A study on the differences in buying behaviour between teenagers and their parents.

Abstract

We are interested in understanding the way teenagers acquire skills, knowledge and attitudes relevant to their functioning as consumers. There are two aspects to consumer socialisation :

• First, we are interested in establishing who are the main external sources of influences. These external sources of influences help reduce consumers feeling of uncertainty when they purchase a product for the first time or make a purchase that could have major consequences. External search often begins with an intimate primary groups such as family members or close friends. The secondary groups often consulted are colleagues, neighbours, and/or sales persons.

• Secondly, we would look at the teenagers’ development as consumers. We had found at what age and for what product categories are they most capable of making purchase decisions.

Furthermore, we have looked at the intergenerational influences that occured when teenagers and their parents made purchase decisions. All these findings are then related to the marketing system in the Singapore context.