The Ohio State University

The Ohio State University

Fisher College of Business

M&L 854 - Consumer Behavior

Autumn 2011

MW 1:30 PM - 3:18 PM Gerlach Hall 0355

Professor: Dr. Rebecca Naylor

Email:

Office: 538 Fisher Hall

Phone: (614) 247-6433 (office); 803-586-8987 (cell)

Office hours: Mondays and Wednesdays 3:30 – 4:30 PM and by appointment

Course Objectives

Contemporary approaches to business emphasize the importance of adopting a consumer focus. Marketing, in particular, is a customer-driven function that begins and ends with the consumer—from recognizing his or her needs to ensuring post-purchase satisfaction. In this course you will enhance your understanding of how and why people choose, use, and evaluate goods and services the way they do.

While all of us are consumers, our intuitions about our own behavior as well as that of others are often inaccurate. In this class we will use theories developed in marketing, psychology, and other behavioral sciences to better predict how consumers will respond to different marketing activities.

Course Format

We will use several different kinds of materials and approaches in this course to illustrate consumer behavior phenomena and to get us thinking about the managerial implications of those findings. Material will be presented in lectures, discussions, articles, videos, by guest speakers, etc. We will apply relevant theories and research to real-world consumer behavior problems. In addition, you will be part of a team that will conduct a consumer behavior field project of your choice, allowing you to draw upon the knowledge you gain during class in order to gain greater insight into a specific area of consumer behavior.

Learning Objectives

The primary objective of this course is to provide key tools and frameworks for analyzing consumer behavior in order to solve marketing problems and define effective marketing strategies.

Specifically, you will:

· Appreciate the importance of consumer analyses to the design, implementation, and evaluation of successful marketing strategies and programs.

· Learn about relevant theories and research from the behavioral sciences (e.g., psychology, sociology, economics) that can help marketers understand and influence consumer behavior.

· Apply consumer behavior research when developing and evaluating marketing strategies.

· Understand the strengths and limitations of specific, often competing theories for interpreting particular consumer issues.

· Improve your abilities to discover original consumer insights that go beyond surface-level intuitions.

Course Policies

· Attendance is expected. Your ability to benefit from the course and contribute to the class is largely dependent upon your attendance during class meetings. If you cannot attend class, you will be responsible for everything covered or announced in class.

· The classroom is a professional learning environment, and students’ in-class behaviors should reflect this. Intrusive classroom exits and entrances, systematic tardiness, use of laptop computers for email correspondence, and text messaging are rude, disruptive, and discouraged.

· We should all try to make the classroom atmosphere as congenial as possible to allow everybody to contribute to the class. This does not, however, mean that you must agree with every comment offered by your classmates (i.e., it’s ok to disagree with me and your classmates as long as it’s done in a civil and constructive manner).

· You should come to class ready to discuss the assignment for the day, be it a reading, an assignment you are turning in, a case, etc.

· Late assignments will not be accepted. The only exceptions are for documented emergencies.

Communication

The best way to reach me outside class is via email. I access my email many times a day – much more often than I check my phone messages. If you cannot attend my officially scheduled office hours, you can also always email me to set up an appointment at a different time that works with your schedule. I will use Carmen’s email system to contact you individually or as a group about the class (e.g., changes in the syllabus, assignments, etc.). It is your responsibility to make sure that emails sent via Carmen reach you at an email address you check on a regular basis.

Course Materials

Course Pack (Required)

The course pack is available through XanEdu (www.xanedu.com). This website allows you to purchase a digital copy OR a hard copy. It is your choice, but you are required to buy one or the other for this course. See Syllabus Supplement I for a list of all readings and accompanying discussion questions.

Additional Readings (Recommended based on interest)

There are many text books and popular press book titles that cover issues related to our class discussions. We will be reading excerpts from a number of these during the quarter (listed below). I am also happy to recommend additional books beyond the ones listed.

