Use of Religion as a Construct in Studying Consumer Behaviour - A Theoretical Perspective

Abstract

Religion being an important part of culture would influence tremendously the way people think and behave. So it is imperative for the consumer theorist to understand the role of religion in studying consumer behaviour. Exploratory research is used to study whether religion is supported as a construct by the previous theory. For investigation in the present study, two patronage behaviour models will be examined, namely Darden’s (1980) patronage model of consumer behaviour and Sheth’s (1983) integrative theory of patronage preference and behaviour. These two models are of particular interest because they are highly commendable as they represent initial efforts at developing comprehensive explanations of consumers’ shopping behaviour (Darden and Dorsch 1989). These models will be studied to find out what are the main attributes that were seen to be important in the explanation of behaviour. In addition, for each model reviewed, an attempt will be made to trace the religious input which might directly or indirectly influence some aspects of shopping orientation.