Homeostasis and consumer behavior across cultures · Homeostasis and consumer behavior across cultures Philip M. Parker a,b,1, Nader T. Tavassoli c,) a INSEAD, 77305 Fontainebleau,

Ž .Intern. J. of Research in Marketing 17 2000 33–53www.elsevier.comrlocaterijresmar

Homeostasis and consumer behavior across cultures

Philip M. Parker a,b,1, Nader T. Tavassoli c,)

a INSEAD, 77305 Fontainebleau, Franceb USCD, Graduate School of International Relations, La Jolla, CA 92093-0519, USA

c MIT, Sloan School of Management, 38 Memorial DriÕe, E56-311, Cambridge, MA 02142-1307, USA

Received 1 July 1999; accepted 1 April 2000

Abstract

The focus of this paper is the process of homeostasis by which the body seeks to regulate its internal environment. Inparticular, we present a global model for a set of consumer behaviors that may vary across cultures as a direct response tothe intensity and duration of sunlight and experienced temperature. This process creates physical and psychological needs, sothat changes in sunlight and temperature may be reflected in various behaviors. We integrate research findings from theneural sciences and psychology to generate testable predictions of relevance to the marketing literature. These hypothesespredict how the physical environment motivates variations in the consumption of different types of products, and how mood,expressed affect, and related affective behaviors may vary across cultures. We also consider how variations in sunlight andtemperature may affect consumer behaviors related to consumers’ optimal stimulation levels. We conclude by discussing theimplications of a physiological model on the debate of global convergence in consumer behavior. q 2000 Published byElsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Affect; Consumption; Cross-cultural; Global; Homeostasis

1. Introduction

1.1. Physiology and culture

The literature has long recognized that consumerbehaviors vary across cultures. The causal mecha-nisms behind this variation, however, have often

) Corresponding author. Tel.: q1-617-253-2861; fax: q1-617-258-7597.

Ž .E-mail addresses: [email protected] P.M. Parker ,Ž [email protected] N.T. Tavassoli .

1 Tel.: q33-1-60-72-4000; fax: q33-1-60-72-4242.

been elusive. The quandary of attribution faced inconsumer research is not unlike continuing debatesin anthropology and sociology. It has been arguedthat social phenomena are self-contained entities thatcan only be explained in terms of other social phe-

Ž .nomena Durkheim, 1895 , or that culture can onlyŽ .be explained in terms of itself Lowie, 1917 . More-

Ž .over, Geertz 1973 altogether rejects the ‘‘scientificapproach’’ to understanding cultural differences andinstead calls for a thick description of culture as onewould interpret literature. Whereas a Geertzian ap-proach is useful in uncovering idiosyncratic causesof cultural traits, it is less suited for uncoveringsystematic variations across the world’s over 230countries.

0167-8116r00r$ - see front matter q 2000 Published by Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.Ž .PII: S0167-8116 00 00006-9

( )P.M. Parker, N.T. TaÕassolir Intern. J. of Research in Marketing 17 2000 33–5334

An extensive effort to identify systematic globalvariations in behavior has been made on the collec-

Žtivism–individualism orientation Hofstede, 1980;.Triandis, 1995 . Pioneering research on this con-

struct traced a causal chain of effects originatingfrom climate to a culture’s resulting economic andtechnological pursuits. Climate is argued to have anindirect effect on an individual’s social orientationthrough its enabling effect on agriculture, a socialand economic institution that has been identified as

Žthe source of collectivism Hofstede, 1980; Triandis,.1995 .

In this paper, we propose that climate can alsohave direct effects on individual behavior. Severalconsumer behaviors are proposed to reflect, in part,physiologically based adaptations to variations in theduration and intensity of sunlight, and experiencedtemperature. We focus on the process of homeostasisby which the body seeks to regulate its internalenvironment. This process creates physical and psy-chological needs, so that changes in sunlight andtemperature may be reflected in various behaviors.This proposition stands in contrast to the conven-

Ž .tional view, as first voiced by Murdock 1932 , thatculture is ‘‘independent of the laws of biology and

Ž .psychology’’ p. 200 .

1.2. Historical origins

Our framework builds, in spirit, on the thoughtsŽ .of Montesquieu 1748 , whose The Spirit of the Laws

interrelated economic, geographic, political, reli-gious, and social forces in history. Based on severalanecdotal and now outdated 18th-century physiol-ogy-based arguments, he devoted substantial atten-tion to the influence of climate and physiographyŽ .marine biology, mineral resources, and topology ongeneral socio-economic conditions including culture,suicide, alcoholism, aggressiveness, obesity, sexism,combativeness, and development across countries.His basic argument was that human behavior arisesfrom the need to eat, protect ones’ self, re-produce,and enjoy life. Both need and need fulfillment varyacross cultures based on exogenous environmentalconditions facing each population. To Montesquieu,cultural adaptation leads populations in similar natu-ral environments to behave in similar fashions, and

quite differently than those in different environ-ments.

1.3. ObjectiÕes and organization

We integrate research findings from the neuralsciences and psychology to generate testable predic-tions for a set of consumer behaviors across cultures.We argue that certain consumer behaviors are influ-enced by variations in the intensity and duration ofsunlight and experienced temperature across climatesand seasons. First, we describe how human physiol-ogy mediates this influence by generating responsesto environmental conditions to achieve homeostasisin various systems. We describe two homeostaticmechanisms of interest. The first is thermoregula-tion, which responds to variations in experiencedtemperatures. We termed the second mechanismpsychological homeostasis, a collection of systemsthat are involved in balancing the major neurotrans-mitters in the brain. These neurotransmitters aresensitive to variations in both the intensity and dura-tion of sunlight, as well as experienced temperatures.Deviations from psychological homeostasis appear toinfluence affect and arousal-related behaviors in par-ticular.

In the sections following, we describe causalchains for how these homeostatic systems mediatethe effect of the environment on various consump-tion and psychological consumer behaviors. We firstdiscuss the consumption of products that are con-sumed, in part, to achieve thermoregulation and psy-chological homeostasis. Next, we discuss psycholog-ical responses that are manifested through a varietyof affective and arousal-related behaviors. Mood, forexample, is sensitive to variations in the intensityand duration of sunlight. Expressed affect is sensitiveto variations in experienced temperatures. We alsodiscuss a variety of consumption dynamics — stimu-lation and sensation seeking, novelty and varietyseeking, risk taking, and impulsivity — related to

Ž . Žthe optimal stimulation level OSL Steenkamp and.Baumgartner, 1992 . These sections also generate

testable hypotheses as well as managerial insights formarketing across cultures. We conclude by dis-cussing the topics of causality in cross-cultural anal-yses, possible tests of our model, and global culturalconvergence from a physiological perspective.

( )P.M. Parker, N.T. TaÕassolir Intern. J. of Research in Marketing 17 2000 33–53 35

2. Homeostasis

2.1. The hypothalamus

Central to our thesis is the stability of the body’sinternal environment: homeostasis. Homeostasis isthe result of a system of controls whose key neuronalmechanisms are concentrated in the hypothalamus,an area comprising less than 1% of the brain. Thehypothalamus acts through three major mechanisms:hormones, neurotransmitters, and neural ‘‘reflexes’’,a system concerned with emotions and drivesŽ .Kupfermann, 1991 . Important for present purposesis that the hypothalamus mediates the effects ofsunlight and temperature on the production of hor-mones and neurotransmitters. Changes in levels ofhormones and neurotransmitters, in turn, are theo-rized to influence certain consumer behaviors.

It is important to note that the purpose of thispaper is not to identify the complex neurochemicalsystems that guide psychobehavioral responses. Earlyresearch on psychobiology, which attempted to makesimple connections between single neurochemicalsystems and psychobehavioral processes, has beenhumbled by the vast complexities modern neuro-

Ž .science has revealed Panksepp, 1986 . We pur-posely focus only on the central nervous system andthe main neurotransmitter systems it contains. Theseneurotransmitters are extensively interconnected andthemselves affect other systems such as hormonalresponses. By limiting our discussion to a narrowslice of the neurochemical system in terms of itsknown behavioral consequences, we believe we canprovide the type of conceptual and behavioral-de-scriptive synthesis that has been called for by psy-chobiologists: ‘‘The only way out of this dilemma isfor psychobiology to become a more theoretical sci-ence — more willing to entertain the existence ofabstract, higher-order central processes than it has in

Ž .the past’’ Panksepp, 1986, p. 98 .

