CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR - 2020/1

Module code: MAN2149

Module Overview

The behaviour of consumers is a fundamental aspect in understanding the nature of tourism and hospitality business as a whole. Additionally, the understanding of consumer behaviour is imperative for creating the conditions for positive and satisfactory consumer experiences as well as formulating successful marketing strategies. This module provides students with opportunities to develop their understanding of key aspects and strategic implications of consumer behaviour.

Module provider

Hospitality, Tourism & Events Management

Module Leader

EVES Anita (Hosp & Tour)

Number of Credits: 15

ECTS Credits: 7.5

Framework: FHEQ Level 5

Module cap (Maximum number of students): N/A

Overall student workload

Independent Learning Hours: 117

Lecture Hours: 22

Seminar Hours: 11

Module Availability

Semester 1

Prerequisites / Co-requisites

None

Module content

Indicative content includes:

• Introduction to consumer behaviour

• Perception

• Learning and memory

• Motivation, personality and emotion

• Attitudes

• Self-concept and lifestyle consumption

• Postpurchase behaviour

• Cross-cultural behaviour

 • Consumer behaviour in the digital era

Assessment pattern

Assessment type Unit of assessment Weighting
Project (Group/Individual/Dissertation) Group poster presentation 50
Examination 90-minute closed-book exam 50

Alternative Assessment

In the event that a group poster is not suitable for re-assessment, an individual essay of 1,000 words will be assigned.

Assessment Strategy

The assessment strategy is designed to provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of key concepts of consumer behaviour and the extent to which they are able to critically evaluate current issues and its managerial implications.

Thus, the summative assessment for this module consists of:

• A group poster presentation (50%, by week 8 of the semester) requiring students to work in groups to design and present a poster exploring and evaluating the key theories, issues and managerial implications in consumer behaviour;

• A 90-minute exam (50%, during the University examinations period) consisting of 50 multiple-choice questions to assess students’ knowledge and understanding of key concepts and principles of consumer behaviour.

Formative assessment

• Students will be encouraged to submit a poster outline to SurreyLearn where feedback on how to improve the work will be provided;

• At the end of each lecture, a few multiple-choice exercise questions will be provided as a quick revision to assess students’ understanding of the lecture;

• A revision session with an in-class self-assessed test will be organised at the end of the semester.

Feedback

Feedback will be provided on the formative assessment in a variety of forms and through multiple channels. While written feedback on the poster outline will be provided, the feedback is not limited to a written form. Instant feedback will be provided at the end of each lecture following the quick revision exercise; detailed feedback on each question of the in-class test will be provided once the test is done, in order to help students better understand the subject knowledge and find out why they did not get the correct answers and how to handle this type of questions.

Module aims

  • Develop an understanding of the theoretical foundations of consumer behaviour
  • Critically review key aspects of tourist behaviour and factors affecting it
  • Enrourage students to apply theoretical and practical aspects of consumer behaviour in the context of tourism, transport, hospitality and events;
  • Enable students to critically evaluate current theories and research in Consumer Behaviour

Learning outcomes

Attributes Developed
001 Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of key concepts and theories of consumer behaviour K
002 Critically evaluate the factors influencing consumer behaviour CPT
003 Apply consumer behaviour concepts and theories in the context of tourism, transport, hospitality and events KT
004 Understand how knowledge of consumer behaviour can be applied to marketing, strategy and policy development CP
005 Reflect on the contribution of current knowledge of consumer behaviour as well as its limitations and the challenges in further development of consumer behaviour understanding CT

Attributes Developed

C - Cognitive/analytical

K - Subject knowledge

T - Transferable skills

P - Professional/Practical skills

Methods of Teaching / Learning

The learning and teaching strategy is designed to:

• Provide students with key knowledge from the perspective of consumer behaviour in tourism, transport, hospitality and events;

• Encourage students to explore and critically evaluate theoretical perspectives and practical implications of consumer behaviour.

The learning and teaching methods include:

• Interactive lectures (2 hour per week x 11 weeks) designed to provide a framework of knowledge and tools for critical thinking;

• Tailored seminars (1 hour per week x 11 weeks) designed to provide a context-specific learning envrionment for each of the tourism, transport, hospitality and events programmes;

• Group work and feedback;

• Guest lectures to provide links between theory and practice.

Indicated Lecture Hours (which may also include seminars, tutorials, workshops and other contact time) are approximate and may include in-class tests where one or more of these are an assessment on the module. In-class tests are scheduled/organised separately to taught content and will be published on to student personal timetables, where they apply to taken modules, as soon as they are finalised by central administration. This will usually be after the initial publication of the teaching timetable for the relevant semester.

Reading list

https://readinglists.surrey.ac.uk
Upon accessing the reading list, please search for the module using the module code: MAN2149

Other information

None

Programmes this module appears in

Programme Semester Classification Qualifying conditions
International Hospitality Management BSc (Hons) 1 Compulsory A weighted aggregate mark of 40% is required to pass the module
International Hospitality and Tourism Management BSc (Hons) 1 Compulsory A weighted aggregate mark of 40% is required to pass the module
International Tourism Management with Transport BSc (Hons) 1 Compulsory A weighted aggregate mark of 40% is required to pass the module
International Tourism Management BSc (Hons) 1 Compulsory A weighted aggregate mark of 40% is required to pass the module
International Event Management BSc (Hons) 1 Compulsory A weighted aggregate mark of 40% is required to pass the module

Please note that the information detailed within this record is accurate at the time of publishing and may be subject to change. This record contains information for the most up to date version of the programme / module for the 2020/1 academic year.