My first recommendation is a comprehensive consumer behavior text book that you may wish to purchase as a supplement to your course pack:

· Hoyer, Wayne D. and MacInnis, Deborah J. (2010), Consumer Behavior, 5th edition. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Company.

I also highly recommend these books that we will be reading excerpts from during the quarter (you are not required to purchase these, but you may wish to for your own, independent reading):

· Ariely, Dan (2008), Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces that Shape our Decisions, Harper Collins.

· Belsky, Gary and Thomas Gilovich (2000), Why Smart People Make Big Money Mistakes and How to Correct Them: Lessons from the New Science of Behavioral Economics, Simon and Shuster.

· Brennen, Bridge (2009), Why She Buys, Crown Business.

· Gladwell, Malcolm (2007), Blink: The Power of Thinking without Thinking, Back Bay Books.

· Schwartz, Barry (2004), The Paradox of Choice: Why More is Less, Harper Collins.

· Thaler, Richard H. and Cass Sunstein (2009), Nudge: Improving Decisions about Health, Wealth, and Happiness, Penguin.

· Underhill, Paco (1999), Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping, Simon & Schuster.

· Zaltman, Gerald (2003), How Customers Think: Essential Insights into the Mind of the Market, Harvard Business School Press.

Assessment

As required by Fisher policy, grading will be based on relative rather than absolute standards. The average grade in this course will be a 3.5 or lower. A “B” (3.00) average in core courses and overall is required to earn a Fisher MBA degree from The Ohio State University.

Each student’s grade will be determined as follows:

Exam 25%

Team Field Project 25%

Attitudes Group Assignment 15%

Individual Application Paper 15%

Individual Participation 20%

100%

Exam

One in-class exam will be held during the quarter (see course calendar for date). It will be an essay-based cumulative exam over all material covered during the quarter. The exam will be open book/open notes, but you will not be allowed to use your laptop. See the exam review sheet on Carmen for more details (including sample questions).

Consumer Behavior Team Field Project

This project provides a hands-on opportunity to understand specific consumer behaviors. In teams comprised of 4-5 members, students will investigate a consumer issue or puzzle of your selection. You will form your own teams. Projects can focus on product and service categories, brands, media behavior, consumer segments and trends, or any interesting consumer behavior issue. The scope and sample size of the project make it similar to typical, exploratory consumer research projects that marketing departments regularly commission and field. You will summarize your recommendations in a report and present it in class. See Syllabus Supplement II for details, including several milestones that must be reached before the final presentation.

Attitudes Group Assignment

During the lecture on creating and changing opinions, you will be asked to work in teams of 4-5 members on an assignment that involves creating a survey to assess attitudes, calculating attitudes, and using those attitude calculations to develop strategic insights. More details will be announced in class. Note that the team for this assignment does not have to be the same as your field project team. You will form your own teams.

Individual Application Paper

To complete your Application Paper, keep your eyes open for articles or examples that illustrate (or, perhaps, contradict) principles we discuss in class “in action,” so to speak (in other words, examples from the “real world”). These should be from a reputable source (i.e., not from personal blogs, discussions with friends, etc.) either in the popular press (e.g., magazines and newspapers) or academic literature (e.g., articles in academic journals).

It is a good idea to collect these articles throughout the quarter because, towards the end of the quarter, you will be asked to turn in a write-up (approximately 4-5 pages) about one of the articles you have found and how it relates to one of the concepts we have discussed in class (you can bring in other concepts from class in your discussion, as explained below, but it should be clear that the example you have found is an example of a single, specific concept).

In your write-up, please be sure to cover the following topics:

1. Identify and define/explain the concept that we discussed in class that you wish to focus on in discussing the article you’ve found. Make sure that you accurately define this concept; if you’re unclear on how to define it, check the notes, the readings, or the textbook I have recommended as a supplement to your course pack.

2. Explain how the article or example you choose relates to this concept (i.e., why is it an example of this concept?). Feel free to also discuss any other related concepts from our class discussion that are relevant to understanding the example you’ve found.