2.2. Thermoregulation

One of the most important homeostatic processesis thermoregulation. Humans must maintain an inter-nal core body temperature of about 378C, irrespec-tive of the environments they face. A departure from

a thermoregulatory balance leads to physical discom-fort, illnesses such as hypothermia or heatstroke, anddeath in the extremes. Human physiology constantlyadjusts to external factors such as solar radiation,ambient temperature, humidity, and air movement inorder to maintain this homeostatic equilibrium. Theseadjustments, in turn, affect basic thermoregulatoryneeds and preferences.

Among other functions, the hypothalamus con-tains neural circuits that control the interrelated vitalfunctions of temperature, and water and food intakeŽ .Kupfermann, 1991 . The hypothalamus receives in-

Žputs from peripheral temperature receptors e.g., in. Ž .the skin , central ones e.g., the spinal cord , and

itself contains central receptors that, for example,monitor air temperature inhaled through the nose. Itcontrols body temperature through homeostatic re-sponses that affect both heat loss such as via sweat-ing or the dilation of blood vessels in the skin, andheat production, such as via physical exercise orshivering, as well as via adjustments to the

Ž .metabolism Kupfermann, 1991 .The hypothalamus also integrates feedback from

Ždiverse systems e.g., blood-sugar level, level of.stored energy to generate signals of appetite and

satiety. It thereby affects motivated behaviors suchŽ .as food intake amount and frequency through a

Žcomplex interaction of various hormones including.sex steroids, glucagon, insulin, and growth hormone

Žand neurotransmitters including dopamine, nor-. Žepinephrine and serotonin for reviews, see Kupfer-

.mann, 1991; Woods et al., 1998 . We will discussbelow how, through its influence on thermoregula-tion, experienced temperature has a direct influenceon consumption behaviors, such as on food intake, aswell as on more complex motivated behaviors re-lated to major consumption categories such as cloth-ing and housing.

2.3. Psychological homeostasis

Thermoregulation is only one homeostatic mecha-nism affected by the physical environment. Humansalso need to achieve a homeostatic balance in hor-mones and neurotransmitters themselves. For exam-ple, the absorption of light through the eyes affectshomeostatic processes in the central nervous system.


Sunlight is known to stimulate the production ofdopamine and serotonin, two of the major neuro-

Ž . Žtransmitters Roberts, 1995 . The intensity i.e., an-.gle to the sun, cloud coverage and duration of

sunshine positively affect the balance of these neuro-transmitters. Based on the effects of less intensesunlight alone, persons residing closer to the polesshould have lower levels of dopamine and serotoninon average, than persons living closer toward theequator, especially during winter. When sunshine isless abundant and less intense these neurotrans-mitters need to be stimulated in other ways. Depar-ture from psychological homeostasis appears to in-fluence our affective system in particular. For exam-ple, serotonin has been associated with positive af-

Ž .fect Zajonc, 1994 , possibly interacting withdopamine, which is involved in the brain’s reward

Ž .system Brown and Gershon, 1993 .In marketing, psychological homeostasis has been

studied primarily as a maintenance of a person’sŽ . ŽOSL Hebb, 1949; Wundt, 1893 or arousal Yerkes

.and Dodson, 1908 . The difference between the OSLand a person’s actual stimulation level has been

Ž .defined as the person’s need for stimulation NSTŽ .Steenkamp et al., 1996 . Recent advances suggestthat these behaviors are based on well-definedphysiological deprivation and, like other homeostaticdrives, also involve arousal and satiation. When thestimulation derived from the environment is too lowNST is positive and individuals will attempt to in-crease stimulation. When the stimulation is too highNST is negative and individuals will attempt todecrease stimulation. Psychological pleasantness ishighest at the OSL, the level of stimulation at which

Ža person feels most comfortable Steenkamp and.Baumgartner, 1992 . This inverted-U relationship be-

tween the intensity of stimulation and pleasantness isŽ .known as the Wundt 1893 curve, depicted in Fig.

1.The OSL has long been linked to the reward

Ž .centers of the brain Berlyne, 1967 . The biochemi-cal basis involved in the homeostasis of optimalstimulation is evident in the interaction of the threemain neurotransmitters: dopamine, norepinephrine,and serotonin. Dopamine is involved in the anticipa-tion of reward and, in this context, in the sensoryarousal associated with novel and intense stimuliŽ .Panksepp, 1986; Zuckerman, 1994 . Serotonin is

Fig. 1. The Wundt curve.

involved in inhibiting the behavioral reactions tostimulation. Norepinephrine provides the psychomo-

Žtor arousal associated with stimulation itself Pan-.ksepp, 1986 . Depressed levels of these three neuro-

transmitters have been associated with a positiveŽNST, a level of stimulation below the OSL Zucker-

.man, 1994 .As discussed earlier, sunlight stimulates the pro-

Ž .duction of dopamine and serotonin Roberts, 1995 .Ž .Temperature heat , on the other hand, stimulates the

release and synthesis of the neurotransmitter nor-Žepinephrine, which causes excitation Anderson et

. 2al., 1995; Zajonc, 1994 . Consumers should, there-fore, be more likely to be below their OSL and havea positive NST in colder climates with less intensesunshine. There should also be winter peaks in NSTand these seasonal swings should be attenuated inlower absolute latitudes. We discuss below how thismay affect the consumption of certain foods, whichhave the pharmacological property of stimulating thesame neurotransmitters as does sunlight. We willalso discuss how psychological behaviors related toaffect and arousal may be particularly susceptible tovariations in the duration and intensity of sunshineacross climates and seasons.

2 Note that the neurotransmitter systems are extensively inter-related and have both synergistic and antagonistic effects. Forexample, in the brain, norepinephrine is counteracted by serotoninand synthesized directly from dopamine. However, in behavioralterms, norepinephrine appears to be related to psychomotor arousal

Žwhereas dopamine is related to sensory arousal e.g., Panksepp,.1986 .


3. Consumption across cultures

3.1. Temperature and homeothermic consumption

Marketing research has traditionally focused onunderstanding why people buy what, and when forproducts and services as diverse as food consump-

Ž .tion Wallendorf and Reilly, 1983; Sirsi et al., 1996Žand solar energy demand Berkowitz and Haines,

.1984 . Very few consumption studies, however, pro-pose comprehensive theories on how variations inthese behaviors might be explained across the world’scultural groups. When culture is considered, thestudies are typically limited to two or very few

Žnational groups for food consumption, see Penaloza,.1994; Wallendorf and Reilly, 1983 .

Experienced temperature provides a model bywhich to systematically examine differences in con-sumption behaviors globally. We term consumptionbehaviors related to thermoregulation as homeother-mic consumption. These include dressing behaviors,caloric intake, the consumption of energy, and archi-tectural elements. It is important to note that thesethermoregulatory responses account for environmen-tal influences beyond ambient temperature and in-clude the effects of air movement, solar radiation,and humidity. For example, air movement promotesevaporation when ambient temperature is lower thanbody temperature. Hence, housing in climates muchhotter than body temperature minimizes air move-

Ž .ment e.g., thick walls and small windows , butpromotes air movement in climates that are warm.Solar radiation similarly affects the effectiÕe temper-ature because infrared rays are absorbed by the bodyand clothing where they are converted to heat.

Cloud coverage, haze, and smog reduce solarradiation, which is most potent in the ‘‘thin’’ air ofhigh altitudes. Moreover, the low angle of the sun’srays in higher absolute latitudes — especially in themorning and afternoon hours — makes the effect ofsunlight much less powerful. Finally, relative humid-ity has an effect on experienced temperature. Drycold air is preferable because water vapor is a better

Žheat conductor than dry gases i.e., humidity pro-.motes heat loss via conduction . Dry hot air is also

preferable because the main cooling process of evap-oration is less effective at high humidity. Therefore,

while ambient temperature is a key influence onthermoregulation, one needs to consider factors suchas the distance from the equator and cloud coverageŽ .i.e., solar radiation , altitude, humidity, and airmovement on experienced temperature as well.

