TO BE OR %BE?

THE INFLUENCE OF DISSOCIATIVE REFERENCE GROUPS ON CONSUMER

PREFERENCES
Katherine White, University oI Calgary
Darren W. Dahl, University oI British Columbia
EXTENDED ABSTRACT
ReIerence groups reIer to those groups or group
members who are 'psychologically signiIicant Ior one`s
attitudes and behavior" (Turner 1991, p. 5). The current
paper Iocuses on an underrepresented topic in the marketing
and psychology literatures - the role oI dissociative
reIerence groups (i.e., those groups we wish to avoid being
associated with) in inIluencing consumer preIerences. There
are many examples oI consumers avoiding products
associated with particular groups: the teenager who doesn`t
want to wear his dad`s aItershave, the baby boomer who
won`t use products associated with being 'elderly, the
college student who avoids dressing 'geeky, etc. Although
anecdotal evidence suggests that people are oIten motivated
to avoid being associated with particular groups, we
empirically examine the hypothesis that dissociative
reIerence groups can inIluence consumer judgment and
behavior and identiIy key boundary conditions oI these
eIIects. The majority oI extant research on reIerence groups
has Iocused on the role oI membership reIerence groups
(i.e., those groups we are currently members oI |e.g., a
Iamily, one`s gender group, etc.|) and aspirational reIerence
groups (i.e., those groups we aspire to be members oI |e.g.,
celebrities, athletes, etc.|) in inIluencing consumer
preIerences. The current research suggests that not only are
people oIten motivated to attain positive outcomes (as
might be attained by aligning the selI with membership and
aspirational reIerence groups), but they oIten are motivated
to avoid negative outcomes (as might be accomplished by
avoiding dissociative reIerence groups). Thus, it is
predicted that dissociative reIerence groups can exert social
inIluence over consumer judgment and choice.
In study 1, we used gender to manipulate reIerence
group and predicted that males would be te.. ivctivea to cboo.e
and would have more vegatire eratvatiov. of a product that is
associated with a dissociative (i.e., Iemale) reIerence group
than a product that is not associated with a dissociative
reIerence group. We tested these predictions by having
participants imagine they would be attending a banquet Ior
work. They were asked to choose Irom among various
menu options. In the cheI`s cut condition participants`
choices oI the key itemsteakincluded the cheI`s cut (10
oz) or the house cut (12 oz). In the ladies` cut condition
participants` choices oI steak included the ladies` cut (10
oz) or the house cut (12 oz). Thus, this study used a
2(participant gender: male vs. Iemale) x 2(reIerence group
label: ladies` cut vs. cheI`s cut) x 2(steak sise: 10 oz vs. 12
oz) mixed model design (with steak sise as the within
subjects measure). SpeciIically, we predicted that, in the
ladies cut condition, males would be less likely to choose
and would have less positive evaluations oI the ladies` cut
(10 oz) than the house cut (12 oz) steak. We did not predict
a similar diIIerence in choice or evaluations in the cheI`s
cut condition (i.e., between the cheI`s cut (10 oz) and the
house cut (12 oz) steaks). Finally, we predicted that Iemales
would not be inIluenced by the alternative reIerence group
labels because being a 'lady is not a dissociative reIerence
group Ior them. The Iirst dependent variable was the
proportion oI males and Iemales who indicated they would
choose the 10 oz versus the 12 oz steak Ior their entree. The
second dependent variable was participants` evaluations oI
314
the diIIerent steaks. The results revealed that, as predicted,
males were signiIicantly less likely to select and had more
negative evaluations oI the ladies` cut than the house cut
steak. There was no diIIerence in choice or evaluations
when the 10 oz steak was called cheI`s cut. In addition,
Iemales were not diIIerentially inIluenced by the reIerence
group label.
In study 2, we used a similar methodology as study 1,
but also manipulated whether male participants were
consuming the steak in public or private. The Iindings oI
this study demonstrated that males were less likely to
choose and had more negative evaluations oI the ladies` cut
steak when consumption was to occur in public rather than
private.
Finally, in study 3, we operationalised dissociative
reIerence groups in a diIIerent wayby examining national
identity. In this study, Canadian students were primed
(versus not primed) with their own national identity and
were asked to evaluate a variety oI stationery items,
including the key itema pen. In the American condition
the pen was called 'American (which represents a
dissociative reIerence group Ior Canadians) and in the
neutral condition the pen was called 'Vintage. Once again,
participants were motivated to avoid a product associated
with a dissociative reIerence group. In particular, Canadian
students rated a pen that was associated with American
identity ('American Pen) more negatively then a pen that
was neutral ('Vintage Pen), particularly when participants
own identity was primed.
Taken together, these three studies provide evidence
that consumers can indeed be inIluenced by the desire to
avoid particular group memberships. The current studies
extend the classic literature on reIerence group inIluence on
consumer preIerences by examining the inIluence oI
dissociative associations on consumer evaluations and
choice. In addition, we demonstrated that dissociative
eIIects can be stronger and more reliable than associative
eIIects. In study 1, although males were motivated to avoid
the product associated with a dissociative group, Iemales
did not Iavor an alternative that was associated with a
membership group. Important moderators oI these
dissociative reIerence group eIIects were also identiIied. In
particular, the impact oI reIerence groups on consumer
preIerences was heightened when consumption was to
occur in public rather than private and when group
membership was primed rather than not primed. It is
suggested that the role oI dissociative inIluence is an
important consideration Ior both consumers and marketing
managers.
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