abstract: The members of Generation Z are often referred to as "digital natives," having been born between 1995–2012, into a time of significant technological advancements. Members of Generation Z were between the ages of 7–24 years old in 2019. The world Generation Z knows has been impacted by the current technological environment including the use of personal smartphones and smart devices, the rise in social media use, and the preference of texting and instant messaging over voice/phone communications. The oldest members of Generation Z are just starting to enter the workforce. While there are studies on Generation Z's personal communication preferences and habits, there is very little research how these preferences and habits will impact business communication. This study examines specifically the older members of Generation Z, between ages 18–24 years old, who are currently in the workforce. The study gives insight into how Generation Z's personal communication habits are impacting their expectations of business communication.. The study includes results of a survey of 207 participants and in-depth interviews with six Generation Z members. The survey included both quantitative multiple choice and qualitative open-ended questions on the respondents’ personal and workplace communication habits and expectations. The in-depth interviews expanded on the findings of the survey and added additional context to many of the survey's findings. Through researching the habits and expectations of members of Generation Z who are currently in the workplace, the study uncovered many unexpected attitudes and behaviors among working Generation Z respondents. These insights include: the respondents’ awareness of the negatives of technology usage, differences in personal preferences and professional behaviors, the self-regulation of technology usage, and the concern for boundaries between personal and work life. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Technical Communication 2020

The purpose of this study is to gain a deeper understanding of Gen Z’s structure in the buying decision-making process and how they value environmental sustainability within the fashion industry. In this context, the following research questions was formulated: (1) What structure does the buyer decision-making process follow for Gen Z when it comes to apparel shopping? (2) How does Gen Z value environmental sustainability when buying apparel?    Theories used in the literature review have included the main concepts of sustainability in the fashion industry, the buyer decision-making process and Gen Z. In order to clarify the relationship between the main concepts a conceptual framework was presented, which together with the theoretical framework was used to analyse the empirical data. The empirical data of this study refers to the collection of multiple interviews with individuals born between 1996-2002. By following a qualitative research method an understanding of Gen Z´s shopping behaviour and whether they are affected by environmental issues was collected. With regard to the concept being a relatively unexplored area in the business research, this thesis is based on a deductive research approach. It was concluded that the Gen Z does not follow the traditional structure of the buyer decision-making process and do not value environmental sustainability when buying apparel. Finally, the minority purchasing sustainable apparel have a higher involvement in their buyer decision-making process due to their motivation towards sustainable choices.

Background: The environmental changes leave the younger generation (Gen Z) to worry about their future, which means implementing changes in their consumption behavior. With global meat consumption drastically increasing, Gen Z has the potential to frame their food consumption patterns for the future. Existing research lacks an understanding of the young consumer's motives for their meat consumption and how marketing can reach the young consumers. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to explore the motives of Gen Z's sustainable consumption, and more precisely, meat consumption, and what implications their perceptions can have on the marketing of meat substitutes.  Method: This is an exploratory qualitative study, where sixteen semi-structured, in-depth interviews of participants from Gen Z were held and analyzed inductively. The collected data was analyzed through the Gioia method to find patterns and further develop a theory.  Conclusion: The empirical findings suggest that awareness is the key driver for women of Gen Z to change their consumption patterns. However, the same awareness is not affecting the male participants to the same extent. Moreover, the findings suggest that the best approach to reach the young consumers is through digital channels and through neutralizing the concept of avoiding meat. This study contributes to research regarding the consumption patterns of Gen Z and provides insight into a crucial segment of the modern market. Furthermore, suggestions are provided for future research.

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Alla konsumenter som någon gång besökt en hemsida har också mötts av encookienotis. För de allra flesta är cookienotiser en del av den digitala vardagen. I ochmed att GDPR ändrat lagstiftningen om hur webbplatser ska informera om cookiesmåste alla hemsidor inom EU presentera en cookienotis idag. Detta blir därav också detförsta som konsumenterna ser när de påbörjar sin digitala kundresa. Trots befintligkunskap om vikten av konsumentens första intryck, att varje kundupplevelse har storbetydelse samt att långsiktiga kundrelationer är av stor betydelse är forskningen kringcookienotisers påverkan på konsumentbeteendet bristfällig. Därav avser denna studie attbidra till mer kunskap inom området genom att besvara frågeställningen:Hur påverkar presentationen av cookies konsumentbeteendet hos unga vuxna?Studien redovisar tidigare forskning i den teoretiska referensramen. Förutom ett fåtalnischade studier som har gjorts gällande konsumentbeteende och cookies, avhandlasäven vikten av att företagen behandlar kundresan och alla dess delar varsamt. Även enkortare förklaring av cookies och GDPR presenteras. Tidigare forskning fastslår blandannat vikten av att skapa lojalitet och positiva relationer till konsumenter i allakundinteraktioner på olika sätt. Det visas även bevis på hur upplevd makt och risk påinternet kan påverka konsumentens inställning till en hemsida. Till sist förklaras det hurföretag idag arbetar med att individanpassa sina hemsidor gentemot konsumenter. Denteoretiska referensramen sammanfattas med en modell som illustrerar hurpresentationen av cookies bidrar till ett konsumentbeteende som i högsta grad går attpåverka av företagen. Hur detta hanteras kan sen leda till en viss relation mellankonsument och företag.Studiens resultat visar att företag måste värdera presentationen cookienotisen minst likahögt som resterande delar av hemsidan. Empirin visar att konsumenterna har starkaåsikter om att cookienotisen ska innehålla minst två olika valmöjligheter för att de skaha större kontroll över sin egna data. De ska även innehålla en kort text med länkar förvidare läsning. Utöver specifika egenskaper och design på notisen går det att konstateraatt konsumenterna har tydliga åsikter kring cookies av anledningar såsom att de vill hakontroll över sin data eller att notiserna blir ett störningsmoment. Samtidigt konstaterartidigare forskning att första intrycket en konsument får av en hemsida har en väsentligbetydelse. Då cookienotisen måste vara en del av alla hemsidors första intryckrekommenderar författarna att företag ska lägga resurser på att konstruera egnacookienotiser som uppskattas av deras konsumenter. Samtidigt konstaterar studien attdet som finns att vinna i ett bättre första intryck för konsumenterna troligtvis förloras iinsamlad data av företagen då konsumenter som presenteras med valmöjligheter är merbenägna att avböja cookies. Studien diskuterar även etiska och samhälleliga perspektivoch kommer fram till att tydligare lagar bör stiftas om hur cookies ska presenteras samtatt konsumenternas generella kunskap om cookies är otillräcklig.

