A C T A U N I V E R S I T A T I S L O D Z I E N S I S
FOLIA OECONOMICA 85, 1988 _______
S t a n i s ł a w G a je w ski*
SHAPING- OF CONSUMER WANTS AND ASPIRATIONS IN DIFFERENT MARKET CONDITIONS
1• . n t r od u c tio n
In ord e r to c a r r y out an e f f e c t i v e consumption p o l i c y i t is n e c e s s a r y to know p r i n c i p l e s and r u l e s of human b e h a v io u r in d i f f e r e n t spheres of consumption a c t i v i t y . Such knowledge con s i s t s f i r s t of a l l of in fo r m a tio n c o n c e rn in g b e h a v io u r of the consumer in changin g c o n d i t i o n s of the environ m en t, as w e l l as in f o r m a t io n about which f a c t o r s and to what degree lead to s p e c i f i c d e c i s i o n s . These problems have been r e c e i v i n g a g r e a t deal of a t t e n t i o n of the econom ists d e a l i n g e s p e c i a l l y w it h pro blems of m ark eting and v a r i o u s consumption a s p e c ts f o r many y e a r s . I t s e x p r e s s io n are numerous s t u d i e s aim ing a t d i s c o v e r i n g the c a u s a l i t i e s behind consumers’ b e h a v io u r or more s p e c i f i c a l l y the mechanism of p u rc h a s in g , d e c i s i o n making, and p e r form ing s e l e c t i o n of goods. Many of these con cep ts have been f o r m a liz e d in d e f i n i t e t h e o r e t i c a l models f i n d i n g , however, their q u i t e common a p p l i c a t i o n in ( i r a c t i c e .
These con cep ts a re connected d i r e c t l y or i n d i r e c t l y w it h problems of consumer wants and needs as th e re i s no doubt that human wants arid needs p rop el m ay's a c t i v i t y and p r o v id e a b a s i s f o r p u rc h a sin g d e c i s i o n s . C o n s e q u e n tly , the c a t e g o ry of con sumer wants and needs has become a s e p a r a t e and independent r e s e a r c h o b j e c t both f o r m ark eting t h e o r i s t s and p r a c t i t i o n e r s .
S t u d i e s on d i v e r s e aspect of wants a re e s p e c i a l l y s i g n i f i c a n t in the s o c i a l i s t economy and a l l the more so in the s i t u a t i o n of s c a r c i t y of c e r t a i n q o n d s яя from the m arrnr.ncial
* Dr, s e n i o r l e c t u r e r , i n s t i t u t e of M a r k e t in g , U n i v e r s i t y of Łódź ’ ( P o l a n d ) .
p o i n t of view i t i s not i n d i f f e r e n t what wants a re s a t i s f i e d and in what way and what i s t h e degree and c o s t of s a t i s f y i n g these wants.
Among o t h e r s , i t ensues from the r o l e p la y e d by s o c i a l needs in a g e n e r a l l y torm u lated goal of economic a c t i v i t y in so c i a l i s m .
For the socio -econom ic p o l i c y to be a b le to s t e e r e f f e c t i v e l y the development of consumption, i t must have at i t s d i s p o s a l both a v e r i f i e d th e o ry of wants and knowledge about their h i e r a r c h y , degree of s a t u r a t i o n , means of t h e i r s a t i s f a c t i o n and t h e i r s t a b i l i t y in d i f f e r e n t socio -econom ic c o n d i t i o n s .
The aim of t h i s paper i s to t r y and answer a q u e s tio n r e g a rd in g the h i e r a r c h y and degree of s a t i s f a c t i o n of b a s i c con su mer wants of h ousehold s, as w e l l as what f a c t o r s and to what degree d eterm ine wants and needs in d i f f e r e n t gocio-eoonomic groups of p o p u la t io n .
Tht- in fo rm a tio n p re s e n te d in t h i s paper has been c o l l e c t e d in the cou rse of q u e s t i o n n a i r e s u r v e y s c a r r i e d out on an a g g re g a t i o n o f 1.200 households in Łódź in June and J u l y 1984. The s u r v e y s have not been f u l l y completed as y e t and, t h e r e f o r e , the i n fo r m a tio n p re s e n te d here encompasses o n ly t h e i r i n i t i a l f i n d ings c o n c e rn in g 476 households.
F or com p a ra tive purposes th e re w i l l be u t i l i z e d f i n d i n g s of analogous s t u d i e s conducted on the same a g g re g a tio n in 1977. W i t h i n the seven y e a r s d i v i d i n g the two r e s e a r c h p r o j e c t s the c o u n t r y ' s economic s i t u a t i o n has changed q u i t e r a d i c a l l y . The y e a r 1977, and g e n e r a l l y the y e a r s 1975-1977 were c h a r a c t e r i z e d w it h an unprecedented i n t e n s i f i c a t i o n of market sup p ly and e s p e c i a l l y w it h i n d u s t r i a l goods, w h i l e the c u r r e n t jyear i s a c o n s e c u t iv e y e ar in which a ttem p ts are made to overcome a deep economic c r i s i s . I t sho uld be expected t h a t t h i s d i f f e r e n t e c o nomic s i t u a t i o n must e x e r t i t s i n f l u e n c e on the degree and the l e v e l of consumer wants s a t i s f a c t i o n .
