Understanding Consumer Motivation

Basic Human Motivations

• The most basic motivation related to survival is physiological needs, which include food, water, shelter, and sleep.
• Consumers may make purchases that are pleasurable or protective driven by hedonic motivation.

Consumer Decision Factors

• Motivation influenced by convenience, cost savings, and safety is referred to as utilitarian motivation.
• Social motivation is influenced by pressure from peers and society, leading to consumer choices based on others' opinions.

Theories of Motivation

• Thorndike’s Law of Effect states that consumers are motivated to buy products that result in satisfaction or positive outcomes.
• Alderfer’s ERG theory includes categories of existence, relatedness, and growth needs.
• According to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, physiological needs must be fulfilled before social needs can be pursued.

Concepts in Psychological Motivation

• The principle of satiation states that once a need is satisfied, it no longer serves as a motivator.
• Individuals are motivated to fulfill desires for physiological and material well-being through their purchasing behavior.
• Alderfer’s ERG theory does not include "self-actualization" as one of its categories of needs.

Principles of Needs

• The main principle of Thorndike’s Law of Effect is that behaviors leading to desirable outcomes are more likely to be repeated by consumers.
• In Maslow's Hierarchy, the love and belonging category addresses desires for satisfying interpersonal relationships.
• The progression principle in Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs suggests that individuals must fulfill lower-level needs before addressing higher-level ones.

Consumer Avoidance and Growth

• According to Thorndike’s Law of Effect, consumers tend to avoid purchasing decisions that lead to negative outcomes or dissatisfaction.
• In Maslow’s framework, desires for continued psychological growth and development are represented in the self-actualization category.