Building Vocabulary - Consumer Behavior 

Consumer behavior (behaviour) - definitions

"... activities and, more generally, patterns of activity shown by consumers when making purchases, including such factors as frequency of purchase, average spend, product preferences and so on." from IEBM Dictionary of Business & Management Ref HD30.15 .I33 1999

"... generally encompassing all the activities involved in and related to an individual's quest for need-satisfying products and services for personal or household use..." from Dictionary of Marketing Communications  Ref HF5412 .G68 2004

Gad, Marwa S. "Consumer Behavior." Encyclopedia of Business In Today's World. 2009. SAGE Publications. 8 Oct. 2012. <http://knowledge.sagepub.com/view/businesstoday/n212.xml>.  

Consumer behavior topics are covered in various disciplines including business, communications, psychology and sociology. Different disciplines may use different terms for the same concept.

Basic business and marketing resources can help you understand terms and concepts

   Dictionary of Marketing Communication  Ref HF5412 .G68 2004

[book]

Blackwell's Encyclopedia of Management. Marketing
Ref HD30.15 .B573 2005 vol. 9 

   The Advertising Age Encyclopedia of Advertising  Ref HF5803 .A38 2003

Demographic and other references may be helpful in your search  

A database thesaurus can help you find related terms in that discipline
NOTE: When you find an article that fits your topic, make note of thesaurus terms (sometimes called descriptors or subject headings) listed for this item. Add these new terms to your search vocabulary.

EBSCO Megafile includes suggested subjects on the left after a search.
MnPALS Library Catalog, chose Concordia, click a subject heading when you find a book.
PsycINFO Click on Search Tools, Thesaurus
Sociological Abstract Click on Search Tools, Thesaurus
Social Services Abstract Click on Search Tools, Thesaurus

Maintained by Theresa Borchert.  Last update 09-19-10
Send comments or corrections to borchert@cord.edu
Carl B. Ylvisaker Library, Concordia College, Moorhead,Minnesota