MY EYES FOLLOW MY NEEDS: ATTENTIONAL BIASES TOWARDS PRODUCT LABELS WITHIN HIGH-AND LOW-SOCIAL-STATUS GROUPS

抄録

The relationship between social status and consumption behavior has consistently drawn attention in consumption research. Previous studies have explored the relationship between social status and consumer behavior from behavioral perspective. However, less study has explored this relationship from the viewpoint of the cognitive process to date. Therefore, two experiments were performed to explore whether high- or low-social-status affects the cognitive process of consumption. We sorted products to be labeled as hedonic or utilitarian products based on spiritual needs and utilitarian needs, respectively. Study 1 demonstrates that, within low-social-status groups, attention is biased toward hedonic over utilitarian products, whereas, for high-social-status groups, this difference does not occur. Study 2 provides evidence that there is no difference in the attention bias between the two kinds of product under the condition of a non-status start-up. The results suggest that within high- and low-social-status groups, early cognitive processing is tuned toward different attributive products, which then influences consumer behavior. This study explored the relationship between social status and consumption behavior from the cognitive process perspective, which will help in further revealing the relationship between human needs and social status from an evolutionary perspective.