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This volume provides the fundamentals needed to understand the various explanatory systems and methodologies used in the behavior sciences and to evaluate their findings, in particular the literature and findings on buyer behavior. In clear prose, the author discusses the key issues in modern philosophy, psychology, and sociology and their relevance for the student of marketing and buyer behavior. O'Shaughnessy exploits insights from many disciplines as to the many ways to derive understanding of behavioral phenomena, making it accessible not only to academics and students of marketing, but to professionals as well.
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Explaining Buyer Behavior This page intentionally left blank Explaining Buyer Behavior Central Concepts and Philosophy of Science Issues JOHN O'SHAUGHNESSY New York Oxford OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS 1992 Oxford University Press Oxford New York Toronto Delhi Bombay Calcutta Madras Karachi Kuala Lumpur Singapore Hong Kong Tokyo Nairobi Dar es Salaam Cape Town Melbourne Auckland and associated companies in Berlin Ibadan Copyright © 1992 by Oxford University Press, Inc. Published by Oxford University Press, Inc., 200 Madison Avenue, New York, New York 10016 Oxford is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press AH rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced; stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of Oxford University Press. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data O'Shaughnessy, John. Explaining buyer behavior : central concepts and philosophy of science issues / John O'Shaughnessy. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-19-507108-5 1. Consumer behavior—Methodology. I. Title. HF5415.32.074 1992 658.8'342—dc20 91-22140 135798642 Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper Preface This book emerged from a series of notes I wrote for a seminar entitled "Explanation in Marketing." The aim of the seminar was to provide the fundamentals needed to feel comfortable in evaluating findings on buyer behavior and to feel confident in discussing the strengths/weaknesses and applicability to marketing of explanatory systems and methodologies employed in the behavioral sciences. This book is still directed toward this end and toward illuminating theories and findings on buyer behavior. Most of the topics discussed in the book are controversial and complex, often made more complicated by an absence of agreement on terminology among philosophers and behavioral scientists. Hence I am grateful to the many colleagues and students who commented on the text as it developed. These include Stephen Bell, John Whitney, Lloyd Sandelands, Bernd Schmitt, Luis Araujo, Don Lehmann and Eric Gelb. Particular thanks go to Joel Steckel for pointing to omissions and loose thinking, to Morris Holbrook, whose unstinting help and encouragement kept me going, and to Roger Dickinson, who kept me informed about relevant references and provided detailed comments on an early draft. I would like also to thank Maxine Freed and my secretary Liz Blair for being patient with me during the successive revisions of the book. Finally, a special thanks is due to Herbert Addison of Oxford University Press, who in his gentle way nursed the book along and ensured the final draft took account of the wise comments of Oxford's reviewers. New York January 1992 J. O'S. This page intentionally left blank Contents 1. Marketing Management and the Behavioral Sciences, 3 2. Explanation, 12 3. Causal Explanation, 29 4. Causal Temporal Modes of Explanation, 55 5. Teleological Explanation: Goal Ascription, Reasons, and the Rationality Principle, 88 6. Teleological Expla