Consumer Values on the Materialism-Postmaterialism Scale ... · Consumer Values on the Materialism-Postmaterialism Scale 2 Abstract According to the modernization theory, consumer

Title Page

Consumer Values on the Materialism-Postmaterialism

Scale in Developing and Advanced Economies

MASTER THESIS EXPOSÉ

Ines Weber

University of Kassel

European Master in Business Studies

Kassel, Germany October 31, 2018

Consumer Values on the Materialism-Postmaterialism Scale

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Abstract

According to the modernization theory, consumer values are changing as societies evolve,

and this sociocultural development influences the economic development of a country and

vice versa. Can socioeconomic development therefore be used as a predictor of the prevailing

value orientations within a society?

Materialism and postmaterialism are such consumer values, one concentrating on physical

and economic security, and the other one emphasizing quality of life and self-expression,

respectively. A scale for their measurement has been developed by Inglehart (1977).

This thesis tests the hypothesis that different phases of the transition from a materialistic

towards a postmaterialistic value orientation for different consumers can be explained by their

country of residence’s level of socioeconomic development.

The results of a quantitative study in form of an online survey, which will be conducted among

German and Peruvian university students, are presented and compared.

The insights provided by this study are valuable for any organization in the consumer goods

industry addressing consumers in developing and advanced economies likewise.

Keywords: Socioeconomic Development, Consumer Values, Materialism, Postmaterialism,

Developing Economies, Advanced Economies


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Table of Contents

Title Page .............................................................................................................................. 1

Abstract................................................................................................................................. 2

Table of Contents .................................................................................................................. 3

List of Figures ....................................................................................................................... 5

List of Abbreviations .............................................................................................................. 6

1. Introduction ............................................................................................................... 7

1.1 Background ......................................................................................................... 7

1.2 Problem Statement .............................................................................................. 7

1.3 Purpose and Research Questions ....................................................................... 8

2. Literature Review .................................................................................................... 10

3. Theoretical Framework ............................................................................................ 13

3.1 Socioeconomic Development ............................................................................ 13

3.1.1 Economic Development ............................................................................... 13

3.1.1.1 Structural Change ............................................................................... 14

3.1.1.2 Modernization Theory .......................................................................... 14

3.1.2 Sociocultural Development .......................................................................... 15

3.1.2.1 Value Dimensions ............................................................................... 15

3.1.2.2 Materialism and Postmaterialism ......................................................... 19

3.1.3 Classification of Countries ............................................................................ 22

3.2 Self-Concept ...................................................................................................... 25

3.2.1 Self-Concept Clarity ..................................................................................... 25

3.2.2 The Extended Self ....................................................................................... 26

4. Hypotheses Development ........................................................................................ 28

5. Methodology ............................................................................................................ 30

5.1 Participants ........................................................................................................ 30


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5.2 Research Instrument ......................................................................................... 30

5.3 Questionnaire Design ........................................................................................ 31

5.4 Data Collection Method ..................................................................................... 31

6. Overview of Chapters .............................................................................................. 33

7. Plan of Work ............................................................................................................ 34

Bibliography ........................................................................................................................ 35


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List of Figures

Figure 1. Hofstede's Dimensions for Peru and Germany (Hofstede et al., 2010) ................. 16

Figure 2. Cultural Map - WVS Wave 6 (2010-2014) (WVS Association, 2018a) .................. 18

Figure 3. Postmaterialist Index (4-item) (Inglehart et al., 2014) ........................................... 21

Figure 4. Postmaterialist Index (12-item) (Inglehart et al., 2014) ......................................... 22


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List of Abbreviations

GDP ................................................................................................... Gross Domestic Product

WVS ........................................................................................................ World Values Survey

IMF ............................................................................................... International Monetary Fund

UNDP ....................................................................... United Nations Development Programme

HDI ................................................................................................ Human Development Index

WDI ........................................................................................... World Development Indicators

WEO .................................................................................................. World Economic Outlook

SCC .......................................................................................................... Self-Concept Clarity


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1. Introduction

1.1 Background

The megatrend of globalization is driving change, not only in the economic, but also in the

sociocultural aspects. Thanks to advances in communication and transportation, nowadays,

a large amount of goods and services, media, food, and so forth, has become available for

nearly anyone around the globe (Belk, 1996). Consumption is converging, and it is believed

that globalization therefore must entail the convergence of consumer’s values (WVS

Association, 2018a). This would mean that the consumer goods industry, instead of targeting

markets individually, can increasingly address global consumers and neglect differences in

consumer values gradually. A convergence of consumer values, however, did not happen

during the last three decades, as a study has shown (WVS Association, 2018a). Indeed, the

presence of foreign brands everywhere does not mean that they are perceived the same way,

or that they have the same meaning to consumers across different cultures. Moreover, even

though the uniqueness of cultures seems to slowly decrease, rising resistance to the cultural

assimilation is expressed by a augmentation in localism and neonationalism (Belk, 1996).

1.2 Problem Statement

Consumption is driven by different consumer values, and the value dimension that is best in

describing consumption patterns is the materialism-postmaterialism scale developed by

Inglehart (1977). As consumers should be targeted according to their value orientation – so

according to the phase on the materialism-postmaterialism scale they are currently in – it is of

utmost importance for the industry to know how this phase can be identified, and which

variables seem to indicate a change of phases.

This research aims at supporting the development of differentiated targeting strategies that

focus on the right consumer values. It thereby specifically addresses differences in values of

millennial consumers, those reaching young adulthood in the early 21st century (Oxford

University Press, 2018b), in developing and advanced economies. Knowing consumer’s


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values, where they originate from, and how they change, is a competitive advantage that

cannot be missed if a company wants to thrive in today’s competitive markets.

