Peer pressure, social influence, and persuasion are all types of social dynamics individuals experience on a daily basis. Society associates peer pressure with a negative connotation, but it can be a double edged sword. This is because we are highly influenced by the people around us (Schlitz, 2022). Surround yourself with smart and kind people, and you will be blessed. Surround yourself with ingenuine and less knowledgeable individuals, and trouble will arise. Social influence plays a huge role in the service and products that you purchase (Bhukya, 2023). Although surrounding yourself with better people might play a big role in improving your behavior, it is really the thought process and emotions that you derive from these influences that dictate your consumption behavior (Bhukya, 2023). As a high school student, I am easily swayed by my friends and make decisions on a whim. Although I still keep my values in check (i.e., work discipline, responsibilities), I now find myself tending to make decisions as a unit (i.e., friend group) rather than individually. Before, we would order our food separately, but now as we grow and bond together, we order for one another and keep in mind what others would pick. As we develop deeper bonds with our friends, it is natural for us to be influenced by our peers no matter how biased their opinions are (Macri, 2016). This is because we value their opinions and want to stay on their good side, so we sway our values to try and match their beliefs. Social influence is a strong factor in shaping our purchasing behaviors. 

           What can we do to be conscious about this behavior, then? First, social factors can be divided into three groups: Reference groups, immediate family members, and relatives. Reference groups refers to our peers and people that we compare ourselves with. Immediate family members are your parents. Relatives can range from your grandparents to even some cases, family friends (Rajak, 2023). These are the primary groups of people you interact with on a daily basis. You tend to listen to these people when they have used the product because they have complete knowledge over its function. Also, when we’re close to someone, we tend to trust them more; our relationship with them makes us trust their opinion more than a stranger (Rajak,  2023). For example, I have always wanted a computer to socialize more with my friends by playing games with them. At the same time, I have to budget according to my allowance. I can then ask my friends what computer has good specs, can run fast, and is cheap. Since they have been using computers for a long time, they are knowledgeable about which brands to buy that has good deals. However, this won’t apply to everyone as age and time also affect the type of social influence an individual receives. Research shows that a married couple will make purchases while keeping their partner in mind (Juneja, n.d.). For instance, I have moved several times from house to house, and when discussing where to move, my Mom and Dad have always made similar decisions as to what pricing would be best, what things to take with us, and what household items we should buy. This scenario may be different, however, if they were newlyweds without practice making decisions together. This leads to the topic of how time and age play a role in social factors. What a bachelor, newly married couple, a family, and a single old person would buy are entirely different from one another. As you can see, there are many ways in which the people around us (our social network) influence how and on what we spend our money.

           Social influence is definitely a big factor in determining our consumer purchases. However, what can distinguish between a person that makes regretful choices and a person that makes smart choices is internal. The way that individual perceives influences and how they act upon those influences will change the person that they will become. Who do you think influences you the most? If so, what are you influenced into purchasing?

 

 

 

 

 

References: 

Macri, J. (2016, November 7). Unconscious bias in friendships. Medium. https://medium.com/tunnel-vision/unconscious-bias-in-friendships-b38b88c25120 

Juneja, P. (n.d.). MSG Management  Study  Guide. Social Factors affecting Consumer Behaviour. https://www.managementstudyguide.com/social-factors-affecting-consumer-behaviour.htm 

Schlitz, I. (2022, December 11). How Other People Influence You and Why That’s Ok. Behavioral Scientist. https://behavioralscientist.org/invisible-influence-how-other-people-think-for-you-and-why-thats-ok/ 

Department of Health & Human Services. (2010, May 24). Work and your health. Better Health Channel. https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/work-and-your-health 

Bhukya, R., & Paul , J. (2023, March 28). Social influence research in consumer behavior: What we learned and what we need to learn? – A hybrid systematic literature review. Journal of Business Research. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S014829632300228X#:~:text=Social%20influence%20implicates%20both%20deliberate,Ratner%20and%20Kahn%2C%202002). 

Rajak, H. (2023, July 27). Reference Group Influence & Groups Dynamics on consumer behaviour. hmhub. https://hmhub.in/reference-group-influence-groups-dynamics-on-consumer-behaviour/