Consumer Psychology (in English)

  • Credits: 4
  • Ending: Examination
  • Range: 2C
  • Semester: summer
  • Year: 2
  • Faculty of Commerce

Teachers

Included in study programs

Business and Marketing

Teaching results

By completing the course, students gain knowledge about human psychology and its use in consumer behavior research as well as in marketing overall. During the semester they will get acquainted with the biological predispositions of an individual as well as with psychological specifics and social influences determining human actions and behavior. They will acquire understanding how, why and to which extent marketing influences people to make their choices.
Graduates of the course will be able to understand marketing incentives and the mechanisms behind their impact on customers. They will learn to distinguish between effective and ineffective stimuli. As a result, they will be competent to decide about suitable marketing strategy that would attract consumers attention, change negative attitudes, or encourage to try a new product.
Upon successful completion of the course, students will acquire competencies that will enable them to not only understand the cause of consumers reactions to marketing 4P concept but also, they will have the ability to anticipate which changes in marketing mix could lead to naturally positive or naturally negative consumer reactions, and therefore they will have necessary insight into when there will be a need to choose the right decisions about changes. They will be able to apply gained knowledge in managerial positions in all types of companies.

Indicative content

Individual psychology. Biological bases of psychology. Structure of the brain and nervous system. Endocrine system. Dopamine responses to marketing incentives. Consciousness and Perception. Sensory organs. Focused and unfocused perception. Subliminal perception studies. Selective perception. Sensory marketing. Weber's law of perception and its application in marketing. Learning and memory. Behavioral and cognitive learning. Selective memory. Thinking. Categorization. Judgment. Problem-solving strategies. Cognition versus hedonism in consumption. Motivation. Emotions. Personality. Attitudes. Change of attitudes and persuasion in marketing communication. Social interaction. Socialization. Peer pressure and consumer behavior. Communication and language. Non-verbal communication. Postures, gestures and facial expressions in interpersonal communication and their importance for marketing. Neuroscience. Neuromarketing studies of consumer behavior. Psychology in Consumer Research.

Support literature

1. Norton, M., I.,Rucker D., D., , Lamberton, C. 2015 The Cambridge Handbook of Consumer Psychology. Cambridge University Press
2. Haugtvedt, C., P., Herr, P., M., Kardes, F., R.: 2018. Handbook of Consumer Psychology. 2018 Routledge.
3. Jansson-Boyd, C. 2010. Consumer Psychology. McGraw-Hill Education

Syllabus

1. Introduction to individual psychology. Biological bases of psychology. The structure of the brain and nervous system and the responsibility of individual parts for the response to stimuli. 2. Endocrine system and its influence on behavior. Studies of dopamine responses to marketing incentives 3. Consciousness and perception. Sensory organs. Focused and unfocused perception. Subliminal perception studies. Selective perception. Sensory marketing. Weber's law of perception and its application in marketing. 4. Learning and memory. Behavioral and cognitive learning. Studies of classical and operative conditioning. Use of associative learning in marketing communication. Strengthening and weakening, rewards and punishments in consumer behavior. Selective memory 5. Thinking. Categorization and cornerstones of thinking. Judgment. Problem-solving strategies. Cognition versus hedonism in consumption. 6. Motivation and its biological activators. Reward (goal) and incentive activators of motivation and their use in marketing. Studies of incentive motivation and its use in setting 4P. 7. Emotions: components, activation and manifestations. Studies of emotional reactions in consumer behavior. 8. Personality. The essence of personality and individuality. Approaches to the study of personality and their use in marketing. 9. Attitudes: essence, structure, process of formation. Change of attitudes and persuasion in marketing communication. 10. Social interaction and the individual. Socialization of the individual and socialization of the consumer. Peer pressure and consumer behavior. 11. Communication and language development. Non-verbal communication. Postures, gestures and facial expressions in interpersonal communication and their importance for marketing. 12. Neuroscience and its marketing applications. Neuromarketing studies of consumer behavior 13. Systematization of the application of knowledge of psychology in consumer research. Etical aspects of use of psychological knowledge in marketing.

Requirements to complete the course

40% continuous semester assessment
60% final exam

Student workload

Workload: 104 hours
Attendance at seminars: 26 hours
Preparation for seminars: 14 hours
Final exam preparation: 64 hours

Language whose command is required to complete the course

English

Date of approval: 06.03.2024

Date of the latest change: 22.05.2022