The s t u d i e s have encompassed consumer wants i n t h e i r two c r o s s - s e c t i o n s . The f i r s j of them encompassed typ e s and ag g reg a tes of wants (f o o d , c l o t h i n g , h ousing, f u r n i t u r e and household equipment, r e c r e a t i o n and to u ris m , e n t e r t a i n m e n t s ) , w h i l e the second - wants of c o n c r e t e o b j e c t s ( e . g . some d u r a b l e s ) .
2^. Consumer Needy and t he L e v e l of Thei r S a t i s.facti.on
The f i r s t and an im portant stag e in s t u d i e s on . consumer wants i s to determ ine the e x i s t i n g h i e r a r c h y of wants in house h o l d s 1 . However, a c c o rd ih g to d i f f e r e n t v ie w p o in t s and accepted c r i t e r i a j th e re can be d i s t i n g u i s h e d a t l e a s t two main h i e r a r c h i e s of consumer wants. fhe f i r s t one i s a h i e r a r c h y of wants d etermin ed a c c o r d in g to the im portance of a g iv e n neer in hu man l i f e w i t h i n a g iv e n p e rio d making no a llo w a n c e s f o r the de gree of t h e i r s a t i s f a c t i o n changing ove r tim e. Thus, i t i s a c e r t a i n r e l a t i v e l y s t a b l e system of v a lu e s whose s t r u c t u r e ex e r t s a d e c i s i v e i n f l u e n c e on r e a l i z a t i o n of wants, development of a s p i r a t i o n s , and l i f e s t y l e . The o th e r one i s a h i e r a r c h y of wants d i f f e r e n t i a t e d a c c o r d in g to t h e i r i n t e n s i t y a t the p r e sen t time and, c o n s e q u e n t ly , dependent on the degree to which p a r t i c u l a r wants a re s a t i s f i e d .
These two h i e r a r c h i e s may d i f f e r from each o th e r and they sometimes d i f f e r q u i t e s i g n i f i c a n t l y . The wants, to which con sumers a t t r i b u t e the g r e a t e s t im portance, may be p la c e d f a r in 2 the h i e r a r c h y w ith reg ard to the degree of t h e i r s a t i s f a c t i o n . T h is is due to l i m i t e d p o s s i b i l i t i e s of s a t i s f y i n g c e r t a i n wants r e s u l t i n g both from la c k of p u rch a sin g funds a n d ,' f o r example, from i n a p p r o p r i a t e market s u p p ly .
Our s t u d i e s i n d i c a t e t h a t the h i e r a r c h y of wants ag g reg ates (d e te rm in e d on the b a s i s of resp o n d e n ts' answ ers) i s d i s t i n c t l y d i v i d e d i n t o two p a r t s (T a b . 1 . ) . The f i r s t of them i n c lu d e s th r e e groups of w a n ts, which may be t r e a t e d as p rim a ry wants and, namely, food, housin g , c l o t h i n g , and fo o tw e a r. Between 50 and 75 per c e n t of a l l respondents p o in te d a t these wants as the most im portant f o r t h e i r households. The sequence in which ťhese wants appear i s b a s i c a l l y common fo r a l l household groups r e g a r d le s s of t h e i r income l e v e l , and t h e i r s o c i a l and demogra p h ic d e te r m in a n ts .
1 L .G . S c h i f f m a n , L . L . K a n u k, Consumer B e h a v i o r , P r e n t i c e - H a l l , Englewood C l i f f s 1978, p. 41.
2 See:< M.L. B e l l , M a rk e tin g , Concepts and S t r a t e g y , Houghton M i f f l i n C o ., Boston 1966, p. 180.
T u b i e 1 H ie ra r c h y of consumer wants a cc o rd in g to degree
of t h e i r importance fu r households S p e c i f i c a t i o n % of i n d i c a t i o n s 1984 1977 Fo od . 75.2* 69.2 Hous ing 61.3 36.1 C lo t h in g and footwear 49.5 25.4 R e c r e a t io n and tourism CC 58.3 Household equipment 36. 1 35.5 C u l t u r a l e n te rta in m e n ts 21 .4 4^ О CS F u r n i t u r e 11.6 28.8 Car 6.7 10.2
* P e rc e n ta g e of i n d i c a t i o n s shows tha t 75 per cent of r e spondents l i s t e d food among th r e e wants being must im portant fo r them.
The next p la c e in the h i e r a r c h y i s h eld by two groups of wants i n d ic a t e d by not q u it e 40 per cent of resp on d ents. These are wants connected w ith r e c r e a t i o n and tourism and those in the f i e l d of d u ra b le goods. The rem aining wants in c lu d e c u l t u r a l e n te rt a in m e n t s (books, p r e s s , cinema, t h e a t r e ) i n d i c a t e d by on ly e very f i f t h respondent, and f u r n i t u r e - by 12 per cent of resp on d e nts. The need to pos'sess a c a r has ob ta in ed by f a r the few est i n d i c a t i o n s . A c a r i s t r e a t e d as a good of the h ig h e s t o r d e r , and p o s s es s in g i t i s not a b s o l u t e l y n e c e s sa ry fo r man's e x i s t e n c e . A c c o r d in g ly , the want in t h i s s p here, d e s p i t e i t s q u i t e a b ig s i z e , i s c o n s id e re d to be such whose s a t i s f a c t i o n
( i n comparison w ith o t h e r s ) i s not the most im portant lo r the
t
consumer a t the p res e n t time.