1.3 Purpose and Research Questions

The purpose of this thesis is to investigate which factors influence certain country’s residents’

value orientations. This research primarily addresses materialistic and postmaterialistic value

orientations, looking into possible reasons for dissimilar orientations based on economic and

sociocultural development of the country of residence, and individual self-concept.

Quantitative research, in combination with desk research, aims at testing the applicability of

Inglehart’s materialism-postmaterialism scale by comparing a sample from the developing

economy Peru to a similar sample from the advanced economy Germany.

The findings of this study should respond to the overall research question:

RQ1: Do the prevailing value orientations on the materialism-postmaterialism scale

within the Peruvian and the German sample correlate with their country’s level of

socioeconomic development?

To answer this, the following sub-questions have to be examined:

What is socioeconomic development? How is it measured? What is Peru’s and Germany’s

level of socioeconomic development? What is the relationship between socioeconomic

development and value change? What are value orientations on the materialism-

postmaterialism scale? How are they assessed? How strong are materialistic and

postmaterialistic value orientations within the two samples? What differences can be observed

between the Peruvian and the German sample? Do these findings correlate with the

materialism-postmaterialism scale developed by Inglehart?

Apart from the collective socioeconomic background, the individual self-concept might be

another reason for different value orientations of different people. Studying the individual

participants’ self-concept clarity, a model developed by Campbell et al. (1996), and connecting

the results to their individual values on the materialism-postmaterialism scale, should reveal


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whether there is a correlation between self-concept clarity and materialism. Hence the

following second research question:

RQ2: Does self-concept clarity of the participants affect their individual values on the

materialism-postmaterialism scale?

To answer this, the following sub-questions have to be examined:

What is self-concept clarity? How is it assessed? What is the relationship between self-

concept clarity and consumer values on the materialism-postmaterialism scale?

Finally, if research questions one and two have been answered positively, there should also

be a correlation between participants’ self-concept clarity and their country of residence, thus:

RQ3a: Does participants’ self-concept clarity correlate with their country of residence?

RQ3b: If not, what are possible explanations?

Moreover, the relative impact of the different influences on consumer values on the

materialism-postmaterialism scale should be disclosed, therefore:

RQ3c: Does the collective socioeconomic development, or the individual self-concept

clarity have a stronger influence on the participants’ values on the materialism-

postmaterialism scale?

The objective of this thesis is to allow for the generalization of the findings. The Methodology

section therefore offers justification for the applicability of the results of this study to other

instances.


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2. Literature Review

The following table is not a complete collection of literature to be used in the thesis, but simply an overview of the most important works.

Journals

Topic Author(s) Year Title Periodical V. No. Pages Content

Socioeconomic Development

Inglehart, Ronald; Baker, Wayne E.

2000 Modernization, Cultural Change, and the Persistence of Traditional Values

American Sociological Review

65 1 19–51 Tests the assumption that economic development is linked with systematic change in basic values. Finds that value change is happening but at the same time some traditional values endure despite modernization.


Bah, El-hadj

2009 Structural Transformation in Developed and Developing Countries

Proceedings of the German Development Economics Conference

42 Structural transformation as a stylized fact of economic development: comparison of structural transformation processes in developing and developed countries. Developed countries all followed the same process, developing countries follow paths distinct from the ones developed countries followed.


Belk, Russell W.

1996 Hyperreality and Globalization: Culture in the Age of Ronald McDonald

Journal of International Consumer Marketing

8 3-4 23–37 Discusses whether globalization leads to a homogenization of cultures.


Nielsen, Lynge

2011 Classifications of Countries Based on Their Level of Development: How it is Done and How it Could Be Done

IMF Working Papers

11 31 1–43 Comparison of the UNDP, World Bank and IMF country classifications, with a stress on their shortcomings.

Materialism-Postmaterialism scale

Inglehart, Ronald

2000 Globalization and Postmodern Values

The Washington Quarterly

23 1 215–228

At early stages of development, economic growth is emphasized at all cost (-> materialism), but then its positive consequences show diminishing returns, that's why after a certain threshold, quality of life is more and more emphasized (-> postmaterialism).


MacIntosh, Randall

1998 Global Attitude Measurement: An Assessment of the World Values Survey Postmaterialism Scale

American Sociological Review

63 3 452–464

Challenges Inglehart's postmaterialism scale by testing it for the common stratification variables of gender, education, age, and country, and thereby identifies bias.


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Materialism Ahuvia, Aaron C.; Wong, Nancy Y.

2002 Personality and Values Based Materialism: Their Relationship and Origins

Journal of Consumer Psychology

12 4 389–402

Application of Inglehart's theories to explain the conceptions of materialism developed by Richins and Belk. Belk's materialism reflects personality whereas Richin's materialism concept reflects personal values.

Materialism Belk, Russell W.

1985 Materialism: Trait Aspects of Living in the Material World

Journal of Consumer Research

12 3 265–280

Materialism from the consumer-behavior perspective: The article discusses scales that have been developed for the measurement of materialism and introduces a new personality-oriented scale which is based on materialism's subtraits envy, nongenerosity, and possessiveness.

Materialism Richins, Marsha L.; Dawson, Scott

1992 A Consumer Values Orientation for Materialism and Its Measurement: Scale Development and Validation


19 3 303–316

Development of a values-oriented materialism scale involving the components acquisition centrality, acquisition as the pursuit of happiness, and possession-defined success. The scale has been validated.

