An Exploratory Investigation of the Dramatic Play of Preschool Children Within a Grocery Store Shopping Context

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to examine the consumer socialization of preschool age children in a peer‐to‐peer context as they participate in dramatic play in a grocery store setting. Design/methodology/approach – This research employs a case study approach as outlined by Yin. A preschool located within a major metropolitan area in the Southeastern USA was selected for investigation. Located within each of the three classrooms was a grocery store learning center. This learning center provided children the opportunity to engage in dramatic play while enacting grocery shopping scripts. A total of 55 children between the ages of three‐ and six‐years old were observed over a six‐week period. Observations were recorded via field notes and transcribed into an electronic data file. Emergent themes were compared with theoretical propositions, fleshing out an overall interpretation and description of the case context. Findings – Findings indicate that even very young children (ages three to six years) are able to successfully adopt and utilize adult shopping scripts within the grocery store shopping context. The children followed a common sequence of behaviors that mimicked adult shopping patterns. Furthermore, the children demonstrated peer‐to‐peer consumer socialization strategies, directing each other on how to perform appropriate shopping scripts. Originality/value – This study differs from previous research in that the data reveal that preschool age children do in fact exhibit peer‐to‐peer influence while enacting shopping scripts. Although research has examined children as consumers, no researchers have used dramatic play to study young children in a grocery store setting. The rich content obtained from observing children in dramatic play in a grocery store learning center is unique to the marketing literature and provides a better understanding of the consumer socialization of young children

Not Just a Party in the Parking Lot: An Exploratory Investigation of the Motives Underlying the Ritual Commitment of Football Tailgaters

This study examines the underlying motives within the ritual of football tailgating and the influence of these motives on ritual commitment. Employing an ethnographic approach, methods include participant observation, informal conversations, and formal interviews. Findings indicate that four basic motivations and the dual nature of these motives perpetuate the tailgating ritual: involvement (preparation and participation), social interaction (camaraderie and competition), inter-temporal sentiment (retrospection and prospection), and identity (collectivism and individualism). The data illustrate that the duality of these motives perpetuates consumers’ commitment to the ritual of tailgating and thus motivates participants to continue tailgating over time. Theoretical and sport marketing implications are discussed

Beyond the call of duty: Why customers contribute to firm-hosted commercial online communities

Firm-hosted commercial online communities, in which customers interact to solve each other's service problems, represent a fascinating context to study the motivations of collective action in the form of knowledge contribution to the community. We extend a model of social capital based on Wasko and Faraj (2005) to incorporate and contrast the direct impact of commitment to both the online community and the host firm, as well as reciprocity, on quality and quantity of knowledge contribution. In addition, we examine the moderating influence of three individual attributes that are particularly relevant to the firm-hosted community context: perceived informational value, sportsmanship, and online interaction propensity. We empirically test our framework using self-reported and objective data from 203 members of a firm-hosted technical support community. In addition to several interesting moderating effects, we find that a customer's online interaction propensity, commitment to the community, and the informational value s/he perceives in the community are the strongest drivers of knowledge contribution

The character and effects of consumer and marketer generated communities

This study deals with two types of customer groups, which focus on a brand, customer generated (CGCs) and marketer generated communities (MGCs). It identifies themes about community in the sociology and marketing literature, develops quantitative measures of those themes, and explains the connections between the interconnectedness of community microstructure, positive community sentiments, and participation at group events and activities. It expands existing knowledge by linking community variables to a relationship with the brand and behavioral outcomes (repurchase, positive referral, and willingness to pay more for the brand). It also provides a framework for understanding different types of customer communities; compares CGC and MGC members\u27 sentiments about the group and relationships with the brand; and suggests that CGCs and MGCs have different implications for marketers. Survey data were obtained from the Winnebago - Itasca Travelers Club and the Wandering Winnies of FMCA. As expected, interconnectedness of community microstructure is positively related to participation at group events and activities and to positive community sentiments. Participation is positively related to community sentiments. Positive community sentiments are positively related to a relationship with the brand, which, in turn, is positively related to repurchase, referral, and a willingness to pay more. Contrary to expectations, CGC community members do not have more positive sentiments about their community than MGC members. However, as anticipated, MGC members have a greater perceived relationship with the brand than CGC members

A primer for the use of internet marketing research tools: the value of usability studies

Website strategy has evolved from a simple web presence to ensuring consumer purchases. These trends make it imperative for marketing researchers to understand the online consumer experience in terms of both the quantity and the quality of website visits. This paper reviews several commonly used online marketing research techniques, suggesting that many inadequately measure the quality of a user's website experience. More recently developed methods found within the marketing literature that rectify the shortcomings in online marketing research are identified, and usability studies are singled out as an effective tool for creating a more complete assessment of online consumer activity

Customer Decision Support Systems: Resources for Student Decision Making

This paper highlights the potential of customer decision support systems (CDSS) to assist students in education-related decision making. Faculty can use these resources to more effectively advise students on various elements of college life, while students can employ them to more actively participate in their own learning and improve their academic experience. This conceptual paper summarizes consumer decision support systems (CDSS) concepts and presents exemplar websites students could utilize to support their education-related decision making. Finally, the authors discuss the potential benefits and drawbacks such resources engender from a student perspective and conclude with directions for future research