The e x i s t i n g h ie r a r c h y of wants is q u it e c o n s i d e r a b ly d i f f e r e n t i a t e d in p a r t i c u l a r typ es of households. Only the ord e r of the three b a s ic groups of wants is s i m i l a r although the p e r centage of i n d i c a t i o n s p o i n t i n g a t t h e i r importance in the c r o s s - s e c t i o n of d i f f e r e n t household groups is d i f f e r e n t i a t e d . The s t u d ie s r e v e a l th a t the most s i g n i f i c a n t i n d i c a t o r s ’of the h ie r a r c h y of wants a re : e d u c a t io n a l background of the head of f a m i l y , age and income l e v e l . G e n e r a ll y sp ea k in g , the r i c h e r ,
younger and b e t t e r educated respondents a t t r i b u t e b ig g e r impor tance to wants of " t h e h ig h e r o r d e r " not connected w ith man's b i o l o g i c a l e x is t e n c e , which may in c lu d e r e c r e a t i o n and tou rism , c u l t u r a l e n t e r t a in m e n t s , and ownership of а c a r 3. Th is r e f l e c t s most c e r t a i n l y the s o c i a l c h a r a c t e r of i n d i c a t e d wants g e n e ra ted m ainly by the e n v ir o n m e n t's p r e s s u r e and being a r e s u l t of the f u n c t i o n i n g of s o c i a l consumption p a t t e r n s in a g iv e n en- v i ronment.
P r e f e r e n c e g iv e n to the above mentioned groups of wants le a d s s im u lt a n e o u s l y to a s m a l l e r sha re of i n d i c a t i o n s painting at o t h e r huusehold wants, which f i r s t of a l l i n c lu d e food, c l o t h i n g and fo o tw e a r.
The r e s e a r c h f i n d i n g s r e v e a l t h a t the h i e r a r c h y of wants d is c o v e r e d in 1984 d i f f e r s q u i t e c o n s i d e r a b l y from t h a t d e c la r e d by respondents 7 y e a r s e a r l i e r . K i r s t of a l l , i t can be no t i c e d t h a t a t p r e s e n t i n d i c a t i o n s a re focussed around th r e e gruups of b a s ic wants w h i l e p r e v i o u s l y p e rce n ta g e s h a res of i n d i c a t i o n s were spread mure e v e n ly w ith b a s i c wants b eing r e l a t i v e l y le u s a p p r e c ia t e d ^ . C o n se q u e n tly , the wants of h ig h e r ur- der ranked h ig h e r in l ‘>77. [hus, fo r example, the want of r e c r e a t i o n and tourism was i n d i c a t e d by o ve r a h a l f ot r e spondents and t h i s complex of wants ranked h ig h e r in the h i e r a r c h y - and sometimes q u i t e c o n s i d e r a b l y - than such b a s i c needs of a nan as c l o t h i n g or h o u s in g , and In some p o p u la t io n groups i t even proved to be mure im portant than food ra n k in g f i i s t in the h i e r a r c h y . S i m i l a r l y , c u l t u r a l e n t e r t a in m e n t s ranked high ( 3 5 % ), which t e s t i f i e s to a high rank of wants l e a d i n g to d e velopment of man's p e r s o n a l i t y and r e a l i z a t i o n of the s o - c a l l e d h u m a n is tic f u n c t i o n s of consumption. At the p re s e n t tim e, the wants of t h i s kind have been pushed away f u r t h e r in the h i e r a r c h y I t migtit be assumed to be a r e s u l t of the e x i s t i n g s i t u a t i o n , in which a common s c a r c i t y of goods, r a t i o n i n g of
3 f u r example, the want of p o s s e s s in g a c a r i s i n d i c a t e d by o n ly 4.8% ot respondents w ith p rim a ry s c h o o l background and 3.3% of ttie p o o re s t re s p o n d e n ts, w h i l e the same share amounted to 15.6% of respondents w it h academic background and 14.1% of the r i c h e s t resp on d ents.
4 The lower rank h e ld by b a s i c wants c o n firm s A. M a s l o v 's th e o ry t h a t wants s a t i s f i e d l e s s i n t e n s i v e l y a re s im u l t a n e o u s l y l e s s im p ortan t f o r consumers.
irar.y of them, s u b s t a n t i a l r i s e s in p r i c e s and a drop in r e a l incomes accompanying them, f o rc e in a way consumers to curb con s i d e r a b l y the range o f s a t i s f i e d wants and look a f t e r m a tters being most e s s e n t i a l f o r t h e i r e x is t e n c e f i r s t of a l l .
In ord e r to determ ine tne h ie r a r c h y of wants ac c o rd in g to the degree of t h e i r s a t i s f a c t i o n ( i n t e n s i t y ) thę respondents were asked to what e x te h t t h e i r f a m i l i e s ' wants in the f i e l d of food, c l o t h i n g and footw ear e t c . were s a t i s f i e d . They were g i ven f o u r v a r i a n t s of answers: v e ry good, good, s u f f i c i e n t and i n s u f f i c i e n t (T a b . 2 . ) .
