Week 04
Consumer Behavior · Davood Wadi, PhD
Every purchase is an attempt to move from a current state to a better one.
Motivation is the process that drives people to act when they feel a gap between their current state and a desired state.
A need creates tension. The consumer takes action to reduce that tension.
The same product can serve different motives for different people. A gym membership may help one person seek health, another seek belonging, and another seek status.
Marketers study motives so they can connect an offer with a goal that matters to the consumer.
Drive theory says that an unmet need creates an uncomfortable internal state called a drive.
The drive pushes the consumer toward an action that reduces the discomfort.
Hunger creates a drive to find food. Thirst creates a drive to find a drink.
After the need is satisfied, tension falls and the consumer returns to a more balanced state.
Marketing can remind people of a need or show how a product may reduce the resulting drive.
Leo has just finished a long run on a hot afternoon. Put his moments in the order drive theory describes.
Tap a step, then the number where it belongs.
Expectancy theory says that motivation depends on what people believe will happen after they act.
Expectancy is the belief that effort will lead to good performance.
Instrumentality is the belief that good performance will lead to a desired outcome.
Valence is the value the consumer places on that outcome.
A consumer is more motivated when the goal seems possible, the product seems useful, and the result feels valuable.
Each case turns on one belief from expectancy theory. Which belief is it about?
Expectancy is the belief that effort will lead to good performance. Nadia doubts her effort would lead to a good dinner.
Instrumentality is the belief that good performance will lead to a desired outcome. Tom doubts that finishing (performance) leads to a job (outcome).
Valence is the value the consumer places on the outcome. A faster time is worth little to Aisha.
The ad makes the goal seem possible: a small effort leads to good performance. That is expectancy.
Good photos (performance) lead to prizes and publication (a desired outcome). That link is instrumentality.
The ad raises the value placed on the outcome, so the result feels valuable. That is valence.
Which concept does this case show?
Intrinsic motivation comes from the activity itself, such as enjoyment or the wish to help others.
Extrinsic motivation comes from an outside reward, such as money, points, or a discount.
Many consumers write online reviews to help other shoppers decide. This is an intrinsic, altruistic motive.
Firms often offer rewards for reviews, because reviews guide both shoppers and the AI agents that read reviews for them.
A reward can crowd out intrinsic motives. When people are paid for a kind act, the act can start to feel like a transaction.
The message that comes with a request matters. In a field study with a North American online retailer, asking customers to help other shoppers raised the odds of a review more than asking them to help the company (Wadi et al., 2026a).
In a follow-up experiment, a $10 credit raised review intentions more when the message asked customers to help other shoppers than when it asked them to help the company.
The same reward also works differently for different people. A reward paid only when a review received a “helpful” vote raised the number and length of reviews more for first-time reviewers than for experienced reviewers (Wadi et al., 2026b).
Each case shows why a consumer writes, or stops writing, online reviews. Name the motive at work.
Intrinsic motivation: Sam writes to help other people, not for a reward.
Extrinsic motivation: the review is written for an outside reward.
Crowding out: the reward replaced the enjoyment that used to drive Leo's reviews.
Intrinsic motivation: the activity itself is rewarding.
Extrinsic motivation: the draw is an outside reward.
Crowding out: when a kind act is paid, it can start to feel like a transaction.
Which concept does this case show?
A need is a basic biological or psychological requirement, such as hunger, safety, or belonging.
A want is the specific product or service chosen to satisfy a need.
Culture, personality, and past experience shape wants.
Demand is a want supported by both the ability and willingness to pay.
A marketer can shape a want. A marketer cannot create the basic human need underneath it.
Sort each case: is it a need, a want, or demand?
Tap a card, then tap the group it belongs to.
Maslow proposed that human needs can be arranged from basic needs to higher-order needs.
Physiological needs include food, water, and sleep.
Safety needs include protection, stability, and health.
Belonging and esteem needs include friendship, acceptance, achievement, and status.
Self-actualization involves growth and becoming the person one wants to be.
Consumers can pursue several levels at the same time. The hierarchy is a guide, not a strict shopping sequence.
Match each level of Maslow's hierarchy with the purchase that serves it.
Level of need
Purchase
Tap a term, then the example it goes with.
Approach-approach conflict occurs when a consumer wants two attractive options but can choose only one.
Approach-avoidance conflict occurs when the same option has both an attractive benefit and an unpleasant cost.
Avoidance-avoidance conflict occurs when every available option has an unwanted consequence.
A buyer may want a new phone and a weekend trip, but the budget allows only one.
Strong brands reduce conflict by making benefits clear and costs easier to understand.
Each shopper below faces a difficult choice. Name the motivational conflict in each case.
Approach-approach conflict: two attractive options, but only one can be chosen.
Avoidance-avoidance conflict: every available option has an unwanted consequence.
Approach-avoidance conflict: the same option has an attractive benefit and an unpleasant cost.
Approach-approach conflict: two attractive options, but only one can be chosen.
Approach-avoidance conflict: the same option has an attractive benefit and an unpleasant cost.
Avoidance-avoidance conflict: every available option has an unwanted consequence.
Which concept does this case show?
Involvement is the personal importance a consumer assigns to a product, message, or purchase situation.
Product involvement is high when the product affects identity, risk, or daily life.
Message involvement is high when the consumer pays close attention to the information in an advertisement.
Purchase situation involvement changes with time pressure, social setting, and perceived risk.
High involvement leads to more effort and careful comparison. Low involvement often leads to habit and simple cues.
Involvement also shapes delegation. A consumer may let an AI agent reorder laundry detergent, a low-involvement purchase, but still choose an engagement ring in person.
Values are enduring beliefs about what is important or desirable.
Functional values focus on performance, convenience, and reliability.
Social values focus on belonging, recognition, and how others see the consumer.
Experiential values focus on pleasure, excitement, comfort, or meaning.
Consumers often choose between products by asking which one fits their values, not only which one has the most features.
Each shopper explains a choice. Sort the reasons by the value behind them.
Tap a card, then tap the group it belongs to.
Discussion: Choose a recent purchase. What need or value did it serve? Which theory best explains your choice: drive reduction, expectancy, hierarchy of needs, or motivational conflict?