or TV series of the same genre, people develop

their individual preferences (owing to the classical conditioning mechanism of

forming positive associations with what is watched/read), at least pending its re-

levance (based on the persistence of the virus), in a bid to gain the much-needed

relief from stress and other negative emotions. TV content may also lead people

to learn in the social context and develop their cooking habits, particularly given

its rewarding benefits, which can leave restaurants struggling over a decrease in

consumption that can also occur if disillusionment results from an existential

crisis and the subsequent loss of a perceived life purpose results in a poor mon-

ey-earning enthusiasm. The study’s major findings:

Overall, behavioral change patterns involve a change in terms of category pre-

ferences, buying intensity (including loss of buying enthusiasm due to an exis-

tential crisis, and/or the saving imperative), and the transition of people to the

status of product producers (restaurant services replace home cooking).

In many cases, stressors are the major reason for the change to be accompa-

nied by limitations, barring access to services. Hence, their removal will strip the

new consumption trend of its relevance (e.g., saving and cooking can lapse into

irrelevance after the economy recovers and the lockdown is lifted).

Still, operant and classical conditioning can ensure the retention of some ha-

bits due to their rewarding nature and positive associations, the latter signaling

the likelihood of achieving the desired results.

M. Gerlich

DOI:

10.4236/ojbm.2021.95131 2446 Open Journal of Business and

Management

Some of the habits may also persist regardless of determinants and benefits,

given that habits reach automaticity if repeated more than several scores of

times, although the acquisition odds vary markedly. Hence, time is likely to wipe

out some of the newfound habits, yet chances are that some could stand the test

of time.

At this point, to understand whether changes in consumer behavior are a

short-term exemption of the norm or mirror a lasting change, companies will

fare better by carefully analyzing the reasons for changes in their revenues and

the possibility of changes in consumer behaviors having a lasting effect. Doing

so will facilitate making accurate day-to-day and long-term strategic decisions,

without suffering losses in what has become a volatile and somewhat poorly pre-

dictable operational environment.

That COVID-19 has an impact on the economies and consumer behavior be-

came obvious. This research structures and analyzes existing data to the answer

the important question: Will the changes in consumer behavior last and there-

fore force businesses to reconsider their business models, or will these changes

be temporary. When it comes to research limitations and future research ave-

nues, the findings seem contrary to major limitations, including the relative def-

icit of quality sources encountered in the course of this study. Since there is a

clear deficit of studies that focus on diverse consumption patterns, it has incen-

tivized the current research design, which in turn, would stimulate further re-

search efforts to present an exhaustive picture of consumption in the post-

COVID-19 scenario. Cross-country behavioral comparative studies, if con-

ducted, would further enrich the body of scholarly literature, particularly if the

countries analyzed represent different clusters of states based on economic and

other indices. Such a focus and its business implications could do much to faci-

litate the operation of businesses seeking practical applications of research find-

ings. It is this outcome that underscores this study’s importance, and which

could help navigate the operational vector of businesses by predicting consumer

behaviors through interpretations of the experts’ findings and forecasts. This

approach would allow businesses to wisely allocate what are sometimes fast-

shrinking resources, without laying off their personnel and failing to contribute

to the health and restoration of economies. In addition, this diverse perspective

could stimulate the replication of the research design by other researchers and

the further enrichment of scholarly discourses.

Conflicts of Interest

The author declares no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this pa-

per.

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Full-text available

Jun 2022

The main purpose of this article is to compare the state and dynamics of e-commerce development in selected countries: Poland, Turkey and the PRC (People’s Republic of China), from the point of view of individual customers. The comparison was carried out in two stages: the first months of 2020 (before the COVID-19 pandemic) and the first months of 2021 (during the pandemic). The study conducted involved university students. The surveys were carried out using the CAWI method, and they were made available on the servers of the Faculty of Management at the University of Warsaw. The research sample included 650 individuals. Differences in the obtained results were evaluated using the City distance. The hypothesis concerning the lack of differentiation between the evaluations of individual e-commerce criteria was formulated, and it was disproved in the course of the study. The results of the research indicate that the variation between countries appeared mainly in relation to the direction of the development of e-commerce during the COVID-19 pandemic, the type of (mobile/traditional) device used to shop online and, above all, the specificity of the country where the study took place with its past experiences, cultural circumstances and shopping habits, as reflected in the development of online commerce. The limitation of the study was the fact that it was conducted in an academic environment and, at this stage, it was limited to the analysis of the results covering selected countries. Nevertheless, the valuable contribution and undoubted achievement of the work consist in the fact that, for the first time, e-commerce solutions have been compared for countries that are so culturally, economically and demographically different. The results of this study may be used by business practitioners to guide them on possible strategies regarding the development of e-commerce in their countries in the post-pandemic reality.