The digitalization of society is a major trend that is currently transforming the businesslandscape (Parviainen et al., 2017, p. 63). Within this digital era, the AI chatbot hasemerged (Hsu & Lin, 2023, p. 2), enabling companies to provide high-quality customerservice 24/7. AI chatbots offer a range of benefits and possibilities that can be utilized invarious industries. There is evidence that AI chatbots have the potential to create loyalcustomers, making it a valuable tool for businesses. Therefore, this thesis investigateswhat AI chatbot attributes can relate to the two dimensions of customer loyalty amongGen Z.The purpose of this research is to help organizations to build relationships with customersand provide insight into which attributes of an AI chatbot can be used by companies tocreate value for customers. This to further facilitate their work of building customerloyalty. In this study, we utilize a framework to quantitatively measure AI chatbotsthrough various attributes, including Availability, Ease of Use, Accuracy of Response,Responsiveness, Assurance, and Empathy. Then the relationship of the attributes washypothesized together with the two dimensions of customer loyalty, attitudinal andbehavior loyalty. The questionnaires was distributed to Gen Z through snowball and self-selection sampling techniques. Through the online survey, 73 responses were collected totest the hypothesis. It was found that empathy has a significant relationship with bothdimensions of customer loyalty, and assurance has a significant relationship withattitudinal loyalty.We are convinced that this strengthens and reinforces the ongoing research on customerloyalty. Moreover, the study expands the quantitative work on AI chatbots by introducingand utilizing a framework to examine the attributes of AI chatbots in a general context.Furthermore, the thesis provides knowledge to companies that are currently working onor developing AI chatbots, of which attributes that should be prioritized to enhancecustomer loyalty. Our findings suggest that these attributes are assurance and empathy.

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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: The payment methods available to consumers for online purchases have evolved over time, with options ranging from debit and credit cards to e-wallets like PayPal and Apple Pay. Among these methods, Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) has emerged as a significant payment method alternative. At the same time the global debt had a record jump between 2021 and 2022, with low-income households being the ones that suffer the most. The convenience offered by BNPL payment method, coupled with the accelerated uptake of this method in recent years, has created regulatory scrutiny concerning its contribution to the financial health of the society.   Purpose: The purpose of this study is to explore the relation between BNPL and financial wellbeing. The Generation Z cohort in the USA was specifically chosen as the target demographic due to their pronounced online purchasing behaviors and the notable tripling of their overall debt within the 2021-2022 period. Methodology: A quantitative approach for collecting data and data analysis was conducted using an online survey. The survey’s questions are influenced by previous research on financial wellbeing and debt levels. The survey’s populations are consisting of 150 individuals from different demographic backgrounds. The survey’s results have been analyzed by writing Python scripts and use relevant statistic libraries. Results and analysis: A significant portion of the study's respondents, irrespective of various demographic factors such as gender, education, and income level, answered that their use of BNPL had little to no impact on their financial wellbeing. Of particular significance is the answers of those familiar with BNPL who did not attribute any deterioration in their financial health by using BNPL. A subset of respondents acknowledged the potential for BNPL to cause overspending or regrettable purchases, but these sentiments were not predominant. Such findings challenge the common belief that BNPL inherently distributes to financial imprudence. However, nuances emerge when examining specific demographics. For instance, male respondents and those with lower educational attainment displayed a slightly heightened propensity to link BNPL with overspending. Conclusions: The overarching narrative suggests that while BNPL might influence purchasing behaviors to some extent, its direct impact on the broader financial wellbeing of individuals is not conclusively negative. Recommendations for future research: Future research can examine deeper behavioral insights on the effects of BNLP, investigate its effects on specific industries (e.g. luxury fashion) or examine global trends (given the present study is focused on USA).