Sociology

Abstract
The global recession is anticipated to have heavy impacts on European consumers due to massive price augmentation and reductions in spending power. It will have additional more grave concerns for nations all over the world. The financial turmoil has certainly reduced demand as financial uncertainty had led buyers to cut down on their purchases and brands. On the other hand, retailers have cut down on production. It is commonly known that as recession intensifies, people would normally have lower spending power. This leads to an exceptional alteration in purchase decisions and buying patterns of the consumer regardless of age and class. With lower disposable income consumers are probable to give up many goods and services, it is most likely that they look for heavily discounted items. This paper attempts to look in to the economic crisis not from the viewpoint of an economist but from the eyes of a customer. This paper presents an analysis of the impacts of the recession on consumer behavior of students at Durham University in United Kingdom. This paper attempts to broaden the recognized literature on the topic by analyzing the transformations in their behavior due to the current recession by analyzing the factors that help make purchase decisions, pricing strategies of retailers, different behaviors revealed during in the process of buying and what impact can marketing strategies of goods and services providers can apply to make this impact less impactful.

Chapter One Introduction
1.1 Problem Statement
Consumer buying behavior has a multifaceted trend, which comprises of a bunch of decision-making methods and financial determinants. The present dissertation is focused on researching and analyzing the phenomenon in the present economic recession that has hit the world. As the present catastrophe is by now accepted to be having a prominent outcome on many financial and social aspects of the United Kingdom, the research focuses particularly on illuminating the results the current financial slump has on the buying actions of consumers.

1.2 Overview of the dissertation
The hypothesis of this study is to prove if there is an effect on the buying behavior of students at Durham University due to current economic recession prevailing in the world.  Still, this study is aimed at providing a complete picture of the studies that have been conducted on this consumer behavior.  While most of the research has proved there to be no change in shopping strategies due to recession, there are still adverse effects of the recession on shopping trends.

1.3 Objective of the study
The dissertation examines the effects of the current recession on the shopping behavior in the students of Durham University, UK. Literature reviewed comprises of theories revolving around the buyers decision making, the reasons and outcomes of the current economic recession. The research also discusses some marketing strategies for retailers which if employed can be fruitful both for the consumer and themselves. The methods of the research entail data obtained from secondary sources and from questionnaires to recognize changes related to recession in student spending patterns. Conclusions are made about the effects of the recession on the students with regard to the volume of spending on necessities, luxuries and food items.

1.4 Significance of the study
The dissertation is especially paying attention to examination of the students actions changing from a marketing viewpoint. The thesis deduces a figure of suggestions, which were extracted from the conducted secondary and primary research. The developed thesis outlines a variety of thoughts that companies can put together in their marketing campaigns in order to achieve their goals successfully, in spite of the recession.

Chapter Two Literature review
2.1 Recession and buying behavior
Recession - a word that is rumbling in the marketplace recently, is the universal slowing down in economic actions for a longer period or in simplest outline it is a reduction in business sequence (Anand and Sachar 2004). The activities refer to consideration of a customer at the time they are purchasing a product or service. Whilst the bend has distorted the financial state of affairs, this can also have radically changed the performance of buyers, who are currently working to endure without luxuries. Most of the companies with first-class range of products are expecting a quick rebound of customer performance, compared to the recessionary period in the past.  These are comparatively to be discouraged (Coyles and Gokey 2002). These days consumers are very alert about expenditure. They have controlled their urge for soothe and optional shopping. Probably they can keep on coming up for their hair trim, call off their plans of advancement in cell phones and stop taking delight in dinner in eateries outside.

2.2 Buying Pattern
Buying Pattern can be explained as a method in which individuals or groups buy substantial or insubstantial goods to gratify their needs or preferences (Hawkins, Best and Coney, 2004). Currently, the function of the consumer is of huge macro and micro-importance as the spending power is an essential financial motivating strength. The huge implication of the customers position can be documented from the detail that most modern customers use a great amount of time and energy on buying actions and decision-making activities. This is why buying pattern is known to be a route, which comprises of all activities linked to buying goods and services.  These elements include gathering information or data exchange of information selection purchasing and utilizing.

