Abstract

Consumer behavior analysis combines behavioral psychology, behavioral economics, and marketing science to increase understanding of the behavior of consumers. Its principal focus has until now been on consumer behavior in affluent, marketing-oriented economies but there is no inherent reason why it should not concern itself with the study of consumption in any context. It has also tended toward the analysis of human economic behavior in natural settings, though this is far from inimical to experimental analyses which are in fact essential to the evaluation of the approach. In this chapter, I should like to introduce the research program that stems from consumer behavior analysis, describe its central model, and discuss its evaluation through empirical research, and the applications and interpretations to which it has led.