Self-Concept Sirgy, M. Joseph

1982 Self-Concept in Consumer Behavior: A Critical Review


9 3 287–300

Literature review on self-concept theory and research in consumer behavior.

Self-Concept Campbell, Jennifer D. et al.

1996 Self-Concept Clarity: Measurement, Personality Correlates, and Cultural Boundaries

Journal of Personality and Social Psychology

70 1 141–156

Defines self-concept and a scale for the measurement of SCC. Further examines the validity of the scale and its cultural boundaries.

Self-Concept Mittal, Banwari

2015 Self-concept clarity: Exploring its role in consumer behavior

Journal of Economic Psychology

46 98–110

Links Campbell's SCC to selected consumer behaviors. A survey has shown that its absence leads to materialism, among other consumer behaviors.

Self-Concept Belk, Russell W.

1988 Possessions and the Extended Self


15 2 139–168

Self-concept in consumer behavior: possessions as the bridge between unextended and extended self.

Other Sources

Topic Author(s) Year Title Organization Place of Publication

Content


Inglehart, Ronald et al.

2014 World Values Survey: Round Six: Country-Pooled Datafile Version

JD Systems Institute

Madrid, Spain

The WVS, which started in 1981, studies almost 100 countries, which make up nearly 90 percent of the world population, and is therefore the “largest non-commercial, cross-national, time series investigation of human beliefs and values ever executed”.


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Books

Topic Author(s) Year Title Publisher Place of Publication

Content


Inglehart, Ronald

2018 Cultural Evolution: People's Motivations are Changing, and Reshaping the World

Cambridge University Press

Cambridge, UK

Cultural Evolution argues that people's values and behavior are shaped by the degree to which survival is secure; it was precarious for most of history, which encouraged heavy emphasis on group solidarity, rejection of outsiders, and obedience to strong leaders. Conversely, high levels of existential security encourage openness to change, diversity, and new ideas. The unprecedented prosperity and security of the postwar era brought cultural change, the environmentalist movement, and the spread of democracy. Evidence from more than 100 countries demonstrates that people's motivations and behavior reflect the extent to which they take survival for granted - and that modernization changes them in roughly predictable ways. This book explains the rise of environmentalist parties, gender equality, and same-sex marriage through a new, empirically-tested version of modernization theory.


Hofstede, Geert; Hofstede, Gert Jan; Minkov, Michael

2010 Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind: Intercultural Cooperation and Its Importance for Survival

McGraw-Hill New York Cultures and Organizations examines what drives people apart - when cooperation is so clearly in everyone's interest. With major new contributions from Michael Minkov's analysis of data from the WVS, as well as an account of the evolution of cultures by Gert Jan Hofstede, this revised and expanded edition reveals the "moral circles" from which national societies are built and the unexamined rules by which people think, feel, and act.


Inglehart, Ronald

1977 The Silent Revolution: Changing Values and Political Styles Among Western Publics

Princeton University Press

Princeton, NJ

This book contends that beneath the frenzied activism of the sixties and the seeming quiescence of the seventies, a "silent revolution" has been occurring: a shift from an overwhelming emphasis on material values and physical security toward greater concern with the quality of life.


Abramson, Paul R.; Inglehart, Ronald

1995 Value Change in Global Perspective

University of Michigan Press

Ann Arbor, MI

In this pioneering work, Paul R. Abramson and Ronald Inglehart show that the gradual shift from Materialist values to Post-materialist values is in all likelihood a global phenomenon. Value Change in Global Perspective pays special attention to the way generational replacement transforms values among mass publics.


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3. Theoretical Framework

“Societies are historically, organically developed forms of social organization” (Hofstede,

Hofstede, & Minkov, 2010, p.21) and should therefore not be equated to countries, being “a

nation with its own government, occupying a particular territory” (Oxford University Press,

2018a). Culture, which will be explained in the following chapter, rather applies to societies,

and less to countries, according to the given definitions. Nevertheless, cross-cultural research

must use a criterion for data collection, and this is where nations come into play (Hofstede et

al., 2010). That is why, in the following analysis, for the sake of simplicity, the reader should

understand the terms society, country, nation, and also economy, as interchangeable.

3.1 Socioeconomic Development

The term socioeconomics discusses the “interaction of and relationship between social and

economic factors” (Oxford University Press, 2018f). The term social relates to society, and a

society has “shared customs, laws, and organizations”, thus can be regarded as one of the

synonyms for culture (Oxford University Press, 2018e). To highlight the close connection

between the two concepts, the term sociocultural will be used throughout this thesis. Hence,

this chapter divides into the parts economic development and sociocultural development.

3.1.1 Economic Development

Economic development is the process of increasing economic well-being in a country, which

is caused by a rise in per capita income and living standards (Myint & Krueger). It is the

process describing the transformation of traditional, usually agrarian, economies into modern,

or advanced, industrial economies (Myint & Krueger).

This economic development is triggered by structural change (McMillan & Rodrik, 2011).


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3.1.1.1 Structural Change

Structural change, also known as structural transformation, has been defined by Herrendorf,

Rogerson, and Valentinyi (2014) as “the reallocation of economic activity across three broad

sectors (agriculture, manufacturing, and services)” (p. 4).

These shifts in relative importance of major sectors imply that economies go through

development phases. Reallocation of economic resources from the agrarian, also called the

primary, sector towards higher sectors, positively influence economic development. Therefore,

one can conclude that the higher the share of a country’s labor employed in the primary sector,

the less developed that country (Herrendorf et al., 2014; McMillan & Rodrik, 2011; Rosenberg,

2018).