Behavior governing the purchase decisions is strong-minded by two prominent elements  internal and external (Miranda, Konya and Havrilla 2005). Demography, social norms, cultural actions, lifestyle are some of the intrinsic elements that are pointed out as essential to the determination of the buying behavior of an individual. On the other hand, there are a number of extrinsic elements that govern the objective of determining the behavior of buyers. These elements entail marketing promotions, publicity, customer service, economic and market steadiness and many more. In this regard, it will not be wrong to say that buying behavior is significantly firm and biased towards the enormously inter-reliant mix of customers buying consciousness and exterior enticements.

2.3 Types of Consumer Behavior
The literature identifies four typical types of buying behavior. They vary according to the rate of incidences, emotional participation, managerial difficulty and danger. In this context there are distinguishing behavior models of buyers which can be outlined. These behaviors include
Programmed behavior
Limited decision-making
Extensive decision-making and
Impulsive buying  (Michael 2005)

Purchasing of low cost items, such as newspaper, coffee, tea, game and travel tickets, etc characterizes the programmed behavior process. Limited search for product information and low obscurity of decision-making are some of the governing guidelines of this process. 

Etzel, Walker and Stanton  (2004) defines limited decision-making as a pattern where modest levels of decision-making are involved and moderate level of fundamental information to generate the purchasing decision.  Clothes are one type of product that entail a lower amount of information and decision making and also involves lesser amounts of selection. 

Etzel, Walker and Stanton (2004) define extensive decision-making as a process which entails complex decision-making. This is characteristically seen to be a process where the buyer requires a lengthier period of time and difficult decision making due to a lot of information to be gathered. Ehrenberg and Goodhardt (2001) exemplified that expensive and not very frequents purchases are an example of this type of behavior. This involves very high levels of financial and psychosomatic hazards.

A buying behavior which involves little or no emotional planning is known to be an Impulsive buying behavior. It is a temporary occurrence, which is usually aggravated by an outside stimulus and annoyance, making meticulous products tempting to consumers at a given small phase of time. Consumers emotion is outlined in the above theories to be of utmost importance and of significant importance when we study the consumers buying pattern or behavior.

2.4 The Recession Factor
Researchers are witnessing a downturn in the landscape of the economy. At the same time they also witness the altering behavior of numerous UK consumers especially students, who are consequently practicing to live without expensive products (Bennett and Rundle-Thiele 2004). Numerous companies are anticipating a downfall in their sales due to students buying behavior recoiling in the wake of the recession. The sellers are disappointed as on an average 18 of consumers preferred to buy cheaper brands in the last two years (Regional and State Unemployment 2008). Of the students who were interviewed on their behavior of switching inexpensive products, 46 confirmed that their performance was better than they anticipated earlier (Gross domestic product Fourth quarter 2008, 2009). Moreover, 34 of these interviewees said that they do not prefer expensive products anymore and additionally 41 informed that they preferred the premium brand but on using alternate products they believe it was not worth the money they spent (Patton 2002).

As a result, a rising figure of customers is now in anticipation. The proportion up for capturing the trend differ according to the class and depends on how many student consumers toggle from expensive to inexpensive brands, and the way they amend their buying intentions.

Moral expenditure levels where the customer opts for products which are fairly traded and locally produced are seen declining in the period before the recession as they are more expensive. In this particular period after the recession, the student consumers are trying to create a balance in their purchasing power and spending patterns by setting a priority to their needs and wants.

In normal days and better times, the situation was opposing, students did not care about their memberships at various clubs which was being charged on monthly basis the most evident reason was that they compelled themselves to use it at least some time in their university lives. At present such expenditures are avoided.  Such types of consumers are actually under a high influence and mystified in their spending actions.

As a result of this worldwide economic catastrophe most of students at present are in bewilderment of switching from best brands to cheaper ones and the companies are waiting for their arrival back practice that in the light of the recession may be aggravated. Their usual buyers have certainly transformed themselves from using cheap and subordinate costing items which they prefer to use in the wake of the recession.

Chapter Three Research Methodology
3.1 Research Approach
Through the nature of our literature gathered, we can outline two different research approaches, which can be used in the current dissertation  deductive and inductive. A deductive research approach is recommended to be appropriate for logical research, where the researcher has to develop a hypothesis and test it thus finally examining it and formulating a theory (Berry and Carbone  2007). Additionally, the inductive research approach proves to be more flexible, providing the researcher with a chance to modify the research importance depending on the collected conclusions during the research procedure.

