Some internal psychological factors influencing consumer choice

Posted on by

McGuire, W. J. (1976). Some internal psychological factors influencing consumer choice. Journal of Consumer Research, 2(4), 302–319. https://doi.org/10.1086/208643

Objectif

L’article de William J. McGuire vise à examiner les facteurs psychologiques internes qui influencent les choix des consommateurs, en se concentrant sur les aspects directifs et dynamiques de la personnalité. Les objectifs spécifiques sont :

  1. Décrire les étapes du traitement de l’information (directive) qui canalisent les décisions d’achat des consommateurs.

  2. Explorer les aspects motivationnels (dynamiques) qui activent et orientent ce traitement de l’information.

  3. Fournir un aperçu des recherches psychologiques récentes pertinentes pour la compréhension du comportement des consommateurs.

  4. Identifier les implications pour les politiques publiques, notamment en matière d’éducation des consommateurs (par exemple, sur la valeur nutritionnelle des aliments).

Méthodologie

L’article adopte une approche théorique et synthétique, sans données empiriques primaires. La méthodologie comprend :

  • Une revue de la littérature psychologique récente (principalement des années 1960 et 1970) sur le traitement de l’information et la motivation.

  • Une structuration du traitement de l’information en huit étapes séquentielles : exposition, perception, compréhension, accord, rétention, récupération, prise de décision et action.

  • Une classification des motivations humaines en 16 paradigmes, basée sur des dichotomies cognitives/affectives, préservation/croissance, active/passive, interne/externe.

  • Des exemples illustratifs appliquant ces concepts au comportement des consommateurs, souvent dans le contexte de la communication d’informations nutritionnelles.

Résultats

  1. Traitement de l’information (Directive) :

    • Exposition : Les habitudes d’exposition à l’information sont influencées par des facteurs sociaux (segmentation du marché) et personnels (hypothèse de l’exposition sélective remise en question).

    • Perception : La perception sélective est déterminée par l’attention, les modalités sensorielles et des stratégies comme le regroupement ou la sélectivité basée sur l’intensité ou les besoins.

    • Compréhension : Implique l’abstraction et l’encodage (linguistique ou imagé), souvent à un niveau non conscient.

    • Accord : La crédibilité (source, message, média) et le changement d’attitude sont cruciaux, mais les communicateurs surestiment souvent la résistance du public.

    • Rétention : La mémoire à long terme subit une perte accélérée négativement, influencée par l’interférence rétroactive.

    • Récupération : Dépend de la structure cognitive et des stratégies de recherche (par exemple, pensée divergente).

    • Prise de décision : Utilise des heuristiques (par exemple, élimination par aspects) et l’intégration d’informations (modèles d’addition ou de moyenne).

    • Action : La corrélation entre attitudes et actions est faible, soulignant la nécessité d’évaluer les comportements réels plutôt que les intentions.

  2. Motivation (Dynamique) :

    • Les théories motivationnelles récentes mettent l’accent sur les approches humanistes (Maslow, Erikson) et cognitives.

    • Une classification en 16 motifs (Tableau 1) distingue les motifs cognitifs (par exemple, consistance, autonomie) et affectifs (par exemple, réduction de tension, affiliation), chacun influençant différemment les choix des consommateurs.

    • Les motifs ne sont pas uniformément pertinents ; leur impact dépend du domaine de consommation (par exemple, achats impulsifs vs. achats réfléchis).

  3. Implications :

    • Les communicateurs doivent optimiser chaque étape du traitement de l’information pour maximiser l’impact (par exemple, éviter les messages effrayants qui perturbent la compréhension).

    • Les éducateurs doivent enseigner des heuristiques décisionnelles pour contrer les biais cognitifs (par exemple, en arithmétique approximative).

    • Les recherches futures devraient explorer l’organisation cognitive des produits et les stratégies de recherche des consommateurs.

Points clés pour la pratique

  • Les campagnes de communication doivent équilibrer l’attention, la clarté et la crédibilité pour influencer efficacement les comportements d’achat.

  • L’éducation des consommateurs devrait inclure des techniques pour améliorer la prise de décision, comme la reconnaissance des biais heuristiques.

  • Les marketers doivent reconnaître que les tests de perception ou de rappel ne prédisent pas nécessairement les ventes réelles.

Références exactes citées

  • Allport, G. W., & Odbert, H. S. (1936). Trait-names: A psycho-lexical study. Psychological Monographs, 47(1, Whole No. 211).

  • Allport, G. W., Vernon, P. E., & Lindzey, G. (1951). The study of values (Rev. ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

  • Anderson, B. F. (1975). Cognitive psychology: The study of knowing, learning, and thinking. New York: Academic Press.