Looking at the countries occurring in this study, the percentage shares of contribution to total

gross domestic product (GDP) confirm the above statement. In 2017, agriculture, industry,

and services contributed with 7.5%, 36.3%, and 56.1%, respectively, to total Peruvian GDP.

In the same year, German GDP was composed by 0.6% of agriculture, by 30.1% of industry,

and by 69.3% of services (Central Intelligence Agency, 2018).

This Three Sector Model has been adapted to meet the needs of a postmodern, or

postindustrial, society, by adding the quaternary sector, which comprise financial, real estate

and insurance services as opposed to services such as transportation and trade which make

up the tertiary sector (Kenessey, 1987). Activities of the quaternary sector are often linked to

technological innovation. Hence, this sector is also known as the knowledge economy. A

further addition to the model has been made by introducing the quinary sector, which is made

up of work in the public and nonprofit sectors (Rosenberg, 2018).

3.1.1.2 Modernization Theory

Another term to describe this economic development driven by structural change is

modernization. Modernization theory implies linearity and predictability of the development

stages, which is underlined by Karl Marx’s (1867/1887) quote: “The country that is more

developed industrially only shows, to the less developed, the image of its own future.” (in


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Preface to the First German Edition). Thereafter, any traditional society can follow a modern

one’s path and thereby become modern as well.

Max Weber (1920/1947) associated modernization with rationalization and secularization, and

thereby has been among the first sociologists to describe a link between economic and

sociocultural development via a value change taking place within societies.

The terms traditional and modern therefore not only refer to societies per se, but also to the

value orientations that prevail inside those.

The next section will deeper look into the described influence of culture and values on

economic development.

3.1.2 Sociocultural Development

Culture is, according to Hofstede (2010), “the collective programming of the mind that

distinguishes the members of one group or category of people from others” (p.6).

Values, “broad tendencies to prefer certain states of affairs over others” (p.9), or “fundamental

feelings about life and about other people” (p.19), are the core of culture.

It is easy to talk about explicit and visible levels of culture, such as identity. Identity is

interchangeable, as it includes nationality, language, religion, and so forth. What is at the core,

however, is implicit, invisible, can hardly be explained, and changes only slowly. Values can

therefore be seen as the stable element in cultures (Hofstede et al., 2010).

3.1.2.1 Value Dimensions

To compare national cultures, values have to be measured, and this can be done based on

dimensions. The first one to find value dimensions based on which national cultures can be

classified, was Hofstede. Grounded on the International Business Machines survey, which

started in 1967, the four dimensions power distance, collectivism versus individualism,

femininity versus masculinity, and uncertainty avoidance, have been identified. Later, the

dimension long-term versus short-term orientation has been adopted from the Chinese Value

Survey, executed by Michael Bond. The sixth and last dimension, indulgence versus restraint,


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was included after studying the World Values Survey (WVS) by Ronald Inglehart (Hofstede et

al., 2010).

Figure 1 shows a comparison of Peru and Germany for the six dimensions, each of which is

scaled from 0 to 100, whereas the first mentioned extreme represents 100.

Figure 1. Hofstede's Dimensions for Peru and Germany (Hofstede et al., 2010)

The most remarkable differences are that Peru has a more collectivistic, and Germany a more

individualistic culture, and that according to Hofstede, Germans are more long-term oriented

than Peruvians.

The WVS, which started in 1981, studies almost 100 countries, which make up nearly 90

percent of the world population, and is therefore the “largest non-commercial, cross-national,

time series investigation of human beliefs and values ever executed” (WVS Association,

2018b). It is intended to help a wide range of addressees understanding a variety of topics,

including economic development and subjective well-being. The surveys have demonstrated

that a society’s value orientation plays a key role in its economic development (WVS

Association, 2018a). The WVS is based on two major dimensions, traditional versus secular-

rational values, and survival versus self-expression values (Inglehart & Welzel, 2005). In a

traditional society, family and religion play an important role in people’s everyday life. Secular-

rational societies, on the other hand, emphasize those values less, and authority plays a minor


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role in them, as opposed to traditional societies. Low levels of tolerance and trust, linked with

a strong emphasis on physical and economic security, are prevalent values in survival

societies. The opposite are self-expression societies that emphasize tolerance, gender

equality, and environmental protection (Inglehart & Welzel, 2005). Where people tend to take

freedom of thought and survival for granted, self-expression is extremely valued (WVS

Association, 2018a).

Linking shifts in these two dimensions to modernization, value change in a society can be

predicted with certain aspects of modernity. The largest shift from traditional towards secular-

rational values happens when societies transition from agrarian to industrial, which is linked

to a large increase in existential security. The largest shift from survival to self-expression

values occurs with the transition from industrial to knowledge societies, which can be

explained by a large increase in individual empowerment (Inglehart & Welzel, 2005)

Figure 2 shows the latest wave of the WVS. The further up a country’s position, the more

secular-rational values persist, and the further right a country’s position, the more self-

expression values persist. Roughly speaking, the further a country is in the top right corner,

the more developed it is (WVS Association, 2018a).

Looking more closely at Peru and Germany, a large difference on the traditional versus

secular-rational value dimension can be observed, however, the distance on the survival

versus self-expression value dimension is rather small.


