[go: up one dir, main page]
IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/ijrema/v29y2012i4p310-321.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Identity-based consumer behavior

Author

Listed:
  • Reed, Americus
  • Forehand, Mark R.
  • Puntoni, Stefano
  • Warlop, Luk
Abstract
Although the influence of identity on consumer behavior has been documented in many streams of literature, the absence of a consistent definition of identity and of generally accepted principles regarding the drivers of identity-based behavior complicates comparisons across these literatures. To resolve that problem, we propose a simple but inclusive definition of identity. Identity can be defined as any category label with which a consumer self-associates that is amenable to a clear picture of what a person in that category looks like, thinks, feels and does. Building from this definition, we propose the following five basic principles that can help researchers model the process of identity formation and expression: (1) Identity Salience: identity processing increases when the identity is an active component of the self; (2) Identity Association: the non-conscious association of stimuli with a positive and salient identity improves a person's response to the stimuli; (3) Identity Relevance: the deliberative evaluation of identity-linked stimuli depends on how diagnostic the identity is in the relevant domain; (4) Identity Verification: individuals monitor their own behaviors to manage and reinforce their identities; and (5) Identity Conflict: identity-linked behaviors help consumers manage the relative prominence of multiple identities. To illustrate the potential usefulness of these principles for guiding identity research, we discuss new avenues for identity research and explain how these principles could help guide investigations into these areas.

Suggested Citation

  • Reed, Americus & Forehand, Mark R. & Puntoni, Stefano & Warlop, Luk, 2012. "Identity-based consumer behavior," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 310-321.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ijrema:v:29:y:2012:i:4:p:310-321
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ijresmar.2012.08.002
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167811612000663
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.ijresmar.2012.08.002?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. C. Miguel Brendl & Amitava Chattopadhyay & Brett W. Pelham & Mauricio Carvallo, 2005. "Name Letter Branding: Valence Transfers When Product Specific Needs Are Active," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 32(3), pages 405-415, December.
    2. Grinstein, Amir & Wathieu, Luc, 2012. "Happily (mal)adjusted: Cosmopolitan identity and expatriate adjustment," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 337-345.
    3. Cohen, Joel B, 1989. "An Over-Extended Self? Comment," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 16(1), pages 125-128, June.
    4. Deshpande, Rohit & Hoyer, Wayne D & Donthu, Naveen, 1986. "The Intensity of Ethnic Affiliation: A Study of the Sociology of Hispanic Consumption," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 13(2), pages 214-220, September.
    5. Hogg, Margaret K. & Banister, Emma N. & Stephenson, Christopher A., 2009. "Mapping symbolic (anti-) consumption," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 62(2), pages 148-159, February.
    6. Belk, Russell W, 1988. "Possessions and the Extended Self," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 15(2), pages 139-168, September.
    7. Antioco, Michael & Vanhamme, Joëlle & Hardy, Anaïk & Bernardin, Lidwine, 2012. "On the importance of social integration for minority targeting effectiveness," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 380-389.
    8. Schmitt, Bernd H & Leclerc, France & Dube-Rioux, Laurette, 1988. "Sex Typing and Consumer Behavior: A Test of Gender Schema Theory," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 15(1), pages 122-128, June.
    9. Zeynep Arsel & Craig J. Thompson, 2011. "Demythologizing Consumption Practices: How Consumers Protect Their Field-Dependent Identity Investments from Devaluing Marketplace Myths," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 37(5), pages 791-806.
    10. Richins, Marsha L, 1991. "Social Comparison and the Idealized Images of Advertising," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 18(1), pages 71-83, June.
    11. Belk, Russell W & Bahn, Kenneth D & Mayer, Robert N, 1982. "Developmental Recognition of Consumption Symbolism," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 9(1), pages 4-17, June.
    12. Avery, Jill, 2012. "Defending the markers of masculinity: Consumer resistance to brand gender-bending," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 322-336.
    13. Leilei Gao & S. Christian Wheeler & Baba Shiv, 2009. "The "Shaken Self": Product Choices as a Means of Restoring Self-View Confidence," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 36(1), pages 29-38, June.
    14. Hollenbeck, Candice R. & Kaikati, Andrew M., 2012. "Consumers' use of brands to reflect their actual and ideal selves on Facebook," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 395-405.
    15. Stayman, Douglas M & Deshpande, Rohit, 1989. "Situational Ethnicity and Consumer Behavior," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 16(3), pages 361-371, December.
    16. Joel B. Cohen & Americus Reed II, 2006. "A Multiple Pathway Anchoring and Adjustment (MPAA) Model of Attitude Generation and Recruitment," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 33(1), pages 1-15, June.
    17. Winterich, Karen Page & Zhang, Yinlong & Mittal, Vikas, 2012. "How political identity and charity positioning increase donations: Insights from Moral Foundations Theory," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 346-354.
    18. Kathryn R. Mercurio & Mark R. Forehand, 2011. "An Interpretive Frame Model of Identity-Dependent Learning: The Moderating Role of Content-State Association," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 38(3), pages 555-577.
