Chapter-3: Culture

Chapter-3: Culture

Culture Defined: Culture is the conventional behavior of a society. It is difficult to present only one definition of Culture.

“That complex whole that includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom, and any other capabilities and habits are acquired by man as a member of society”

“The distinctive way of life of a group of people, their complete design for living”

Therefore, culture is everything that is socially learned and shared by the members of a society. Culture consists of material and nonmaterial components. Nonmaterial culture includes the words people use; the ideas, customs, and beliefs and habits. Material culture consists of all the physical substances that people use such as automobiles, roads, tools etc. The significance of culture in understanding human behavior (of which consumer behavior is a part) is that it extends our understanding of the extent to which people are more that just chemistry, physiology, or a set of biological drives and instincts. The implication is that although all customers may be biologically similar, their views of the word, what they value, and how they act differ according to their cultural background.

Cultural Relevance to Marketing Decisions:

It has long been recognized that culture influences consumers. Researcher observed that all of the activities in which people engage are culturally determined, and that nearly all purchases of goods are made either to provide physical comfort or to implement the activities that make up the life of a culture. Thus an understanding of culture enables the marketer to interpret the reaction of consumers to alternative marketing strategies. National character (differences that are distinguish one national group from another), Differences in subcultures (such as black and white), The silent languages of gesture, posture, food, and drink preferences and other nonverbal clue to behavior, Significance of symbols of society , Taboos or prohibitions in a culture, relating to various things such as the use of a given color, phrase, or symbol etc.

Anthropologists have also helped marketers recognize that consumer goods have a significant ability to carry and communicate cultural meaning. This occurs through a process in which cultural meaning is drawn from a particular cultural world and is transferred to consumer goods through advertising and the fashion system and then from these goods into the life of the individual consumer through certain consumption rituals (media, patriotic, household, grooming, religious, gift giving, eating, holiday, bedtime, business, romantic etc). Notice how such ritual behavior often also moves significant aspects of consumer-behavior processes in obtaining goods and services, exchanging them, or using and disposing of them. Consumption has even been interpreted as the essential ritual of modern life.

The Characteristics of Culture:

(i) Culture is invented: Culture does not simply exist somewhere to be discovered. People invent their culture. This invention consists of three interdependent systems or elements: an ideological system (ideas, beliefs, values and ways of reasoning the human beings learn to accept in defining what is desirable and undesirable), a technological system (skills, crafts, and arts that enables humans to produce material goods delivered from the natural environment) and an organizational system (family system, social class) that makes if possible for humans to coordinate their behavior effectively with the actions of others.

(ii) Culture is learned: Culture is not innate or instinctive, but learned beginning early in life and is charged with good deal of emotion. The great strength of this cultural stamp handed down from one generation to another is such that at an early age, children are firmly imbued with their culture’s ways of acting, thinking, and feeling.   

(iii) Culture is socially shared: Culture is a group phenomenon, shared by human beings living in organized societies and kept relatively uniform by social pressure. The group that is involved in this sharing may range from a whole society to a smaller unit as a family.

(iv) Cultures are similar but different: All cultures exhibit certain similarities. For example, each of the following elements is found in all societies: athletic sports, a calendar, cooking, dancing, education, family, government, housing, language, music, law etc. There is, however, great variation from society to society in the nature of each of those elements, which may result in important consumer-behavior differences around the world.

(v) Culture is gratifying and persistent: Culture satisfies basic biological needs as well as learned needs. It consists of the habits that will be maintained and reinforced as long as those who practice them are gratified. Because of this cultural elements are handed down form generation to generation. Thus, people are comfortable doing things in the customary way. No matter where we go or what we do, we cannot escape our cultural heritage.

(vi) Culture is adaptive: In spite of our resistance to change, cultures are gradually and continually changing. Some societies are quite static, with a very slow rate of change, while others are more dynamic, with very rapid changes taking place.

(vii) Culture is organized and integrated: A culture hangs together i.e. its parts fit together. Although every culture has some inconsistent elements, it tends to form a consistent whole.

(viii) Culture is prescriptive: Culture involves ideal standards or patterns of behavior so that members of society have a common understanding of the right and proper way to think, feel and act. Norms and society’s rules or guidelines specifying what behavior is appropriate or inappropriate in a given situation.

Cultural Values:

A cultural value can be defined as a widely held belief or sentiment that some activities, relationships, feelings, or goals are important to the community’s identity or well-being. Values are culturally determined; this means that they are learned from social interaction, largely form our families and friends. Values strongly influence consumer behavior. It is crucial for the marketer to understand society’s basic value structure so that strategy decisions do not fly in the face of ingrained cultural patterns.