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As this study has already been repeated for the sixth time, movements of the country’s dots,

a value change, can be observed when comparing all the six waves to each other.1

Common belief is that the phenomenon of globalization leads to the amalgamation of

consumer values. The WVS has however shown that this belief is not true. Even though

consumer’s values have changed, they have only done so parallelly, at the same pace and in

the same direction, among most high-income economies. Surprisingly, only little value change

has been observed in low-income economies. A separation between the two groups has taken

place, and neither inside the two groups a convergence has taken place (WVS Association,

2018a).

It is important to note that values do not only differ among societies, but also within those

(Inglehart & Welzel, 2010). Subcultures emerge depending on differences in a variety of

variables, among them ethnicity, religion, generation, and gender. Differences in income and

1 Live cultural map over time 1981 to 2015 can be watched at https://youtu.be/ABWYOcru7js

Figure 2. Cultural Map - WVS Wave 6 (2010-2014) (WVS Association, 2018a)

https://youtu.be/ABWYOcru7js


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education, for example, group societies into different social classes, being “[a] division of a

society based on social and economic status” (Oxford University Press, 2018d).

Those subgroups who experience more existential security and more individual empowerment

score higher than their country’s average on both secular-rational and self-expression values

(Inglehart & Welzel, 2010). Even though drawing a conclusion based on values of a subgroup

is always more precise, it is hardly possible in practice as the measurement of a subgroup’s

value orientation is cumbersome. Moreover, worldwide the differences in living conditions are

still larger between societies, and not within them (Inglehart & Welzel, 2010).

3.1.2.2 Materialism and Postmaterialism

According to The Silent Revolution by Ronald Inglehart (1977), the change from materialist to

postmaterialist values in a society, which is conditioned by socioeconomic development, lies

at the core of modernization. Socioeconomic development drives the income level, and the

decision on how to spend the larger amount of disposable income, in turn, is influenced by

materialist and postmaterialist value orientations.

Belk refers to materialism as “the importance a consumer attaches to worldly possessions. At

the highest levels of materialism, such possessions assume a central place in a person's life

and are believed to provide the greatest sources of satisfaction and dissatisfaction” (as cited

in Belk, 1985, p. 265).

Materialist values include physical and economic security, ethnocentrism, low level of

tolerance and respect, and the pursuit of prosperity (Abramson & Inglehart, 1995; Scheuer,

2016). Postmaterialist values, on the other hand, include the pursuit of self-actualization,

freedom, emancipation, participation, and quality of life (Inglehart, 1997).

Inglehart proposed two unidimensional models for the measurement of materialism and

postmaterialism, assuming the linearity of value change, called Postmaterialist index (4-item)

and Postmaterialist index (12-item). The former was introduced in 1971, and it was based on

the outcome of the following survey question (Inglehart, 1977):


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If you had to choose among the following things, which are the two that seem most desirable

to you? A) Maintaining order in the nation; B) Giving the people more say in important political

decisions; C) Fighting rising prices; D) Protecting freedom of speech

Respondents were asked to rank the most and second most important to them. If they had

chosen answers A) and C), they were classified as materialist, with answers B) and D) as

postmaterialist. Inglehart later added the category mixed for the ones making mixed choices,

providing a total of three possible outcomes (1977).

Later, in 1977, he proposed a 12-item index, to overcome the shortcomings of the 4-item-

index, which was not stable against short-term influences and lacked robustness in general

(Inglehart, 1977). It was based on the following three questions:

1) People sometimes talk about what the aims of this country should be for the next ten years.

On this card are listed some of the goals which different people would give top priority. Would

you please say which one of these you, yourself, consider the most important? And which would

be the next most important? A) A high level of economic growth; B) Making sure this country

has strong defense forces; C) Seeing that people have more say about how things are done at

their jobs and in their communities; D) Trying to make our cities and countryside more beautiful

2) If you had to choose, which one of the things on this card would you say is most important?

And which would be the next most important? A) Maintaining order in the nation; B) Giving

people more say in important government decisions; C) Fighting rising prices; D) Protecting

freedom of speech

3) Here is another list. In your opinion, which one of these is most important? And what would

be the next most important? A) A stable economy; B) Progress toward a less impersonal and

more humane society; C) Progress toward a society in which Ideas count more than money; D)

The fight against crime

Those three questions give a total of six answers, of which three are second choices. This

enlarges the number of possible categories from three to six, namely materialist, rather

materialist (1), mixed materialist (2), mixed postmaterialist (3), rather postmaterialist (4), and

postmaterialist.


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As this set of three questions is included in the previously explained WVS, both the 4-item and

the 12-item index can be retrieved from the data of the WVS.

Figure 3 and Figure 4 show a comparison of Peru’s and Germany’s postmaterialist index

according to the sixth wave of the WVS, which was carried out between 2010 and 2014

(Inglehart et al., 2014). The vertical axis gives the percentage of respondents in that category.

Figure 3. Postmaterialist Index (4-item) (Inglehart et al., 2014)

The 4-item index shows that a higher share of Peruvians is classified as Materialist (27.1%),

than Postmaterialist (10.6%). For Germany, the share of the Postmaterialist (22.4%) is larger

than the one of Materialist (19.6%). Accordingly, there are more materialists in Peru than in

Germany, and more postmaterialists in Germany than in Peru (Inglehart et al., 2014). The

Mixed category is the largest for both countries, it does however not reveal at which stage the

respondents are. Therefore, the 12-item index will now be considered.


