Prof. C.J. Jooste

Apparel purchase is an everyday decision process for consumers and the decision is motivated by various consumer needs. As an important aspect in the study of consumer behaviour, the link between South African young adult male consumers’ perception of apparel quality, use of informational cues, and apparel evaluation criteria needs to be established. The purpose of this study was to explore and describe the role of intrinsic and extrinsic apparel features as informational cues on young adult males’ assessment of apparel quality during purchase decision-making. The quantitative research approach involved a structured questionnaire with Likert-type four-point scales to measure the importance of informational cues in the quality assessment of smart casual wear. This study involved a non-probability purposive sample of 330 young adult males between the ages of 24 and 36 living in Pretoria and Johannesburg, Gauteng. The study included purposive and snowball sampling techniques. Descriptive analyses were used to determine the importance of apparel features in the assessment of apparel. Correlation analyses were conducted to explore relationships among the quality dimensions. Lastly, exploratory analyses were done to measure the interaction of demographics and shopping behaviour with the importance of apparel quality dimensions. Results showed that South African young adult male consumers rank comfort most important in their quality assessment criteria, next to durability, in assessment of smart casual apparel. The country where garments are manufactured or assembled is the least important to the young adult South African males. The strongest relationship among the various apparel dimensions existed between extrinsic features and aesthetic performance. The weakest relationship, although positively significant, existed between the extrinsic features and functional performance. This suggests that to some extent, male apparel consumers form links between apparel features as each feature to some extent influences the importance placed on other apparel quality features. Furthermore, findings suggest that male consumers differ in their apparel assessment criteria based on how much money they have for apparel, and that income is an important socio-economic variable in apparel purchase decision-making. Most of these male consumers, although not experts in the field of apparel quality, considered it important to assess apparel for perceived quality during the pre-purchase phase of consumer decision-making. In all, informational cues, although varying in importance, play a role in the young adult male’s quality assessment of smart casual wear. / Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2014. / lk2014 / Consumer Science / MA / Unrestricted

The pursuit of sustainability and the preservation of natural resources in consumers’ product choice and –consumption is a worldwide concern. This research therefore focused on the relevance and inter relationship of various motivational factors in contributing to consumers’ pro-environmental intent to purchase eco-friendly appliances in the local context. Since pro-environmental intent does not inexorably lead to environmentally significant choice behaviour, the study also investigated consumers’ prioritization of environmentally related product features in the pre-purchase evaluation and selection of major household appliances. The perspective of those with increased spending power as well as access to a wide variety of products in major urban areas (e.g. Tshwane) was of specific interest. A store intercept method with a non-probability purposive sampling approach was used to recruit respondents in stores while they were in the process of acquiring appliances. A structured questionnaire was administered in face-to-face interviews. A total of 667 questionnaires were collected, of which 648 were used for structural equation modelling and conjoint analyses. Based on the construct associations specified in a structural equation model, an awareness of environmental consequences related to product choice and consumption emerged as an indirect determinant of pro-environmental intent and represents an important precondition for the formation of subjective norms and moral attitudes. A strong and statistically significant relationship between subjective norms and moral attitudes underscore the importance of a social group’s standards in the formation of an individual’s own moral norms and attitudes. In relation to perceived behavioural control, subjective norms may fulfill an informative role when consumers are less confident in their own ability to comprehensively evaluate and select a washing machine with eco-friendly attributes. A combination of moral norms, attitudes and anticipated feelings of guilt significantly contributed to respondents’ pro-environmental intent, and even though they seemed somewhat less convinced about how easy it is to choose eco-friendly appliances, their intentions to buy such appliances consistently reflect a pro-environmental inclination. Using Sawtooth conjoint software, trade-off tasks were compiled to determine the relative importance of environmentally related attributes in relation to other conventional features in consumers’ pre-purchase evaluation and selection of washing machines. Aggregate results reveal that consumers across various age, income and educational levels prioritise brand and price, despite the long-term financial and environmental repurcussions of product features that impact on the use of natural resources. Based on a cluster analysis, four consumer segments were identified that differ in terms of preference structures. Overall, respondents rely on price and brand associations to guide their decision-making due to their inability and inexperience to objectively assess the environmental attributes of a product, which then ultimately contradicts their observed pro-environmental intent. From a practical point of view, the findings substantiate the development of tailored intervention strategies to facilitate informed decision-making and deliberation of consequences that extend beyond the initial selection of a particular product option. Strategies that emphasize the financial benefits of environmentally related features that span over the entire life cycle of the appliance might prove influential in promoting pro-environmental choices. From a theoretical perspective, the research expands an existing body of knowledge by establishing insight about consumers’ behaviour in a Third-World emerging context. In addition, it provides evidence regarding the application of existing theory and methods to explain the inconsistency between consumers’ assumed pro-environmental intent and their actual observed choices in the execution of a more complex, expensive and significant act of acquiring major household appliances. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2014. / tm2015 / Consumer Science / PhD / Unrestricted