Considering the need to thermoregulate promisesto expand our understanding of, and ability to predictglobal differences in food consumption behaviors inparticular. Reflecting the need to produce energy viametabolism, physiologists note that some 80% offood consumption is required for thermoregulatory

Žneeds the rest being attributed to variety seeking.and other behaviors . A lower physiological require-

ment for caloric and protein intake in warmer re-gions has been documented in dozens of medical and

Ž .physiological studies see Parker, 1995 . Examiningfood intake across the globe, we found a significant

Žrelationship between climate i.e., an inverse rela-.tionship to ambient temperature and solar radiation

Ž .and caloric intake rs0.67; Ns164 , protein con-Ž .sumption rs0.72; Ns158 , and sugar consump-

Ž .tion rs0.38; Ns142 . In hotter climates, peoplewill eat less, especially of foods, which require high

Ž . 3energies to digest such as meat rs0.49; Ns176 .Table 1 reports variances in homeothermic con-

sumption explained by climate and income. We re-port their separate and joint effects, as well as theincremental effect of each variable in a hierarchicalregression. Because incomes vary systematicallyacross climates, on average, being higher in colder

Ž .climates rs0.55; Ns225 we further consider therole of income in the relationship between climateand consumption, below. Instead of actual consump-tion behavior, we also examine consumption needs,which are unaffected by income constraints.

We asked a group of 91 global developmentŽexperts from 31 countries members of the Interna-

3 Ž .The raw data are contained in Parker, 1997 , which is astatistical reference that presents comparative tables across 329variables for over 230 countries. Country-level data for a variety

Žof economic, demographic and social, cultural, and physical e.g.,.mineral, climatic, etc. variables were compiled from a large

Ž .number of published sources. Parker 1997 also provides apopulation-weighted measure of absolute latitude, which reflectsthe average latitude persons in a country reside at. We square thismeasure of latitude to account for earth’s curvature as a proxy for

Ž .climate intensity of sunlight and temperature .


Table 1Ž 2 . aVariance R in homeothermic consumption across countries explained by climate and income

Incremental R2 values are calculated in step-wise regressions.

Dependent variable Climate only Income only Climate and income Income’s increment Climate’s increment)) ))Calories 0.45 0.38 0.50 0.05 0.11)) ))Meat 0.34 0.28 0.39 0.05 0.11)) ))Protein 0.52 0.45 0.58 0.06 0.13)Sugar 0.14 0.17 0.18 0.04 0.02

a ) p-0.001,)) p-0.0001.

tional Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the World.Resource Institute, the Vatican, and several others

to directly estimate the consumption needs of spe-cific categories to achieve the same level of satisfac-

Ž .tion standardized with respect to Germany. Eachexpert was first asked to identify his or her countryof origin. Then they were asked to estimate howmuch the average person from their country of originwould need to consume in various categories inorder to be ‘‘equally happy to the average German’’Ž .indexed at 100 . The results, which are summarizedin Table 2, show that these experts recognize thathomeothermic consumption needs themselves varyacross climate. Specifically, they estimated food,clothing, housing and energy needs to be systemati-cally lower in warmer climates.

3.2. Income mediates the effect of climate on con-sumption

Consumption needs vary independent from thelevel of income. For example, US military soldiersŽi.e., controlling for income and socio-cultural mi-

.lieu are given fewer food rations and clothing, andhave lower shelter costs when stationed at bases

Table 2Ž 2 .Variance R in expert’s estimated consumption needs across

countries explained by climate

Dependent variable Climate p-value

Food 0.38 0.0001Clothing 0.21 0.01Housing 0.39 0.0001Home energy 0.50 0.0001

Žtowards the equator Diego Garcia in the Indian.Ocean compared to others stationed near the poles

Ž .Adak, AK . It is important, however, to discuss therelationship between income and consumption. Onthe one hand, climate is clearly exogenous to bothconsumption and income. Moreover, climate cap-tures incremental variance over and above the effectof income. On the other hand, income also explainssome incremental variance over and above the effectof climate, and income alone correlates strongly with

Ž .homeothermic consumption Table 1 . The basis forthe relationship is inherent in the arguments of SmithŽ . Ž1776 who argued that income is generated caused.by the need to consume, and that, in particular,

‘‘After food, clothing and lodging are the two greatŽ .wants of mankind’’ p. 128 . Today, a portion of

homeothermic consumption — food and beverages,clothing, household fuels, rental housing — accounts

Žfor over 47% of global consumer spending WorldBank, World DeÕelopment Indicators, February 1997;

.Ns64 . As major consumption needs vary system-atically by climate, so should the motivation togenerate income. Income can therefore be considereda mediating variable in the effect of climate onconsumption.

This mediating effect has been approached moreŽ .recently by van Praag 1985 who asks ‘‘why is it

that some people are more satisfied with a specificŽ .level of income than others?’’ p. 294 . Van Praag’s

Žclimate index temperature, humidity and precipita-.tion for eight European cities was highest for north-

Ž . Ž .ern cities like Berlin 1.11 , Copenhagen 1.10 andŽ .London 1.08 compared to the southern ones like

Ž . Ž . Ž .Nice 0.91 , Rome 0.95 and Sicily 0.94 . Thisindex suggests, for example, that similar sized fami-lies living in Berlin stated that they feel they need


Fig. 2. Experts’ estimated income required to derive equal utilityto Germans across countries.

16% more in income to obtain the same level ofsatisfaction compared to those living in Rome.

We expanded upon this line of analysis and sur-veyed a different group of 120 experts on globaleconomic development from 34 countries. Each ex-pert was asked to indicate how much an averageperson from their country of origin would need toearn ‘‘in order to be equally happy to the averageGerman?’’ As Fig. 2 indicates, the estimates pro-vided are positively correlated with a country’s abso-

Ž 2 .lute latitude R s0.54 , supporting the notion thatneeds for income vary across climates unconstrainedby the ability to generate income.

As a caveat, it is important to recognize, thatincome does explain variance beyond that capturedby climate. The reason may be that the ability togenerate income is constrained or facilitated by the

Žavailability of natural resources droughts, fertile. Žsoil, mineral wealth, etc. and human factors wars,

.diseases, etc. . In other words, consumption may beconstrained through the inability to generate incomeeven if the physiological motivation to generate in-come is present.

3.3. Sunlight and pharmacological consumption

Foods are not only consumed for their caloricproperties — to thermoregulate — but also for theirpharmacological properties — to achieve psycho-logical homeostasis. As discussed, when sunshine isless abundant and less intense, neurotransmitters suchas dopamine and serotonin need to be stimulated inother ways to achieve psychological homeostasis.

One adaptive mechanism may be to consume ethanol,cocaine, caffeine, or nicotine, which are known topositively affect the availability of dopamine and

Ž .serotonin in the brain Wise, 1987 .We should therefore observe consumers adapting

Žto environments with less intense sunshine i.e., to-. Žwards the poles and marked short daylight i.e.,

.winters in high absolute latitudes through a higherconsumption of alcohol, coffee and tobacco. Correla-tional data are consistent with this hypothesis. Theglobal consumption of tobacco products is higher in

Ž .higher absolute latitudes rs0.41; Ns160 . MoreŽcoffee, which is produced in tropical climates e.g.,.Brazil, Colombia, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, etc. , is

Žconsumed in higher absolute latitudes rs0.50; N.s162 . The same pattern can be found for cocoa

Ž . Ž .rs0.49; Ns168 and for tea rs0.08; Ns164 ,which both contain caffeine.4 Well-known seasonal

Ž .trends in coffee drinking Hayes, 1997 are alsoattributable to climate. However, coffee’s sluggishsummer sales may also be a function of it being ahot beverage. While marketers have recently begunbattling to offset this seasonal trend with coffeefrappes, it may also be that caffeine has a lowerutility in the sunshine rich summer months.

The consumption of alcohol, which initially actsas a stimulant but induces lethargy at higher levels ofconsumption, provides an even more vivid exampleof climatic drivers. Because of lower ‘‘natural’’levels, the stimulating effect of ethanol on the pro-duction of dopamine and serotonin should have

Žhigher utility in higher absolute latitudes and in.areas with heavy cloud coverage , especially in the

winter. Moreover, the marginal impact of ethanolshould be higher in hot climates because individualsacclimated to hot climates have a slower metabolism

Ž .than those acclimated to cold ones Roberts, 1978 .A slower metabolism takes longer to break downethanol, which extends ethanol’s pharmacologicaleffect and accelerates the occurrence of undesirablesedative–hypnotic effects. Complementing these

4 We used GNP per capita and a population-weighted measureŽ .of latitude squared as a proxy for climate Parker, 1997 . All

consumption data in this section are from the 1995 report of TheFood and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations FAO-

Ž .STAT. All ps-0.0001, except for tea n.s. .


pharmacological effects, alcohol’s high caloric con-Ž .tent 70 kcal in a typical drink should have higher

utility in colder climates and seasons and, con-Žversely, its dehydrating properties ethanol is a di-

.uretic, as is caffeine should have lower disutility incolder climates and seasons.