T a b l e 2 Gegree of s a t i s f a c t i o n of consumer wants
(X share of i n d i c a t i o n s )
Degree of s a t i s f a c t i o n Index , S p e c i f i c a t i o r i verygood good s u f f i c i e n t f i c i entin s u f- of s a t i s f a c
t i o n 1984 of sat i s f a c t i o n 1977 Housing 9.7 58.0 22.0 10.3 1.67 1.89 F u r n i ture 3.8 43.5 42.9 9.9 1.41 1.61 Food 3.2 39.8 49.2 7.8 1.38 1.54 C.lothing and footw ear 5.2 3 1 .В 50. 3 12.7 1.30 1.76 Household a p p lia n c e s 3.5 32*4 49.5 14.6 1.25 1.77 R e c r e a t i o n and tourism 7-1 16 .a 45.8 30.3 1.01 1.41 C u l t u r a l e n t e r tainm ents 3.1 12.0 59. 7 25.0 0.91 1.36
I t appeared t h a t on the a verag e 60-90 per cent o f i n d i c a t i o n s were w i t h i n the middle b r a c k e t s of the s c a l e i . e . the respondents f o r t h e i r most p a r t e s tim a te d the degree of wants s a t i s f a c t i o n as s u f f i c i e n t or good (an e x c e p tio n i s the want of p o s s e s s in g a c a r , which i s o m itted in our a n a l y s i s as q u i t e s p e c i f i c ) . However, the most i n t e r e s t i n g c o n c lu s i o n s can be o b ta in e d when a n a l y z i n g data co n c e rn in g the i n s u f f i c i e n t degree of wants s a t i s f a c t i o n , which in our s t u d i e s was taken to be a symptom of s u b j e c t i v e l y e v a l u a t e d d e p r i v a t i o n s t a t e .
The sense of d e p r i v a t i o n concerns m ostly wants in the f i e l d of r e c r e a t i o n and to u rism , and c u l t u r a l e n te rta in m e n ts as, on the a v e ra g e , e very t h i r d or f o u r t h respondent e stim a te d the de gree of t h e i r s a t i s f a c t i o n to be i n s u f f i c i e n t . A high share of
i n d i c a t i o n s a t b a s ic wants i s a ls o d is t u r b i n g as in the case of c l o t h i n g and footwear almost 13 per cent of the respondents e stim a te d t h e i r s a t i s f a c t i o n to be i n s u f f i c i e n t w ith 8 per cent of the respondents p o i n t in g a t i n s u f f i c i e n t s a t i s f a c t i o n of t h e i r food wants.
In ord e r to determ ine more p r e c i s e l y the degree of wants s a t i s f a c t i o n and t h e i r h i e r a r c h i z a t i o n ac c o rd in g to wants s a t i s f a c t i o n c r i t e r i o n , p a r t i c u l a r i n d i c a t i o n s r e c e iv e d in d i c e s on a four-grade s c a l e from 0 to 3 s t a r t i n g w ith v e ry good degree of t h e i r s a t i s f a c t i o n and ending w ith t h e i ę i n s u f f i c i e n t s a t i s f a c t i o n .
O rd erin g wants a c c o rd in g to i n d i c e s of t h e i r s a t i s f a c t i o n , i t appeared t h a t in the respondents p e r c e p t io n the want of hou s in g (in d e x - 1.6 7) and the want of e q uip p in g the house w it h f u r n i t u r e ( 1 . 4 1 ) a re r e l a t i v e l y b e st s a t i s f i e d .
The next p l a c e in t h i s r e s p e c t was h e ld by wants in the f i e l d of food ( 1 . 3 8 ) , c l o t h i n g and footwear ( 1 . 3 0 ) and household a p p lia n c e s ( 1 . 2 5 ) .
S a t i s f a c t i o n of wants in the f i e l d of r e c r e a t i o n ( 1 . 0 1 ) c u l t u r a l e n t e r t a in m e n t s ( 0 . 9 4 ) is e v a lu a t e d d e c id e d ly w eakest. I t c o n firm s c e r t a i n r e g u l a r i t i e s , d is c o v e r d a l s o in o t h e r s t u d i e s ^ , i n d i c a t i n g t h a t wants of t h i s type - as those of the h ig h e r ord e r - a re s a t i s f i e d in f u r t h e r sequence, w h i l e in c r i s i s c o n d i t i o n s - they a re d r a s t i c a l l y reduced.
A h i e r a r c h y of wants determined in t h i s way i s a f f e c t e d p r i m a r i l y by economic f a c t o r s , and m a inly by the l e v e l of i n comes per 1 member of a household. Our s t u d i e s prove t h a t in the p u o re st f a m i l i e s a l l wants are c h a r a c t e r i z e d w ith lo w er i n d i c e s of t h e i r s a t i s f a c t i o n in comparison w ith the r i c h e s t f a m i l i e s . T h e ir h i e r a r c h y i s a l s o changed a l i t t l e altho ug h both those wants which a re s a t i s f i e u ><un.t remain on the same p l a ces in the h i e r a r c h y .
5 See: L . B e s k i d , B od z ie c lub b a r i e r a [ S t i m u l u s or B a r r i e r ] , " Ż y c i e Gospodarcze" 1984, nr 8.