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Figure 4. Postmaterialist Index (12-item) (Inglehart et al., 2014)

A change in values is more traceable having six instead of just three categories. Shifts from

one category to the next can be compared more easily over time or among countries. Figure

4 shows two similarly shaped curves that intersect between the two central categories, 2 and

3. The categories with the highest shares are 2 for Peru (29%), and 3 for Germany (32%). If

the Peruvian curve would be shifted one category rightwards, the two curves would be roughly

identical. This is, what will probably happen over time, and it can be regarded as a visualization

of the previously mentioned Modernization Theory.

This indices are often compared to Maslow’s (1943) hierarchy of needs. The pyramid consists

of the universal needs physiological, safety, belonging and love, esteem, and self-

actualization. A next level of motivation can only be reached, if the lower level is already fully

satisfied. The same counts for postmaterialism: one can only strive for postmaterialist values

such as freedom, if, for example, survival is taken for granted. This also explains the

intergenerational value change between the pre- and the post-war generations (Inglehart).

3.1.3 Classification of Countries

Having discussed the fundamental explanations of socioeconomic development, the following

section will dwell upon how countries are currently being classified in practice. Classification


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of countries based on their level of development aims at making them comparable and

measurable against each other.

According to Nielsen (2011), a well-known classification is the simple distinction between

developing and developed countries, but a generally fixed threshold between the two does not

exist. Moreover, due to the diversity in development stages across countries, a classification

system encompassing more than just two categories could be more appropriate (Nielsen,

2011).

The core of the problem is that there is no simple definition of a development concept. In the

early stages, the main focus has been on differences in income. Nowadays, development is

increasingly being seen as a multifaceted problem, thereby including concepts such as

production structures, inter-country diversities, or culture, among others (Nielsen, 2011).

International organizations, such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank,

or the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) have established their own country

classification systems, and their listings are based on different approaches.

The World Bank Group (2018) introduced the World Development Indicators (WDI), which

divide a total of 218 countries according to their gross national income into low-income (34),

lower-middle-income (47), upper-middle-income (56), and high-income (81) economies. There

have been many changes in the World Bank’s classification and there is a lot of ambiguity

when it comes to defining thresholds (Nielsen, 2011).

According to the WDI, Germany belongs to the high-income economies, and Peru to the

upper-middle-income economies.

The IMF published the World Economic Outlook (WEO), which, after several alterations,

decided upon a classification of 194 countries into emerging market and developing

economies (155) and advanced economies (39). Classification is based on several economic

and financial measures including GDP, inflation, trade, unemployment and government

finance, among others (International Monetary Fund, 2018). Again, thresholds are not being

clearly defined (Nielsen, 2011).


24

According to the WEO, Peru is part of the emerging market and developing economies, and

Germany is not only part of the advanced economies, but also belongs to the subgroup of

major advanced economies, often referred to as the Group of Seven (G7).

The UNDP’s system is built around the Human Development Index (HDI), which focuses on

longevity, education, and income. Accordingly, countries were divided into low, medium, and

high human development countries. Later, very high human development was introduced as

a fourth category (Nielsen, 2011). Out of the 189 countries ranked, 59 are countries with very

high human development, 53 are countries with high human development, 39 are countries

with medium human development, and 38 are countries with low human development (United

Nations Development Programme, 2018).

According to the HDI, Germany is a country with very high human development, and ranks 5th

out of 59 countries in the respective group. Peru, on the other hand, is a country with high

human development, and ranks 30th out of 53 countries in the respective group (United

Nations Development Programme, 2018).

Even though the two countries to be compared are within neighboring groups in all

classification systems, Peru’s rank of 89th within 189 countries assessed by the UNDP,

compared to Germany’s rank of 5th, shows that there still is a significant difference in human

development between Germany and Peru. The fact that Germany belongs to the subgroup of

major advanced economies, and therefore separates more from the emerging market and

developing economies as defined by the IMF, further justifies the sampling within those two

countries for a comparative study.

All three international organizations treat country classifications very differently, and all of the

three show ambiguities. What they have in common, is that approximately 20-25 percent of all

countries are classified as developed (Nielsen, 2011).

Throughout this thesis, the terms developing economy and advanced economy are being

used, which is not due to a preference of WEO’s classification over the others, but rather due

to the terms’ reader friendliness.


25

3.2 Self-Concept

Self-concept is “an idea of the self constructed from the beliefs one holds about oneself and

the responses of others” (Oxford University Press, 2018c). It can be seen as the answer to

the question “Who am I?” (Myers, 2010). There are three main definitions of self, the first one

being the actual self, referring to the self-perception a person has. Other terms being used for

the actual self are the core self, or the unextended self. The second is the ideal, or extended

self, which can be understood as how a person would like to be. The third is the social self,

which can be defined as the way a person wants to be perceived in social interactions (Belk,

1988; Sirgy, 1982). Consumers can, or cannot be consciously aware of their self-concept,

which affects their consumer behavior.

3.2.1 Self-Concept Clarity

Campbell et al. (1996) introduced a concept named Self-Concept Clarity (SCC). A person is

said to have a high SCC, if that person’s individual self-concept is internally consistent,

temporarily stable, and if it can be clearly and confidently defined by that person. Especially

for people with low SCC, consumption can be seen as a tool of identity expression and has

not only to do with the functional utility of the product consumed (Mittal, 2015). While

purchasing or consuming a product, its perceived product image is becoming part of the actual

self-image and helps the consumer to diminish the gap between actual and ideal self (Landon,

1974). Tucker (as cited in Sirgy, 1982) also acknowledged that “consumers' personalities can

be defined through product use” (p.287).

An example could be the purchase of an expensive watch. From a functional point of view, a

watch only has to tell the time, from the point of view of identity expression, however, it

changes the consumer’s actual and social self, and brings them closer to their ideal self.