Alcohol consumption indeed varies positively withŽ .absolute latitude rs0.40; Ns171 , even within

the narrow climatic confines of the United StatesŽ .London and Teague, 1985 . Moreover, most sum-mer beers are lighter in alcohol than regular orwinter beers. Similarly, there are well-known sea-sonal trends in wine, a light alcohol, as well as hardliquor purchases, which peak in the winter months.A similar fourth quarter peak in the consumption of

Ž .alcoholic drinks and of tobacco has been reportedin an econometric analysis of UK consumption dataŽ .Osborn and Smith, 1989 .

Finally, it is important to consider these phar-macological products as substitutes in consumption;caffeine, ethanol, and nicotine have similar phar-macological effects on the central nervous systemŽ .Wise, 1987 . Controlled experiments show that theconsumption of caffeine reduces the consumption of

Ž .tobacco Kozlowski, 1976 as well as of alcohol,Ž .even in alcoholics Santos et al., 1991 . A substitu-

tion-in-use was also reported in a recent econometricanalysis on US consumption of cigarettes and liquorŽ .Goel and Morey, 1995 . Moreover, stimulants mayenjoy different levels of popularity in different cul-tures. For example, whereas Americans consumealmost four times the amount of caffeine from coffeethan from tea, Britons consume over four times the

Žamount of caffeine from tea than from coffee Gil-.bert, 1984 . We therefore examined the global con-

sumption basket of alcohol, cocoa, coffee, tea, andtobacco as an additive index of their standardizedconsumption quantities. The result shows that percapita consumption of the basket of pharmacological

Žproducts is higher in higher absolute latitudes Ns.139; rs0.72; p-0.0001 .

To summarize, pharmacological consumption be-haviors related to psychological homeostasis appearto be related to environmental factors such as theamount and intensity of sunlight. It is again impor-tant to note that income may mediate this effect and,in addition, explains variance incremental to theeffect of climate. As Table 3 indicates, this is espe-cially true when the consumption of products isconsidered in isolation rather than as an index. Onereason may be that, compared to homeothermic con-

Ž .sumption e.g., calories , the consumption of phar-macological products is especially sensitive to in-

Ž .come shocks e.g., wars, droughts .

3.4. Implications for consumption behaÕiors

A physiological model provides a framework forpredicting and understanding differences in the aver-age utility for goods across cultures. For example, interms of product policy, Mars has implemented aglobal branding strategy for its candy bars, but hasmodified the ingredients to be fattier and sweeter incolder regions of the world. Likewise, Carrier haslong segmented their global markets by climate. Intheir case, the utility for indoor air-conditioning is

Table 3Ž 2 . aVariance R in pharmacological consumption across countries explained by climate and income

Incremental R2 values are calculated in step-wise regressions.

Dependent variable Climate only Income only Climate and income Income’s increment Climate’s increment))) )Alcohol 0.19 0.27 0.29 0.10 0.02))) )Cocoa 0.24 0.37 0.39 0.15 0.02))) ))Coffee 0.25 0.36 0.38 0.13 0.03

Tea 0.01 0.00 0.01 0.00 0.00)))Tobacco 0.17 0.11 0.17 0.00 0.06

)) )))Index 0.51 0.41 0.55 0.04 0.13

a ) p-0.05,)) p-0.01,))) p-0.0001.


highest in regions where the body does not acclimateto a particular climate because of large seasonalchanges. In these places, summers are almost tropi-

Žcal and winters nearly Siberian e.g., the northeasternUnited States, the Beijing–Shanghai corridor, the

.Volga river valley . Utility is next highest in thelowest latitudes, and is lowest in the highest latitudesŽ .e.g., Norway and Finland . More dynamically,Coca-Cola is currently testing a vending machinethat automatically changes prices with the tempera-ture. Doug Ivester has recognized that ‘‘Coca-Cola isa product whose utility varies from moment to mo-ment’’.5

From a social marketing perspective, the effect ofclimate on pharmacological consumption may beparticularly instructive. A neurobiological perspec-tive should be considered when examining ‘‘deviant’’consumer behaviors, such as alcohol and drug con-

Ž .sumption Rose et al., 1992 . These behaviors —their motivation, tolerance, and withdrawal — havebeen linked to neurotransmitters such as dopamine

Ž .and serotonin Koob, 1996; Zuckerman, 1994 . Whileit is beyond the scope of this paper to provide adetailed account of the relationships, we should notethat we have not found a previous model that at-tempts to explain these behaviors across cultures orseasons.

Montesquieu had speculated on the effectivenessof controlling such behaviors. He argued that coun-

Žtries’ laws need to conform to climatic effects he.focused on temperature and dehydration in order to

be accepted. Consider, for example, alcohol controllaws in the US, which have been shown to have a

Žweak marketing impact at best Ornstein and.Hanssens, 1985 . Based on 18th-century physiology

Ž .e.g., humors , Montesquieu argued that this is be-cause such laws need to be commensurable with

Ž .local climate p. 228 :

The law of Mohammed, which prohibits thedrinking of wine, is, therefore, fitted to the cli-mate of Arabia: and, indeed, before Mohammed’stime, water was the common drink of the Arabs.The law, which forbade the Carthaginians to drink

5 The Financial Times, ‘‘Coca-Cola warms to a new style ofvending machine,’’ October 29, 1999, p.1.

wine, was a law of the climate; and, indeed, theclimate of those two countries is pretty nearly thesame.

Such a law would be improper for cold countries,where the climate seems to force them to a kindof national intemperance, very different from per-sonal embriety. Drunkenness predominatesthroughout the world, in proportion to the cold-ness and humidity of the climate.

Besides exploring climatic drivers of behavior,climatic differences need to be considered whenexamining other, non-environmental explanations ofconsumption behaviors across cultures. For example,cultural factors have been proposed to explain vari-ous food consumption patterns in different countries.In order to isolate ‘‘cultural’’ factors, it would beimportant for marketers to control for factors relatedto the physical environment when analyzing con-sumption differences and, in particular, when pre-dicting the global demand for product offerings re-lated to homeostasis.

What the forgoing analysis suggests is that theremay be serious omitted variables problems in cross-cultural studies, namely that of climate. To illustrate,consider the politically influential conclusions of The

ŽLimits to Growth, by the Club of Rome Meadows et.al., 1972 . The authors concluded that there were

major deficiencies in caloric and protein intake acrossa number of the world’s regions. Arguments in favor

Žof major food subsidies which risk damaging local.farming economies were put forward by the authors.

Their calculations assumed that all persons, irrespec-tive of where they live, should have the same abso-lute level of caloric consumption, which was definedas the level consumed by the aÕerage Americanmale. As discussed, regions warmer than the UnitedStates, however, would require less caloric intake inorder to thermoregulate.

Such baseline differences need to be consideredby global marketers when estimating product de-mand, by public policy makers with respect to com-parative measures of well being, and by marketingresearchers when comparing and forecasting con-sumption behaviors. While this conclusion may strikethe reader as obvious after the above exposition, it isone that remains unheeded even by food experts. Forexample, the Food and Agriculture Organization of


Ž .the United Nations FAO and the World HealthŽ .Organization WHO consider that there is ‘‘no

quantifiable basis for correcting rest and exerciseŽrequirements according to climate’’ Handbook on

.Human Nutritional Requirements, 1980 and con-tinue to offer standardized global recommended in-takes of energy and nutrients.

Informal discussions with executives in the alco-holic beverage industry similarly reveal that thesefirms do not have well-formulated models for theglobal demand of their products. A physiologicalmodel suggests that demand predictions and theevaluation of a manager’s sales performance, forexample, should ideally be benchmarked accordingto climatic conditions. Adjusting for differences inphysiological needs could aid in estimating differ-

Žences in global demand e.g., extrapolating requires.a ‘‘weighting’’ procedure , helping make strategic

decisions such as early entry choice and entry modechoice. Consider, for example, a Bass-type diffusionmodel, which can be written as:

F tŽ .f t s a qb c M t yF t ,Ž . Ž . Ž .Ž .0 0 0ž /ž /c M tŽ .0

1Ž .