In the current study, as it aims to firstly create a research theory through the significant assessment of concluding a hypothesis, it can be recommended that the present research is a deductive one.
The present dissertation utilizes the grounded theory of research strategy. The researcher is mainly focused on hauling out information through exploration in the current and past literature. The current research plan is suitable as it is found to be suitable for deductive reasoning or appropriate to explore backgrounds which aspire to progressively confirm the hypothesis (Chaudhuri 2009). Even though the current research is basically prejudiced by the grounded theory, the research consequently takes on a primary strategy of interviews to gather data.

3.2 Data Collection Method
In this research, it is conclusive that it is built on an amalgamation of secondary and primary data.

3.2.1 Secondary Data
The secondary data is gathered from multiple sources. This includes the academic sources. The use of this secondary multiple source data helps the researcher with a chance to formulate an objective and logical study. Also included in this secondary data is the commercial data which entails the outlining current conditions, which are probable to confront the academic ensembles.

3.2.2 Primary Data
In this research we combine secondary and primary data in the same study. The primary data is hauled out through the transmission of interview based on unstructured questionnaire. Unstructured questionnaires are known to be an apt data collection technique as the information they disclose matches up to the researchers plan of examining, construing and reacting to new appropriate insight rather than attaining any overviews which are like a law (Rundle-Thiele and Mackay 2001). This is why questionnaires are an ordinary data collection technique in investigative research processes. In the present context, each subject was interviewed at the campus of Durham University.

3.2.3 Sampling
Sampling in primary research process is used for making achievable the results which the researcher deems appropriate for the particular exploration.  Sampling is of two types probability and non-probability. The sampling method in the present dissertation is non-probability sampling. This can also be called the judgmental sampling. This type of sampling is helpful in achieving the desired outcome in an exploratory study like the one required in the present research. The interviewer chose 70 students from the Durham University, UK who were studying there with only their education funded. 

3.3 Research Limitations
The researcher used a broad range of entrenched, believable and modern academic and commercial literature sources. However, this list of academic sources is not the only research carried out in this field. There are numerous other sources which could be used. In this admiration, the current study is prepared through focusing on a meticulous number of literature sources.

Lastly, the current study is completely reliant on university requirements, which creates definite research limitations. Although the researcher acknowledged incessant academic control and support, and was afflicted with a great wealth of academic knowledge, the thesis was carried out under various research criterion of the university, which resulted in a great amount of restraints such as time, size of the sample and literature resources.

Chapter Four Results
A number of elemental factors were revealed from the in-depth interviews. The interviewees revealed some of the main challenges which they come across in determining their buying behavior and which they connect with the present economic catastrophe. The challenges recognized were lowering purchasing power due to decrease in disposable income threats from greater opportunity cost lower savings. The interview responses revealed the same factors to be causing the most considerable disruption in their buying behavior.

Even though the number of students interviewed is not very large and therefore does not occur to be of much statistical significance, but it is still important for us to divide the different responses and recognize any trends in the consumers insight.

The combination of factors outlined above makes consumers spotlight on buying competence by cutting down on the wasteful products. In this manner it would right to say that consumers identify that they are now planning their purchases more often than they did earlier. Therefore we conclude that planning is now an essential element of consumers buying behavior. Moreover, interviewees who said they are impulsive in buying described themselves as not impulsive anymore due to their disposable income shrinking significantly.

Figure 1 Has your buying behavior been affected by the recent economic recession

The shrinking disposable income is again recognized to be of a greatest challenge for the consumers purchasing activities. All of the interviewees described that lowered disposable income makes them feel more careful when buying particular products.

Figure 2 Are you spending less on non essential goods and leisure
47.14 of the interviewees revealed that they have cut down on the purchase of non essential goods and have limited themselves to the purchase of necessary items only. They are likely to overlook their shopping lists again and again in order to keep it updated with the necessary items only.

The interviewees revealed that apart from purchase of non edible goods, their food items are also limited and when it comes to eating out, about 57.14 of the total respondents have started eating out less often as compared to pre-recession era.

Figure 3 Compared to the period prior to economic recession, are you eating out at restaurants more often, the same, or less often
While making this decision they are more interested in the price over quality ratio and the cost of each transaction they are making.

