No abstract

A three‐study examination of young adults suggests that their motivation for status in terms of their luxury fashion purchase intentions is impacted by a bandwagon effect. In Study 1, qualitative research informs what fashion items represent status to young adults, how they view these items, and how they view others owning these items. In Study 2, survey research establishes the link between the motivation for status (status consumption) and purchase intention/ownership of these fashion items. In Study 3, a national survey of young adults examines what mediates and moderates the motivation for status to lead to luxury fashion purchase intentions. Results from the three studies indicate that status consumption has a positive impact on purchase intention of luxury fashion. This research also finds that cultural variables have an impact (mediate) the relationship between status consumption and purchase intention. Specifically, collectivism, uncertainty avoidance, power distance, and masculinity mediate the relationship between status consumption and purchase intention. Finally, the moderating impact of the bandwagon effect has a significant effect on the relationship between status consumption and fashion purchase intention for the cultural variables of uncertainty avoidance, long‐term orientation, and power distance. Implications for marketers are provided based on the findings.

Purpose -The purpose of the paper is to examine the relationship between two age cohorts within the baby boomer group, younger baby boomers (born between 1956-1965) and older baby boomers (born between 1946-1955), based on various behavioral variables. It is postulated that, even though this group is exceedingly large in number, there are more similarities than differences among its younger and older members. Design/methodology/approach -The study sample was a convenience sample and consisted of 295 respondents who were in the 40-58 age category. A questionnaire was administered with scales that were well established and that have been used in previous research. Findings -With the exception of cognitive age, there were no significant differences between younger and older baby boomers regarding a large number of salient behavioral variables. This conclusion suggests that marketers use caution when applying the widely accepted age segmentation strategy of splitting baby boomers into younger and older boomers. Originality/value -The results of this study caution the marketer in further dividing the baby boomers group based on cohort segmentation. The results of this study suggest that cohort segmentation is a viable beginning for dividing consumers into groups, but that other demographic and/or psychographic methods need to be considered in subsequent segmentation efforts for baby boomers.

The current study looked at the effects of attitude toward consumption (positive or negative) on subjective well‐being. This research studied attitude toward consumption at both the personal (micro) level and societal (macro) level and subjective well‐being in terms of cognitive well‐being and affective well‐being. Results indicated that micro attitudes, whether positive or negative, were positively related to a consumer's subjective well‐being. In contrast, macro attitudes were negatively related to subjective well‐being. We posit that these findings could be due to micro attitudes enhancing the person's feeling of autonomy and control. In contrast, macro attitudes may create concerns beyond the person's control. For those who wish to impact societal‐level consumption, these findings provide empirical support for the idea that focusing on the personal benefits of anticonsumption may be more effective than emphasizing larger societal concerns. We explore the potential implications of these findings for mandated vs. voluntary approaches to reducing consumption.

Despite the growth of the Internet, one area that marketers have not really discussed is the elderly's use of the Internet. Given the rapid growth of this population as well as the potential the Internet holds for them, it is a subject worth consideration. This paper discusses the use of the Internet by a national random survey of elderly consumers and the impact of attitude, innovation, and demographics on their use. This study shows that the elderly consumers have favorable intentions towards using the Internet; most learned to use the Internet on their own; and they preferred to learn more about the Internet if such classes were offered at convenient locations. Those seniors with higher levels of income are more willing to both use the Internet and purchase products online; while education levels positively impacted only Internet use. Finally, this paper provides implications for marketers and suggestions for future research.