Ž .where first purchases adoptions of new products atŽ .time t, f t , are a function of the cumulative first

Ž .purchases up to time t, F t , and the total number ofpotential adopters, which are captured by the marketsize, M, limited by the ultimate penetration ceiling,c . The estimated constants a and b have been0 0 0

labeled the coefficients of innovation and imitation,respectively. It stands to reason that the penetrationceiling, c , varies by climatic regions for homeother-0

mic and pharmacological products. Interestingly, arecent meta-analysis suggests that c is the parame-0

ter, which generates the highest variance in newproduct diffusion curves and that its exclusion is

Žlargely responsible for ill-fitting models Parker,.1993 . Activities, products, and services related to

psychological and homeothermic homeostasis shouldsystematically vary as a function of the physicalenvironment by shifting local utility functions and,

Žhence, the penetration ceiling e.g., the penetration of.indoor heating, or coffee shops . Making informed

adjustments for differences in consumption needs

should improve the predictive ability of new productdiffusion models.

4. Affect and arousal across cultures

4.1. Consumption is only an imperfect surrogate forsunlight

Psychobiological research has shown that individ-uals’ psychology are sensitive to changes in thelevels of hormones and neurotransmitters, especiallywith respect to affect and arousal. In that sense, thepharmacological consumption behaviors discussed

Ž .earlier e.g., caffeine, ethanol, and nicotine can beŽconsidered mood-balancing consummations cf.

.Thayer, 1989 ; among other chemicals, they affectthe balance of neurotransmitters such as dopamineand serotonin in the brain.

Other examples of mood balancing consumptionare pharmaceutical products such as Prozac, whichincreases the availability of serotonin in the brain.Interestingly, the drug’s manufacturer has promi-nently used a stylized drawing of the sun in itsadvertisements to symbolize the anti-depressant ef-fects of the drug. A different mechanism that directly

Žmimics the effect of sunlight is phototherapy bright.artificial light , which has also been found to have an

Žanti-depressant effect for a review, see Hill, 1992;.Rosenthal et al., 1988 . A very creative marketing

adaptation can be found in Helsinki’s historic dis-trict. Cafe Engel has installed special 2500 lux lamps´to combat mood disorders like seasonal affective

Ž .disorder SAD , which afflicts 400,000 Finns annu-ally.6 Whether coffee and light therapy can com-

Žpletely cheer up the melancholy Finns e.g., as char-acterized by the filmmakers Mika and Aki

.Kaurismaki is questionable, however. The high¨prevalence of SAD in higher latitudes indeed sug-gests that seasonal mood changes will prevail despiteadaptations in consumption behaviors. Therefore, itis likely that the main manifestation of mood effects

6 The intensity of indoor lighting is about 30–300 lux, of thesky on a cloudy day is about 1000–5000 lux, of the horizon on acloudless day is about 10,000 lux, and of the sky approaching the

Ž .sun is over 100,000 lux Hill, 1992 .


across cultures exists in terms of seasonal patternsthat gain in amplitude towards the poles.

A physiological model provides a theoretical basisfor exploring mood effects across cultures. We ex-plore how aspects of humans’ VorprogrammierungŽ .Eibl-Eibesfeldt, 1976 , the ‘‘cultural universals’’ offelt affect and affective expression, are moderated bythe physical environment via the hypothalamus. Wetheorize that the environment influences the valenceand the intensity of felt and expressed affect, andarousal via physiological processes.

( )4.2. Felt affect mood

It has long been recognized that mood has bothdirect and indirect effects on consumer behavior,

Žmemory and persuasion Cohen and Areni, 1991;.Gardner, 1985 . However, there is a dearth of cross-

cultural work on mood in the consumer literature.The discussion in this section will focus on theeffects of sunlight on mood, as uncovered in researchon depression. Depression was already described in

Ž .Hippocratic writings 460–370 BC as a seasonalŽdisorder. A seasonal peak in unipolar depression on

average 8 million Americans suffer from this per.day , has been confirmed across countries and the

amplitude of the peak is lower in lower absoluteŽ .latitudes Aschoff, 1981 . Suicides, an indicator of

Ždepression, mirror this seasonal nature Durkheim,.1897 . In accordance with our model, we found that

suicide rates across the globe are higher in higherŽ . 7absolute latitudes rs0.61 . This effect has also

been found within the narrow climatic range of theŽ .United States Lester, 1970 . Montesquieu, and be-

fore him Hippocrates, hypothesized that climate mayŽ .be the culprit behind these behaviors p. 231 :

We do not find in history that the Romans everkilled themselves without a cause; but the Englishare apt to commit suicide most unaccountably;they destroy themselves even in the bosom of

w xhappiness . . . England is a nation so distemperedby the climate as to have a disrelish of everything,nay, even of life . . .

7 We used a population-adjusted measure of latitude squared.Ž .The raw data are from Parker 1997 .

Whereas Hippocrates suspected temperature to driveaffective behaviors, it appears instead that natural

Ž . 8sunlight is the key driver Hill, 1992 .Serotonin deficiency has been linked to depres-Ž .sion van Praag, 1982 and a wide variety of other

psychological conditions, including other mood dis-orders such as SAD.9 SAD occurs in parallel todisturbances in biological rhythms, whereas biologi-cal rhythms precede symptoms of unipolar depres-

Ž .sion Hill, 1992 . More importantly for consumermood research, these mood disorders may representjust the tip of the iceberg of people whose moodchanges with the seasons. In the US, 92%–95% ofthe general population show seasonal mood and be-

Žhavioral changes characteristic of SAD for a review,.see Spoont et al., 1991 .

The main manifestation of mood effects acrosscultures may exists in terms of seasonal patterns thatgain in amplitude towards the poles. The effect of

Žmood on consumer behavior for reviews, see Cohen.and Areni, 1991; Gardner, 1985 in areas such as

product associations, helping behaviors, consumercategorization, purchasing decision rules, risk taking,brand evaluations, memory for marketing communi-cations, negotiation strategies, and service encoun-ters, have not been examined across climates orseasons. A physiological model provides a theoreti-cal basis for doing so.

Consider, for example, the effect of mood on thetendency to engage in risky behaviors. In marketing,risk taking behaviors have been mainly studied froma cognitive perspective using expected utility theoryas a benchmark. However, risk taking appears to besignificantly influenced by a decision-maker’s feel-

8 It is important to note that a physiological model does notimply that individuals commit suicide based on a homeostaticimbalance. Instead, it suggests that the brain’s chemical balanceaffects the threshold at which a personal crisis may result in sucha devastating consequence.

9 The neuroendocrine system may also affect mood. For exam-ple, 40–60% of depressed patients exhibit a hypersecretion ofcortisol, which appears to be triggered in response to excessive

Ž . Ž .secretion of adrenocorticotropin ACTH Kandel, 1991 . ACTHŽis stimulated by norepinephrine this is de-activated by light;

. ŽRoberts, 1995 , whereas it is inhibited by GABA Kandel, 1991;.GABA is activated by light; Roberts, 1995 .


ings through a differential motivating effect on risk-taking behavior. Driven by the goal of uncertaintyreduction, sad moods prime the goal of reward ac-

Ž .quisition mood repair and increase the preferencefor higher payoffs at the expense of certaintyŽ .Raghunathan and Pham, 1999 . In contrast, individ-uals in a mildly positive mood are more risk averse

Žthan individuals in a neutral mood Isen and Patrick,.1983 and more willing to buy more insurance againstŽ .a loss Arkes et al., 1988 . People in positive moods

seem to be more risk averse because they have theemotional goal of maintaining their mood; they haveless to gain and more to lose emotionally from

Žwinning low-probability gambles Arkes et al., 1988;.Isen and Patrick, 1983 . Climate and seasons may

therefore have a profound effect on risk taking andinsurance seeking behaviors through their effect onmood.

4.3. Expressed affect

The environment also appears to moderate an-other cultural universal, that of affective expressionŽ .e.g., physical expressions of elation or aggression .In the psychology literature, the vast majority ofcross-cultural studies on expressed affect have fo-cused on the universality of facial expressions and

Ž .other nonverbal behaviors since Darwin 1872 madethe observation that humans not only share patternsof facial affective behavior across cultures but alsowith other animals. Our physiological model sug-gests that climate modulates the intensity of ex-pressed affect. Montesquieu also hypothesized aboutthe effect of climate on a people’s emotional behav-ior, albeit based on now outdated notions of 18thcentury physiology:

In cold countries, they will have very little sensi-bility for pleasure; in temperate countries, theyhave more; in warm countries, their sensibility isexquisite. As climates are distinguished climatesby degrees of latitude, we might distinguish themalso in some measure by those of sensibility. Ihave been at the opera in England and in Italy,where I have seen the same pieces and the sameperformers; yet the same music produces suchdifferent effects on the two nations: one is so coldand phlegmatic, and the other so lively and enrap-

Ž .tured, that it seems almost inconceivable. p. 223

Montesquieu’s hypothesis finds support in a study ofstereotypes of social expressiveness. In the northernhemisphere, people report that they perceive south-erners in their own countries as more emotionally

Ž . Žexpressive Pennebaker et al., 1996 . There was,however, a null effect in the southern hemisphere.