3. Discuss the implications that arise from this example for the decision maker/business/advertiser involved. For example, are they showing a bias or making a poor strategic decision? How would you suggest they correct it? What do you predict will happen in the future if they make the changes you suggested/don’t make the changes you suggested? Alternatively, are they making an excellent strategic decision? What makes it a good decision/why do you anticipate they will achieve success with this strategy? What issues might they face in the future using this strategy?

4. Finally, please also include either a detailed citation for the article or (if you wish) a print-out of the article when you turn in this assignment.

This paper is an important component of the class. Superficial readings will not be given top grades. Be as integrative as possible and challenge the obvious analysis. Also, if the article lends itself, it is completely acceptable to include additional research about the company, tactic, product, or phenomenon it discusses. Just be sure to connect your thoughts to the initial CB concept you introduce in the paper. Since the paper is due on the day we cover social influence, I would recommend that you not choose a social influence example. Any other concept we cover in class is fair game, though.

Please see me if you have questions about this assignment prior to turning it in.

Individual Participation

Your participation grade will be determined by three components: (1) in-class contribution, (2) quality of non-graded assignments/activities collected during class, and (3) contribution to your team’s field project.

In-Class Contribution. In-class contribution will be assessed based on the quality and consistency of your contributions to the in-class discussions. You are neither expected to have all the right answers in every class, nor to dominate every in-class discussion. However, you are required to be prepared and contribute regularly. The quality of our class discussions depends on how well prepared you are and your willingness to share the results of your preparation with the class. This means that the quality of your contributions is a lot more important than the quantity. It is entirely possible that you can talk a lot and receive a low grade for in-class contribution. When evaluating your contribution to the class discussions, factors such as the following are considered:

· Does the participant attend class regularly and come to class on time? Is the participant prepared?

· Do comments add insight to our understanding of the marketing concept, the problem or situation, or are others left with a “so what” feeling?

· Do comments generate discussion by yielding a new perspective?

· Is the participant a good listener? Are comments timely and do they advance the comments recently made by others? Are they linked to the comments of others? Is there a willingness to interact with other class members?

Quality of non-graded Assignments/Activities. I will periodically collect written exercises/activities that you complete in class. These will be factored into your participation grade as follows:

· Does participant turn in all non-graded activities collected during class time?

· Are non-graded activities high quality?

Field Project Contributions. Your contributions with respect to the field project will also be a factor in assessing participation, including:

· Meeting all milestones on field project by the specified dates

· Peer evaluations on field project (i.e., how did your team members rate your contribution to the team)?

· Turning in evaluations of all field project presentations (i.e., your ratings of other teams’ presentations).

Honor Code

Academic integrity is essential to maintaining an environment that fosters excellence in teaching, research, and other educational and scholarly activities. Thus, The Ohio State University and the Committee on Academic Misconduct (COAM) expect that all students have read and understand the University’s Code of Student Conduct and that all students will complete all academic and scholarly assignments with fairness and honesty. Students must recognize that failure to follow the rules and guidelines established in the University’s Code of Student Conduct and this syllabus may constitute “Academic Misconduct.”

The Ohio State University’s Code of Student Conduct (Section 3335-23-04) defines academic misconduct as: “Any activity that tends to compromise the academic integrity of the University, or subvert the educational process.” Examples of academic misconduct include (but are not limited to) plagiarism, collusion (unauthorized collaboration), copying the work of another student, and possession of unauthorized materials during an examination. Ignorance of the University’s Code of Student Conduct is never considered an “excuse” for academic misconduct, so I recommend that you review the Code of Student Conduct, specifically, the sections dealing with academic misconduct.

If I suspect that a student has committed academic misconduct in this course, I am obligated by University Rules to report my suspicions to the Committee on Academic Misconduct. If COAM determines that you have violated the University’s Code of Student Conduct (i.e., committed academic misconduct), the sanctions for the misconduct could include a failing grade in this course and suspension or dismissal from the University.