Delhi University TYBMS Sem 5 Syllabus – Consumer Behaviour

Consumer Behaviour is the study of consumers which involves the study of how consumers think, feel, reason, which helps organizations to improve their marketing strategies. Consumer Behaviour involves tangible products and services.

Consumer Behaviour subject aims to equip DU BMS students with basic knowledge about issues and dimensions of consumer behavior. BMS students are expected to develop the skill of understanding and analyzing consumer information and using it to create consumer-oriented marketing strategies.

Here we present Delhi University TYBMS Sem 5 Syllabus – Consumer Behaviour:

Unit 1 – 15 lectures

1. Introduction to consumer behavior
2. Introduction to industrial buying behavior
3. Consumer needs and motivation
4. Characteristics of motivation
5. Arousal of motives
6. Theories of needs and motivation
7. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
8. McLelland’s APA theory
9. Murray’s list of psychogenic needs
10. Bayton’s classification of motives
11. Types of involvement
12. Role of consumer research
13. Personality and consumer behavior
14. Importance of personality
15. Theories of personality
16. Freudian theory
17. Jungian theory
18. Neo Freudian Theories
19. Traits Theory
20. Brand personality
21. Theory of self images
22. Self- concept and its importance.

Unit 2 – 10 lectures

1. Consumer Perception
2. Concepts of Absolute Threshold Limit and Differential Threshold Limit
3. Subliminal perception
4. Perceptual processes
5. Selection
6. Organization and interpretation
7. Consumer imagery
8. Product positioning and repositioning
9. Packaging as a positioning element
10. Perceived price and quality
11. Positioning of services
12. Perceived risk
13. Situational influences on consumer behaviour
14. Social and physical surroundings
15. Temporal factors
16. Moods
17. Reasons for shopping
18. Atmospherics

Unit 3 – 12 lectures

1. Consumer Learning – importance of learning on consumer behavior
2. Learning theories
3. Classical conditioning
4. Instrumental conditioning
5. Cognitive learning theory
6. Consumer involvement – central and peripheral routes to persuasion
7. Measures of consumer learning
8. Consumer attitudes
9. Formation of attitudes
10. Functions performed by attitudes
11. Models of attitudes
12. Tri-component model
13. Multi-attribute models
14. Attitude toward the ad model
15. Strategies of attitude change
16. Cognitive dissonance
17. Attribution theory

Unit 4 – 10 lectures

1. Influence of consumer reference groups and opinion leadership
2. Types of reference groups
3. Factors affecting reference group influence
4. Word of mouth communication
5. Diffusion of innovations
6. Product characteristics influencing diffusion
7. Resistance to innovation
8. Adoption process
9. Opinion leadership
10. Characteristics and needs of opinion leaders and opinion receivers
11. Interpersonal flow of communication
12. Influence of family as a reference group
13. Consumer socialization process
14. Consumer roles within a family
15. Purchase influences and role played by children
16. Family life cycle

Unit 5 -9 lectures

1. Social class and consumer behavior
2. Determinants of social class
3. Measurement and characteristics of social classes
4. Influence of culture on consumer behavior
5. Characteristics of culture
6. Core value held by society and their influence on consumer behavior
7. Introduction to sub-cultural and cross-cultural influences
8. Consumer decision making process
9. Problem recognition
10. Pre-purchase search influences
11. Information evaluation
12. Purchase decision
13. Compensatory decision rule
14. Conjunctive decision rule
15. Lexicographic rule
16. Affect-referral
17. Disjunctive rule
18. Post-production evaluation

Textbooks and References:

• Consumer behavior – 10^th edition – Schiffman, L.G., Kanuk, L.L. & Kumar, S.R.
• Consumer behavior – buying, having and being – 8^th edition – Solomon, M.R.
• Consumer behavior – Blackwell, R.D., Miniard, P.W., & Engel
• Consumer behavior: building marketing strategy – Hawkins, D.I., Best, R.J., Coney, K.A. and Mookerjee
• Marketing Management – Global edition – Kotler, P. and Keller, K.L.