.The study did not consider terrain. The authorshypothesized that it may be a direct effect of heatandror its indirect effect. For example, temperaturepotentially affects the social fabric such that peoplesee, hear and interact with neighbors more often inwarm climates. Emotional expressiveness may be anadaptation to maintain a social understanding of

Ž .others Pennebaker et al., 1996 .A physiological mechanism complements or ri-

vals this social explanation. The hypothalamus regu-lates body temperature as well as cooling of thebrain, a crucial physiological function. As discussed,heat stimulates the release and synthesis of theneurotransmitter norepinephrine, which causes exci-

Ž .tation Anderson et al., 1995; Zajonc, 1994 . Basedon this mechanism, affective expressiveness shouldbe greater in hotter climates and during the summer,with attenuated seasonal swings in lower absolutelatitudes.

The effect of temperature may manifest itself notonly in the expression of affect, but also in people’ssubjective experience of the same objective intensityof affective stimulation. While norepinephrine can

Žamplify the sensory response to any situation Pan-.ksepp, 1986 , it may make consumers especially

sensitive to emotional stimulation, both positive andnegative. Sensitivity to stimulation is a well-knowntrait variable that varies within local populationsŽe.g., the Reactivity scale of Kohn, 1987, and the

.Strength of Excitation scale of Strelau, 1983 . Whatour analysis suggests is that the state variable tem-perature may be related to this consumer trait. Tem-perature should moderate consumers’ sensitivities tostimulation. This argument can also be framed froma stimulus perspective. Every stimulus has a certainarousal potential, which is the capacity to which a

Ž .stimulus is capable of raising arousal Berlyne, 1967 .By increasing consumers’ sensitivities, temperatureshould increase the arousal potential of affectivestimuli in particular.

The foregoing analysis suggests that the utilityexperienced from consumption may vary as a func-


tion of the environment itself. If temperature in-creases stimuli’s arousal potentials, then consumersmay experience more strongly emotional stimuli suchas fear or humor in advertising and, therefore, re-quire less ‘‘quantity’’ or ‘‘intensity’’ of an emotionalproduct to gain the same level of utility. It would beinteresting, for example, to examine the popularity of

Ž .music e.g., Lacher and Mizerski, 1994 at differentlevels of intensity across climates and seasons. Thiscould be achieved by analyzing musical hit charts interms of the music’s tempo, or other measures ofintensity. In order to control for other cultural vari-ables, this type of analysis could be performed byhaving individuals from a single population ratemusic at different intensities while varying the expe-rienced temperature in climate chambers. Such anapproach promises to add a physiological perspective

Žto the experiential aspects of consumption Holbrook.and Hirschman, 1982 , an expanded view of which is

one of the top research priorities of the MarketingŽ .Science Institute 1998 .

The negative side of affective expression, and ofparticular interest to business and marketing, areaggressive behaviors. Violence and aggression in theworkplace is a serious issue with over 2 million USemployees physically assaulted and an additional 6million threatened each year while at workŽ .O’Leary-Kelly et al., 1996 . In a private survey byNorthwestern National Life of 89 workers who hadbeen physically attacked at work in their lives, 44%reported being attacked by a client or customer, 30%by co-workers or former employees, and the rest by

Ž .a stranger or someone else in Diamond, 1997 .Environmental factors such as noise and heat havebeen proposed to induce aggressive behaviorsŽ .O’Leary-Kelly et al., 1996 . As discussed above,temperature stimulates the release of norepinephrineand raises arousal levels, a relation that has beenassociated with aggressive behaviors in particularŽ .Anderson et al., 1995 .

Heat does not cause people to be more aggressiveper se. Instead, it appears to lower the threshold atwhich people react aggressively to negative eventsandror moderate the severity of their aggressivereaction. This threshold influences whether cus-tomers, say, in reacting to a service mishap become‘‘boiling mad’’ rather than stay ‘‘cool headed.’’They may complain more and the service provider

may need to respond differently to aggressive behav-iors. The effect of temperature may be particularlyimportant, because aggressive behaviors can initiate

Ž .an escalation process Allen and Lucero, 1998 . Con-sider, for example, frontline employees who receive

Žthe majority of customer complaints Tax et al.,.1998 . If heat induces customers to initiate a com-

plaint encounter more aggressively, frontline em-ployees may perceive this as more aggressive andrespond more aggressively if they are themselvesaffected by hot temperatures. Firms may need to takeextra steps to train their frontline personnel to effec-tively cope with angry customers and to contain theirown hostile impulse during the summer, in particu-lar.

4.4. The optimal stimulation leÕel

As discussed earlier dopamine, norepinephrine,and serotonin are central to the maintenance of theOSL and NST should be highest during cold winterdays when the angle of the sun is low and hours ofsunshine are reduced, especially in higher latitudes.

The OSL and NST are associated with a varietyof arousal related consumption dynamics. Considerthe personality trait known as sensation seeking,

Ž .first established by Zuckerman 1994 in the 1960s.Individuals who score high on the sensation seekingscale are naturally further below their OSL. Sensa-tion seekers attempt to up-regulate their OSL byseeking more intense stimulation and seeking it morefrequently. They take greater risks, are more inter-ested in food variety and novelty foods, and exhibit ahigher liking for designs, complex and ambiguousart, intense music, sexual and non-sense humor, and

Žother emotionally laden stimuli for a review, see.Zuckerman, 1994 . High sensation seekers also con-

sume pharmacological agents such as alcohol, to-Ž .bacco, and certain drugs e.g., cocaine to a greater

Ž .degree Zuckerman, 1994 . These consumption be-haviors and the underlying physiological mecha-nisms parallel our discussion of their global con-sumption in response to climate and seasons. In otherwords, we suggest that analogous effects to the traitcharacteristic of sensation seeking — which is char-acterized by low levels of dopamine, serotonin, andnorepinephrine — may be found in response to thestate variables of sunlight and temperature.


Consumers should have a higher utility for behav-iors associated with stimulation seeking and be morelikely to engage in them in climates and seasons with

Žless intense and less abundant sunshine i.e., when.they have a positive NST . This effect should be

compounded by the effect of temperature on nor-epinephrine, discussed earlier. That is, a colder envi-ronment may require more intense stimulation togain the same stimulating effect. In contrast, if con-

Žsumers are at or beyond their OSL i.e., at the peak.or to its right in Fig. 1 they should avoid stimulation

in order to achieve psychological homeostasis. Thisphysiological perspective promises to provide adeeper understanding of a number of marketing top-

Ž .ics, such as leisure activities Wells, 1975 , theŽ .consumption of ‘‘play’’ Holbrook et al., 1984 and

Ž .leisure Unger and Kernan, 1983 , the multibillionŽdollar industry for goods such as rock music Lacher

.and Mizerski, 1994 , and high-risk leisure consump-Ž .tion such as skydiving Celsi et al., 1993 . Behaviors

such as intense music and thrilling sports may wellhelp consumers achieve their OSL.

Stimulation seeking is also related to the willing-ness to try new products, retail facilities, or engage

Žin exploratory behaviors Baumgartner and.Steenkamp, 1996 . It is important, however, to dis-

tinguish between the two separate dimensions ofŽsensory and cognitive stimulation seeking cf. Pear-

.son, 1970; Zuckerman, 1994 . Sensory stimulation isassociated with the exploratory acquisition of prod-ucts ‘‘though risky and innovative product choicesand varied and changing purchase experiences,’’whereas cognitive stimulation is associated with ex-ploratory information seeking ‘‘through the acquisi-tion of consumption relevant knowledge out of cu-

Ž .riosity’’ Baumgartner and Steenkamp, 1996 . Bothof these dimensions are related to the OSL, but OSLwas found to be correlated more strongly with the

Žsensory than the cognitive dimension Baumgartner.and Steenkamp, 1996 . We similarly expect that

climate and seasons will only affect sensory and notcognitive stimulation seeking.

Individual differences in consumer’s OSL havealso been related to curiosity-motivated behaviors

Žsuch variety seeking Baumgartner and Steenkamp,.1996; Pessemier and Handelsman, 1984; Raju, 1980 .

