Consumer Purchase Decision Making Styles: A Conceptual Framework 45 Sri JNPG College COMMERCE TODAY (A Peer Reviewed Annual Journal) Vol. XII, No. 1 (2017), 45-54 Consumer Purchase Decision Making Styles: A Conceptual Framework Ambrish Singh* 1 and Sanjay Medhavi 2 1 Assistant Professor, Department of Business Administration, University of Lucknow, Lucknow- 226007 2 Associate Professor & Ex Head, Department of Business Administration, University of Lucknow, Lucknow- 226007 Publication Info Article history: Received : 15.10.2017 Accepted : 25.11.2017 DOI : https://doi.org/10.29320/ jnpgct.v12i01.10987 Key words: Consumer decision making, Consumer decision making styles, consumer decision process (DP), purchase decisions, consumer behaviour. *Corresponding author: Email: ambrish.singh08@gmail.com 1 smedhavi@gmail.com 2 ABSTRACT The present study deals with the review of literature on consumer decision making styles. This paper focuses on different consumer decision making models which provide the foundation of consumer decision studies. This paper discusses about the factors which influence the consumer decision making. Further, based on the literature on consumer decision making styles the role of different cultural settings on the consumer decision making styles has been analysed .The present study concludes that the consumers of different cultures exhibit different sets of decision making styles. CONSUMER DECISION MAKING Consumer decision-making is defined as the behaviour patterns of consumers that precedes, determines and follows the decision making process for the acquisition of products for satisfying the needs, ideas or services (Du Plessis & Rousseau, 1999). During the consumer purchase decision-making process, the consumers make decisions regarding which brand options to choose and also decide what quantity of the products to purchase. Consumers take decisions in order to achieve their goals, which include making the best choice among alternative products available, reducing the decision making effort, minimizing negative emotions, and maximizing their ability to justify the decision. In other words, consumer decision-making is a constructive process (Mowen & Minor, 2006). CONSUMER DECISION-MAKING MODELS Some of the best-known consumer decision- making models were developed in the 1960s and 1970s. Howard (2005) developed the first consumer decision- making model in 1963. Others included the 1969 Howard model (Howard, 2005) and Blackwell and Miniard model (Engel, Blackwell, and Miniard, 2007). The consumer decision-making models that are still used today reflect consumer decision process in terms of the interrelationship of concepts and the flow of activities. The most widely used consumer decision-making theory includes five steps as defined by Mowen and Minor (2006): recognizing problems, searching for solutions, evaluating alternatives, choosing among options, and evaluating the outcomes of the choice. In addition to the five steps in the consumer decision-making process, some researchers prefer to add few more stages to place more importance on certain activities. Take as an example, Engel, Blackwell, and Miniard (2007) who discussed a different model for the consumer decision-making process, the Consumer Decision Process (CDP) model. The CDP model represents a roadmap of consumers’ minds that marketers can use to help guide product mix, communication, and sales strategies. The seven stages in the consumers’ decision-making process according to the CDP model include: need recognition, search for information, pre-purchase evaluation of alternatives, purchase, consumption, post-consumption evaluation, and divestment. The model places more emphasis on the cognitive aspects of buying behavior. The CDP model shows how people solve the everyday problems in life that motivates them to buy and use products of all kinds.