Figure 4 Have you shifted from buying expensive goods to inexpensive substitute goods
Talking of transactional costs, the most evident of the finding in this aspect comes from their response to the inquiry of purchasing expensive goods. 21 of the respondents have substituted this category with inexpensive goods and 42 of the respondents are switching between the two depending on their spending power.

Respondents also revealed that they find it harder to maintain the same altitude of savings as they did in the past. However, not everyone has felt this impact and most of them are slightly experiencing the effect of this recession. 26 of the respondents are confirmed that their shopping trends have been affected adversely with the height of the recession.

Figure 5 Are you spending less amount of money on shopping since the recession

At the same time 58 of the respondents declared that they have started to feel the impact of this recessionary age. 

They accepted high prices and money devaluation to be of importance while they have to decide their sustainability towards common amounts of savings. Some students, approximated around 39 of the research sample cannot retain their spending power currently and have taken up a part time job to cover their needs and luxuries.

Figure 6 Have you taken up a part time job to cover your expenses
This was one more financial crisis outcome, which has resulted in greater carefulness during purchasing as the objective of savings is still of significant importance. The incapability to meet the same amounts of saving resources also prejudiced larger pre-purchasing argument with other students. This is another subject causal to the rising significance of peer pressure and how groups pressurize individuals.

Furthermore it was revealed from the interviews that students risk of experiencing great opportunity cost is the probable cause for them to engage in planning before purchase. A planning before making their decision would give them more and better alternatives to choose from and measure the ability to purchase.

Moreover, an attractive result exposed during the conducted interviews was that interviewees, some of them, feel disheartened by the miscellaneous effects of the recession and especially by the reaction of ambiguity. This has a significant consequence on their awareness of shopping as an agreeable action. They affirmed that this is why they are frequently behaving angrily. 

The following pie charts represent different purchasing values revealed by the students who were interviewed. In other words, every consumer was asked to identify the shopping values in which they were interested at present this contributed to the capability of our research to recognize trends in the current expenditure awareness and thus set up an overall idea of the stimuli likely to influence the choices of assortment and purchase.

Figure 7 Are you facing difficulties in covering your living expenses in the current economic recession

Over 77 of the respondents including those who have slightly realized that the recession is affecting thier lifestyle believe that they are facing difficulty meeting up with their living expenses. This leads to other factors, such as taking up a part time job that they can accommodate with their education, altering their buying patterns keeping in mind their necessities and luxuries, cutting down on their expenses in order to balance their fluctuating or usually decreasing spending power, etc.

Figure 8 Are you actively moving from store to store looking for the best deals
Another factor evident from the responses was that which was experiencing difficulty coping with the current prices of the products. Therefore, while they were looking for cheaper products they also tended to look for discounts and other fair pricing deals. This was almost 70 of the respondents out of which 54 have started to follow the same course recently and 16 surely buy when they see discounted deals.

Figure 9 Have you shifted from buying goods in huge quantities to small quantity
Apart from factors such as purchasing power, brand loyalty etc, another very evident matter to be discussed is whether the quantity being purchased is still the same as it was before the recession. In this aspect, we were able to conceive through our questionnaire a very transparent conclusion. 67 of the respondents at the University agree that they have started to purchase smaller quantities of goods as compared to the quantity bought earlier. This clearly indicates that the prices have not been reduced, the purchasing power is low, the need for goods is depreciating and luxuries are now becoming extinct.

Figure 10 Compared to the period prior to economic recession, would you say that you are purchasing more branded products, purchasing fewer branded products or purchasing almost the same amount

The current turmoil in the worldwide market and the succeeding downfall in customer response has resulted in a lot of critic questioning the role of brand loyalty at a time when consumers face a severe crunch on their consumption and spending. Contrary to popular perception, recessions do not cause a major decrease in consumption for branded products. In many instances consumers have little choice but to consume certain class of products. For example, a recession will not cause a tooth-paste consumer to switch to toothpowder, despite it being the cheaper option. The consumer will continue to use toothpaste but might switch from a striped variant with multiple benefits to a standard variant with the minimal functionalities. Our research indicates that 56 of the respondents still buy the same product and brand while only a mere 11 have decided to switch to other brands.

Chapter Five Discussion
The aim of the present dissertation is to explore the impacts of the current ongoing recession on buying behavior of students at Durham University. The result of this study is proposed to be of usefulness, which can be used by business organizations in their marketing strategies to pull towards you and keep this specific group of consumers. This is why the present section would discuss the recession effect on buying behavior of the students through a marketing perspective.