Background Today the hotel industry has become very digitalized compared to when there was only a travel catalogue to look in. Nowadays people search for information about hotels and read reviews from past guests online. There are different kinds of accommodations and lately it has become popular with shared services like Airbnb. With the rise of digitalization the hotel market competition has increased tremendously, therefore it is important for the hotels to keep a good reputation. Services like a hotel stay can be experienced differently from person to person and thus it is important for the service personnel to possess emotional intelligence.  Purpose The purpose with this study is to find out how the consumer behavior changes depending on the reviews. The study should give knowledge to hotel management about how it is possible to improve their relationship with guests by service, reviews and the use of digitalization. This study wants to update the research on the topic reviews and how it affects the consumers when booking a hotel with new information since the technology changes constantly and thus some research about the field in the past might not mirror the reality today.  Method This study was conducted using a quantitative method survey study in the form of an internet questionnaire. This questionnaire contained mostly closed ended questions however there were some open questions that allowed the participants to name a factor that was important for them. The survey used convenience sampling to be able to receive a lot of answers quickly. To ensure that the answers were of good quality anonymous answers has been applied and there was a qualification question that can sort out unqualified and spam answers to obtain the best quality. To analyze the results from the survey, descriptive analytics and statistical inference will be used and compared with previous research. The statistical analysis will be done by SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) and Excel.  Conclusion  The study has come to the conclusion that reviews affect and have an impact on all the different stages in the consumer decision making process. The study also conclude that it is important for the hotel to try to increase the number of reviews since with the rise of reviews the more trustworthy the reviews will be. The study also concluded that it has become important with digitalization in the hotel industry and that 29,5% of the study participants use the mobile app when booking a hotel. Thus, the hotel management must follow and adapt the hotel to the new way of communication.

Background: Macroenvironmental effects are causing change in consumers decision making. These changes can affect the consumers choice of groceries, hence also the purchasing of sustainable groceries. Generation Z are perceived to be environmentally conscious, however the cohort choosing the sustainable choice of groceries are both rejected and accepted by previous literature. Further, Swedish students are facing budget austerity during the autumn of 2022 as the CSN grant and loan isn’t raised until the spring of 2023. With increased inflation, rising living costs, students are forced to make choices that are not entirely up to them. Purpose: The aim of the research is to investigate which factors influence the decision making for Swedish generation Z students when grocery shopping for sustainable food. Further also to research if budget austerity has an impact on choosing the sustainable option when shopping for groceries. Method: The method explains how the qualitative, exploratory interviews were conducted, and the study chooses a non-probable, convenience sample to be able to gather as much data as possible from the students and investigate what the deciding factors are. Conclusion: The findings indicate that there are many factors influencing the decision making for Swedish generation Z students. However, the main factor is the price affecting the generation Z students to not choose the sustainable groceries, one reason could be budget austerity. It is also observed that generation Z students are not as sustainable conscious as the literature reveals.