The modern market place, where people can use products as bolster, or use shopping as

escape, among others, has taken a therapeutic role for consumers with low SCC. Mittal (2015)

therefore concludes that high SCC influences consumer’s life satisfaction in a positive way.


26

Campbell et al. (1996) also developed a measurement scale for SCC. It is a 12-item scale

based on the 5-point Likert-scale answers to the following questions (p.145):

My beliefs about myself often conflict with one another.

On one day I might have one opinion of myself and on another day I might have a different

opinion.

I spend a lot of time wondering about what kind of person I really am.

Sometimes I feel that I am not really the person that I appear to be.

When I think about the kind of person I have been in the past, I'm not sure what I was really

like.

I seldom experience conflict between the different aspects of my personality.

Sometimes I think I know other people better than I know myself.

My beliefs about myself seem to change very frequently.

If I were asked to describe my personality, my description might end up being different from

one day to another day.

Even if I wanted to, I don't think I would tell someone what I'm really like.

In general, I have a clear sense of who I am and what I am.

It is often hard for me to make up my mind about things because I don't really know what I want.

The authors have proven the reliability and validity of this unidimensional scale by examining

for correlations with other scales and concepts that had existed before (Campbell et al., 1996).

3.2.2 The Extended Self

Belk (1988) introduced the construct of the extended self, suggesting that “possessions are

an important component of sense of self” (p.139). Instead of just comprising “me”, the self, the

extended self also comprises everything seen as “mine”. It is therefore not limited to external

objects but also includes things like places or persons. After purchase, an object becomes a

possession, and by becoming a possession the object enters the extended self. The

capabilities of having (a possession) and being (the extended self) just merged, which shows

their strong interrelation (Belk, 1988).


27

Fromm (1976) is one of the strong opponents of the having mode of existence, as it comes

with the threat of losing one’s existence. "If I am what I have and if what I have is lost, who

then am I?" (p. 76) explains his preference for the being mode of existence.

Belk criticizes previous self-concept studies for being too focused on a single product’s ability

to represent a self-concept and argued that “only a complete ensemble of consumption objects

may be able to represent the diverse . . . aspects of the total self” (1988, p.140).

Simultaneous to Mittal’s (2015) conclusion, also Belk (1988) suggests that the stronger a

consumer’s unextended self, the minor their need to have and keep several possessions

forming their extended self. Relying on possessions to provide meaning in life comes with

negative consequences, but not only. Possessions can also contribute to a consumer’s identity

in a positive way, for example, by helping us manipulate our possibilities (Belk, 1988).


28

4. Hypotheses Development

Robson defined hypotheses as “a testable proposition about the relationship between two or

more . . . variables” (as cited in Saunders, Lewis, & Thornhill, 2009, p. 124).

The variables addressed in this study are the following:

• Independent variable: country of residence’s level of socioeconomic development, in short:

socioeconomic development

• Dependent variable: value orientations on the materialism-postmaterialism scale, in short:

value orientations

• Extraneous variable: individual self-concept clarity, in short: self-concept

To test the relationships between the variables, the effect of a change in the independent

variable on the dependent variable is measured; that is, the effect of differing levels of

socioeconomic development on value orientations. The dependent variable, in turn, measures

the effect of the independent variable on the sample; that is, value orientations measure the

effect of socioeconomic development on the sample.

Variables need to be operationalized, which requires a definition and a quantitative

measurement for each variable, before their relationships to other variables can be tested

(Saunders et al., 2009). Definitions can be found in the Theoretical Framework, and the

measurements will be explained in the following.

None of the three variables can be measured numerically, so they all provide categorical data,

which includes nominal and ordinal data (Saunders et al., 2009).

Socioeconomic development only provides nominal data. As all participants come from either

Peru or Germany, only two categories, developing economy and advanced economy, exist

(International Monetary Fund, 2018).

Value orientations and self-concept, however, provide ordinal data, which means, they cannot

be measured on a scale, but they can be ranked above or below each other (Malhotra, 2010).

In the case of value orientations, Inglehart’s 12-item index, which classifies into the six

categories materialist, 1, 2, 3, 4, and postmaterialist, will be used (Inglehart, 1977).


29

To measure the participant’s self-concept, the original questions of the 12-item scale

developed by Campbell et al. (1996) will be asked in the survey.

This thesis uses the deductive research approach; therefore, the following hypotheses are

deduced from the theories examined in the Theoretical Framework and they are tested for

validity on a sample of Peruvian and German students (Saunders et al., 2009).

Weber (1920/1947) has been among the first to link value change in societies to their

economic development, Marx (1867/1887) proclaimed the linearity and predictability of the

value change, and Inglehart (1997) defined a measurement scale including six stages of the

transition from materialist to postmaterialist value orientations. Based on these theories, the

following hypothesis originated:

H1: If a postmaterialistic value orientation is related to high levels of socioeconomic

development, then German students will have a more postmaterialistic value

orientation than Peruvian students.

An extraneous is a variable other than the independent variable, that also might affect the

response of the sample, so the dependent variable (Saunders et al., 2009). Self-concept is

such a variable, and it is employed to control whether value orientations are solely a function

of socioeconomic development, or whether there is at least one more variable that influences

value orientations. Testing for all possible co-existing variables is not feasible, and self-

concept is the most likely one in this study.