W h ile d is c u s s in g t h i s phenomenon t h e re should not be forgo- te n , however, r e l a t i v i s m of p e r c e p t io n of the l e v e l and q u a l i t y of wants s a t i s f a c t i o n and, c o n s e q u e n tly , d i f f e r e n t i a t e d ceiling of wants s a t u r a t i o n in v a r i o u s income groups. In the r i c h e s t households, a good s a t i s f a c t i o n of a want is connected w ith a much w ider range of goods and s e r v i c e s (and u s u a l l y of b e t t e r q u a l i t y ) than in households w ith lo wer incomes. Requirements growing along w ith growth of incomes are deepened by the impact of s o c i a l f a c t o r s , and m ainly by the e d u c a t io n a l background of the f a m ily head. This means t h a t although the degree to which a want i s s a t i s f i e d i s m ainly determined by the income l e v e l , the way in which i t i s s a t i s f i e d i s s t r o n g ly a f f e c t e d of so c i a l f a c t o r s .
Comparison of s u b j e c t i v e I n d i c e s of wants s a t i s f a c t i o n in 1984 and 1977 i n d i c a t e s t h a t a l l groups of wants (w it h o u t any e x c e p t io n ) are c h a r a c t e r i z e d w it h much lower degrees of t h e i r s a t i s f a c t i o n a t the p re s e n t tim e. T h is concerns e s p e c i a l l y wants of the h ig h e r ord e r such as consumer d u r a b le s , c u l t u r e , holidays and to u ris m , w h ile from among b a s ic wants - c l o t h i n g and f o o t wear. The most elem entary need such as food is a l s o s a t i s f i e d to a s m a lle r degree in the respondents' o p in io n than 7 y e a rs ago a ltho ug h d i f f e r e n c e s in i n d ic e s are r e l a t i v e l y i n s i g n i f i c a n t in t h i s c a s e . I t may t e s t i f y to the f a c t that food r e p r e s e n t s a want p a r t i c u l a r l y p r o t e c t e d by consumers.
This t h e s i s i s c o n firm e d .b y the f in d i n g s of»- s t u d ie s on typ es of expenses r e s t r i c t e d in households as a r e s u l t of the p r e s e n t c r i s i s ( l a b . 3 . ) .
Thus, on ly 28 per cent of respondents t r y to economize on food, w h i le every o th e r household economizes when p u rch asin g c l o t h i n g , s e r v i c e s and on e x p e n d itu re connected w ith m a inte n ance of house or f l a t .
S i m i l a r l y , e v e ry oth e r respondent d e c la re d r e s t r i c t i o n of e x p e n d itu re on a lc o h o l and c i g a r e t t e s . That would re p r e s e n t a h i g h l y p o s i t i v e phenomenon i f i t were not f o r the f a c t t h a t a drop in demand fo r a l c o h o l i c beverages i s accompanied by growth in consumption of home-made a l c o h o l , which I s e s tim a te d a t about one t h i r d of t o t a l consumption of a lc o h o l in Po lan d .
The ord er and scope of r e s t r i c t i n g wants i s d i f f e r e n t i a t e d , even q u it e c o n s i d e r a b l y , a cc o rd in g tc the type of household.
T a b l e 3 Types of r e s t r i c t e d expenses S p e c i f i c a t i o n P e rc e n ta g e o f ' i n d i c a t i o n s E x p e n d itu re on food 28.0 E x p e n d itu re on c l o t h i n g and footwear ^ 46.7 Ex p e n d itu re on a lc o h o l and c i g a r e t t e s 50.2 E x p e n d itu re on s e r v i c e s 45.4 E x p e n d itu re on h o u s e / f l a t m aintenance 44.6 E x p e n d itu re on c u l t u r e 43.0 E x p e n d itu re on r e c r e a t i o n 28.8 Other ex p e n d itu re 18.0
In f a m i l i e s whose heads have seco nd ary-scho ol or u n i v e r s i t y background, th e re i s observed a tre n d of r e s ig n in g much more o f t e n from purchases of a lc o h o l and c l o t h i n g than from c u l t u r a l e n t e r t a in m e n t s , s e r v i c e s , h o li d a y s and r e c r e a t i o n . In t u r n , the two l a s t mentioned groups of expenses are a main source of s a v in g s in many-child f a m i l i e s , those l e s s r i c h or those in which the f a m ily head has completed on ly the prim ary s c h o o l.
I t i s worth n o tin g h ere a common r e s i g n a t i o n from s e r v i c e s of v a r i o u s k in d s . A cco rd ing to the type of household, JO to 70 per c e n t of households d e c la r e t h e i r economizing on s e r v i c e s . This means t h a t a b ig p r o p o r t io n of a l l f a m i l i e s perform d i f f e r e n t s e r v i c e s on t h e i r own in s t e a d of p u rch asin g them, and espe c i a l l y such s e r v i c e s as p e rs o n a l ones (c o s m e t ic , h a i r - d r e s s in g and h a i r - c u t t i n g ) , r e n o v a t io n s and r e p a i r s of f l a t s , washing la u n d r y , and r e p a i r s of v a r i o u s k i n d s 6 . Such n a t u r a l i z a t i o n of consumption i s a r e f l e c t i o n o f " d e t e r i o r a t i n g l i v i n g c o n d i t i o n s and, s im u lt a n e o u s ly , a symptom of p r o t e c t i v e adjustm ents of households at the time of c r i s i s .