Ž .The ‘‘variety drive’’ Faison, 1977 is a homeos-tatic drive that has been associated with boredom

Ž .with a repeated stimulation Faison, 1977 . Consu-mers actual variety seeking behavior was foundto be positively correlated with their sensory stimu-lation needs but uncorrelated with their cognitive

Žstimulation needs Baumgartner and Steenkamp,.1996 .

A physiological perspective provides a novel ba-sis for exploring a number of consumer behaviorsacross cultures. Consumers in colder climates andseasons with less intense sunshine should have anhigher NST and may be motivated to engage innovelty and variety seeking to a greater degree inorder to achieve their OSL. In contrast, where con-sumers are at or beyond their OSL they should avoidnovelty and variety in order to decrease stimulation.Consumer innovativeness has previously been stud-ied cross-nationally in terms of personality and cul-

Ž .tural trait variables Steenkamp et al., 1999 . Cul-tural trait variables such as individualism and mas-culinity, for example, were found to correlate posi-tively with a trait variable measuring innovativenessŽ .Steenkamp et al., 1999 . Interestingly, a country’sclimate is one of the strongest predictors of individu-

Ž .alism and masculinity Hofstede, 1980 . On the onehand, these cultural traits may be mediators of theeffect of climate. On the other hand, these culturaltraits do not predict seasonal or weather-related vari-ations in innovativeness. Seasonal swings or

Žweather-related variations in variety seeking e.g., in.supermarket scanner data may be one way to exam-

ine the extent to which climate has a direct effect onsuch behaviors.

Finally, a positive NST may also lead to risk-tak-ing, but for reasons unrelated to dispositional mood,discussed earlier. Specifically, the arousal that stemsfrom uncertainty itself should be more valued byindividuals with a positive NST. The uncertaintyassociated with risky choices can be arousing andthis arousal is experienced as pleasant up to a per-son’s OSL beyond which it is experienced as un-

Ž .pleasant Scitovsky, 1992 . For example, arousalŽ .heart rate increases in gambling situations, espe-

Ž .cially for larger bets Anderson and Brown, 1984 .Between the two OSL dimensions, sensory stimula-tion needs were found to correlate positively with thepurchase of lottery tickets, but cognitive stimulation

Žneeds were uncorrelated Baumgartner and.Steenkamp, 1996 .


This analysis suggests that consumers’ utilities forarousal-inducing risks should be higher in colderclimates and seasons with less intense sunshine andshorter daylight hours, because they are more likelyto be below their OSL and because they are morelikely to be in a more depressed mood state. Suchrisk-seeking tendencies are of particular importancefor consumer behaviors such as gambling and thechoice of financial products. It is important to pointout, however, that real gambling situations can differsignificantly from laboratory studies, even those sim-

Ž .ulating casinos. Specifically, arousal heart rate hasonly been found to increase with taking actual risksand having real money at stake, especially larger betsŽ .Anderson and Brown, 1984 . The level of arousal,and thus risk taking and avoidance, also appears tobe related to the size of a reward or punishment,rather than to the probability of the outcome occur-

Ž .ring Loewenstein et al., 1998 . Moreover, events areŽmore arousing if they are closer in time Loewen-

. Žstein, 1987 or uncertainty is fixed-term Scitovsky,.1992 . In other words, differences in risk taking

across cultures may be most observable for real risksŽ .with short-term uncertainty e.g., instant lotteriesŽ .andror large potential payoffs e.g., large jackpots .

4.5. ImpulsiÕity

Risk taking has also been associated with impul-Ž .sivity Eysenck and Eysenck, 1977 and consumer

Žbehaviors such as impulse buying Gerbing et al.,.1987 . Risk taking can be greater when individuals

are less inhibited, or more impulsive, due to de-Ž .pressed serotonin levels Zuckerman, 1994 . Because

serotonin levels should also be depressed in areas ofless intense sunshine and in periods of short daylightŽ .Roberts, 1995 , one may observe behavioral changesin impulsivity across cultures.10 Even though a large

Žnumber of department store purchases between 27%.and 62% appear to fall into the impulse-buyingŽ .category Bellenger et al., 1978 very little is known

Ž .about the dynamics of impulse buying Rook, 1987 .Our analysis offers a theoretical basis for examiningthis issue across cultures as called for by Rook

10 GABA, which is probably the most ubiquitous inhibitoryŽ .neurotransmitter Panksepp, 1986 is also activated by sunlight

Ž .Roberts, 1995 .

Ž .1987 as well as across seasons. It predicts thatattenuated serotonin levels in climates and seasonswith less intense sunshine should make consumersless inhibited and increase impulse buying behavior.This tendency could, for example, be examined us-ing supermarket scanner data. Specifically, becausein-store displays affect impulse buying, their potencymay be higher in winter months and on overcastdays.11

5. General discussion

5.1. Summary

We integrated findings from the neural sciencesand psychology to make predictions about two gen-eral classes of consumer behaviors aimed at achiev-ing homeostasis: consumption behaviors and psycho-logical behaviors related to affect and arousal. Thebasis of our physiological model are universal pro-cesses of homeostasis. This analysis provides a newapproach to consumer behavior, which is more oftenculture-bound or culture-blind rather than cross-cult-ural or comparative. We provide a novel set ofhypotheses for cross-cultural and cross-seasonalcomparison. We also highlight the importance ofincluding exogenous environmental variables whenanalyzing the effect of other variables in cross-cult-ural comparisons.

5.2. Causality in cross-cultural analyses

We described a causal chain in which the physicalenvironment affects human physiology and psychol-ogy which, in turn, influences consumer behaviorsacross cultures. This analysis complements the moretraditional approach to the study of cross-culturalbehavior, which considers the individual within asocio-cultural context. Traditionally, culture is de-scribed as having a moderating exogenous effect onindividuals. In contrast, we modeled a complemen-tary set of behaviors across cultures that are endoge-nous to individual physiological and psychologicalprocesses on which the physical environment acts

11 We would like to thank J.B. Steenkamp for his insight on thisissue.


exogenously. This type of analysis offers a globalmodel for a set of consumer behaviors by explicitlyincorporating physiological dimensions in cross-cult-ural research. In the preceding sections, we discussedthe physiological effects of two environmental vari-ables, sunlight and temperature, which vary acrossclimates and seasons.

Neuronal and hormonal mechanisms concentratedin the hypothalamus regulate appetite and satiation

Ž .related to homeothermic e.g., caloric and phar-Ž .macological consumption e.g., coffee , as well as

complex motivated behaviors in related consumptionŽ .categories e.g., clothing and housing . In the aggre-

gate, these consumption differences affect local utili-ties for certain product categories. The high preva-

Ž .lence of seasonal mood swings Spoont et al., 1991 ,however, suggest that consumers are not able toachieve psychological homeostasis on an ongoingbasis. The physical environment may, therefore, di-rectly influence consumer behaviors related to feltand expressed affect. Finally, certain arousal induc-ing consumption dynamics — stimulation and sensa-tion seeking, novelty and variety seeking, risk tak-ing, and impulsivity — may well be involved in theregulation of consumers’ OSL. Research on thesetopics is nascent, but understanding environmentaleffects such as sunlight and temperature can onlyexpand our understanding of these consumer behav-iors.

The above analysis not only suggests refinementsfor consumer behavior theories, but it also points to aserious omitted variables problem, which can pro-duce faulty inferences in non-physiologically basedcross-cultural models. We have already made a callfor a re-examination of commonly accepted develop-ment theories, which are based on absolute measures

Ž .of well being e.g., caloric and protein consumption ;measures, which have guided international develop-ment efforts, including those of the World Bank, theInternational Monetary Fund and national develop-

Ž .ment agencies e.g., the U.S.A.I.D. . Adjusted mea-sures reveal radically different policy implicationsthan those generated from traditional measures. Thesame line of reasoning applies to cross-cultural mar-keting research. When comparing consumption, so-cial, or psychological behaviors across cultures, orwhen designing global marketing strategies, it maybe instructive to consider climatic influences; and it

may be critical to control for these when exploringother influences on behavior.

5.3. Possible tests of the model

The correlational data we reported account for asignificant proportion of the global variance in theconsumption of homeothermic and pharmacologicalproducts, as well as that of suicides, an indicator ofmood. Like any cross-cultural theory, however, prov-ing causality is challenging; because the assignmentof consumers to climates is non-random there are amyriad of other possible explanations for observedeffects. For example, observing more variety seekingin countries at higher absolute latitudes could be adirect effect of climate, as hypothesized here, or anindirect effect of climate through its influence on thecultural traits of individualism and collectivismŽ .Steenkamp et al., 1999 .

