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Assignment task
All of us consume every day, to a lesser or greater extent. This assessment challenges you to reflect on one recent purchase since you have started the module (i.e., a purchase made after the 21st of September 2025), and to analyse your behaviour using a consumer behaviour model or theory (see below).

To begin, choose one recent purchase since you have started the module (i.e., a purchase made after the 21st of September 2025). This could be a loaf of bread, a bottle of milk, a box of cereal, an item of clothing, a ticket to an event, makeup or an electronic item (e.g., hair straighteners, speakers). Essentially, it should be one item/service.

Please do not choose: A handbag, a mobile phone or a laptop/computer. In the event that a student does choose any of these items, this will reflect badly in the marking as the student will have demonstrated their inability to follow instructions.

For this purchase you should choose ONE of the three theories or models listed below to analyse your purchase. Should you not use one of the listed below, this will result in a poor grade.

You must use ONE of the listed theories/models below:
●Ajzen and Fishbein’s (1980) Theory of Reasoned Action (see week 6)
●Belk’s (1974) five components of the situation (see week 9)
●Sethna’s decision making process (page 47 of the Sethna, 2023 textbook)[ Do not reference Blackwell, EBM, EKB or Howard Sheth model if you choose Sethna’s model. These are much larger models and you are not able to use them for your analysis. If you choose the decision making model, it must be Sethna’s model that is used (from the textbook). You can still use other citations to understand purchase within parts of Sethna’s model. ]

Format for assessment:

A word count breakdown is suggested below. However, this breakdown is suggested only as a guide.

Introduction to the purchase: approx. 200 – 400 words. What specifically did you buy (brand and product information), when did you buy it (provide a date and time), where were you for the purchase[ If this is an online purchase then please outline where you were and on what website the purchase took place. If you made the purchase in a store then please outline where the store is etc. ], were you alone, how much did you spend on the purchase Also, ensure you outline any ethical or sustainable issues in the purchase of the products (this can be something you considered at the time of purchase or subsequently learn about during your assessment – please state which is the case).
Finally, introduce the theory or model you are going to use for the analysis (and cite the author of the model or theory).

The role of the marketing mix: approx. 200 – 300 words. How was your purchase influenced by elements of the marketing mix Did the pricing, promotion, place and/or the product affect your purchase in particular, and how Academic peer reviewed journal articles and texts should be used within this section to support your writing.

Analysis applied to the purchase: approx. 1100 -1400 words. Discussion and analysis using ONE theory or model (see above) that is applicable to your purchase. You must use ONE theory or model from the list above to analyse your purchase[ It is not permissible to use another type of theory or model. If you ask, you will be told that using a different model or theory from those provided is not permissible. ]. Ensure you address whether the purchase was the result of positive or negative influences and how this affected the decision to purchase. Essentially, you should be using the chosen model or theory to understand how you made the decision to purchase the product or service. Make sure you use academic peer reviewed journal articles and texts to support your analysis (esp within the model/theory you have chosen).

Summary: approx. 200 words. Summarise what you have covered within the assessment.

Reference list (not included in the 2000-word count)

Evidence of your purchase (a copy of the receipt for the purchase must be supplied) – including e-mails, other sales documents, screen shots and photographs (on the store, product etc). This must be supplied within your assessment submission and can be positioned in the text as a figure or in an appendix.

Remember:
●You do not need a separate introduction to the assessment – start with the introduction to the purchase.
●Ensure you briefly detail what the theory or model is that you are using in the introduction section (you must choose from above). You must be using a theory/ model/framework that was listed above.
●Ensure you outline any ethical issues surrounding the purchase of the product/service. The ethical/sustainability issues may arise pre-purchase, during purchase, be product/service related and/or post purchase. You need to show the marker your recognition of ethical/sustainability issues.
●Ensure you address how the purchase was the result of positive or negative influences and how this affected the decision to purchase. Essentially, address how you made your decision for the purchase.
●Make sure that in this analysis you draw on wider reading from the academic and non-academic literature (you may also draw on market/industry literature) – relying on only the lecture materials will not result in a good mark- you need to show wider reading.

Before you start writing, reflect and consider each of the below to potentially help stimulate your analysis (only if applicable to the model or theory you use):

●Did anyone influence the purchase If so, how
●Why did you make the purchase
●What factors played a role in your purchase
●How did you make the purchase
●How did you feel before and after the purchase, e.g. would you repeat the purchase

Frequently asked questions:

Instructions

Q: For the assessment, it says ‘One purchase’. Does that mean all the groceries bought from the supermarket at one time
No. It means one product or service you purchased. For example, if you bought a loaf of bread amongst your usual supermarket shop, then you could have your purchase being the loaf of bread. You are not to do the analysis on the entire shop of items you bought, only one.