6 See: T. P a ł a s z e w s k a - R e i n d l , Gospoda
r s t w a domowe w warunkach t r u d n o ś c i rynkowych [H ouseholds i n
C o n d it io n s of Market D i f f i c u l t i e s ] , "Handel Wewnętrzny" 1983, nr 2.
The above mentioned r e s t r i c t i o n of expenses i s a sad n e c e s s i t y f o r m a jo r i t y of househoJds caused by q u it e a s u b s ta n t i a l drop in r e a l incomes in r e c e n t t im e s 7.
T h is drop in incomes i s anyway p e r c e iv e d by the respondents in a m agnified manner, which i s not confirm ed by r e a l changes in income l e v e l s . In a l l s o c i a l groups, i r r e s p e c t i v e of t h e i r m a t e r i a l s i t u a t i o n , th e re can by ■ observed a common c o n v i c t i o n about a s u b s t a n t i a l sho rta g e of incomes in r e l a t i o n to the p e r c e iv e d f a m ily needs. That i s expressed by the f a c t t h a t 12.4 per cent of f a m i l i e s e v a lu a t e t h e i r incomes as v e ry low, 42.9 p er c e n t as low, 29.6 per cent as s u f f i c i e n t , and b a r e l y 8.8 per c e n t as good. In 1977, the corresp o n d in g s h a res were 4 .2 , 18.9, 49.4 and 27.5 per c e n t , which p o in t s to a r a d i c a l de c r e a s e in s u b j e c t i v e e v a lu a t i o n s con ce rn in g • the respondents' m a t e r i a l s t a t u s , which r e f e r s to a p r e v a i l i n g m a j o r i t y o f them. Of c o u rs e , t h i s must have e x e rte d i t s i n f lu e n c e on the o p in io n s of consumers c o n c e rn in g the degree to which p a r t i c u l a r wants a re s a t i s f i e d , which were p rese nted above.
3. L e v e l of A s p i r a t i o n s and T h e ir In n e r S t r u c t u r e
The degree of wants s a t i s f a c t i o n or the degree of resp on d e n ts' con ten ted n ess w ith t h e i r s a t i s f a c t i o n were co n fro n te d w it h consumers' a s p i r a t i o n s w it h reg a rd to d e s i r a b l e l e v e l of incomes being in d is p e n s a b le to r e a l i z e p e r c e iv e d wants. The size of d e s i r a b l e income may be t r e a t e d as a s y n t h e t i c i n d i c a t o r of p e r c e iv e d wants o r , in o th e r words, a g e n e r a l iz e d e x p re s s io n of consumer a s p i r a t i o n s (Tab. 4 ).
The s iz e o f d e s i r a b l e income (co un ted per one p e rs o n ) ran ged from below twenty to tens thousands z l o t y a c c o rd in g to house h old c a t e g o r y . W ith a ve ra g e s incomes in the a g g re g a tio n under survey amounting to around 8485 z l o t y per c a p i t a , the p o s t u l a t e d income amounted to 15 937 z l o t y and was, th u s, h ig h e r by about 88 per c e n t from a c t u a l l y o b ta in ed incomes. A c c o r d i n g ly , in the o p in io n of a l l respondents o n ly an income which i s t w ic e higher than t h a t a c t u a l l y o b ta in e d i s co n s id e re d to be s u f f i c i e n t f o r
7 I t has been e stim a te d t h a t r e a l incomes d e c l in e d by about 30k M i t h in the l a s t fo u r y e a r s .
a good s a t i s f a c t i o n of wants. This may be t r e a t e d as a c o n s id e r a b le d iv e rg e n c e between the r p a l s i t u a t i o n and the s i t u a t i o n p e r c e iv e d to be d e s i r a b l e by the resp ond ents, which t e s t i f i e s a l s o to a s tro n g sense of d e p r iv a t io n of wants.
T a b l e 4 / ‘ D e s i r a b l e incomes in r e l a t i o n to r e a l incomes ( r e a l income = 1.Ü0) Types of households I n d i c a t i o n s A l l households average K 8 B P o o re s t households 2.11 R i c h e s t households 1.79 Two-p«rson households 1.65 Fiv e - p e rs o n households 2.32
Households w ith prim ary-suhool
background of fa m ily he<iOS 1.84 Households w ith academic back
ground of fa m ily heads 2.15
The p o s t u la t e d income l e v e l i s q u it e d i f f e r e n t i a t e d in p a r t i c u l a r household ty p e s . F i r s t of a l l , I t can be n o t ic e d t h a t i t s y s t e m a t i c a l l y grows along w ith growth in the h o u s e h o ld 's m a t e r i a l s t a t u s . In the p o o re s t households, i t reach es 8 5ÜQ z l o t y and in the r i c h e s t i t exceeds 20 000 z l o t y per регзоп. T h is f a c t a l l o w s to s t a t e t h a t consumer a s p i r a t i o n s a re closely r e l a t e d to the f a m i l y ' s economic s i t u a t i o n . Thus, i t i s a r e l a t i v e c a t e g o r y , which i s dependent upon the l e v e l of incomes a l r e a d y o b ta in e d and, c o n s e q u e n t ly , on the p r e s e n t l e v e l of wants s a t i s f a c t i o n .
