Re-evaluating cross-cultural influence on family purchasing behaviours within an emerging market: India

Abstract

The research and development, marketing and implementation strategies of a product are developed based on the business’s ability to identify and understand consumers household and family decision making. Marketing researchers and company managers have identified the value of cross-border marketing and product distribution, resulting in them and researchers exploring different socio-cultural changes influencing economies. Emerging markets consumers (eg: Indian) provide new opportunities and challenges for businesses and has increased value in the global marketplace. One of its main consumer segments is the ‘family’. The value of families varies across countries, cultures and individuals. Majority of marketing tactics targeting Indian consumers evolve around the idea of “marketing to the family”. This study re-evaluates the understandings of cross-cultural influences on family purchasing behaviours and contributes to the call for understanding the changes in Indian family consumption behaviour following rapid economic and social transformation. More than one individual is involved in the purchasing process within Indian families. Additionally, their individual social, cultural, historical and physical characteristics affect their behaviours collectively and sometimes conflictingly. This thesis analysed 31 articles published between the period of 1999 and 2019 in high impact journals from multiple domains to address how cross-cultural factors have influenced change in family purchasing behaviours in an emerging market (India). Upon analysis, three primary cross-cultural factors have been identified: Power dynamics, Country of Origin and Consumer Ethnocentrism. An anonymous questionnaire was used to validate key observations and conclusions made in extant literature regarding cross-cultural factors influencing family purchasing. Findings demonstrated the following contributions to cross-cultural family purchasing discussions: The anonymous online questionnaire portrayed the attitudinal perspectives and behaviour of consumers in favour of cross-cultural factors initiating and driving the changes in family purchasing behaviours. Findings agree with some research observing that change in family purchasing behaviours, does not mean a complete transformation from traditional to modern developed/western ideologies as other previous research argues. Instead, traditional and modern family practices co-exist. Secondly, the findings indicate power dynamics are more important in the context of purchasing products within the family compared to being conscious of ethnocentrism and country origin of products. Lastly the findings demonstrate the evolving meanings in family purchasing regarding family and power roles, loyalty to the home country and product features with individuals re-evaluating what constitutes as purchasing within a family.