(i) Individualism: The value is complex and closely interrelated with such things as freedom, democracy, nationalism, and patriotism. It is founded on a belief in the dignity, worth, and goodness of individual. People have freedom; that is, they are independent from outside constraint. (ii) Equality: Some cultures believes that everyone has an equal right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, and an equal opportunity to strive for social and economic rewards. One of the most profound impacts during this period has been women’s demanded for equality. (iii) Activity: Cultures stresses activity, especially work as a predominant value. Individuals are expected to work hard, save money. The lack of leisure time can add to lifestyle stresses. (iv) Progress and Achievement: Some societies believe in progress for society and in achievement and success for individual. We are oriented toward the future rather than the past, and believe in change and forward movement. (v) Efficiency and Practicality: Some societies believe in technical excellence and constantly search for better ways of doing things. Our entire economic system is founded on these ideals and emphasizes mass production and mass consumption. (vi) Mastery over environment: Some societies do not like to be controlled by the environment rather they seek to control it. This not only includes controlling weather and harnessing the sun and tides as energy sources, but also extends to area like genetic engineering. (vii) Religious and moral obligation: People believe in Allah, they pray in different ways. Some people believe in different religion. They pray in different ways and have different life style patterns. (viii) Humanitarianism: Some society has a strong sense of personal concern for the rights and welfare of others. We provide aid in mass disasters, have a large philanthropic system, and feel that we should give our money and or our time to such organizations such as CARE, Red Cross. (ix) Youthfulness: Young people set much of the tone of our culture and have been a growing force in our society as their proportion has risen. Marketers have played up the theme of youthfulness in numerous product and services promotions with slogans such as you’re as young as you feel. Underlying the youth theme pervading our culture is the implication of romance. The younger you look, presumably the more attractive you are to opposite sex.

Do values influence consumer behavior: We can see that culture is a strong force in the consumer’s choice of behavior. Thus, marketers have long recognized the importance of appealing to consumers’ value in marketing. Some recent studies have found that commonly held cultural values do shape consumption choices to a certain extent. It is important to recognize that there are differences among different age groups. Each generation has its own personality, attitudes, and lifestyles which appear to change in a predictable circle.

A final example of the application of values has been to explain why consumers choose to buy/use or not buy/use a specific product, why they choose one product type over another, and why they choose one brand over another. A theory of consumption values has been advanced that includes five elements: functional value, social value, emotional value, epistemic (knowledge, curiosity, or novelty) value, and conditional (situational) value. A decision may be influenced by any or all of the five values.

Cultural Change and Counter Cultures:

The core values discussed are not fixed or static, but instead are dynamic. Cultural change may come about slowly in an evolutionary manner or rapidly, which tends to place more stress on the system. The marketer needs to understand that cultures do change and to appreciate the implications this may have for consumer behavior.

Changing cultural values: Death of socialism, English as worldwide language, genetic engineering, growth of cities, no limits of growth, globalization, and human resources development around the world has changed out value system a major shift.

Implication of cultural change for the marketer: (i) Increasing search for fun, enjoyment, and excitement means that a new work ethic is evolving in which leisure activities will occupy more important place in people’s lives. (ii) Expectations for entitlements – as people shift their notions about individual rights and responsibilities and increasingly feel that they are entitled regardless of their ability to pay to such thing. (iii) Self-respect, sense of accomplishment and fulfillment means that consumers will want to live to the fullest. (iv) Rejection of artificial items i.e. back to nature. These changes have significant implications to marketing strategy, including product planning, distribution channels, promotion, and market segmentation.

Therefore, marketers need tracking these changes because they have significant implications for many aspects of marketing strategy, including product planning (assessing consumers’ present and emerging value orientations can help the marketer identify new product opportunities and achieve better product positioning among consumers); Distribution channels (changing consumer value system may lead to different shopping patterns, and new outlets may be necessary to reach consumers); Promotion (new approaches in copy and artwork are called for in communicating memorably and persuasively with changing consumers); Market segmentation (knowledge of consumer value orientations provides a measurable set of variables, related to needs, which gives the marketer insight beyond merely demographic and psychographic dimension).

Cross-Culture and Understanding of Consumer Behavior:

More and more companies have adopted a global outlook in which the world becomes their market.  E.g. Coca-Cola, IBM, Gillette receives over half of their earnings form foreign operations.

The Need for Cross-Cultural Understanding: A general comparative analysis of cultures may help marketing executives to anticipate the responses of their rivals, understand more accurately their customs in business transactions, and deal with colleagues of different nationalities in joint decision-making. Time, thought and communication patterns, personal space, materialism and achievement, family roles, religion, competitiveness and individualism, and social behavior etc. needs to consider.

Decision Area for the International Marketer:

(i) Determining underlying values and their rate of change within the relevant market. What values are generally held strongly with the general market and the intended market segment? What is the rate and direction of value changes taking places with the relevant culture?

(ii) Evaluate the product concept as it relates to this culture. Is this product concept one that harmonizes with current and evolving values? If there are value conflicts with ownership of this product, can the product be changed to fit these values?

(iii) Determine characteristic purchase decision-making patterns. How do consumers make decisions for this product? Which family members are involved in purchase decision making and use of this product?

(iv) Determine appropriate promotion method. What means of communication exist for advertising to consumers? How is advertising perceived among those in the culture?

(v) Determine appropriate distribution channels. What are the characteristic distribution channels for this product? Are capable institutions available for handling this product?

(vi) Determine appropriate pricing approaches. Are consumers aware of prices in the product category? Are they sensitive to differences in prices between brands? How important is price in consumers’ purchasing decisions?

• Consumer Behavior @ Md. Akteruzzaman, Assistant Professor of Marketing, Chittagong University