    19. LeBoeuf, Robyn A. & Shafir, Eldar & Bayuk, Julia Belyavsky, 2010. "The conflicting choices of alternating selves," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 111(1), pages 48-61, January.
    20. Stefano Puntoni & Bart de Langhe & Stijn M. J. van Osselaer, 2009. "Bilingualism and the Emotional Intensity of Advertising Language," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 35(6), pages 1012-1025, April.
    21. Aaron C. Ahuvia, 2005. "Beyond the Extended Self: Loved Objects and Consumers' Identity Narratives," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 32(1), pages 171-184, June.
    22. van Ittersum, Koert & Wong, Nancy, 2010. "The Lexus or the olive tree? Trading off between global convergence and local divergence," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 27(2), pages 107-118.
    23. Stokburger-Sauer, Nicola & Ratneshwar, S. & Sen, Sankar, 2012. "Drivers of consumer–brand identification," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 406-418.
    24. Malhotra, Naresh K., 1988. "Self concept and product choice: An integrated perspective," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 9(1), pages 1-28, March.
    25. Jennifer Edson Escalas & James R. Bettman, 2005. "Self-Construal, Reference Groups, and Brand Meaning," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 32(3), pages 378-389, December.
    26. Yinlong Zhang & Adwait Khare, 2009. "The Impact of Accessible Identities on the Evaluation of Global versus Local Products," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 36(3), pages 524-537.
    27. David Luna & Torsten Ringberg & Laura A. Peracchio, 2008. "One Individual, Two Identities: Frame Switching among Biculturals," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 35(2), pages 279-293, March.
    28. Klesse, Anne-Kathrin & Goukens, Caroline & Geyskens, Kelly & de Ruyter, Ko, 2012. "Repeated exposure to the thin ideal and implications for the self: Two weight loss program studies," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 355-362.
    29. Claus, Bart & Geyskens, Kelly & Millet, Kobe & Dewitte, Siegfried, 2012. "The referral backfire effect: The identity-threatening nature of referral failure," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 370-379.
    30. Patrick, Vanessa M. & Hagtvedt, Henrik, 2012. "How to say “no”: Conviction and identity attributions in persuasive refusal," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 390-394.
    31. Amber M. Epp & Linda L. Price, 2008. "Family Identity: A Framework of Identity Interplay in Consumption Practices," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 35(1), pages 50-70, February.
    32. Strizhakova, Yuliya & Coulter, Robin A. & Price, Linda L., 2012. "The young adult cohort in emerging markets: Assessing their glocal cultural identity in a global marketplace," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 29(1), pages 43-54.
    33. Mok, Aurelia & Morris, Michael W., 2010. "Asian-Americans' Creative Styles in Asian and American Situations: Assimilative and Contrastive Responses as a Function of Bicultural Identity Integration," Management and Organization Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 6(3), pages 371-390, November.
    34. Muniz, Albert M, Jr & O'Guinn, Thomas C, 2001. "Brand Community," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 27(4), pages 412-432, March.
    35. Katherine White & Darren W. Dahl, 2007. "Are All Out-Groups Created Equal? Consumer Identity and Dissociative Influence," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 34(4), pages 525-536, June.
    36. Albert M. Muiz Jr. & Hope Jensen Schau, 2005. "Religiosity in the Abandoned Apple Newton Brand Community," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 31(4), pages 737-747, March.
    37. Solomon, Michael R, 1983. "The Role of Products as Social Stimuli: A Symbolic Interactionism Perspective," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 10(3), pages 319-329, December.
    38. Lily Dong & Kelly Tian, 2009. "The Use of Western Brands in Asserting Chinese National Identity," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 36(3), pages 504-523.
    39. S. Christian Wheeler & Richard E. Petty & George Y. Bizer, 2005. "Self-Schema Matching and Attitude Change: Situational and Dispositional Determinants of Message Elaboration," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 31(4), pages 787-797, March.
    40. Lane, Vicki R. & Scott, Susanne G., 2007. "The neural network model of organizational identification," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 104(2), pages 175-192, November.
    41. Jonah Berger & Chip Heath, 2007. "Where Consumers Diverge from Others: Identity Signaling and Product Domains," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 34(2), pages 121-134, June.
    42. Derek D. Rucker & Adam D. Galinsky, 2008. "Desire to Acquire: Powerlessness and Compensatory Consumption," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 35(2), pages 257-267, April.
    43. Eric J. Arnould & Craig J. Thompson, 2005. "Consumer Culture Theory (CCT): Twenty Years of Research," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 31(4), pages 868-882, March.
    44. Aaker, Jennifer L. & Akutsu, Satoshi, 2009. "Why Do People Give? The Role of Identity in Giving," Research Papers 2027, Stanford University, Graduate School of Business.
    45. Mochon, Daniel & Norton, Michael I. & Ariely, Dan, 2012. "Bolstering and restoring feelings of competence via the IKEA effect," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 363-369.
    46. Andrew W. Perkins & Mark R. Forehand, 2012. "Implicit Self-Referencing: The Effect of Nonvolitional Self-Association on Brand and Product Attitude," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 39(1), pages 142-156.
