2.2 The psychological environment

2.2.1 Environmental influences on consumers.

• wayfinding in shopping malls; factors affecting wayfinding such as signs and you are here maps, including a study, e.g. Dogu and Erkip (2000).
• shopper behaviour focusing on spatial movement patterns including types of trip (short, round, central and wave) and the five types of spatial behaviour patterns (specialist, native, tourist, explorer, raider); the use of CCTV tracking, including a study, e.g. Gil et al. (2009).
• Relevant issues and debates and methodology for this topic include: reductionism versus holism, idiographic versus nomothetic, questionnaires, generalisations, reliability.

This matters because —environmental influences on consumers determines what can be inferred or chosen; begin with the stated conditions and keep the conclusion tied to the evidence.

Example: apply —environmental influences on consumers to one small, clearly defined case, show the key step or comparison, and explain the result in words.

Boundary: —Environmental influences on consumers is not a universal recommendation. Check the syllabus scope, assumptions, units and the limits of the evidence before generalising.

2.2.2 Menu design psychology.

• menu design focusing on the features of menu design which have positive and negative impacts and ways to study this, including the use of eye-tracking, e.g. Pavesic (2005).
• the effect of primacy and recency and menu item position on menu item choice, including a study, e.g. Dayan and Bar-Hillel (2011).
• the effect of food descriptions on menu choice, including a study, e.g. Lockyer (2006).
• Relevant issues and debates and methodology for this topic include: application to everyday life, field experiments, objective and subjective data, generalisations, validity.

This matters because —menu design psychology determines what can be inferred or chosen; begin with the stated conditions and keep the conclusion tied to the evidence.

Example: apply —menu design psychology to one small, clearly defined case, show the key step or comparison, and explain the result in words.

Boundary: —Menu design psychology is not a universal recommendation. Check the syllabus scope, assumptions, units and the limits of the evidence before generalising.

2.2.3 Consumer behaviour and personal space.

• personal space at restaurant tables including Hall's four zones; functions such as overload, arousal and behaviour constraint (exemplified by the following key study).
• Key study on consumers responses to table spacing: Robson et al. (2011).
• defending place in a queue including nature of intrusion, number of intrusions, social structure of a queue, responses of people queuing, including a study, e.g. Milgram et al. (1986).
• Relevant issues and debates and methodology for this topic include: individual and situational explanations, cultural differences, observations, quantitative and qualitative data, ethics.

This matters because —consumer behaviour and personal space determines what can be inferred or chosen; begin with the stated conditions and keep the conclusion tied to the evidence.

Example: apply —consumer behaviour and personal space to one small, clearly defined case, show the key step or comparison, and explain the result in words.

Boundary: —Consumer behaviour and personal space is not a universal recommendation. Check the syllabus scope, assumptions, units and the limits of the evidence before generalising.