Of c o u r s e , the respondents are aware of t h e i r economic s i t u a t i o n and the l e v e l to which t h e i r wants a re s a t i s f i e d , which i s con firm e d by the f a c t t h a t the p o o re s t household s p o s t u l a t e o ve r double (b y 111X > I n c r e a s e of t h e i r incomes to s a t i s f y their needs w h i l e the r i c h e s t - an i n c r e a s e of 79 p e r c e n t .
I n t e r e l a t i o n s h i p s e x i s t i n g between the impact of w e a lth and e d u c a t i o n a l background f a c t o r s causes t h a t r e g u l a r i t i e s r e g a r d in g the p o s t u l a t e d income l e v e l s in households d i f f e r e n t i a t e d a c c o r d in g to the e d u c a t i o n a l background of f a m i l y heads a re s i m i l a r to those t h a t oan' be ob served in households d i f f e r e n t i a ted w i t h reg a rd to the l e v e l of incomes o b ta in e d by them.
S in c e the l e v e l of per c a p i t a incomes i s s t r i c t l y dependent upon the number of persons in á f a m i l y , the moęe numerous house h o ld s (a n d , th u s , p oorer as a r u l e ) d e c la re , a r e l a t i v e l y h ig h e r d e s i r a b l e income l e v e l th a n , f o r example, two-person households b e lo n g in g to h ig h e r b r a c k e t s as reg a rd s t h e i r m a t e r i a l ^ s t a n dards .
The performed s t u d i e s a f f o r d y e t ano th er c o n c l u s i o n . Namely, the l e v e l of d e s i r a b l e incomes in p a r t i c u l a r household c a t e g o r i e s i s even more e q u a liz e d than the l e v e l of incomes a c t u a l l y o b t a in e d . Th is may be a s ig n of some tre n d towards s t a n d a r d i z a t i o n of a s p i r a t i o n s ( a t l e a s t , from the q u a n t i t a t i v e p o i n t of v i e w ) in d i f f e r e n t s o c i a l groups and s t r a t a . A q u e s tio n a r i s e s h e r e , "What i s the m a t e r i a l co n te n t of these a s p i r a t i o n s ? " or o t h e r w i s e , "What i s the i n t e r n a l s t r u c t u r e of p e r c e i v e d wants in d i f f e r e n t types of h o u s e h o ld s ? " .
The answer to the above q u e s tio n i s u s u a l l y g iv e n on the b a s i s o f a g e n e ra l and d e t a i l e d a n a l y s i s of the s t r u c t u r e of expenses determin ed through a n a l y s i s of f a m i l y budgets. In our s t u d i e s , the s t r u c t u r e of p e r c e iv e d wants w i l l be i l l u s t r a t e d through an example c o n c e rn in g want of some consumer d u ra b le s l e s s f r e q u e n t l y met in households (T a b . 5 ) .
Wants of p a r t i c u l a r goods have been examined by means of a d i r e c t methods i . e . on the b a s i s of the re s p o n d e n ts ' o p i n i o n s . As a want is - a r e a l i z e d s h o r t a g e , i t has been e s tim a te d what p e rc e n ta g e share of the respondents does not possess s p e c i f i c o b j e c t s in t h e i r households and, a t the same tim e , i s aware of t h e i r sh o rta g e or e x p res s es a want.
I t can be g e n e r a l l y seen t h a t the s t a t e of p o s s e s s io n of a l l the goods w it h o u t any e x c e p tio n has improved ove r the l a s t seven y e a r s and q u i t e s u b s t a n t i a l l y ( e . g . the number of posse ssed a utom a tic washing-machines rose fo u r times and t h a t of c o l o u r TV s e t - n i n e t ir o e s ). Such a s i g n i f i c a n t i n c r e a s e might suggest t h a t wants in the sphere of household a p p lia n c e s have d e c re a s e d . Meanwhile, i t appears t h a t these wants not on ly have not been s a t u r a t e d but - on the c o n t r a r y - they have i n c r e a s e d in r e l a t i o n to the s i t u a t i o n in 1977. I t i s q u i t e a paradox t h a t in the p r e v a i l i n g market s i t u a t i o n , when most con sumer d u ra b le s a re hard to o b t a in and d e s p i t e the f a c t t h a t t h e i r p r i c e s have r i s e n 3 to * times o ve r the l a s t few y e a r s t h e r e a r e such huge wants o f them
T a b l e 5 S t a t e ot p o ssessio n and wants o f some d u ra b le goods
1977 1984
Sp e c i f i c a t i o n s t a t e of
p ossess)on wants
s t a t e of
p ossession wants A utom atic washing-
machine 9.7 44.9 33.6 47.1
Fr e e z e r - - 11.6 24.9
C olour TV 2.1 21.5 18.5 28.0
S t e r e o r a d io - s e t 6.2 4.0 29.8 21.0
S t e r e o ta p e - re c o r d e r 3.4 5.2 15.8 23.2
This phenomenon can be a t t r i b u t e d to i t s two main ca u se s. On the one hand, p a t t e r n s of consumption c h a r a c t e r i s t i c p r e v i o u s ly fo r a narrow c i r c l e of households have been undoubtedly q u it e w id e ly p o p u la r iz e d . I t i s , among o t h e r s , an e f f e c t of s o c i a l i m i t a t i o n le a d in g u l t i m a t e l y to p o s i t i v e changes in stru c t u r e of consumption.