Background: Digital advertising has changed the way businesses market their goods or services, providing an attractive approach for clients to interact with content. The rapid growth of digital advertising is also associated with its efficacy and cost-savings measures which have seen an increase in digital ads’ exposure among users. However, this could result in negative attitudes towards adverts leading to ad avoidance as a growing trend. Many users apply self-control strategies to prevent the appearance of digital ads through ad-blocking technologies or subscriptions. This movement of ad avoidance incurs financial costs, and loss of revenue and makes it difficult to impact consumer behavior. Consequently, customer engagement becomes poor since users often find it hard to convince probable buyers not to view commercials therefore destroying the notion that advertising is a tool for promotion.   Purpose: This study explores ad avoidance and consumer choice in digital advertisements. It seeks to determine the influence of ad avoidance on consumers’ alternatives, and how it impacts their attitude, perception, and behavior regarding a particular product or service. The research will integrate what we already know and give recommendations on how marketing strategies can be used to mitigate negative outcomes arising from ad avoidance while increasing the involvement of customers with digital ads. Method: A qualitative method with an abductive approach conducted through semi-structured interviews with a focus group was carried through to examine the behaviors and motivations of people who avoid ads. Conclusion: In this study, the effect of ad avoidance on consumers’ mobile phone decision-making journey was explored. The study focuses on the consumer decision-making journey and its effects on purchase decisions. It is established that consumers consciously shun irritating ads which affect all the stages of the decision-making process. Ad avoidance influences the initial phases such as need recognition, information seeking, and evaluation of alternatives. Moreover, it also investigates advertising types, ad blockers, and people's views toward mobile versus desktop ads. Mainly, it highlights trust in advertising as crucial, especially in influencer marketing, difficulties posed by intrusive mobile advertisements as well as constraints inherent to ad-blockers.

No / Electronic word of mouth (eWOM) significantly affects the consumer decision-making process. A number of studies investigated why consumers provide eWOM communications. Existing literature has contradicting factors regarding factors affect eWOM providing behaviour. This study aims to evaluate factors affecting eWOM providing behaviour by performing a systematic review and weight analysis of existing research outputs. Based on the result of weight analysis it was found that the best predictors of eWOM providing behaviour are involvement, self-enhancement, and trust in web eWOM services. Scholars can use the results of this study when making decisions regarding the inclusion of factors in their research. Practitioners can pay more attention to the best predictors.

Background: E-commerce has grown rapidly since the introduction of the Internet, changing consumer behavior and transaction patterns all over the world. Due to that, there has been an increase in CO2 emissions caused by both delivery of products and returns. Some organizations have tried to minimize their emissions by employing different types of policies that have not been perceived well by their customers.Purpose: The purpose of this thesis was to identify the impact of different return policies on consumer willingness concerning online purchases. Additionally, we also investigated consumers’ perceptions of AI-driven initiatives aimed at promoting sustainable return practices.Method: This study was based on a qualitative research approach. We followed an inductive research approach. The reason for this is that we wanted to understand the connections between different return policies and consumer willingness regarding online purchases. As well as the connections between consumers and their perceptions regarding AI-driven initiatives aimed at promoting sustainable return practices. The data was gathered through nine semi-structured interviews.Conclusion: Consumers are increasingly prioritizing convenience, transparency, and environmentally conscious practices. Retailers who can adapt their return policies to align with these evolving preferences, while effectively communicating their terms and conditions, stand to gain a competitive edge.

