A discrete symmetry of a preference relation is a mapping from the domain of choice to itself under which preference comparisons are invariant; a continuous symmetry is a one-parameter family of such transformations that includes the identity; and a symmetry field is a vector field whose...

A model of the diffusion process is developed which recognizes (1) the interaction between adopters and non-adopters and (2) the influence of external information sources such as advertising. The model is extended by incorporating the effects of repeat purchasing. The models written by the...

While it provides excellent descriptions of behavior, existing consumer research on information seeking and processing largely fails to explain why consumers engage in various types of activities. This paper presents an economic framework for measuring costs/benefits of search behavior which can...

A stochastic consumer behavior model is constructed transforming Nicosia's (Nicosia, F. M., 1966. Consumer Decision Processes. Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey.) postulates into probability hypotheses. Nicosia's deterministic model is obtained in the mean evolutions and...

A model which separates the various effects of an advertising experiment on a family's consumption behavior is estimated using consumer panel data. It is determined that there were significant transitory or short-run effects of the advertising, while permanent influences and price-advertising...

A very parsimonious first-order multibrand model of the individual consumer for frequently purchased consumer goods is developed, generalizing the zero-order multinomial model. The model incorporates the notion of brand choice inertia, which is a form of short-term loyalty. Besides the...

Loyalty in branded consumer goods markets is a subject that has often been discussed in the marketing literature. Virtually no matter what definition of loyalty has been adopted, it has been found to exist. This paper examines loyalty from a different perspective--that of an aggregation of...