Curtin Business School School of Marketing

CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR 561 Unit Outline Semester 2, 2005 BENTLEY

UNIT INDEX NUMBER HOURS PER WEEK CREDIT VALUE PRE REQUISITE LOCATION AND TIME OF LECTURE

5761 3 Hours Seminar 25 None Tues 5.30 8.30pm

UNIT CONTROLLER BENTLEY OFFICE TELEPHONE FAX EMAIL STUDENT CONSULTATION HOURS

Dr Ian Phau 408-2018 61-8-9266-4014 61-8-9266-3937 Ian.Phau@cbs.curtin.edu.au Tues TBA Wed TBA

Please take note that all assessments (including exams, assignments and projects) are held during term time.

INTRODUCTION In the words of Solomon, People shop, people flirt, people consume and this makes consumer behaviour one of the most fascinating subjects in marketing. How an individual interacts with other consumers, products and consumption situations actually shape the identity of the individual. It is very challenging but nevertheless interesting to understand the process and mechanics of how all these elements work. We have already experienced some latent concepts and theories about how we as consumers make decisions during the various buying situations. Thus, it is not difficult to relate our personal experiences to the conceptual underpinnings presented in this course. For marketers, an understanding of how a consumer selects, purchases, uses and disposes of products and services is pertinent to successfully managing the marketing function. We will therefore examine these concepts drawn from various disciplines such as psychology, economics and anthropology. More importantly, this course is not merely a regurgitation of concepts and theories. Rather, it is designed for you to learn these concepts and theories and to make a conscientious effort to apply them through your analysis of the marketing situations. AIMS OF THE COURSE This unit will: introduce a framework of appropriate tools for analysing consumers instil consumer behaviour and marketing strategy relationships integrate our own consumption experiences with theoretical and conceptual models of consumer behaviour develop the ability to recommend effective marketing strategies. The lectures, tutorials, and the assessments are designed in such a way to attain the above. Curtin Business School encourages students to further enhance a number of professional skills throughout their degree program. The unit therefore facilitates the development of the following professional skills: 1. Oral communication (compulsory presentations during tutorials), 2. Writing communication skills (through exams, projects and assignment). 3. Team working skills (group projects and presentations) 4. Decision making skills (group projects and case studies)

Professional Skills As outlined in the unit outcomes, this unit will provide you with the opportunity to develop the following skills: Professional Skill Communication: Writing Communication: Interaction Communication: Presentation Critical and Creative Thinking: Problem Solving Critical and Creative Thinking: Decision Making Team Work Skill Skill Assessment Exams, Group Projects Exams, Group Projects, Tutorial Presentations Tutorial Presentation Group Projects, Tutorial Projects, Exams

Group Projects, Tutorial Projects, Exams Group Projects, Tutorial Projects, Exams

Information Technology Literacy Information Literacy MODE OF COMMUNICATION

Research for Group Projects Not Assessed

Blackboard is the main mode of communication for new updates, dissemination of assessment/examination marks, tutorial schedules and project schedules. A set of forms and useful information such as peer review assessment, referencing guide, and relevant case studies will also be made available. Please do visit it regularly.

SYLLABUS This unit introduces the role of consumer behaviour and how it is shaped by the social and cultural environment and the psychological foundations. In essence, it focuses on the decision processes in consumption behaviour in different buying situations. This will develop the students' ability to integrate marketing processes at a higher level. For marketers, an understanding of how a consumer selects, purchases, uses and disposes of products and services is pertinent to successfully managing the marketing function. Concepts drawn from various disciplines such as psychology, economics and anthropology will also be examined. TEXTBOOKS Solomon, Michael (2004), Consumer Behaviour: Buying, Having and Being Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall. (Sixth Ed) References In addition to the set textbook, the following references may be useful:

Schiffman, Leon, David Bednall, Elizabeth Cowley, Aron OCass, Judith Watson and Leslie Kanuk (2001), Consumer Behaviour, Pearson Education Australia. Widing, Robert, Jagdish Sheth, Sue Pulendran, Banwari Mittal and Bruce Newman (2003) Customer Behaviour: Consumer Behaviour and Beyond, Thomson, Nelson Australia

Additional Readings There are many other sources of information, which provide benefit further to the prescribed text listed. A number of readings have been included in the text to enable external students access to further material if this is unavailable, however literary information sourced from relevant academic and trade journal articles, as well as weekly/monthly business publications, will compliment existing knowledge gained. In this respect relevant publications include, amongst others: Journal of Academy of Marketing Science Brandweek Business review Weekly Fortune Marketing News Journal of Marketing Advertising Age B&T Weekly European Journal of Marketing Far Eastern Economic Review Journal of Consumer Research Journal of Marketing Research

