Marketing 320 (A2 – Fall 2004) Consumer Behaviour
Course Syllabus
Instructor: Lingjing Zhan Time: TR 12:30-13:50 Location: BUS 1-5 Office: BUS 2-32A
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: http://courses.bus.ualberta.ca/mark320-zhan Office hours: Thursday 14:00- 16:00
Course Objectives:
The objective of this course is to help students understand and interpret how consumers make decisions in their consumption process, by introducing key terms, concepts, and theoretical models in the field of consumer behaviour research. We will primarily study the consumer decision making process and examine the factors (internal and external) that affect the process.
Required Text:
Hoyer, Wayne D. and Deborah McInnis (2004), Consumer Behaviour Third Edition, Houghton Mifflin.
Partial lecture notes will be provided prior to each class on the course website, with additional information provided during class. Some concepts discussed in the text will be emphasized during class, and new concepts not found in the text will be
introduced. You are responsible for keeping up with the readings prior to each class.
Grading:
Grades will be determined as follows:
Assignments (3 x 5%) 15%
Mid-Term Exam I 30%
Mid-Term Exam II 30%
Group Project 25%
Overall Course Grade 100%
The University of Alberta uses a letter grading system with a four-point scale of numerical equivalents for calculating grade point averages. Grade points reflect judgments of student achievement made by the instructor. These judgments are based on a combination of absolute achievement and relative performance in a class.
Grades will be awarded according to the method and distributions recommended in the University of Alberta Marking and Grading Guidelines as approved by the General Faculties Council.
Assignments:
A good way to learn consumer behaviour concepts and theories is to use them to understand and interpret our own real life purchase, decision making and marketing experiences. During the course of the term, three assignments will be undertaken to serve this goal. Each assignment will be posted on the course website and students will have about two weeks to complete it. Students are required to do these
assignments individually.
Each assignment must be:
- Between 2-4 pages - Double spaced
- 11 point font (your choice between Arial and Times New Roman) - Margins, header and footer are 1 inch wide
Exams:
There are two mid-term exams and no final exam. The exams will consist of 20 multiple choice and 4 short-answer questions based on lecture materials and the textbook. The mid-term exams are designed to test your understanding of basic consumer behaviour concepts and your ability to apply those concepts in various situations.
Mid-Term Exam I will cover chapters 1 – 8 and lecture materials up to and including October 5. Mid-Term Exam II will cover chapters 9 – 11, 14 and 15 and lecture materials up to and including November 9. Exams are NOT cumulative.
Marking of exams will be determined as follows:
Multiple choice (20 x 2%) 40%
Short-answer (4 x 15%) 60%
Mid-Term Exam Grade 100%
Group Project:
The group project is an opportunity to show a student’s ability to recognize, analyze and make managerial suggestions for real-world marketing problems, as well as to work in groups and accomplish tasks as a member of a team. You will need to form a group of five people (no more, no less). It could be a consulting project that is closely related to a real-world company, or a more theoretical examination of a topic in the consumer behaviour area.
If you choose to do a consulting project, consider yourselves a marketing consulting firm who has been hired to assist a client with an issue related to consumer
behaviour. Each project must be in collaboration with a real-world company or organization. Usually an initial interview with the client is required. The ultimate goal is to produce a document that the client can use to improve their ability to address the issue specified in the project, by implementing tangible actions that will likely lead to desired changes in the consumers’ behaviour.
If you are interested in a general consumer behaviour topic that is not limited to a specific company or organization, you need to explain your motivation (why you
think it is worth your effort), identify related issues, and do the discussion by connecting theoretical findings to marketing practices. You may use theoretical findings to explain marketing phenomena or to solve existing marketing problems, or use marketing practices to test theoretical models, and/or propose questions for future consumer behaviour research.
In either case, analysis of the problem/topic in terms of the psychology of the consumer, the decision making process, and the consumer’s culture (you may place emphasis on one or two of them) will be the ideal approach. The topic needs not to be covered in class or in the text.
All projects must be chosen by October 5 at the latest. Final report must be:
- Between 15 - 20 pages, NOT including appendices - Double spaced
- 11 point font (your choice between Arial and Times New Roman) - Margins, header and footer are 1 inch wide
Marking of the Group Project will be determined as follows:
Breadth 15%
Depth 35%
Managerial suggestions or applications 10%
Professionalism 10%
Presentation 20%
Inter-Group Evaluation 10%
Group Project Grade 100%
Breadth refers to the selection of the most appropriate consumer behaviour
concepts that apply in the given context. Not every concept discussed in class and in the textbook will be relevant, choose the ones that your group feels will are most applicable. Discussion of these concepts in a clear, concise and logical fashion is critical for readers and audiences to understand the value of the topic.
