About Consumer Behaviour

Consumer behavior is the process or research that identifies how people or certain groups choose, obtain, or even get rid of goods and services with the intention of meeting their unique requirements. Consumer behavior, however, can also relate to the social and economic effects that consuming and buying habits have on particular people as well as society at large. It is clear that when discussing consumer behavior, it relates to numerous aspects of psychology, marketing, and even sociology (Gajjar 2013, p. 11). Consumer behavior is typically influenced by people's preferences, personalities, and lifestyles. Furthermore, while studying consumer behaviour, it is evident that the influences on it must cut across several elements. All items of consumer purchase have a direct connection to the aspects of consumer behaviour. For an individual to buy a commodity, it is clear that perception, prior experience, and even motivations and emotions will guide the level of purchase. However, culture, social class as well as reference groups and subcultures play a vital role in some commodities purchased as well. Therefore, it is evident that consumer behaviour will ultimately bring across the issue of ethical implications. It is the behaviour of the consumer that leads to changes in the demand and supply mechanism (Kaiser and Forsberg 2011, p. 196).

Over the years, many countries have been trying to deal with the issue of overfishing, but with no real results. The process of overfishing was determined to be caused by the high positive consumer behaviour that led to a decline in the number of fish and other aquatic animals that depend on fish for survival. Moreover, it is clear that the tremendous implications of red meat have facilitated and improved consumer behaviour towards purchase and consumption of fish. With the above critical overview, the paper intends to address the unsustainable implications of overfishing. The paper will also provide a detailed theoretical analysis based on culture as one of the consumer behaviour that influences overfishing in most of the marine ecosystems. Finally, the paper will discuss and compare the right to food and poverty as relevant components of ethical thinking.

Unsustainable Mechanisms of Overfishing

In most culture and societies, fishing is a vital economic factor that people use to generate income to sustain their living standards. According to the marine scientists, the threat faced in the marine ecosystem is much too high as compared to environmental risks. The fishing methods used in the modern society facilitate the process of overfishing. Overfishing takes place when the young fish are caught from the water (Lam and Pitcher 2012, p. 360). The young fish can not be consumed; therefore, it is necessary to let them back in the water which is their primary habitat. Living in the water allows them to grow to the maturity level and create the future generation. The act of overfishing is unsustainable, as it does not permit the existence of young fish. The present generation ends ups depleting the environment and, therefore, the coming generation will not have a sufficient amount of fish. However, the growing population needs food for sustenance and influences the level of fishing.

Moreover, other consumer behaviour concepts affect the rate at which overfishing is taking place. Recently, physicians have published an article to illustrate the dangers associated with consumption of red meat. They indicated that eating red meat leads to a high risk of development of cancer. Due to this information, most people have changed their food preferences to white meat consumption and, therefore, fish make a significant part of their meal (Rani 2014, p. 55). Because of this, the demand has risen to the point that the fishers were forced to implement the act of overfishing to feed the entire population. Moreover, culture, as an aspect of consumer behaviour, influences the rate of overfishing in most of the marine waters. Intermarriages have become a well-known and usual occurrence and they lead to various new cultural interactions. Because of this, a person that was not eating a lot of fish is the past may now start doing it due to the influence from the partner. In so doing, the population of consumers’ increases and enhances the desire for overfishing. Having a prior positive experience, an individual will always want to purchase and consume fish.

The paper addresses overfishing as an aspect of consumer behaviour due to its adverse effects (Young, Hwang, McDonald, and Oates 2010, p. 25). Understanding the influences stated above will help businesses address the problem. The government will also find the cause of the problem and employ relevant and significant solutions that will contribute to reducing the implications and preserve the environment.

Theoretical Analysis

Culture is one of the factors that influence the purchase and consumption behaviour of a customer. Cultural factors are subdivided in the form of culture, subcultures, and the social class. Culture involves a complex belief of an individual concerning a given phenomenon. It influences the values and customs as well as traditions. Culture can either improve or diminish consumer behaviour of a given commodity (Gajjar 2013, p. 14). Sub-cultures, however, are made up of people who have the capacity to share similar values and traditions. They exist in the form of religion or even racial groups. In most cases, they tend to have a similar geographical location. Finally, the social class includes individuals with a collective identity, such as wealthy people.