  • Anderson, N. H. (1974a). Algebraic models in perception. In E. C. Carterette & M. P. Friedman (Eds.), Handbook of perception: Vol. 2. Psychophysical judgment and measurement (pp. 215–298). New York: Academic Press.

  • Anderson, N. H. (1974b). Cognitive algebra: Integration theory applied to social attribution. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 7, 1–101.

  • Bakan, P. (Ed.). (1966). Attention: An enduring problem in psychology. Princeton, NJ: Van Nostrand.

  • Bem, D. J. (1970). Beliefs, attitudes, and human affairs. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole.

  • Berlin, B., Breedlove, D. E., & Raven, P. H. (Eds.). (1974). Principles of Tzeltal plant classification: An introduction to the botanical ethnography of a Mayan-speaking people of Highland Chiapas. New York: Academic Press.

  • Blumenthal, A. L. (1970). Language & psychology: Historical aspects of psycholinguistics. New York: Wiley.

  • Bower, G. H. (Ed.). (1972). The psychology of learning and motivation: Vol. 6. Advances in research and theory. New York: Academic Press.

  • Bridges, K. M. B. (1932). Emotional development in early infancy. Child Development, 3(4), 324–341.

  • Calder, B. J., & Ross, M. (1973). Attitudes and behavior. Morristown, NJ: General Learning Press.

  • Capon, N., & Hulbert, J. (1973). The sleeper effect—An awakening. Public Opinion Quarterly, 37(3), 333–358.

  • Carterette, E. C., & Friedman, M. P. (Eds.). (1973, 1974). Handbook of perception (3 vols.). New York: Academic Press.

  • Cattell, R. B., & Eber, H. W. (1957). The sixteen personality factor questionnaire. Champaign, IL: Institute for Personality and Ability Testing.

  • Cofer, C. N. (1972). Motivation and emotion. Glenview, IL: Scott, Foresman.

  • Colby, B. N. (1975). Cultural grammars. Science, 187(4179), 913–919.

  • Cole, J. K., & Dienstbier, R. (Eds.). (1974). Nebraska symposium on motivation, 1973: The complexities of sexual script (Vol. 21). Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.

  • Cole, M., & Scribner, S. (1974). Culture and thought: A psychological introduction. New York: Wiley.

  • Cornsweet, T. N. (1970). Visual perception. New York: Academic Press.

  • Dawes, R. M. (1971). A case study of graduate admissions: Application of three principles of human decision making. American Psychologist, 26(2), 180–188.

  • Deese, J. E. (1970). Psycholinguistics. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

  • Dember, W. N. (1974). Motivation and the cognitive revolution. American Psychologist, 29(3), 161–168.

  • Deutsch, D., & Deutsch, J. A. (Eds.). (1975). Short-term memory. New York: Academic Press.

  • Deutscher, I. (1973). What we say/what we do: Sentiments and acts. Glenview, IL: Scott, Foresman.

  • Eagly, A. H. (1974). Comprehensibility of persuasive arguments as a determinant of opinion change. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 29(6), 758–773.

  • Edwards, A. L. (1959). Personal preference schedule: Manual (Rev.). New York: Psychological Corporation.

  • Ehrlich, H. J. (1969). Attitudes, behavior, and the intervening variables. American Sociologist, 4(1), 29–34.

  • Erikson, E. H. (1963). Childhood and society. New York: Norton.

  • Eysenck, H. J. (1962). Maudsley personality inventory. San Diego: Educational and Industrial Testing Service.

  • Farley, J. U., Howard, J. A., & Ring, L. W. (1974). Consumer behavior: Theory and application. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

  • Ferber, R. (Ed.). (1976). A synthesis of selected aspects of consumer behavior. Washington, DC: National Science Foundation.

  • Fishbein, M. (1973). The prediction of behavior from attitudinal variables. Advances in Communication Research, 1, 3–31.

  • Fishbein, M., & Ajzen, I. (1972). Attitudes and opinions. Annual Review of Psychology, 23, 487–544.

  • Fishbein, M., & Ajzen, I. (1975). Belief, attitude, intention and behavior: An introduction to theory and research. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.

  • Gillig, P. M., & Greenwald, A. G. (1974). Is it time to lay the sleeper effect to rest? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 29(1), 132–139.

  • Gough, H. G., & Heilbrun, A. B. (1965). The adjective check list manual. Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.

  • Green, P. E., & Carmone, F. J. (1970). Multidimensional scaling and related techniques in marketing analysis. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

  • Greeno, J. G., & Bjork, R. A. (1973). Mathematical learning theory and the new “mentalism”. Annual Review of Psychology, 24, 81–116.

