• Unit 8: The Influences of Class, Ethnicity, and Age

    A person's social class influences what they do with money, and their consumption choices reflect their place in society. Consumers typically purchase products as markers or signs of their social class. These products act as status symbols to allow others to know which class they belong to.

    A subculture is a part of a larger culture with distinguishing meanings, values, and behavior patterns that differ from the overall culture. An array of ethnic, religious, national, and regional subcultures characterize many societies.

    A generation is a group of individuals who experienced a common social, political, historical, and economic environment. A generation's shared location in history lends them a collective persona. The span of one generation is roughly the length of a phase of life.

    This unit covers how a consumer's social class, ethnic, racial, and religious subcultures may impact their purchasing decision. It also examines the typical characteristics of the different age subcultures.

    Completing this unit should take you approximately 4 hours.

    • Upon successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

      • compare how both personal and social conditions influence how we spend our money;
      • identify how a person's desire to make a statement about their social class, or the class they hope to belong to, influences the products they like and dislike; and
      • explain how our memberships in ethnic, racial, and religious subcultures often play a big role in guiding our consumption behaviors.

    • 8.1: Behavior Influences

      Consumer confidence is a regularly reported index and is the extent to which people are optimistic or pessimistic about the future health of the economy. It influences the amount of discretionary income consumers will pump into the economy. The more confident they are, the more they are likely to spend and vice versa. It is monitored as part of behavioral economics, which is concerned with the 'human' side of economic decisions.

      • Influences on Consumer Decisions Page

        No two people make decisions in exactly the same way. We are all influenced by situational, personal, and psychological factors that influence our decisions. Read this article for an overview of these different factors. Then, read the following chapters to discover how each factor influences consumer decisions.

      • Situational Factors Page
        The Buying Task and Market Offerings are two situational factors that influence decision-making. Both are related to the complexity of the purchase. Read this chapter to discover the differences between the factors and how they influence consumer decision-making.
      • Psychological Factors Page

        Psychological factors that influence consumer decision-making are the motivations, learning, socialization, attitudes, and beliefs behind each consumer decision. These can be very complex and difficult to predict. Read this chapter to discover the differences between the factors and how they influence consumer decision-making.

    • 8.2: Subcultures

      Knowing subcultures and their distinct behaviors allows marketers to develop marketing programs to match the unique needs of each group.

      • Cultural Diversity Page

        Understanding cultures and subcultures are critical to consumer marketing. Marketers have made numerous mistakes over the years due to a lack of understanding of the culture and language in their markets. Read this chapter to discover the difference between culture, subculture, and counterculture. Think about the subcultures you may belong to and how marketers should adapt their marketing message to best reach you.

      • Subcultures Page

        A subculture is made of people who are part of a larger society but share a specific identity within a small group. Ethnic and racial groups often share languages, food, and customs. Shared experiences unite other subcultures, such as biking or skateboarding. Some subcultures are formed by people who act or present differently from the rest of society. Read this chapter to examine the different subcultures in western civilizations.

      • Age and Generational Subcultures Page

        Age or generation subcultures refer to people born and living at about the same time who experience the same significant events within a given time. Some of the most recent Western World generations include Baby Boomers, Generation X, Millennials, and Generation Z. Read this article to learn how each generation is defined and how marketers could use this knowledge to better target each generation.

    • Unit 8 Assessment

      • Unit 8 Assessment Quiz
        Receive a grade

        Take this assessment to see how well you understood this unit.

        • This assessment does not count towards your grade. It is just for practice!
        • You will see the correct answers when you submit your answers. Use this to help you study for the final exam!
        • You can take this assessment as many times as you want, whenever you want.