Consumer belonging behaviour: Qualitative testing of a theoretical framework and proposal of an alternative model

Abstract

Much research has been conducted on how consumption is related to human relations, for example, consumer communities organized around specific brands, or the way people use products to define their own identity and transmit a desired image. However, only a scarcity of research has examined the consumption behaviour when the fundamental intention is to leverage group belonging. The literature comprises a single theoretical framework that describes this behaviour, a nascent proposition that has not been tested. This study examines the transferability of that theoretical framework in a different context than the one used for its proposal and its extent on the phenomenon of consuming to leverage belonging. A qualitative deductive case study and a pattern matching analysis technique were employed, followed by a structural coding analysis of interview data. The findings revealed the model is transferable, however its conceptual extent on the phenomenon it addresses faces limitations. These findings allow the proposal of an alternative framework, the Belonging-Oriented Consumption Model. This model provides a theoretical basis for future research on consumer belonging behaviour.