The issues of culture as a factor that influences consumer behaviour are explained using Vario client SES. Consumer culture theory makes up a traditional theory that describes culture as a form of consumer behaviour. The theory studies consumption choices and actions from a cultural as well as social viewpoint. By use of this theory, consumer culture is viewed to be a social set up with many connections between the existing culture as well as the current social resources. The method indicates an important life symbol with the presence of material resources through the market platforms (Kaiser and Forsberg 2011, p. 199). In so doing, the consumers make up an interconnected system based on commercially produced goods and images that they use to generate their identity as well as the relationship with other people and customers.

Culture is a very complicated terminology to discuss and understand correctly. The presence of the consumer culture theory helps in describing the ideas of culture and consumption and their relationship. It also explains the various processes in which one factor affects the other. The relationship of consumer behaviour and culture needs accurate intervention measures that will facilitate the understanding of each factor involved for the purpose of clarity and better understanding of the concepts (Lam and Pitcher 2012, p. 370). Moreover, understanding the theory also helps solve the problems that exist due to consumer behaviour and social existence. It explains the importance of maintaining and upholding one’s culture with an idea of having originality and, hence, reducing consumer purchases that originate from cultural influences.

Comparison of Two Relevant Traditions of Ethical Thinking

Apart from the consumer behaviours, overfishing is also influenced by an underlying nature and thinking levels. Ethical people think that living a life full of poverty is based on an individual’s laziness. Rich people tend to work harder to attain their desired goals. With such ethical thinking, most people tend to explore different commercial activities that would help them achieve the level of life that they desire. Because of this, most people conduct their fishing operations as their major economic activity with each trying to fish as much as possible to increase his or her financial income (Young et al. 2010, p. 29). In the process, they interfere with the ecosystem of the marine by fishing small fishes and not returning them to the water. Moreover, poverty also reduces the technological methods that fishers can use to catch the fish. The traditional technologies used do not have the capacity to select the mature and not the young fishes. Ethically, poverty does not allow these people to undergo training that would help them fish sustainably. All these are efforts geared towards upgrading their living standards and the processes that assist them to have a comfortable life in the society.

Another aspect of ethical thinking is that individuals think they have the right to get their food from the naturally occurring resources. As indicated in most communities, fish forms a basic meal for most societies, as it contains multiple naturally occurring nutritious components (Rani 2014, p. 56). The human right to acquire food allows them to exploit the resources present in nature in which fish forms a significant aspect. With such an idea, most of the population invades the marine ecosystem not only to find a better way of living, but also to ensure that they have enough meals for themselves and their family. It is through this process that overfishing takes place not only due to consumer behaviour, but also due to the desire of the society to have meals and a source of income to eradicate poverty.

In the application of the high ethical thinking, it is evident that the consumer aspect is still present in the factors as an influence on overfishing. In the case of poverty, the money people get from the activity they use to purchase food for them and the families. With the above-illustrated views on consumer behaviour, an integration of the various aspects that could hinder those influences would help in attaining and improving sustainable consumption (Lam and Pitcher 2012, p. 369). It is important for the government to regulate the number of people fishing and offer alternative employment opportunities that will help improve sustainable fishing.

Conclusion

From the above illustrations, it is evident that consumer behaviour greatly influences the issue of overfishing in most countries. Consumer behaviour influences the high level of sustainable development which is a major global crisis. With an idea of attaining sustainable levels in the fishing industry, it is important to regulate consumer behaviour in the country by limiting factors that influence and cause it.

References

Gajjar, D. N. (2013). Factors affecting consumer behavior. International Journal of Research in Humanities and Social Sciences, 1(2): 10-15.

Kaiser, M., and Forsberg, E. M. (2011). Assessing fisheries using an ethical matrix in a participatory process. Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics, 14(2): 191-200.

Lam, M. E., and Pitcher, T. J. (2012). The ethical dimensions of fisheries. Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, 4(3): 364-373.

Rani, P. (2014). Factors influencing consumer behavior. International Journal of Current Research and Academic Review, 2(9): 52-61.

Young, W., Hwang, K., McDonald, S., and Oates, C. J. (2010). Sustainable consumption: green consumer behavior when purchasing products. Sustainable development, 18(1): 20-31.