Covid-19 Pandemic as Sustainability Determinant of e-Commerce in the Creation of Information Society

Article

Oct 2022

The main purpose of this article is to compare the dynamics of e-commerce development in selected countries: Poland, Turkey and PRC (People's Republic of China), from the point of view of an individual customer before and during the pandemic. The comparison was made for two periods: the first months of 2020 (before the COVID-19 pandemic) and the first months of 2021 (during the pandemic). The survey was conducted using the CAWI method. The study sample involved a total of 650 individuals. The differences obtained in examined countries were evaluated using Euclidean distance. It was hypothesized that there occurs a difference between the ratings of individual e-commerce criteria before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the course of the study, it has been proven that during the COVID-19 pandemic this difference decreases significantly, which indicates an increasing balance of e-commerce in selected countries around the world. The limitation of the study was the fact that it was conducted in an academic setting and - at this stage – it was limited to a comparison of results of research conducted in selected countries only. Nevertheless, its undoubted merit is that, for the first time, it compares the dynamics of e-commerce for countries in three regions of the world, and these countries differ considerably in terms of culture, economics and demographics. The results of this study show the place and role of e-commerce in facilitating accelerated growth, balancing its development on the path towards the creation of information society.

The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Perception of Globalization and Consumer Behavior

Article

Full-text available

Aug 2022

The main purpose of this article was to identify the impacts of globalization and information and communication technologies on the consumer behavior of a young population aged 18–34 before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research was conducted using the CAWI (computer-assisted web interview) method using convenient sampling involving students of the University of Warsaw. The survey was carried out in three stages: in March 2020, December 2020 and November 2021. The last cycle of research enabled the authors to examine the changes in consumer behavior trends nearly two years after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in Poland and compare them with the tendencies that could be observed in March 2020 and December 2020. The findings from all survey questionnaires indicate that the behavior of respondents is generally consistent with consumer trends established and described in several reports concerning the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on people’s perception of globalization and consumer behavior. The main observation in terms of online purchases was that the growth itself was not very significant, but the frequency of purchases over the Internet increased. A similar trend could be observed in the case of using social media. Research of this scope was carried out in Poland for the first time, which proves the originality and value of this paper.

Coping During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Perspective of Fashion Shopping

Conference Paper

Full-text available

Dec 2022

Preparing for a Pandemic: Spending Dynamics and Panic Buying during the COVID-19 First Wave

Article

Full-text available

May 2021

In times of heightened uncertainty consumers face incentives to build up precautionary stocks of essential supplies. We study consumer spending dynamics during one such time, the first infection wave of the COVID‐19 pandemic, using household scanner data covering fast‐moving consumer goods in the United Kingdom. We document large increases in demand for storable products, such as food staples and household supplies, in the days before lockdown. Households in all socioeconomic groups exhibit unusually high demand pre‐lockdown, but there is a clear gradient, with the largest demand spikes for wealthier households. Although stories of people purchasing extreme amounts received a lot of attention, higher aggregate demand was mainly driven by more households than usual choosing to buy storable products, with only small increases in average quantities bought on a given trip. Temporary limits on the number of units per transaction, introduced following the demand spike, are therefore unlikely to lead to the avoidance of stock‐outs.