  • Greenwald, A. G. (1968). Cognitive learning, cognitive response to persuasion, and attitude change. In A. G. Greenwald, T. C. Brock, & T. M. Ostrom (Eds.), Psychological foundations of attitudes (pp. 147–170). New York: Academic Press.

  • Gregg, L. W. (Ed.). (1974). Knowledge and cognition. New York: Wiley.

  • Guilford, J. P. (1967). The nature of human intelligence. New York: McGraw-Hill.

  • Hammond, K., Stewart, T. R., Brehmer, B., & Steinman, D. (in press). Social judgment theory. In M. Kaplan & F. Schwartz (Eds.), Human judgment and decision processes: Formal and mathematical approaches. New York: Academic Press.

  • Holbrook, M. B., & Howard, J. A. (1976). Consumer research on frequently purchased nondurable goods and services. In R. Ferber (Ed.), A synthesis of selected aspects of consumer behavior. Washington, DC: National Science Foundation.

  • Howard, J. A., & Sheth, J. N. (1969). The theory of buyer behavior. New York: Wiley.

  • Jackson, D. N. (1967). Personality research form manual. Goshen, NY: Research Psychologists Press.

  • Jacoby, J. (1975). Consumer psychology as a social psychological sphere of action. American Psychologist, 30(10), 977–987.

  • Jameson, D. A., & Hurvich, L. M. (Eds.). (1972). Visual psychophysics. New York: Springer-Verlag.

  • Johnson, D. M. (1972). Systematic introduction to the psychology of thinking. New York: Harper & Row.

  • Jung, C. G. (1923). Psychological types. New York: Harcourt, Brace.

  • Kahneman, D. (1973). Attention and effort. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

  • Kausler, D. H. (1974). Psychology of verbal learning and memory. New York: Academic Press.

  • Kiesler, C. A., Collins, B. E., & Miller, N. (1969). Attitude change: A critical analysis of theoretical approaches. New York: Wiley.

  • Kiesler, C. A., & Munson, P. A. (1975). Attitudes and opinions. Annual Review of Psychology, 26, 415–456.

  • Klapper, J. T. (1949). The effects of mass media. New York: Bureau of Applied Social Research, Columbia University.

  • Lee, W. (1971). Decision theory and human behavior. New York: Wiley.

  • Lévi-Strauss, C. (1963). Structural anthropology. New York: Basic Books.

  • Lindsay, P. H., & Norman, D. A. (1972). Human information processing: An introduction to psychology. New York: Academic Press.

  • Liska, A. E. (Ed.). (1974a). The consistency controversy: Readings on the impact of attitude on behavior. New York: Wiley.

  • Liska, A. E. (1974b). Emergent issues in the attitude-behavior consistency controversy. American Sociological Review, 39(2), 261–272.

  • McDougall, W. (1923). Outline of psychology. New York: Scribner’s.

  • McGuire, W. J. (1960). A syllogistic analysis of cognitive relationships. In C. I. Hovland & M. J. Rosenberg (Eds.), Attitude organization and change: An analysis of consistency among attitude components (pp. 65–111). New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.

  • McGuire, W. J. (1968a). Personality and susceptibility to social influence. In E. F. Borgatta & W. W. Lambert (Eds.), Handbook of personality theory and research (pp. 1130–1187). Chicago: Rand McNally.

  • McGuire, W. J. (1968b). Selective exposure: A summing up. In R. P. Abelson et al. (Eds.), Theories of cognitive consistency: A sourcebook (pp. 797–800). Chicago: Rand McNally.

  • McGuire, W. J. (1969). The nature of attitudes and attitude change. In G. Lindzey & E. Aronson (Eds.), The handbook of social psychology: Vol. 3. The individual in a social context (2nd ed., pp. 136–314). Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.

  • McGuire, W. J. (1974). Psychological motives and communication gratification. In J. G. Blumler & E. Katz (Eds.), The uses of mass communications: Current perspectives on gratifications research (pp. 167–196). Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications.

  • McGuire, W. J. (1975). Concepts of attitudes and their relations to behavior. Unpublished paper, Department of Psychology, Yale University.

  • McGuire, W. J. (1976). Psychological factors influencing consumer choice. In R. Ferber (Ed.), A synthesis of selected aspects of consumer behavior. Washington, DC: National Science Foundation.

  • McGuire, W. J. (in press). An information processing model of advertising effectiveness. In H. L. Davis & A. J. Silk (Eds.), Behavioral and management sciences in marketing. New York: Ronald Press.

  • Mackworth, J. F. (1970). Vigilance and attention: A signal detection approach. Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England: Penguin Books.

  • Madsen, K. B. (1974). Modern theories of motivation: A comparative metascientific study. New York: Wiley.

  • Maslow, A. H. (1970). Motivation and personality (2nd ed.). New York: Harper & Row.