The o t h e r cause should be sought most prob ab ly in a s p e c i f i c model of households' consumer b e h a v io u r a t the time of c r i s i s . I t appears t h a t consumer a s p i r a t i o n s awoken in p r e v io u s y e a r s have no r e a l chances of t h e i r s a t i s f a c t i o n a t the p re s e n t time due to a drop in p ro d u c tio n and c u ts in import of these goods. As a r e s u l t , consumer d u ra b le s become an o b j e c t of a l most common s p e c u la t i o n w ith t h e i r p u rc h a sin g becoming a s p e c i f i c investm ent of s a v in g s f o r many households. I t should be a l s o mentioned t h a t , from the p s y c h o l o g ic a l p o in t of v ie w , goods a re as a r u l e a l l the more a p p r e c ia t e d the more d i f f i c u l t i t i s to o b t a in them.
O b v io u s ly , the d is c o v e r e d wants are c o n s id e r a b ly d i f f e r e n t i a t e d in p a r t i c u l a r typ es of households. This d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n concerns l e i s u r e and e n te rta in m e n t goods to a b ig g e r e x ten t than household a p p l ia n c e s . Thus, in as much as wants of a u t o m a tic washing-machines f i n d them selves in the b r a c k e t of 30-60 per c e n t a c c o rd in g to household ty p e , d i f f e r e n c e s in wants of p o s s e s s in g s te r e o p h o n ic equipment appear to be around 4 to 5 times d i f f e r e n t between extreme household groups. I t i s q u it e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c t h a t in the case of l e i s u r e and e n te rta in m e n t
goods these wants a re a f f e c t e d by economic f a c t o r s (w e a lt h of h o use ho ld s) to a s m a ll e r decree than by s o c i a l and demographic f a c t o r s . The f a c t o r of utmost ‘im portance here i s the respon d e n t s ' e d u c a t io n a l background and t h e i r age. This i s undoubtedly a r e s u l t of a h ig h e r growth .if a s p i r a t i o n s and c u l t u r a l needs, which g enerate a m a t e r i a l want of p ossessing goods being ab le to s a t i s f y these sublim ated wants.
Summing up the above d is c u s s io n , i t can be g e n e r a l l y s a id t h a t b e tt e r- e d u c a te d , younger and r i c h e r consumers p la c e t h e i r h ig h e r requirem ents b e fo re consumption anti d e s i r e p rod ucts w ith h ig h e r u t i l i t y param eters and b e t t e r s a t i s f y i n g the a lr e a d y e x i s t i n g wants ( e . g . s te re o p h o n ic equipment, c o lo u r TV). Thus, i t i s a phenomenon of q u it e s p e c i f i c s u b s t i t u t i o n in the process o t s a t i s f y i n g wants. Expansion of such wants in the s o c i e t y may lead u l t i m a t e l y to a s i t u a t i o n in which i n t e n s i t y of a given group of wants nót only does not d ecrease along w ith t h e i r s a t i s f a c t i o n but even sometimes in c r e a s e s .
■ S t a n i s ł a w G ajew ski
KSZTAŁTOWANIE S I Ę POTRZEB I A S P IR A C JI KONSUMPCYJNYCH W RÓŻNYCH WARUNKACH RYNKU
Celem a r t y k u ł u j e s t prób-a o k r e ś l e n ia wpływu różnorodnych czynników społeczno-ekonomicznych na h i e r a r c h i ę potrzeb kon sumpcyjnych w gospodarstwach domowych. A n a liz ę op arto na wstęp nych wynikach badań ankietow ych przeprowadzonych na ponad 1000 gospodarstw domowych w Łodzi w 1984 r . Dla porównań p o s łu ż y ły w y n ik i badań przeprowadzonych na t e j samej z b iorow ości 7 l a t w c z e ś n ie j , a więc w odmiennych warunkach rynkowych.
Z badań w ynika, ze n a jw a ż n ie js z ym i czynnikami k s z t a ł t u j ą c y mi h i e r a r c h i ę potrzeb są socjod em ograficzne cechy gospodarstw, t a k i e ja k wiek głowy ro d zin y i j e j w y k s z t a łc e n ie oraz l i c z e b ność gospodarstwa. Poziom dochodów j e s t isto tn ym elementem h i e r a r c h i i potrzeb j e d y n ie w o d n ie s i e n iu do s to p n ia ich za s p o k o je n i a ( in te n sy wi.LiáĽi) .
G e n e r a ln ie , poziom z a s p o k o je n ia p otrzeb w odczuciu respon dentów j e s t znacznie n iż s z y w 1984 r . n iż 7 l a t w c z e ś n i e j , n a wet w o d n ie s i e n iu do p o trz e b , k tó r y c h poziom za sp o k o je n ia (m ie rzony w ie lk o ś c i ą konsum pcji) o b ie k ty w n ie w z r ó s ł, np. w z a k r e s ie dóbr trw a łe g o użytku.