On the one hand, the consumer behaviors weidentified cannot affect global climate or seasons andthe direction of any the causal relation is specified apriori. In that respect, a hierarchical filtering ap-proach could be used that takes a step-wise approach

Žin examining the explained variance Parker and.Tavassoli, 2000 . For example, because climate is

exogenous to income one could first ‘‘filter-out’’ theeffect of climate before examining the influence ofincome on consumption. However, consumptioncould still be mediated or co-determined by unob-served variables that are spuriously correlated withclimate. As a control, one could compare countriesthat are matched on variables that may confound the

Ž .effect of climate Parker and Tavassoli, 2000 . Forexample, countries could be matched on incomelevels to examine the effect of climate on consump-tion. A different approach we used to control for theeffect of income used survey data that measuredconsumption needs directly.

Within-country, time-series data can provide in-sights into causal relationships. For example, weidentified complementary within-country researchthat indicates seasonal swings in observed behaviors.

Ž .Mood Spoont et al., 1991 , aggressive behaviors,Ž .Anderson et al., 1995 , and the consumption of

Ž .foods such as alcohol, coffee Hayes, 1997 andŽ .tobacco e.g., Osborn and Smith, 1989 all have

seasonal peaks in the winter months. Moreover, this


seasonal peak is attenuated in lower latitudes forŽ .depression Aschoff, 1981 . Future research could

examine, for example, scanner data for seasonalswings or even weather-related variations in vari-ables such as variety seeking.

Finally, to directly isolate the causal mechanismswe outlined, experimental studies could utilize cli-mate chambers or light therapy to examine the effectof these state variables on behaviors such as risktaking, novelty and stimulation seeking, variety seek-ing, impulsivity, and sensitivity to affective stimula-tion. It would also be interesting to examine theeffect on the consumer behaviors of pharmacologicalsurrogates for sunshine, such as caffeine.

5.4. CaÕeats

We present physiological theories as a more gen-eral model of cross-cultural consumer behavior. Thebehaviors sampled are meant to highlight the impor-tance of a physiological approach and are not meantto be exhaustive. There are also many consumerbehaviors, which may not benefit from our perspec-tive. Our hope is that this paper will stimulate inter-est and research in this area that will further exploreand qualify the physiological model we outlined.

It is also important to note that the causal explana-tions advanced are probabilistic in nature; the physi-cal environment does not determine behavior. This isevident, for example, in the indiÕidual variations inbehavioral traits within any single physical environ-ment. For example, characteristics that we suggestmay be affected by climate — sensitivity to stimula-

Ž . Žtion Kohn, 1987; Strelau, 1983 , OSLs Steenkamp. Žand Baumgartner, 1992 , sensation seeking Zucker-

. Žman, 1994 , exploratory tendencies Baumgartner and. ŽSteenkamp, 1996; Raju, 1980 , variety seeking Fai-

. Ž .son, 1977 , impulsivity Eysenck and Eysenck, 1977— have all been identified as individual trait vari-ables. Like any cross-cultural model, we attempt toexplain part of the variation in aggregate behaviorsacross cultures.

This is an especially sensitive issue, because cer-tain geographers were labeled as holding a determin-istic view of climatic effects; climate was argued tonot only correlate with cross-cultural differences in

Žbehavior, but to also determine these e.g., the works.of Huntington, 1913 . The lack of strong theoretical

underpinnings, spurious inferences, and certain ex-tremes in early writings, especially as directed to-ward individual behavior including generalizationsconcerning racial differences, led to a general dis-credit of climate-based theories of behavior in geog-raphy, sociology and economics. Though some au-thors have recently argued that these early criticismswere themselves suspect of certain extremes or lacked

Ž .rigor see, for example, Rotton, 1986 , the mostimportant problem in previous attributions is theidentification of causal mechanisms. It is our beliefthat identifying the effect of climate on universalphysiological processes should disarm ethnocentricand racial attributions rather than reinforce them.

5.5. Ethical and fairness considerations

Like most marketing research, our ideas raiseethical and fairness considerations. On the one hand,a better understanding of consumer behavior shouldnot necessarily lead to unethical marketing practicesŽ .e.g., see criteria in Smith and Quelch, 1993 . Know-ing that consumers want more variety in the winter,for example, can lead to product strategies that bettersatisfy consumer needs. Product designs could alsobe systematically adapted to local climates and re-place often more bland, albeit cheaper, globally stan-dardized offerings. Moreover, savings associated with

Žmore efficient marketing strategies e.g., based on.better forecasts should lead to lower prices.

On the other hand, behaviors such as price dis-crimination have raised ethical concerns in the pastŽ .Smith and Quelch, 1993 . In that sense, seasonal

Ž .price variations e.g., holiday airfares or weather-re-lated pricing such as Coca-Cola’s temperature-sensi-tive pricing may be perceived by consumers as an

Žunfair exploitation of shifts in demand Kahneman et.al., 1986 . It may also be considered as unethical to

exploit consumers’ hypothesized disposition towardsimpulse buying by using more in-store displays inthe winter. This may be an especially sensitive topicfor compulsive shoppers. Similar concerns could beraised about marketers of potentially harmful prod-ucts such as alcohol who already follow a seasonaltrend by promoting and discounting their productsmore heavily in the winter. Preventive efforts againstalcohol abuse should be similarly targeted at regionsand seasons in which consumers are most vulnerable.


5.6. Cultural conÕergence

In this age of globalization, there seems to be, onthe one hand, a sense of urgency in developing aframework to discover and develop cross-cultural

Ž .strategies e.g. Jain, 1989 . On the other hand, thereis a strong belief that consumer behavior is rapidly

Ž .converging globally Levitt, 1983 . In light of theincreasing interconnectedness between cultures, willthe world converge towards a single homogeneous

Ž .culture? Whereas Levitt 1983 has promoted a stan-dardized marketing strategy and has been so bold asto proclaim ‘‘the earth is flat’’, we suggest that amodel based on the fact that the earth is a sphere ismore appropriate. We also posit that the crucialquestion in the convergence debate is not whetherbrands will be available everywhere — global brandshave existed for over a century — but whetherconsumers’ utilities for these products will convergeand whether consumer behavior itself will convergein terms of psychological behaviors and consumptiondynamics.

We suggest that there will not be absolute conver-gence in consumer behaviors across cultures. The

Žability to institutionalize climate e.g., heating and.air-conditioning and to consume surrogates for sun-

Ž .shine e.g., coffee or Prozac may decrease psycho-Žlogical differences across cultures in the future e.g.,

.by dampening seasonal peaks in higher latitudes .However, these behaviors are consumption behaviorsthemselves that are closely related to the physicalenvironment. We thus expect the core of the observa-

Ž .tions of Montesquieu 1748 and a physiologicalmodel to remain important in explaining differencesin behaviors across cultures for some time to come.

5.7. Conclusion

The cross-cultural perspective of a physiologicalmodel promises new venues for cross-cultural mar-keting research. It provides a theoretical basis forexamining previously unexplored cultural differencesin areas such homeothermic and pharmacologicalconsumption, felt and expressed affect, and arousal.It also provides a theoretical basis for examiningacross cultures and seasons a selection of topics thathave received growing attention in the broadeningagenda of marketing research, including topics such

as gambling, play, addiction, impulsivity and thrillŽ .seeking. As Mick 1996 points out ‘‘this work is

still in nascent stages, building nomological netssurrounding these varied constructs and behaviors’’Ž .p. 106 . Applying a physiological perspective hasthe potential to provide a theoretically more generalfoundation.

Gaining a deeper understanding of why differ-ences exist among cultures also provides additionalinsights into consumer behaviors studied within a

Žpurely domestic context e.g., causal mechanisms,.and seasonality in behaviors providing a theoreti-

cally more grounded understanding. In that sense, aphysiological explanation for homeothermic andpharmacological consumption provides insights intoa question fundamental to our discipline: ‘‘why dopeople consume?’’ A physiological analysis should,therefore, not diminish our fascination with con-sumer behavior or make consumer behavior trivialby reduction. Rather, our model expands our under-standing, allowing us to predict unanticipated interre-lationships between physiology and consumer behav-ior phenomena across cultures.

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank John Little, Dun-can Simester, and Jan-Benedict Steenkamp for theirinsightful comments.

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Homeostasis and consumer behavior across cultures · Homeostasis and consumer behavior across cultures Philip M. Parker a,b,1, Nader T. Tavassoli c,) a INSEAD, 77305 Fontainebleau,