The research identified four types of behaviors of a buyer which includes programmed buying behavior limited decision-making buying behavior extensive decision-making buying behavior and impulsive buying behavior (Sierra and McQuitty 2005).

This research evidenced some stark facts about the buying behavior of the students. In this framework, the victorious selling strategy may be known as having a pioneering spotlight. This is likely to attract customers awareness and add to market share development and income growth. Moreover, it can be recommended that such a marketing advancement may result in the surfacing of new brand appreciation and customer insight. In other words, the economic crisis may appear as a positive era for business, which are aiming new market positions and relocate their positioning approach.

However, the likely possibilities for pioneering trading presentation of businesses may be effortlessly detracted by the extremely powerful financial component of smaller throwaway earnings, which numerous UK buyers know-how alike these scholars (Webster and Keller , 2004). These important components produced in the students buying behavior, which is concentrated on inexpensive and effective buying. This is why the thriving expansion and achievement of pioneering trading advancements has a good possibility of falling short - because of UK consumers economic deliberation (Allaway, Gooner, Berkowitz and Davis 2006).

An absolutely crucial component of the unintentional buying is the obsessive buying behavior. Although compulsive buying demeanor can be proposed to be alike to impetuous buying in periods of the unforeseen and undeveloped buying management, it is an occurrence with considerably distinct individuality and determinants. Compulsive buying demeanor is identified in the publications to be produced by contradictory external stimulus, which originate buyers frustration and disquiet.

Deriving from the individuality of the obsessive buying demeanor and identifying the high grades of force in which the present economic urgent position outcomes, it can be suggested that obsessive buying is expected to augment. The underlying principle of this proposal is assembled on the intention that the economic urgent position force is expected to outcome in buyer buying commotion and therefore outcome in obsessive buying, made by emotional annoyance and insight irrationality (Shugan 2005).

Even though unplanned behavior, and in specific obsessive buying demeanor, may be proposed to increase attractiveness, it is still not an opening retailers should approve. Firstly, obsessive buying behavior, because of the expected grades of illogicality engaged in this buying method, will not be identified as buying demeanor to set up the starting of long-term buying pattern (OBrien and Jones 1995). In other phrases, compulsive demeanor does not signify commitment, believe and buyer loyalty, which can be recognized as key factors that determine long-term affluence.

The study that was undertaken discloses that the nearby despair has important influences on both designed and unintentional buying demeanor of these students. The utmost factor formative of buying demeanor, as it can be glimpsed here, is the students purchasing power (Srivastava 2007). It is an absolutely crucial component of designed buying demeanor because of the components considered previous and includes buying rationality opening cost assessment and risk concerns, which scholars provide work in their trade decision-making. However, the reduced charges which some hard discounters supply are still not the only obligations for development in market share and productivity.

Chapter Six Conclusion
At the present time the world is facing a stunning challenge due to the recession. The economic position is identified as a multi-faceted episode, which has many diverse influences on financial and communal life of the country. In this framework one of the most harshly impacted constituents of the UK finances was the buyer buying behavior.

Consumer buying behavior is distinguished as a package of numerous decision-making methods, which are leveraged by a variety of intrinsic and extrinsic factors. However, as the literature above proposes, the most powerful component is identified to be the outside financial volatility that UK retail buyers experience. The contradictory consequences of the economic position can be discerned to strike the general buying behavior of all buyers as both designed and unintentional buying behavior is considerably affected.

This exceedingly volatile natural environment is recognized to be highly demanding for UK retailers and in specific for their trading strategies. Deriving from the undertook study it can be resolved that the most mighty and thriving trading scheme to appeal and keep customers attention in the in attendance position is the trading scheme which integrate and effectively exploit all of the trading blend constituents of cost, merchandise, location, advancement, persons, methods and physicality. In other phrases, the most thriving trading scheme is the one which is not only concentrated on one facet of the buyer buying behavior, but presents a blend of exclusive trading propositions, innovative advancements, ample charge, appealing in-store natural environment, high value of clientele service and personal clues for high-quality merchandise quality. This is the only scheme that is expected to outcome in lasting market share expansion and development in buyer loyalty.