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The effects of price framing on buying behaviour : does ego depletion play a moderating role here?

Jany, D.N. (2009) The effects of price framing on buying behaviour : does ego depletion play a moderating role here?

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Abstract:Price strategies and the situation consumers encounter in a shopping context influence information and consumer behavior in quite different ways. Numerous price strategies can be seen everywhere in the modern society. Whenever we turn on the TV, look through a newspaper, or listen to the radio advertisements with different price strategies immediately jump into our sight. Price is undoubtedly one of the most important market variables. It becomes apparent from the literature that there are numerous ways of price framing. Specifically, price framing is defined as how the offered price is communicated to the consumer (Briesch, Krishna, Lehman &Yuan, 2002). Framing the same information in different ways can have a great impact on consumer decision making and choice behavior. Studies have lately begun to explore the link between self-regulation failure and buying behavior. Lately, Faber and Vohs (2007) found out that when participants’ resources were depleted they were prone to spend more money and felt stronger urges to buy. Until recently, no link has been made between resource depletion and price framing. In the current studies, we test the hypothesis that exerting regulatory resources leaves people less able to resist sales promotions. We suggest that depleted consumers are less able to function effectively and will accept the price strategy, because they fall back to use habits, routine behavior, and automatic processes. The current research investigated whether the manipulation of the atmospheric variables of volume of music and crowding in the store environment, can induce a state of self-regulatory resource depletion and whether this in turn leads to different consumer responses. A 2 (depletion vs. no depletion) x 3 (40% percent-off vs. 10% percent-off vs. control) between subject design is used where crowding and music are the independent variables. In the present study, we give evidences that exerting regulatory resources leaves people less able to resist sales promotions. Furthermore it is shown that depleted consumers are less able to function effectively and will accept the price strategy, even if they are unreasonable (no price information included and a 40 percent-off discount),because they fall back to use habits, routine behavior, and automatic processes. In contrast, when self-regulatory resources remain intact due to a calm store environment, buying rates are significantly lower and consumers think more critically about their buying behavior. In summary, the results assume that self-regulatory resource depletion plays a moderating role in price strategies. Depletion obviously does influence consumer responses in that it leads to higher buying rates.
Item Type:Essay (Master)
Faculty:BMS: Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences
Subject:77 psychology
Programme:Psychology MSc (66604)
Link to this item:https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/59602
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