In addition to this literary information, observation and discussion with relevant marketing organisations and their employees, as well as tutorial [internal students] discussions of current marketing practices should also act as a valuable source help support how students understand the Consumer Behaviour theory-marketing application nexus. LECTURES The lecture will commence in the first week of the semester. The main purpose of the lecture is to describe the underlying concepts and explain how they have been used in industry. Students are encouraged to read the text and relevant papers from journal articles and popular press to enhance their knowledge for this unit. The schedule of chapters is as follows:

DELIVERY MODE The schedule of topics is as follows: Week 2 Aug 9 Aug 16 Aug 23 Aug 30 May 7 Sep 14 Sep 21 Sep 28 Sep 5 Oct 12 Oct 19 Oct 26 Oct 2 Nov Topic Consumers RULE Individual Decision Making Buying and Disposing Exam 1 Break Perception ** Learning and Memory** Motivation and Values** Break The Self ** Culture** Group influences and Opinion Leadership** Attitude Exam 2 Reading Ch1 Ch9 Ch10 Ch9-10 Ch 2 Ch3 Ch4 Ch Ch Ch Ch 5 16-17 11 7-8

** Presentation of Group Projects after Lecture

TUTORIALS (sessions marked with **) The tutorials are aimed to (1) reinforce the content of each lecture, (2) promote and enhance small group learning, (3) foster team work and communication skills and (4) provide a platform for students to present their ideas and research. The above will be manifested through the following: Participation (continuous assessment throughout the semester). Attendance in classes does not constitute participation marks. Presentation (groups of 2-5 to present their group project) Final report to be handed in for assessment. Presentation points are also made through peer review. ASSESSMENTS There will be 2 main examinations, a journal assignment and a group project. The important dates and weighage are presented below. Assessment Exam 1 Exam 2 Group Project Individual Journal Assignment Participation Total Participation on Blackboard Students are strongly encouraged to involve in discussions through the forums on Blackboard. The unit controller will be posting questions on the web after each lecture. You may provide your views to it. Students can also start their own forums. This is an extremely useful exercise for your group projects as you can also incorporate some of the ideas from your peers. Important Dates/Deadline 23 Aug 2 Nov 29 Oct 29 Oct Weighage 20 30 20 20 10 100

FORMAT OF EXAMS

Exam 1 This is only based on Chapter1, 9-10. Refer to the YELLOW Zone of the schedule. You have 1.5 hours to complete the exam. The exam consists of two sections. Section A comprises 2 structured questions each with a number of parts. (20 marks) Section B comprises of 20 multiple choice questions. (Maximum score is 20 marks). You have 2 hours to complete the OPEN BOOK exam. You have to answer all 5 structured questions. The questions are application based. It may be an assessment of a short scenario, a critique of an ad or suggestions for a marketing problem. You must however be able to identify the theories and concepts relevant to each issue. The chapters included in the exam are: Ch 5, 7, 8, 11, 16 and 17. Refer to the GREEN Zone of the schedule.

Exam 2

GROUP PROJECTS AND PRESENTATION

The purpose of this project is to provide you with an opportunity to analyse and present solutions to a real-life practical marketing problem in the context of Consumer Behaviour theory. The bulk of your mark will come from how well you apply the theory. Use the specific terminology as described in the text and illustrate how the theory applies to what you are finding in practice. Use the theory and not simply define the concepts in the textbook. This should be a FUN exercise. Do enjoy. The following are the guidelines:

A series of questions (10-12) will be distributed to the students during the first tutorial. These questions are APPLICATION based and require critical thinking and decision making skills. They will be based on Chapters 2-5, 11, 16-17. Students are to form their own groups of no more than 5 members each. You will be assigned a question and your group will present the project during the scheduled session. A marking guide will be made available to you on Blackboard. The project should not exceed 2000 words excluding references and other attachments. It should start with a cover page available on Blackboard. The entire project should be typewritten in Times New Roman, 12 point font size with 1.5 spacing. Please adhere to all these instructions. Failing to do so will result in marks being deducted. The deadline is on or before 29 Oct 2005. This is to allow you to incorporate the comments highlighted by your fellow classmates during the presentation in the final report. Marks will be deducted for late submission (10% per day after dateline). Please drop your group project in the unit controllers Pigeon Hole by 5 pm.

