This study investigated the level of financial satisfaction of the family money manager in relation to socioeconomic characteristics, attitudes towards credit, and credit practices. The population was members of the USU Community Credit Union. Data were collected with a mail survey questionnaire from a random sample of 500 subjects. After multiple follow-up attempts, the response rate was 55.2 percent. The dependent variable was financial satisfaction; the independent variables were categorized into three groups: socioeconomic characteristics, credit attitudes, and credit practices. The conceptual model of this study hypothesized that there is a relationship between the dependent and independent variables. Age, education, home value, household income, and savings were positively related to financial satisfaction. Those who felt comfortable with larger amounts of credit payment were associated with higher income levels and higher satisfaction levels. People with favorable attitudes toward borrowing money to pay for houses were more likely to be satisfied with their financial conditions. Convenience credit card users were more satisfied than installment users. Higher debt repayment-to-income ratios were associated with lower levels of financial satisfaction. Respondents' feeling about their credit obligations was the most powerful predictor of financial satisfaction; people who were concerned about their credit obligations were likely to be less satisfied with their financial situations that those who were not. Concern over credit obligations was not highly related to socioeconomic characteristics or debt repayment-to- income ratio. Accordingly, the subjective assessment of credit obligations was more important in explaining financial satisfaction than the objective measurement of family debt burden such as debt repayment-to-income ratio. Fifty-two percent of the variation in financial satisfaction was accounted for by socioeconomic characteristics, credit attitudes, and credit practices. Credit practices were more powerful predictors of financial satisfaction than socioeconomic characteristics. This result illustrates the importance of credit management as a contributing factor in financial satisfaction.

This thesis sets out to evaluate the role of consumer spaces in twentieth-century daily life. It is not concerned with the act of consumption but rather with the ways in which the social, cultural and educative role of the retail spaces is used as a marketing tool. The links that have been established between civic and commercial space over the last three hundred years are charted in order to locate the reasoning behind the growing tendency to design shopping malls as social and cultural spaces in the twentieth century. Three principal benefits to developers of the retails spaces from the promotion of consumer spaces as public spaces are identified in the thesis. First, links between the public and commercial developed to encourage potential customers into a particular retail space as opposed to its competition. Second, consumer spaces are developed as social and leisure spaces to encourage consumer loyalty. That is, they are developed as a means of encouraging repeat visits. Third, they are developed as a tactic to keep potential shoppers in the retail space for a longer duration. The logic behind this strategy being the more time spent in a consumer space the more goods purchased. The origins of this merchandising practice are traced back to the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries well before the advent of the department store form. The thesis located a number of strategies developed in the seventeenth century by tradesmen and merchants to sell their wares. At this time, it is evident that the consumer space was opened up to the public who were encouraged to enter without the obligation to purchase. Further, it is evident that, by the eighteenth century, shopkeepers and manufacturers' workshops included showrooms where potential customers could sit and take tea. Public spaces were also designed within the retail space so that potential customers could see and be seen. British shopkeepers often linked the retail space with the social practice of promenading by strategically situating their premises in an already established thoroughfare or site used for promenading. By the late eighteenth century, consumer spaces housed entertainment facilities such as art galleries, exhibitions and lounging rooms. After tracing the development of this merchandising strategy to the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the links that can be made between twentieth-century consumer spaces is examined. In addition, the early developments of shopping centres in the 1940s and 1950s are surveyed and their developmental logic and merchandising strategies are compared with more recent forms of shopping malls developed from the 1970s and 1980s.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2006. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

The objective of this study is to investigate consumers in the Taiwan region, the situation that when their due rights were being infringed, they had rather accept the unfair treatment from the manufacturers or suppliers, and will not strive for their own rights. In the consumer market, events of consumer right infringement are happening each day, seriously hindering the market order of fair competition. In this moment of the 2007, what are the thoughts within the minds of the consumers in Taiwan ? What are the factors that influence consumers striving for their due rights? In this study, the following issues were reviewed: relationships between manufacturers and consumers; consumer¡¦s cognizance of consumer rights; consumer protection; the roles of the law; government and consumer protection institutions in consumer protection; consumer education; and, consumer self-protection of consumer rights. A survey questionnaire was developed based on five themes of consumers themselves, consumer knowledge, law, government and consumer protection institutions. The survey attempts to understand the internal views of consumers. Consumers in the northern, central and southern Taiwan were randomly sampled according to population distribution. After collecting 170 questionnaires, the responses were coded and analyzed with SAS (statistical software) using Factor Analysis, one-way MANOVA and one-way ANOVA. Several latent factors were extracted, and the difference between consumer gender, age, education background and living region were studied. The results of statistical analysis indicate in 2007, the four main factors affecting consumers¡¦ strive for their rights are: (1) lack of external protection, (2) lack of self-confidence in claiming their rights, (3) dysfunction of consumer protection institutions, and, (4) lack of consumer knowledge. The results further show that the factors differ among living regions, however there is no evidence that there are differences in consumers gender, age and education background. This study has also investigates the level of consumer rights awareness, and the differences in gender, age, education background and living region in such cognizance. The results of statistical analysis show a very low awareness of consumer rights, and there is no evidence to conclude difference between gender, age, education background and living region.

Thesis (M.S.) in Food Science and Human Nutrition--University of Maine, 2009. / Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 43-47).

Not available / text

M. Tech. Marketing / Environmental research has been growing fast in recent years, especially since global warming is becoming a major challenge to the world. Other problems include: damage to the environment, shortage of natural resources, and continuous climate change. Today, a large number of consumers around the world indicate that they are concerned about the environment; and they consider the environment in their purchasing decision-making. Furthermore, these consumers indicate that they are willing to pay more green products. This study focuses on awareness and the willingness to purchase green products of respondents residing in the City of Tshwane. Furthermore, significant linear relationships between the respondents' awareness, their willingness to purchase, the influence of green advertising, eco-labels, and the social factors in relation to green products were determined. Lastly, differences between respondents' demographic characteristics and their awareness and willingness to purchase green products were statistically analysed.

No abstract available. / Thesis (M.Housing)-University of Natal, 2003.

The consumer knowledge, attitudes and behaviour of a probability sample of English public CEGEP (Grades XII and XIII) students in the province of Quebec are investigated to provide a basis for the development of consumer education curricula. Results indicate that consumer knowledge and/or self assessment is low in the area of personal finances, credit usage and consumer protection. Language and sex are significantly associated with consumer knowledge scores; lower scores are more likely if a language other than French or English was spoken in the childhood home, and if the student is female. Previous courses taken with consumer related content significantly improved consumer knowledge scores. Respondents are aware of their level of consumer knowledge based on self assessment and knowledge scores obtained. Generally, respondents judge school and the family as the most useful sources of consumer knowledge; the contribution of the family is not valued highly by respondents who spoke a language other than French or English at home. Support for courses in consumer education is almost unanimous.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2008. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.