Patterns and Factors Affecting Wives’ Influence in Family Purchase Decision-Making in Urban Malaysia

Abstract

Family purchase decision-making is the process by which decisions regarding purchases for the families are made. The roles played by family members differ with regard to the products being purchased, the stage in the decision-making process, and the characteristics of families and spouses. This study aims to investigate the family purchase decision-making process in urban Malaysia and the factors aff ecting this process. Taking into consideration past research, four hypotheses were developed. These hypothese were based on products / services, stage of the decision-making process, and selected demographic variables (income, occupation, education). A survey using a structured questionnaire was used to collect data (N=1,000) in four different regions in Malaysia (Klang Valley, Penang, Kuantan, Johor Bahru). The findings of this study revealed that the majority of the products/services purchased for the family was a joint decision. The wives’ infl uence generally decreased in the outcome stage, i.e., when products were actually purchased. The analyses of the effects of the selected demographic variables revealed that generally, there were significant effects of these variables on the majority of the purchases.   Keywords: Decision-making, demographic variables, family purchases, role structure, wives’ influence.