Individual Journal Assignment

The purpose of this assignment is to encourage students to look around your immediate environment and to identify and to analyse real-life practical marketing opportunities or pitfalls in the context of Consumer Behaviour theory. The bulk of your mark will come from how well you apply the theory. A good guide is to refer to the examples in your text. This will be highlighted in the lectures. Use the specific terminology as described in the text and illustrate how the theory applies to what you are finding in practice. Use the theory and not simply define the concepts in the textbook. The following are the guidelines:

You have to identify one marketing opportunity (Pg204) OR one marketing pitfall (Pg 273). You can work individually or in pairs. You should start with a description of the case. This should be followed by your analysis of why you think it is an opportunity/pitfall. Justify by using consumer behaviour concepts or theories. This can be any part of the text. It can also involve more than one chapter. Each journal must be between 750 to 1000 words excluding references and other attachments. The entire project should be typewritten in Times New Roman, 12 point font size with 1.5 spacing. Please adhere to all these instructions. Failing to do so will result in marks being deducted. Please use the cover page available on Blackboard. The deadline is on or before 29 Oct 2005. This is to allow you to incorporate the comments highlighted by your fellow classmates during the presentation in the final report. Marks will be deducted for late submission (10% per day after dateline). Please drop your project in the unit controllers Pigeon Hole by 5 pm.

Conflict Resolution Processes for Group/Team Assignments In the event of a conflict within Group projects, students must undertake the following process prior to presenting their concerns to the Unit Controller: Students must address issues early (do not leave the problem until the week before the assignment is due) Call a meeting with all group members to discuss a concern or a breach of contract/agreement If resolution is not achieved, request mediation by another student within the class If resolution is not achieved, request mediation by the tutor If resolution is not achieved, present the concern to the Unit Controller Students who are not prepared to work appropriately in teams will be required to undertake the full assignment individually and will be subject to loss of marks for the Team-working component As a last resort, all members will do a Peer Review Assessment and marks will be proportioned accordingly. This will be at the discretion of the unit controller. A Peer Review Form is available on Blackboard.

UNIVERSITY POLICY INFORMATION Students are required to consult the following address to make themselves aware of important information and policies regarding the unit: http://www.curtin.edu.au/corporate/governance/ Supplementary and Deferred Examinations The Board of Examiners may grant supplementary examinations in part or in full to a student who fails the course by a narrow margin. University policy allows for deferred examinations in some circumstances. A deferred exam (for Exam I, II and III) is only granted if students fill in an application form (green form available in the School of Marketing). It must be sent in with a medical certificate within 7 days from the exam. Late requests will not be entertained. Assessment Compliance Information Due dates will be strictly adhered to. Extensions will be granted only in cases of urgent need, and only where formally documented requests are made to the Unit Controller. Results of Exam 1 and 2 will be made available on Blackboard two weeks after the exam. No final results are available prior to the Board of Examiners meeting held after the exam. Copyright Requirements As a student of Curtin you must be familiar with the requirements of the University's Copyright Procedures. Guidance is available to you at the following web page ( http://lisweb.curtin.edu.au/copyright/ ) under the heading Information for All Students. Curtin's Copyright Procedures can be found under the heading Related Curtin Policies and Procedures whilst the Copyright Act can be accessed from the Additional information heading at that web site should you wish to understand the source of the Procedures. Failure to comply with the University's policies and procedures on Copyright and IT/IS use may include suspension or termination of enrolment, fines, withdrawal of privileges for use of the University's ICT facilities and services and, depending on what is copied, stored or communicated, may also render you liable to prosecution in the courts."

Academic Misconduct Please note that academic and non-academic misconduct of any kind will not be tolerated. Severe penalties will be imposed. Students are encouraged to examine the following definitions of undesirable conduct and to discuss them with their tutors/lecturers if necessary:
1.

Collusion occurs when two or more individuals combine their efforts in order to deceive the tutor as to who is responsible for a particular piece of work.

2. A tutor in certain circumstances may permit co-operation, where a joint study effort, class presentation or group project forms an appropriate part of the overall assessment. 3. Plagiarism occurs when students use the ideas, word sentences, diagrams and other forms of work established prior to the particular students submission, without acknowledging the source of the work used. This will include work, done by other students on previous occasions.

CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR 102 GROUP PROJECT COVER SHEET SEMESTER 2/2004 DEADLINE: 28 OCT 2004 Group Name

Group Members Name Student Number Email Address

Postal Address of Group leader This project will be sent back to the group

Name: Address: