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2023/2024  BA-BPSYV2301U  Digital Consumer Behavior

English Title
Digital Consumer Behavior

Course information
Language English
Course ECTS 7.5 ECTS
Type Elective
Level Bachelor
Duration One Quarter
Start time of the course First Quarter
Timetable Course schedule will be posted at calendar.cbs.dk
Max. participants 60
Study board
Study Board for BSc/MSc in Business Administration and Psychology, BSc
Course coordinator
  • Antonia Erz - Department of Marketing (Marketing)
Main academic disciplines
  • Customer behaviour
  • Information technology
  • Marketing
Teaching methods
  • Blended learning
Last updated on 13-02-2023

Relevant links
Learning objectives
To achieve the grade 12, students should meet the following learning objectives with no or only minor mistakes or errors:
  • Describe, define, illustrate, classify, combine, discuss, and reflect upon relevant theories, constructs, concepts, and models of digital consumer behavior.
  • Analyze practical examples, anecdotes, and cases dealing with digital consumer behavior by identifying, selecting, applying, comparing, or discussing relevant theories and models.
  • Identify, discuss, and argue for practical implications and limitations of applying specific theories, models, and concepts of digital consumer behavior.
  • Identify, discuss, and reflect upon ethical implications of digitalization for consumer behavior on an individual and societal level vis-à-vis marketing.
Course prerequisites
Students should possess the basic knowledge of consumer behavior before participating in this course. They should be familiar with basic concepts, constructs and models of consumer decision-making, perception, attitudes and persuasion, learning and memory, identity and personality, motives and motivation, groups and social processes, and culture. Furthermore, they should have a basic understanding of the main methodological perspectives in consumer behavior research (qualitative, quantitative, and experimental). These fundamentals will not be repeated in this course but be built on. Basic knowledge of marketing management will be useful but is not required.
Examination
Digital Consumer Behavior:
Exam ECTS 7,5
Examination form Written sit-in exam on CBS' computers
Individual or group exam Individual exam
Assignment type Written assignment
Duration 4 hours
Grading scale 7-point grading scale
Examiner(s) One internal examiner
Exam period Autumn
Aids Open book: all written and electronic aids, including internet access
Read more here about which exam aids the students are allowed to bring and will be given access to : Exam aids and IT application package
Make-up exam/re-exam
Same examination form as the ordinary exam
The number of registered candidates for the make-up examination/re-take examination may warrant that it most appropriately be held as an oral examination. The programme office will inform the students if the make-up examination/re-take examination instead is held as an oral examination including a second examiner or external examiner.
Course content, structure and pedagogical approach

The overall goal of the course is for students to gain a deep, specialized, both theoretically and managerially relevant, understanding of digital consumer behavior, based on psychological and socio-cultural perspectives. Students’ analytical skills are trained by analyzing cases, examples and anecdotes based on the application of theoretical models, concepts, and constructs and by discussing their commonalities, differences, and potential ambiguities. In addition, students of this course acquire the skills and abilities to contextualize their expert knowledge in digital consumer behavior and its study in relation to marketing as a business function, and in relation to the wider society.

 

More specifically, this course builds on students’ fundamental knowledge of theories of consumer behavior acquired in previous courses and extends on them by focusing on digital consumer behavior. This course addresses digital consumer behavior as the study of consumption behavior that takes place in the digital environment (including mobile), is affected by digital technologies, and/or is a response to phenomena and marketing strategies brought about by the advancement of digital technologies. As such, it goes beyond a definition of digital consumption as merely the consumption of online media or entertainment, and encompasses different topics, such as online shopping, the spread of electronic word-of-mouth on social networking sites, the digital self (from blogging to the metaverse), influencer marketing, or the application of artificial intelligence (e.g., chatbots), to name a few. In addition, with the advancements in digital technology changing the face of marketing and as such, the extent of potential intrusion into consumers’ lives, privacy, transparency, and other ethical concerns must be discussed.

 

This course addresses a selection of these topics by presenting students with exemplary research, discussing its results and implications for theory and (marketing) practice, and applying their theoretical outputs to cases, examples, and anecdotes in real and fictitious consumer and market settings. In addition, students get the opportunity to take a critical perspective towards the impact that the advancement in technology has on consumers and society at large vis-à-vis businesses who use these technologies in their marketing, sales, and services. While this course cannot provide a comprehensive picture of this scattered and emerging research field, it offers a solid fundament for students who are interested in digital consumer behavior to study it further or apply their knowledge in the field (e.g., in marketing or market research).
Description of the teaching methods
This course is offered as a blended learning course. This means, lectures will mostly take place online and exercises on-campus. In addition to engaging with online lectures, students are expected to prepare for the on-campus exercises during online time before coming to the on-campus exercise classes. These exercise classes will follow a schedule and will include both individual and group work, where students are asked to work with the concepts, theories, and constructs of the course by applying them to cases, anecdotes or examples of different extents and formats.

Students are expected to have prepared the assigned material before joining the on-campus exercises. This home preparation is vital to maintain an interactive mode in the on-campus classes, where students are encouraged to ask questions to their peers and the teacher(s) and help each other (re-)learn. Students are also encouraged to interact online with both the teacher(s) and their peers and contribute to the success of the course by asking questions and providing feedback.
Feedback during the teaching period
Students will receive feedback online and/or during on-campus classes in written or oral format (e.g., through written solutions, quizzes, or plenum presentations and discussions), both by peers and by the teacher(s). Students are particularly encouraged to help each other, both through online and on-campus interactions. The teacher(s) will be available for individual feedback during office hours/by email and during/after on-campus exercises during the teaching period.
Student workload
Lectures and exercises 38 hours
Written individual exam 4 hours
Individual preparation and studying 164 hours
Further Information

This course focuses on digital consumer behavior, which lies at the intersections of marketing, psychology, sociology, and digital technology.
Expected literature

This course will mostly use journal articles, to which links will be provided on Canvas at the beginning of the semester. Students are expected to download these articles or find the articles themselves in CBS’ library. Reading instructions will be given at the beginning of the semester.

 

A list of selected literature can be found below for illustration. Please note that this list is not comprehensive or final; please refer to Canvas at the beginning of the semester for reading instructions and the final syllabus.

 

Buechel, E. C., & Berger, J. (2018). Microblogging and the value of undirected communication. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 28(1), 40-55.

 

Erz, A., Marder, B., & Osadchaya, E. (2018). Hashtags: Motivational drivers, their use, and differences between influencers and followers. Computers in Human Behavior, 89, 48-60.

 

Hennig-Thurau, T., Aliman, D. N., Herting, A. M., Cziehso, G. P., Linder, M., & Kübler, R. V. (2022). Social interactions in the metaverse: Framework, initial evidence, and research roadmap. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 1-25.

 

Leban, M., Thomsen, T. U., von Wallpach, S., & Voyer, B. G. (2021). Constructing personas: How high-net-worth social media influencers reconcile ethicality and living a luxury lifestyle. Journal of Business Ethics, 169(2), 225-239.

 

McQuarrie, E. F., Miller, J., & Phillips, B. J. (2013). The megaphone effect: Taste and audience in fashion blogging. Journal of Consumer Research, 40(1), 136-158.

 

Melzner, J., Bonezzi, A., & Meyvis, T. (2022). EXPRESS: Information Disclosure in the Era of Voice Technology. Journal of Marketing, 0(ja).  https:/​/​doi.org/​10.1177/​00222429221138286

 

Srinivasan, R., & Sarial-Abi, G. (2021). When algorithms fail: Consumers’ responses to brand harm crises caused by algorithm errors. Journal of Marketing, 85(5), 74-91.

 

Stephen, A. T. (2016). The role of digital and social media marketing in consumer behavior. Current Opinion in Psychology, 10, 17-21.
Last updated on 13-02-2023