Q: I am considering the ethical/sustainability issues of my purchase and am not sure what to include. Could you help me understand what to include
The ethical/sustainability issues may arise pre-purchase, during purchase and/or post purchase, and may be product or brand-related. You need to show the marker your recognition of ethical/sustainability issues. If you were not aware of them at the time of the purchase, then state this, but you need to do some investigation and determine what ethical/sustainability issues exist so that you can show the reader your understanding of them. Again, these might not have been apparent at the time (e.g., employee treatment, packaging not being recyclable etc), but you can then acknowledge what they are and outline to the reader that you were not aware of them at the time.

Marketing Mix

Q: I am writing about the 4Ps for the marketing mix and I think only one P is applicable to my purchase. Can I just write about one P
Many might believe only one of the 4Ps had an influence on their purchase and this is highly unlikely, so please make sure you critically reflect on how each influenced your purchase. Use wider academic reading to understand and communicate this.

Paragraphing

Q: My writing is weak. Do you have any links/ information that would be helpful Yes. The university has support available:

Quotes

Q: How many quotes are appropriate in this assessment
A rule of thumb is to not use more than one quote (of less than 30 words) per 2000 words. An overuse of quotes will undermine the assessment objectives and result in a low mark.

Q: Can I use more than one quote
No. One quote is the maximum permitted and it should be less than 30 words. Make sure to reference the quote appropriately.

Word count

Q: Does the word count include in-text referencing, table(s) and headings
Yes. The 2000 words includes in-text referencing (e.g. Apple (2016) and Pear (2017) found…), table(s) and headings.

Q: Does the word count include the reference list
No. The word count does not include the reference list.

Q: Am I able to go over the specified word count
You are permitted to go over by up to 5% (100 words) but please observe the word count specified in this assignment brief and follow instructions. The marker will not read (or mark material) beyond the permissible word count.

Analysis

Q: I am not sure if I have done sufficient analysis. What tips would you give a student about the analysis
Students must make sure they are engaging in sufficient depth of analysis. Simply repeating a word that features in the model or theory is not sufficient. For example, if you are referring to attitudes, you don’t simply say I have a positive attitude toward brand X. You need to substantiate why this is the case (and use academic sources to help you understand this). This is what shows a depth of knowledge of that part of the theory or model, but also depth of analysis. It is also very important that you engage with and use academic sources (e.g., academic peer reviewed journal articles) to substantiate your analysis.

Q: Can I just use bullet points
No. Using bullet points will not help you to convey your depth of knowledge of the model or theory chosen, nor will it show your depth of analysis of your purchase. Do not use bullet points.

Q: Are there any common mistakes students make in this assessment
Not introducing all the required information about the purchase in the introduction. Students being overly simplistic/lacking depth in their analysis. Students not demonstrating wider reading (i.e., academic peer reviewed journal articles, appropriate academic books). Students using websites or lecture slides for their analysis when it is not advisable as it shows a lack of information literacy. Students choosing a model or theory (outlined above) and then missing parts/ a part of it when analysing their purchase or choosing one theory and then bringing in other theories to analyse your purchase. Also, avoid describing what you learned from wider reading and then simply saying ‘that happened to me’ (or equivalent). You must use the literature to better understand and analyse your own purchase. It is important that you reflect on your thoughts, perceptions and behaviour. Make sure you unpack what affected you, why this affected you and why you thought the way you did as applies to the model or theory you are using.

Q: Can I use two or more theories/ models to analyse my purchase
No. You should only be using ONE theory or model (see above) to analyse your purchase. You can use the ONE theory or model and incorporate other concepts/ research only if relevant (e.g., reference groups, mood, normative beliefs, motivation) into your analysis when using the ONE theory or model. If bringing in a concept, for example, normative beliefs when using the theory of reasoned action, you should not bring in another theory but instead appreciate normative beliefs through wider reading of academic peer reviewed journal articles and textbooks (cited appropriately) and understand how to apply it effectively when analysing your purchase. Another example would be if a student chooses to apply Belk’s (1974) five components of the situation they may also look at wider research, including research on specific components like mood or crowding etc.

Q: The model or theory we have to use needs to be ONE of the three detailed above I have a model or theory I would prefer to use instead of those detailed. Can I use a different one
No. You must use only ONE of the three detailed on page 6. Do not use one that differs from those outlined above.

Q: I have chosen Sethna’s decision making model and saw online that there is another decision making model I could use. Do I use them
It is very important that you do not reference Blackwell, EBM, EKB or the Howard Sheth model if you choose Sethna’s model. These are much larger models and you are not able to use them for your analysis. If you choose the decision making model, it must be Sethna’s model that is used (from the textbook). You can still use other citations to understand purchase within parts of Sethna’s model, but you are not using a model other than Sethna’s (see page 47 of Sethna’s 2023 textbook). Should you reference the Blackwell, EBM, EKB or the Howard Sheth model you are demonstrating an inability to follow instructions and this will be reflected in the grade awarded.