Global economic impacts of COVID-19 lockdown measures stand out in high-frequency shipping data

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2021
PLOS ONE

The implementation of large-scale containment measures by governments to contain the spread of the COVID-19 virus has resulted in large impacts to the global economy. Here, we derive a new high-frequency indicator of economic activity using empirical vessel tracking data, and use it to estimate the global maritime trade losses during the first eight months of the pandemic. We go on to use this high-frequency dataset to infer the effect of individual non-pharmaceutical interventions on maritime exports, which we use as a proxy of economic activity. Our results show widespread port-level trade losses, with the largest absolute losses found for ports in China, the Middle-East and Western Europe, associated with the collapse of specific supply-chains (e.g. oil, vehicle manufacturing). In total, we estimate that global maritime trade reduced by -7.0% to -9.6% during the first eight months of 2020, which is equal to around 206–286 million tonnes in volume losses and up to 225–412 billion USD in value losses. We find large sectoral and geographical disparities in impacts. Manufacturing sectors are hit hardest, with losses up to 11.8%, whilst some small islands developing states and low-income economies suffered the largest relative trade losses. Moreover, we find a clear negative impact of COVID-19 related school and public transport closures on country-wide exports. Overall, we show how real-time indicators of economic activity can inform policy-makers about the impacts of individual policies on the economy, and can support economic recovery efforts by allocating funds to the hardest hit economies and sectors.

Save for Safe: Effect of COVID-19 Pandemic on Consumers' Saving and Spending Behavior in China

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2021

In public health emergencies, people are more willing to save money rather than spending it, which is not conductive to economic development and recovery. Due to the absence of relevant research, the internal logic of this phenomenon is not clear. In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, this study systematically explored whether and why public health emergencies stimulate consumers' preference for saving (vs. spending). We conducted two online surveys and used methods including stepwise regression analysis and bootstrapping to test the hypotheses. The first survey, with 1,511 participants from China in February 2020, indicates that the severity of emergencies has a significant positive impact on the populations' willingness to save (vs. spend). Risk perception plays a mediating role between the severity of emergencies and consumers' saving (vs. spending) willingness. Materialism plays a moderating role between risk perception and an individual's saving (vs. spending) willingness, individuals who are more materialistic have a lower saving (vs. spending) willingness when they perceive the risks of the pandemic. To verify the duration of the above effects, we conducted a follow-up survey consisted of 466 instances in August 2020. It is noteworthy that the above effects are not significant during the post-pandemic period. Thus, spending behavior in public health emergencies can be motived by reducing risk perception and increasing materialism. These findings can provide a valuable inspiration for public health, crisis management, and economic recovery during public health emergencies.

Impact of epidemics and pandemics on consumption pattern: evidence from Covid-19 pandemic in rural-urban India

Article

Full-text available

Feb 2021

Purpose The present world is crippled with the pandemic coronavirus (Covid-19). The pandemic that originated in Wuhan city of China has sent every country in the world in an unprecedented situation that has social and economic impacts. This paper aims to explore whether epidemics and pandemics have any impact on consumption patterns among rural and urban consumers in India. Taking pandemic Covid-19 as a case study, it was explored how this pandemic impacted the consumption pattern of consumers in India; what are the similarities and/or differences between rural and urban consumers that are found in their consumption habits in the wake of Covid-19 pandemic. Design/methodology/approach The required data was collected through questionnaires sent to respondents. Approximately 500 respondents were contacted through the mail to fill in the survey questionnaire. Despite the sincere efforts, a total of 175 complete survey questionnaires were filled in by respondents. The study used SPSS Statistics version 25 software for the analysis of data. Findings It was found that epidemics and pandemics have a profound impact on the pattern of consumption in India. The study reveals that consumers resort to panic buying in the initial stages of epidemics and pandemics. It was found that consumption habits of consumers went a sea change and they were spending largely on essentials only. The study also reveals that the majority of consumers would like to continue in the same consumption habits as that of during COVID-19. The consumption pattern of urban consumers witnessed more change than the consumption pattern of rural consumers. It is due to the closure of eateries and restaurants, shopping malls, movie theatres, etc., in urban areas that forced the change in the consumption pattern of urban consumers. Research limitations/implications The research has a limitation of using a less sample size. For the generalizations, more robust studies can be conducted with more data. Practical implications The findings of the study will give marketers an insight for framing their policies in the wake of epidemics and pandemics. Originality/value The research adds to the existing body of knowledge. There are plenty of studies on the behaviour of consumers. However, there are no major studies that focus on the behaviour of consumers during the outbreak of a pandemic. So, this study fills this gap in the existing body of knowledge.

