MKTG 367 Chapter 9

culture

drives differences in the customs associated with weddings, marriages, and the family life that follows; commonly held societal beliefs that define what is socially gratifying

• giving meaning to objects (car care, America runs on Dunkin)

• giving meaning to activities (drinking culture)

• facilitating communication (compliments, hugs, kisses)

cultural norms

the rule that specifies the appropriate consumer behavior in a given situation within a specific culture; most, but not all, cultural _______ are unwritten and simply understood by members of a cultural group

cultural sanctions

a penalty associated with performing a non-gratifying or culturally inconsistent behavior (ex. cultural norms against marrying outside of one’s social class, religion, or ethnic group; violation of this norm can result in isolation from family or worse)

role expectations

specific expectations that are associated with each type of person (ex. occupation, social class, age, sex)

what causes culture?

ecology & tradition

ecological factors

the physical characteristics that describe the physical environment and habitat of a particular place

tradition

the customs and accepted ways of everyday behavior in a given culture

core societal values (CSVs)

the commonly agreed-upon consensus about the most preferable ways of living within a society, also known as cultural values; can be described among 6 dimensions:

• individualism

• masculinity

• power distance

• uncertainty avoidance

• long-term orientation

• indulgence

individualism

• individualism: the extent to which people are expected to take care of themselves and their immediate families

• collectivism: the extent to which and individual’s life is intertwined with a large cohesive group

highly individualistic societies place high value on self-reliance, individual initiative, and personal achievement; nations w/ low individualism are high in collectivism

masculinity

• masculinity: the gender role distinction within a group that values assertiveness and control

• femininity: the gender role distinction within a group that emphasizes the prioritization of relational variables such as caring, conciliation, and community

consumers in cultures with high masculinity, regardless of biological sex, are more prone to take financial risks than are consumers in feminine cultures

power distance

the extent to which authority and privileges are divided among different groups within society and the extent to which these facts of like are accepted by the people within the society

in high-power distance nations, those with less status must show deference to those with greater status

uncertainty avoidance

the extent to which a culture is uncomfortable with things that are ambiguous or unknown

• consumers high in uncertainty avoidance prefer the known, avoid taking risks, and like life to be structure and routine

  • nations that are high in uncertainty avoidance will be slower to adopt new products or react to novel price promotions; consumers in high-uncertainty-avoidance cultures are quicker to buy something because of a perceive fear of scarcity of products

long-term orientation

the values consistent with Confucian philosophy and a pragmatic prioritization of future rewards over short-term benefits

• Guanxi: a Chinese term for a way of doing business in which parties must first invest time and resources in getting to know one another and becoming comfortable with one another before consummating any important deal

indulgence-restraint

a cultural value dimension distinguishing societies based on how oriented people are toward immediate fun and enjoyment vs. restraining oneself from much indulgence in such things

indulgent cultures value immediate gratification, particularly for natural human needs associated with fun and enjoyment

socialization

learning through observation of and the active processing of info about everyday lived experience

• enculturation: way people learn their native culture (the way in which consumers learn and develop shared understandings of things with their families)

• acculturation: process by which consumers come to learn a culture other than their natural, native culture (old beliefs are replaced by new beliefs; children generally become accultured more quickly than adults)

factors that can inhibit acculturation:

• ethnic identification: the degree to which consumers feel a sense of belonging to the culture of their ethnic origins (when EI is strong, consumers in a new land may even avoid learning the language of the new land)

  • consumer ethnocentrism: the belief among consumers that their ethnic group is superior to others and that the products that come from their native land are superior to other products (consumers who are highly ethnocentric believe that it is only right to support workers in their native country by buying products from that country)

how is culture learned? (QOI)

quartet of institutions: the four groups responsible for communicating the CSVs through both formal and informal process:

• family

• school

• church

• media

how is cultured learned? (M&S)

• modeling: processing of imitating others’ behaviors (young children observe their parents and model their behavior)

• shaping: process by which consumers’ behaviors slowly adapt to a culture through a series of rewards and sanctions (the CSV profile of a culture can influence the effectiveness of cultural shaping)

fundamental elements of communication:

• time

• mannerisms/body language

• space

• etiquette

• agreement

• relationships

• symbols

• verbal communication

time

• consumers from some other cultures do not value timeliness in the same way

• americans typically place a high value on time and timeliness

• asian cultures show much more patience consistent with high long-term orientation

• punctuality

mannerisms/body language

• body language: the nonverbal communication cues signaled by somatic responses

• the mannerisms that reveal meaning include the following characteristics:

  • facial expressions

  • posture

  • arm/leg position

  • voice tone

space

• space varies in importance based on pop. density

• the value that consumers place on space affects communication styles

etiquette/manners

• different cultures have different etiquettes for handling various social situations

• service providers need to be sensitive to the various difference in etiquette

relationships

differing CSVs have other implications for consumer-brand or consumer-service provider relationships

agreement

an Asian consumer who responds to a sales appeal with “yes” is not indicating agreement; this is more a way of indicating that the consumer understands what is being said

symbols

• because different cultures have different value profiles, objects and activities take on different symbolic or semiotic meaning

• the symbolic meaning of objects also affects gift giving from culture to culture

• marketers need to take care not to unintentionally promote offensive items based on cultural symbolism

glocalizaiton

the idea that the marketing strategy may be global but the implementation of that strategy should be local

BRIC markets (emerging cultures)

Brazil, Russia, India, China

Chindia

the combined market and business potential of China and India