Toward a Theory of Motivation and Personality with Application to Word-of-Mouth Communications

Numerous scales have been developed to measure constructs relevant to consumer behavior, marketing, and management problems. Until recently, there has been no theory or model capable of providing an organizational structure for understanding the relationships among these numerous constructs. This paper presents the 3M Model of Motivation and Personality (Mowen 2000) as a viable theoretical approach for organizing constructs into an ordered nomological net. In addition, this effort illustrates how the 3M Model approach can be applied to personality research via an empirical study that investigates the trait antecedents of enduring dispositions to send and receive marketplace information across the U.S. and Korean cultures