Summary book Consumer Behaviour
Chapter 4 Learning and memory
Learning is the activity or process of acquiring knowledge or skill by studying,
practicing, or experiencing something.
Behavioural learning is concerned with learning as a response to changes in our
environment
- A behavioral view of learning expects a consumer to respond to an external
stimulus, such as seeing a brand of soft drink for sale and, having a previous
positive experience with the brand, deciding to buy it again. Here, environment is
the key to shaping learning and behavior.
Cognitive learning theories focus on learning through internal mental processes and
conscious thought.
- With cognitive learning, we might expect consumers to have gone through a
process of search and evaluation from their memory of previous experiences
(internal) and from, new information available to them (external).
Behavioural learning
Classical conditioning
We examine stinmulus generalization and discrimination as part of classical conditioning.
Pavlov: This led Pavlov to explain the link between the unconditioned stimulus (US)-
thefood- and the conditioned stinmulus (CS)- the bell. The dogs' physiological response to
food is unconditioned and is referred to as the unconditioned response {UR). When the
dogs salivated and there was no food present, clearly they had been conditioned by the
previous contiguity of the bell and the food, thus producing a conditioned response {CR).
First order conditioning
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,The example of Pavlov's dogs is known as first-order conditioning and occurs when a
conditioned stimulus acquires motivational importance by being paired with an
unconditioned stimulus, which is intrinsically aversive or rewarding, such as a painful
shock or food {Gewirtz and Davis, 2000). In first order conditioning the US needs to come
almost immediately before exposure to the CS, which is typically a biological stimulus,
such as food, sex, or pain, that elicits a natural physiological response.
Classical conditioning depends on the continued pairing of the CS and the US. If the
unconditioned stimulus is removed from the conditioned stimulus, over time the response
will be removed. This is known as extinction.
In experimental studies Till et al. (2008) found support for the use of celebrities as
unconditioned stimuli. They also found that highly congruent celebrities would result in
greater conditioning. Associating the basketball player Michael Jordan with a sports drink
resulted in stronger conditioning than when the sports drink was paired with actor Pierce
Brosnan. When thinking about how celebrity endorsement impacts on consumer brand
learning, a key mechanism is evaluative conditioning, defined as the changes in the liking
of a stimulus (e.g. brand) linked to the pairing of that stimulus with other positive or
negative stimuli (e.g. celebrity). Celebrities are chosen because they are well liked or
have other desirable properties. and they are often paired with the brand in a manner
that should promote evaluative conditioning.
Higher-order conditioning
Whereas first-order conditioning relies on the connection between the unconditioned and
conditioned stimulus, higher-order conditioning is the pairing of two conditioned
stimuli. Higher-order conditioning can occur when a conditioned stimulus (CS1) acquires
associative strength through being connected to a second conditioned stimulus (CS2)
(rather than an unconditioned stimulus). The pairing of CS1 and CS2 may occur before or
after the first conditioned stimulus (CS1) is paired with an unconditioned stimulus (US).
In the media this trend is known as 'synchronization', which reflects the appropriate
pairing of song and brand.
Stimulus generalization
Stimulus generalization occurs when a stimulus like a conditioned stimulus elicits a
similar conditioned response. Stimulus generalization stems from the fact that people
often respond in the same way to stimuli that are similar. The importance of stimulus
generalization to marketing is shown in the ways that consumers respond to brand
extensions and private-label marketing.
Most people will be familiar with the shape of the bottle and label on Heinz ketchup, and
this has been transferred to two other products, relish and mustard. Therefore the
familiarity of the ketchup bottle and labelling is transferred to the other products in this
stimulus generalization example. Heinz often uses tag lines such as 'It has to be Heinz' to
enforce the reassurance of choosing a quality brand even if the product is unfamiliar.
Stimulus discrimination
Just as we can generalize from one stimulus to another, we can also learn to discriminate
between similar stimuli. For example, dogs can be trained to discriminate so that they
only respond to the particular sound of their owner's whistle. If a conditioned stimulus is
not followed by an unconditioned stimulus, the response will decline and hence we
discriminate against that conditioned stimulus.
Operant conditioning
Operant conditioning, also known as instrumental learning, was identified by B.F. Skinner
(1953). Operant conditioning is the changing of behaviour through reinforcement
following a desired response.
Skinner showed that learning occurs when behaviour is changed, or modified, as a
result of the outcome of previous behaviour.
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, Positive reinforcement: you acquire learning through behavior, which has produced a
positive outcome
Negative reinforcement: something unpleasant is removed following a particular
behavior, or where you behave in a certain way to avoid something unpleasant.
Neutral operants: when the behavior is not important enough or the response was
neutral.
Weakening response: some responses decrease the likelihood of repeating the behavior
if you buy something but nobody likes it, you are less likely to buy it again
Marketers want to create positive reinforcement for their brand
- Free samples
- Free delivery and returns (internet retailers)
Reinforcement schedules
An important aspect of operant conditioning relates to how and when reinforcement is
applied to behaviour. Reinforcement schedules can be continuous or variable.
A fixed ratio schedule applies reinforcement after a specific number of responses.
Many loyalty schemes will make it clear how much you have to spend before you get
a financial reward. Caffe Nero stamps your card every time you buy a drink, and once
it is stamped for nine drinks you are rewarded with a free one.
A fixed interval schedule is when reinforcement is provided after a specific known
period. A store may advertise that it has a sale three times a year, and customers
may decide only to shop there at those times.
Variable schedules are where reinforcement is provided on an irregular basis.
Skinner suggested that gamblers are particularly susceptible to variable schedules.
This is when reinforcement is present after a variable (unknown to the person
behaving) number of responses. If you play a slot machine you may win a little at one
time and a lot at another, but you have no control over the response. It is the
unknown but potentially positive outcome that keeps gamblers playing.
Finally, a variable interval is when the reinforcement occurs at some unknown but
consistent rate. In the lead-up to festivals, such as Diwali in India, companies typically
have a range of deals and special offers to coincide with the festival. The Indian e-
commerce portal Snapdeal runs Diwali sales on an annual basis. Customers expect
such sales, but they do not know exactly when, and so they may be encouraged to
regularly shop and visit websites to ensure that they don't miss an offer. The
Samsung campaign for Diwali 2013 was typical of this kind of promotion. With the
slogan 'Samsung Home Happy Home', the company invited consumers to choose
Samsung household goods (such as flat panel televisions, air conditioners, and
refrigerators) to make their home a happy place for the festive season.
Learning history
It is our experience of these situations and their consequences that help us understand
new environments. We use this experience, which comprises our learning history, to
adopt appropriate behaviour (Foxall et al., 1998). Therefore, it is advantageous to
marketers to try to ensure that it is easy to learn how a product or service environment
works.
Cognitive learning
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