Depth refers to the extent to which consumer behaviour concepts are discussed and applied in the given context. Supporting research found in academic journals,
newspapers, Internet sites, business magazines, trade publications and other external sources will be useful. Primary research in the form of surveys, interviews and/or focus groups may help in your understanding of the issue.
I consider academic journals to be the best source for supporting evidence on a conceptual level, whereas business magazines and other sources provide
evidence at a practical level. Some academic journals to consider include Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Psychology, Journal of Advertising, Journal of Advertising Research, Psychology and Marketing, etc. If no supporting evidence can be found for your points/assumptions, then it is even more critical that you address the reasons for your statements.
An example of a reference is shown below:
Shimp, A. Terence and Elnora W. Stuart (2004), “The Role of Disgust as an Emotional Mediator of Advertising Effects,” Journal of Advertising, 33 (1), pp.
29-42.
Managerial suggestions or applications should reflect the extent to which your project combines theory with practice.
Report professionalism helps make good content even better, and can sometimes disguise bad content. Regardless of the quality of your content, the report needs to look like it was worth everyone’s time and effort. Pay attention to the spelling, grammar, and the general appearance of the report. Consider the use of flow diagrams, bullet points, tables and illustrations when applicable.
Presentations will be peer-evaluated in class after each presentation is completed*.
Inter-Group Evaluation will be done between members of your group. Other group members will evaluate your contribution to the project in terms of*:
o Effort and time spent on the project o Quality of the work done
Effort and quality will be equally weighted and averaged among all evaluations.
Evaluations of each group member can be sent to me (in confidence) via email no later than midnight December 16. Each group member MUST evaluate every other group member. If you neglect to evaluate a group member, for each missing evaluation you will be penalized 2.5% of your own project grade.
*Evaluations should be judged on a scale of 1 to 5 where 1 = Very Weak, 2 = Somewhat Weak, 3 = Acceptable, 4 = Good, 5 = Excellent.
Academic Integrity:
The University of Alberta is committed to the highest standards of academic integrity and honesty. Students are expected to be familiar with these standards regarding academic honesty and to uphold the policies of the University in this respect.
Students are particularly urged to familiarize themselves with the provisions of the Code of Student Behaviour (online at www.ualberta.ca/secretariat/appeals.htm) and avoid any behaviour which could potentially result in suspicions of cheating,
plagiarism, misrepresentation of facts and/or participation in an offence. Academic dishonesty is a serious offence and can result in suspension or expulsion from the University.
Policy about course outlines can be found in Section 23.4(2) of the University Calendar.
Class Schedule (Tentative):
Dates Chapter Notes Assignment/
Project Thu Sept 9 1/2 Course Introduction & Understanding CB
Tue Sept 14 3 Motivation, Ability and Opportunity Assignment 1 assigned Thu Sept 16 4 Exposure, Attention and Perception Groups formed Tue Sept 21 5 Knowledge and Understanding
Thu Sept 23 6 Attitudes Based on High Consumer Effort Assignment 1 due Tue Sept 28 7 Attitudes Based on Low Consumer Effort
Thu Sept 30 8 Memory and Retrieval
Tue Oct 5 - Review class Assignment 2
assigned. Projects chosen.
Thu Oct 7 - Mid-Term Exam I
Tue Oct 12 9 Problem Recognition and Information Search
Thu Oct 14 10 Judgment and Decision Making I Assignment 2 due Tue Oct 19 - Midterm I Review
Thu Oct 21 10/11 Judgment and Decision Making II
Tue Oct 26 10/11 Judgment and Decision Making III Project outline submitted Thu Oct 28 10/11 Judgment and Decision Making IV
Tue Nov 2 14 Social Class Influences on CB
Thu Nov 4 15 Age, Gender, and Household Influences on CB
Tue Nov 9 - Review Class for Midterm II Inter-group project evaluation I
Tue Nov 16 - Mid-Term Exam II Assignment 3
assigned Thu Nov 18 - Group Project time
Tue Nov 23 Mid-Term II after-exam review and mental accounting
Thu Nov 25 13 Regional, Ethnic, and Religious Influences
on CB Assignment 3 due
Tue Nov 30 Guest speaker: "Cooperative Behaviour...
Is It Worth It?"
Thu Dec 2 - Presentations
Tue Dec 7 - Presentations
Thu Dec 16 - Report due
(midnight) Other Important Dates:
Tue, Sept 21 Course Registration Deadline (50% fees applied after 21st) Thu, Sept 30 Tuition Payment Deadline
Fri, Oct 8 Course Refund Deadline (100% fees applied after 8th) Mon, Oct 11 Thanksgiving (no class)
Oct 25 – 29 Mid-Term Week
Wed, Nov 10 Course Withdrawal Deadline Thu, Nov 11 Remembrance Day (no class) Fri, Nov 12 Fall Term Class Break (no class)
