Patricia Sorce

Attitude and age differences in online buying

Purpose – This paper examines the shopping and buying behavior of younger and older online shoppers as mediated by their attitudes toward internet shopping.Design/methodology/approach – Over 300 students and staff from a US university completed a survey regarding their online shopping and buying experiences for 17 products.Findings – The results show that, while older online shoppers search for significantly fewer products than their younger counterparts, they actually purchase as much as younger consumers. Attitudinal factors explained more variance in online searching behavior. Age explained more variance in purchasing behavior if the consumer had first searched for the product online.Research limitations/implications – The limitations of the present research are threefold. First, the sample was restricted to university faculty, staff and students. Second, a better measure of the hedonic motivation construct is needed. Third, additional independent measures such as income should be included to understan...

Lifestyles of Older Americans

Examines an attempt to define segments within the Older American market based on lifestyle variations. Identifies four clusters with significant marketing potential: Self‐Reliants, Active Retirees, Family Oriented, and Young and Secures. Concludes that lifestyle variables should be used to segment the market, the difficulties in using them indicating a need for a standardized lifestyle inventory for the Older American market.

A Lifestyle Analysis of Healthy Retirees and Their Interest in Moving to a Retirement Community

This study measured the degree of interest of 418 healthy, middle income individuals over age 60 in relocating to a proposed retirement community. Level of interest in moving into the community varied by both psychographic the demographic variables. The lifestyle segment expressing the greatest degree of interest was characterized by a high degree of social venturesomeness, physical activity, self-reliance and a need for physical and financial security. The demographic segments expressing the highest level of interest included those individuals who were single, widowed or divorced and those who rented, rather than owned, their home. The study also explored the reasons for which a move would be considered and the perceived difficulties associated with making such a move.

An Exploratory Study of Operant Conditioning Theory as a Predictor of Online Product Selection

The present research applies operant conditioning theory to the question of what products and services consumers will shop for and buy online. Operant conditioning theory explains differences between products that are used to alleviate uncomfortable experiences (negative reinforcement) and those providing enjoyable experiences (positive reinforcement). The preliminary results described in this study confirmed the importance of operant conditioning as a factor in the behavior of online shoppers. For example, when asked to provide an open-ended list of products that they had shopped for, our respondents mentioned products that produce positive reinforcement 476 times versus only 4 mentions for those that create negative reinforcement. Furthermore, for a list of seventeen common product categories, the results showed that respondents were not only less likely to shop for negative reinforcement products but also even less likely to purchase negative products online than positive products. The results of this exploratory study lay the groundwork for future research by introducing negative and positive reinforcement as a predictor of Internet shopping behavior.

The Elderly's Perceptions of Nursing Home Sponsorship of Retirement Communities

A research study involving 350 healthy, middle-income seniors indicated that people of retirement age have very different expectations about a housing community depending upon the nature of the sponsoring organization - be it a specific well-known hotel chain, a respected local builder, or a local, not-for-profit nursing home. A nursing home sponsored community is seen, for example, as very friendly, very sensitive to the needs of older people, but only average in quality and average in price. Further, there are differences in perceptions among demographic sub-groups of this population.