  • Mehrabian, A. (1970). Tactics of social influence. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

  • Melton, A. W., & Martin, E. (Eds.). (1972). Coding processes in human memory. New York: Wiley.

  • Miller, G. R., & Burgoon, M. (1973). New techniques of persuasion. New York: Harper & Row.

  • Moran, W. T. (1973). Consumenoid. Unpublished paper, Lever Brothers, New York.

  • Moray, N. (1969). Attention: Selective processes in vision and hearing. London: Hutchinson Educational Ltd.

  • Murdock, B. B. (1974). Human memory: Theory and data. New York: Wiley.

  • Murray, H. A., et al. (1938). Explorations in personality: A clinical and experimental study of fifty men of college age. New York: Oxford University Press.

  • Neimark, E. D., & Santa, J. L. (1975). Thinking and concept attainment. Annual Review of Psychology, 26, 173–205.

  • Neisser, U. (1967). Cognitive psychology. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts.

  • Newell, A., & Simon, H. A. (1972). Human problem solving. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

  • Nilsson, N. J. (1971). Problem-solving methods in artificial intelligence. New York: McGraw-Hill.

  • Norman, D. A. (1969). Memory and attention: An introduction to human information processing. New York: Wiley.

  • Norman, D. A. (Ed.). (1970). Models of human memory. New York: Academic Press.

  • Piaget, J. (1952). The origins of intelligence in children (2nd ed.). New York: International Universities Press.

  • Pollio, H. R. (1974). The psychology of symbolic activity. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.

  • Posner, M. I. (1973). Cognition: An introduction. Glenview, IL: Scott, Foresman.

  • Postman, L. (1975). Verbal learning and memory. Annual Review of Psychology, 26, 291–335.

  • Rapoport, A., & Wallsten, T. S. (1972). Individual decision behavior. Annual Review of Psychology, 23, 131–176.

  • Rokeach, M. (1973). The nature of human values. New York: Free Press.

  • Rosenberg, S. (1968). Mathematical models of social behavior. In G. Lindzey & E. Aronson (Eds.), The handbook of social psychology: Vol. 1. Historical introduction/systematic positions (2nd ed., pp. 179–244). Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.

  • Schank, R. C., & Colby, K. M. (Eds.). (1973). Computer models of thought and language. San Francisco: Freeman.

  • Shepard, R. N., Romney, A. K., & Nerlove, S. B. (Eds.). (1972). Multidimensional scaling: Theory and applications in the behavioral sciences (2 vols.). New York: Seminar Press.

  • Slobin, D. I. (1971). Psycholinguistics. Glenview, IL: Scott, Foresman.

  • Slovic, P., & Lichtenstein, S. (1971). Comparison of Bayesian and regression approaches to the study of information processing in judgment. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 6(6), 649–744.

  • Steffire, V. J. (1968). Market structure studies: New products for old markets and new markets (foreign) for old products. In F. M. Bass, C. W. King, & E. A. Pessemier (Eds.), Applications of the sciences in marketing management (pp. 251–268). New York: Wiley.

  • Szalai, A. (Ed.). (1972). The use of time: Daily activities of urban and suburban populations in twelve countries. The Hague: Mouton.

  • Thomas, K. (Ed.). (1971). Attitudes and behaviour: Selected readings. Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England: Penguin Books.

  • Triandis, H. C. (1971). Attitude and attitude change. New York: Wiley.

  • Tulving, E., & Donaldson, W. (Eds.). (1972). Organization of memory. New York: Academic Press.

  • Tversky, A., & Kahneman, D. (1974). Judgment under uncertainty: Heuristics and biases. Science, 185(4157), 1124–1131.

  • Watts, W. A., & McGuire, W. J. (1964). Persistence of induced opinion change and retention of the inducing message contents. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 68(3), 233–241.

  • Weiner, B. (1972). Theories of motivation: From mechanism to cognition. Chicago: Markham.

  • Weiner, B. (Ed.). (1974). Cognitive views of human motivation. New York: Academic Press.

  • Wickelgren, W. A. (1974). How to solve problems: Elements of a theory of problems and problem solving. San Francisco: Freeman.

  • Wicker, A. W. (1969). Attitudes versus actions: The relationship of verbal and overt behavioral responses to attitude objects. Journal of Social Issues, 25(4), 41–78.

  • Wyer, R. S., Jr. (1974). Cognitive organization and change: An information processing approach. New York: Wiley.

  • Zimbardo, P. G. (1969). The cognitive control of motivation: The consequences of choice and dissonance. Glenview, IL: Scott, Foresman.

  • Zimbardo, P. G., & Ebbesen, E. B. (1969). Influencing attitudes and changing behavior: A basic introduction to relevant methodology, theory, and applications. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.