The phenomenon of sustainability is one of the hottest topics in today's society because ofthe ongoing climate crisis that threatens the well-being of the planet. The fast fashionindustry is one of the world's most polluting industries that is continuously faced withchallenges when it comes to implementing sustainability in its operations. The main purposeof this industry is to produce large quantities of clothing at low prices with a short life cycleto be able to regularly launch new fashion campaigns, which triggers impulse buyingbehaviour among consumers. In order to protect the planet, it is important that there is achange in consumer attitudes, while demands must be placed on fast fashion companies thatcan make them integrate sustainability into their business models. According to previousresearch, there is a weak correlation between sustainable consumers' attitudes and theiractual purchasing behaviour regarding apparel consumption, which leads to the creation ofan attitude-behaviour gap. The fundamental purpose of this study is to find out how internal and external circumstancesinfluence sustainable consumers' buying behaviour and make them turn to fast fashioncompanies despite the positive attitude they initially had. This will contribute to increasedknowledge and understanding of the attitude-behaviour gap and the circumstances that leadto the emergence of this phenomenon. Thus, the study intends to answer the followingproblem formulation: What circumstances influence conscious consumers to purchase fast fashion? The literature review of in the study is based on previous research in the areas of attitude-behaviour gap, consumer decision making process, theory of planned behaviour, externaland internal circumstances. In order to be able to answer the research question, the thesisauthors have chosen to start from a qualitative research method. In the study, a total of 8female respondents between the ages of 24-28 participated and these respondents have beenselected using a so-called snowball sample, in order to be able to include individuals with asustainable mindset, which is relevant for this study. In order for the interview participantsto feel comfortable talking openly about the topic, thesis authors have therefore avoided toinclude family and friends in the interviews. The authors have instead used their contactnetworks to get in touch with relevant respondents to this study. The results of the study show that external and internal circumstances- compromisingproduct attributes, limiting conditions and perceived risk, collectively contribute to thecreation of an attitude-behaviour gap and cause sustainable consumers to choose to turn tofast fashion companies when buying clothes.

While there have been numerous studies directed at addressing the female Generation Y cohort’s fashion consumption patterns, there is a dearth of published research focused on male consumer fashion conscious behaviour, especially not that of the African Generation Y (hereafter referred to as black Generation Y) males. There are global indications that contemporary males are engaging in fashion apparel shopping more frequently than ever before. Moreover, unlike past generations, today’s male consumers have become increasingly fashion aware and fashion conscious, taking care of their looks and developing their own fashion style. Born between 1986 and 2005, in 2013, black Generation Y individuals made up approximately 83 percent of South Africa’s total Generation Y cohort and 38 percent of the country’s 52 981 991 population. In 2013, black Generation Y males accounted for an estimated 42 percent of the South African population. As a consequence of its size, the black Generation Y male market segment represents a potentially lucrative and attractive market for apparel retailers and fashion marketers. Marketers are particularly interested in those individuals pursuing tertiary qualifications given that a higher education ultimately acts as a predictor of their higher future spending potential and an indication of their social standing and influence within a society. The aim of this study was to determine the causal relationships between black Generation Y male students’ need for uniqueness, fashion awareness, fashion consciousness and fashion conscious behaviour in order to model the determinants of black Generation Y male students fashion conscious behaviour. A self-administered questionnaire was administered on a single cross-sectional sample of 400 black Generation Y male students at three university campuses in the Gauteng province in 2013 – one from a comprehensive university, one from a university of technology and one from a traditional university. From the administered questionnaires, 213 were completed and returned as usable. The collected data was analysed by means of exploratory factor analysis, reliability and validity analysis, descriptive statistics and correlation analysis. In addition, structural equation modelling (SEM) was applied to test a proposed model derived from the literature. According to the results of the SEM analysis, black Generation Y males’ fashion awareness has a significant positive influence on their fashion consciousness, and their fashion consciousness has a significant positive influence on their fashion conscious behaviour. In terms of the dimensions of the need for uniqueness, unpopular choice has a significant positive influence on black Generation Y male students’ fashion awareness, whilst creative choice has a significant positive influence on their fashion consciousness, and avoidance of similarity has a direct significant positive influence on their fashion conscious behaviour. Furthermore, the findings suggest that their fashion consciousness is reliant on their fashion awareness, which in turn influences their fashion conscious behaviour. Findings from this study will aid marketers’ in better understanding black Generation Y male students’ fashion conscious behaviour. Furthermore, the recommendations provided suggest marketing strategy guidelines tailored at effectively targeting this market segment. / PhD (Marketing Management)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2015