    47. Lan Nguyen Chaplin & Deborah Roedder John, 2005. "The Development of Self-Brand Connections in Children and Adolescents," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 32(1), pages 119-129, June.
    48. Sirgy, M. Joseph & Grewal, Dhruv & Mangleburg, Tamara, 2000. "Retail Environment, Self-Congruity, and Retail Patronage: An Integrative Model and a Research Agenda," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 49(2), pages 127-138, August.
    49. Michael Antioco & Joëlle Vanhamme & Anaïk Hardy & Lidwine Bernardin, 2012. "On the importance of social integration for minority targeting effectiveness," Post-Print hal-02312727, HAL.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Son K. Lam, 2012. "Identity-motivated marketing relationships: research synthesis, controversies, and research agenda," AMS Review, Springer;Academy of Marketing Science, vol. 2(2), pages 72-87, December.
    2. Hogg, Margaret K. & Banister, Emma N. & Stephenson, Christopher A., 2009. "Mapping symbolic (anti-) consumption," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 62(2), pages 148-159, February.
    3. Bernritter, Stefan F. & Verlegh, Peeter W.J. & Smit, Edith G., 2016. "Why Nonprofits Are Easier to Endorse on Social Media: The Roles of Warmth and Brand Symbolism," Journal of Interactive Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 33(C), pages 27-42.
    4. Hollenbeck, Candice R. & Patrick, Vanessa M., 2016. "Mastering survivorship: How brands facilitate the transformation to heroic survivor," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(1), pages 73-82.
    5. Hector Gonzalez-Jimenez, 2017. "The self-concept life cycle and brand perceptions: An interdisciplinary perspective," AMS Review, Springer;Academy of Marketing Science, vol. 7(1), pages 67-84, June.
    6. Sassonko, Benjamin, 2020. "The Reciprocal Connection Between Identity and Consumption: A Literature Review," Junior Management Science (JUMS), Junior Management Science e. V., vol. 5(2), pages 246-261.
    7. Claus, Bart & Geyskens, Kelly & Millet, Kobe & Dewitte, Siegfried, 2012. "The referral backfire effect: The identity-threatening nature of referral failure," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 370-379.
    8. Barton, Belinda & Zlatevska, Natalina & Oppewal, Harmen, 2022. "Scarcity tactics in marketing: A meta-analysis of product scarcity effects on consumer purchase intentions," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 98(4), pages 741-758.
    9. Cagri Yalkin & Richard Rosenbaum-Elliott, 2014. "Talking Fashion in Female Friendship Groups: Negotiating the Necessary Marketplace Skills and Knowledge," Journal of Consumer Policy, Springer, vol. 37(2), pages 301-331, June.
    10. Fetscherin, Marc & Heinrich, Daniel, 2015. "Consumer brand relationships research: A bibliometric citation meta-analysis," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 68(2), pages 380-390.
    11. Voyer, Benjamin G. & Kastanakis, Minas N. & Rhode, Ann Kristin, 2017. "Co-creating stakeholder and brand identities: A cross-cultural consumer perspective," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 399-410.
    12. Jerónimo, Rita & Ramos, Tânia & Ferreira, Mário B., 2018. "Trait transference from brands to individuals: The impact of brand-behavior congruency," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 54-65.
    13. Gurzki, Hannes & Woisetschläger, David M., 2017. "Mapping the luxury research landscape: A bibliometric citation analysis," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 147-166.
    14. repec:dau:papers:123456789/3624 is not listed on IDEAS
    15. Wolter, Jeremy S. & Brach, Simon & Cronin, J. Joseph & Bonn, Mark, 2016. "Symbolic drivers of consumer–brand identification and disidentification," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(2), pages 785-793.
    16. Thomas, Veronica L. & Yeh, Marie & Jewell, Robert D., 2015. "Enhancing valuation: the impact of self-congruence with a brand on the endowment effect," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 178-185.
    17. Dogerlioglu-Demir, Kivilcim & Tansuhaj, Patriya & Cote, Joseph & Akpinar, Ezgi, 2017. "Value integration effects on evaluations of retro brands," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 124-130.
    18. Aurélie Hemonnet-Goujot & Pierre Valette-Florence, 2022. "“All you need is love”. From product design value perception to luxury brand love: An integrated framework," Post-Print hal-03562015, HAL.
    19. Angle, Justin W. & Forehand, Mark R., 2016. "It's not us, it's you: How threatening self-brand association leads to brand pursuit," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 33(1), pages 183-197.
    20. Ekinci, Yuksel & Sirakaya-Turk, Ercan & Preciado, Sandra, 2013. "Symbolic consumption of tourism destination brands," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 66(6), pages 711-718.
    21. Carnevale, Marina & Luna, David & Lerman, Dawn, 2017. "Brand linguistics: A theory-driven framework for the study of language in branding," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 34(2), pages 572-591.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Identity; Consumer behavior;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:ijrema:v:29:y:2012:i:4:p:310-321. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/international-journal-of-research-in-marketing/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.