Evidence of purchase

Q: I don’t have my evidence of the purchase. Can I submit the assessment without it
No. You should be choosing a purchase that you have evidence for (see above). The purchase should have taken place since you started the Contemporary Consumer Behaviour module (i.e a purchase after the 21st of September 2025), so if you do not have the evidence of the purchase, you will need to select another purchase to analyse.

Plagiarism

Q: Do our assignments get put through plagiarism software
Yes. The software used is ‘Turnitin’. It evaluates your work and cross checks it with all available material (including academic journal articles, books, websites etc.) and reports where material has been copied from. Students’ assessment submissions will also be compared to other assessment submissions to identify incidents of student misconduct (e.g., plagiarism, collusion or commissioning).

Q: What is student misconduct
Academic misconduct is any kind of cheating or attempt to gain an unfair advantage. Common types of academic misconduct:
●plagiarism: using someone else’s words/ideas without appropriate referencing
●collusion: inappropriate collaboration with other students
●commissioning: using work written or improved by someone else, e.g. friends, family or essay-writing companies.
●Unacceptable use of generative AI in assessments

For further information please visit:

Q: Can I use Artificial intelligence (AI) for this assessment
Please have a look at page 3 where it details how artificial intelligence can be used within this assessment. Any use beyond this is not permitted.

Formatting

Q: What font should I use and what line spacing
The main text for this assignment must be word-processed in Arial, font 12, double spacing, minimum 2cm margins all around.

Q: I am writing my summary/conclusion section at the moment. Do I bring up new information
No. You have just completed an analysis of the purchase so you should be summarising your analysis (i.e., role of the marketing mix and the analysis of your purchase using the chosen theory or model).

Q: Can I use subheadings in my assessment submission
With this assessment outline there is a section outlining how to format your submission (see above). These sections should be your subheadings.

Q: How do I structure the body of the assessment submission
We are unable to give a definitive answer because many students would have identified a different product/service for the assessment and will use a different theory/model, which makes offering a ‘one size fits all’ structure within each section impractical. We can only stress that students should consider flow and coherence in the presentation of the assessment submission.

Q: What do you expect for the word count of each of the sections of the assessment This is specified in the format section of the assessment outline (see above).

Q: Can I send you my draft to have a look through
No. we need to be equitable to all students so if we read your material, you would be an advantage over other students. Also, this would undermine the objective of the summative assessment which is for students to develop independent research skills. Although, I would recommend that you take advantage of the formative assessment where we can review and provide feedback.

Q: Do you want us to introduce the product within the assessment
Yes. Please ensure you introduce the product/service in the assessment. See guidance above to see how many words you should use to do this.

Tables or Figures

Q: Can I include tables and diagrams in my assessment submission in the main assessment format
Yes. But please only include these if they add to your analysis and explanation.

Q: Will you look at an appendices for marking
No. We will only be marking the 2000-word assessment. We will not mark or likely look at the appendices. An appendix (plural: appendices) would be at the end of the assessment submission and should only include material that isn’t essential to your work, but which could provide useful context or background material. Always assume the marker will not look at the appendix. In the main body of your assessment, you should indicate when you’re referring to an appendix by citing it in parentheses. For any students that feel the need to include a lot of information in the appendices believing it will contribute to their assessment grade, we are sorry to inform you that it won’t for this assessment.

References

Q: What style of referencing should be used
The University of Glasgow Harvard referencing style must be used for in-text referencing and the reference list.

Q: Can I use ‘as cited by’ when referencing what another author has referenced
No. You should only use ‘as cited by’ when you have searched everywhere to gain access to the original article that was referenced by another author and it cannot be found. Using ‘as cited by’ is poor practice since it puts you at risk of incorrectly representing the work of the original author (you are trusting that the author who is referring to the original author has correctly paraphrased what the original author wrote and/ or found).

Q: I am just using the Google Scholar/ Zotero/ Endnote (or output from another source) version of Harvard. That should be fine, shouldn’t it
No. You need to use the University of Glasgow version of Harvard referencing so make sure you check the link supplied and ensure the style is correct before you submit your assessment.

Q: Should my reference list be in alphabetical order (based on the first author)
Yes. Your reference list should be in alphabetical order (based on the first author; NB: Do not rearrange the author order of any academic journal articles).

Q: Can I use academic journal articles that completed their research outside of the United Kingdom
Yes. You may read and use academic journal articles that have undertaken research outside of the United Kingdom.

Q: Do I put academic journal articles or other sources in my reference list that I did not use in my assessment submission

No. Only sources that you have read and referenced in your assessment submission should feature in your reference list.