The Consumer Buying Behaviour in the

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

During the last few decades it was very conspicuous that dramatic changes were appearing in the business environment. Emerging from a historically economic role the business organization has evolved in response to the ever changing needs of human beings via explosive technology growth and continuing innovations around the world.

This change has created new knowledge needs for marketers as well as for customers. The customers are better informed and have become more sensitive to their self-interest.

The globally accepted marketing philosophy invites the attention of those who are concerned to know about the consumer in respect of their needs and wants. The needs of people on average may be very common expect in very extreme situations.

The abstract of Maslow’s theory on hierarchy of needs highlights the common behavior of human needs irrespective of geographical, racial, or other differences. In this hierarchy it is said that the satisfaction of these identified categories of needs goes in a line one after the other.

When the needs are arranged in the given order the satisfaction of these needs other without skipping certain needs is done through wants. There is a significant difference between the need and wants. Although the needs are common as mentioned above the wants differ from person to person based on the geographical, racial and other differences.

Consumer behaviour is a subset of human behaviour. The behaviour of human beings in their day today activities is affected by various motives, social expectations and other external factors. This link is very helpful to explain and understand consumer behaviour.

The social science that has contributed to explain consumer behaviour such as psychology, sociology, social psychology, economics and anthropology are the mind that monitors behaviour of individual.

Sociology and social psychology explain how and individual behave...