COVID-19, Contagion, and Vaccine Optimism

Article

Full-text available

Mar 2021
J Med Humanit

Kelly McGuire

Steven Soderbergh’s Contagion (2011) positions the vaccine as the end point of the arc of pandemic, marking both the containment of an elusive virus and the resumption of a life not fundamentally different from before the disease outbreak. The film reinforces the assumption that a pandemic will awaken all of us to the urgency of vaccination , persuading us to put aside our reservations and anxieties and the idea that compliance is the inevitable outcome of quarantine. This article explores how pro-vaccination cultural products such as Contagion might in fact undermine public health efforts by promoting a false narrative, which simplifies the kind of vaccination campaign necessary for herd immunity to develop. An ethic of sacrifice and selflessness drives the public health messaging of the film but leaves intact certain individualistic tropes and plague narrative scapegoating tendencies, while the framing of the vaccine as “gift” takes it out of the realm of medical science altogether.

COVID-19 and the collapse of global trade: building an effective public health response

Article

Full-text available

Feb 2021

The scale of the COVID-19 pandemic is a consequence of international trade and globalisation, with the virus spreading along established trade and travel routes. However, the pandemic also affects international trade through reductions in both supply and demand. In this Viewpoint we describe the many implications for health and propose ways to mitigate them. Problems include reduced access to medical supplies (in particular, personal protective equipment and tests), budgetary shortfalls as a result of reduced tariffs and taxes, and a general decline in economic activity—leading, in many cases, to recessions, threats to social safety nets, and to increased precariousness of income, employment, and food security. However, in exceptional cases, the pandemic has also brought some transient benefits, including to the environment. Looking ahead, there will be great pressure to further liberalise rules on trade to encourage economic recovery, but it is essential that trade policy be informed by its many consequences for health to ensure that the benefits are maximised and threats are minimised through active identification and mitigation.

Scaring away anxiety: Therapeutic avenues for horror fiction to enhance treatment for anxiety symptoms

Preprint

Full-text available

Feb 2021

From scary stories to horror films and haunted houses, the horror genre is wildly popular. Although horror aims to elicit fear and anxiety in its audience, many people with anxiety are horror fans and some report using horror to cope with their anxiety. In this article, we provide a theoretical rationale for why people with anxiety might find relief in horror films. First, we discuss aspects of horror that could make it particularly alluring to people with anxiety and how some features of horror films have the potential to reduce anxiety in the moment. Next, we examine how engagement with horror could build skills for resilience in more generalized situations. We build on processes from evidence- based therapies (i.e., cognitive behavioral therapy and exposure therapy) to explain how horror media has the potential to be used as a therapeutic tool. Finally, we discuss steps for future research on horror as a therapeutic tool for anxiety-related disorders.

Strategic Training and Development

Book

Jan 2020

Coronavirus Disease - COVID-19

Book

Jan 2021
ADV EXP MED BIOL

Nima Rezaei

In December 2019, the world witnessed the occurrence of a new coronavirus to humanity. The disease spread quickly and became known as a pandemic globally, affecting both society and the health care system, both the elderly and young groups of people, and both the men’s and women’s groups. It was a universal challenge that immediately caused a surge in scientific research. Be a part of a world rising in fighting against the pandemic, the Coronavirus Disease - COVID-19 was depicted in the early days of the pandemic, but updated by more than 200 scientists and clinicians to include many facets of this new infectious pandemic, including i, characteristics, ecology, and evolution of coronaviruses; ii, epidemiology, genetics, and pathogenesis (immune responses and oxidative stress) of the disease; iii, diagnosis, prognosis, and clinical manifestations of the disease in pediatrics, geriatrics, pregnant women, and neonates; iv, challenges of co-occurring the disease with tropical infections, cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, and cancer and to the settings of dentistry, hematology, ophthalmology, and pharmacy; v, transmission, prevention, and potential treatments, ranging from supportive ventilator support and nutrition therapy to potential virus- and host-based therapies, immune-based therapies, photobiomodulation, antiviral photodynamic therapy, and vaccines; vi, the resulting consequences on social lives, mental health, education, tourism industry and economy; and vii, multimodal approaches to solve the problem by bioinformatic methods, innovation and ingenuity, globalization, social and scientific networking, interdisciplinary approaches, and art integration. We are approaching December 2020 and the still presence of COVID-19, asking us to call it COVID (without 19).

Personality Theories: A Global View

Book