According to SCC, a concept developed by Campbell et al. (1996), consumer values can be

explained by discrepancies between actual and ideal self. The larger the discrepancies, the

lower SCC, and low SCC is an indicator for a materialist value orientation (Mittal, 2015). Based

on this theory, the second hypothesis emerged:

H2: If a materialistic value orientation is related to low SCC, then participants scoring

low on SCC will have a more materialistic value orientation than participants scoring

high on SCC.


30

5. Methodology

To test the above described hypotheses, quantitative data will be gathered in form of an online

survey.

5.1 Participants

Participants of the study are male and female students, aged 17-28, attending university in

either Peru or Germany. With the help of the demographic variables gender and age, further

subgroups can be studied. Residency is the only variable that decides whether a participant

belongs to the Peruvian or the German sample. Their level of education is what all participants

have in common, and the fact that the students are given the opportunity to attend university

indicates a certain level of family income. In both countries – this fact is however more valid

for Peru than for Germany – only privileged families can provide their children with university

education.

This makes the two samples comparable to each other in terms of their positioning within the

society, and it allows for the application of the study results to other instances. The outcomes

from the Peruvian sample can be used to analyze other groupings with similar demographic

variables in developing economies, and the outcomes from the German sample can be used

to analyze other groupings with similar demographic variables in advanced economies.

5.2 Research Instrument

The online survey has crystallized as the most appropriate method for this study, mainly

because it comes up for the existing time and cost constraints, which were, in the first place,

also reasons against other methods such as face-to-face, or telephone surveys.

Moreover, when there is no personal interaction with the researcher or an interviewer,

perceived anonymity is higher, and social desirability is lower compared to other methods

(Malhotra, 2010). Another reason speaking for a standardized questionnaire, which includes

questions on demographics, is that it is leading to a structured data collection and sample


31

classification, it simplifies data analysis and allows for comparison and categorization of

samples (Saunders et al., 2009).

Even though the response rate is usually not high for the chosen method, the simplicity and

speed of participating in an online survey, as well as the ease at which the link to an online

survey can be spread further, are expected to have a positive impact on the quantity of

answers received.

5.3 Questionnaire Design

A visually appealing questionnaire, which can be filled out in either a web, tablet or mobile

version will be created with the help of the software Sphinx iQ2 of Le Sphinx. Given the

complexity of the topic, just before starting the questionnaire, a brief introduction to the

research topic will be given by the researcher in form of a video. To overcome language

barriers, both the video and the questionnaire will be produced in Spanish and German

language.

The questionnaire consists of different types of questions, such as single choice, presence-

absence, or Likert-type questions, in order to avoid monotony. To keep participants engaged,

no open-ended questions apart from “If other, please specify” will be asked.

5.4 Data Collection Method

Four universities will be particularly involved with data collection, namely the Peruvian

University of Applied Sciences, and University of Piura, in Peru; and University of Kassel, and

Furtwangen University, in Germany.

At least one professor per university will be asked to help with sampling within as many study

programs possible. The professors will be asked to give their students the link to the online

survey during lecture and to verbally encourage participation.

Additionally, I will use the social media and communication platforms Facebook, Instagram,

and WhatsApp, to ask students with either Peruvian or German residency for their participation

and help with the further spread of the link to the online survey.


32

Control over the participant’s correct understanding of the questions will be assured via the

introductory video, and participants can contact me in case of questions via the email address

included in the introduction. As the professors will receive detailed explanations on the

purpose and content of the study, they will also be able to help students in case of uncertainty.

To incentivize participation among German students, the opportunity to win one of three

Amazon vouchers worth 10€ each will be announced. A comparable incentivization method

does not exist in Peru, however, Peruvian students are not asked as frequently as German

students to take part in empirical studies. Therefore, their curiosity and willingness to take part

in an international study will be relied upon.

The German participants have the possibility, but are not forced, to provide their email

address, in order to get contacted in case of winning one of the vouchers.

Nevertheless, data collection will be completely anonymous for both samples.

Answers will be sent directly to the software, which automatically collects the data.


33

6. Overview of Chapters

The remaining parts of the thesis will probably be structured in the following way:

5. Analysis of the Results and Discussion

6. Conclusion

6.1 Theoretical Implications

6.2 Managerial Implications

6.3 Limitations and Future Research

6.4 Final Conclusion


34

7. Plan of Work

Period Activity Tasks

03/09 - 16/09 Definition of Topic Find topic and develop focus of the study

17/09 - 28/09 Negotiation Management

29/09 - 31/10 Exposé Specify Working Title Do the Literature Review Write Introduction Formulate Methodology Formulate Research Questions and Hypotheses Write Theoretical Framework Hand in Exposé by October 31, 12:00

31/10 - 18/11 Research Design Rework Exposé after Feedback Select measurement scales for variables Design questions and translate in German and Spanish Produce introductory video in German and Spanish Develop online survey with the software Sphinx Pre-test and fine tune

19/11 - 25/11 Data Collection Distribute online survey Select software for analysis

26/11 - 13/12 Distribution Management

14/12 - 22/12 Data Analysis Analysis with software: Clear out responses, apply statistical models Validate results (refer to Hypotheses) and discuss key findings (refer to Research Questions) Refine "Methodology", if needed

23/12 - 01/01 Christmas Holidays

02/01 - 15/01 Conclusions Draw conclusion (including implications of the results for the business world) Check for Limitations Future Research Review Abstract (add main findings)

16/01 - 21/01 Finalization Format / Layout Proof Read Prepare Thesis Defense Presentation Print Thesis Send Final Thesis and Presentation by January 21, 12:00

22/01 - 23/01 Master Thesis Defense Bring two bound hardcopies and CD with Appendix


35

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