Sociodemographic factors and irrationality in purchasing decisions of staple products in supermarkets in the district of Trujillo 2025
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.37787/em9s2j86Keywords:
Irracionalidad, decisiones de compra, factores sociodemográficos, economía conductualAbstract
The study aimed to identify the sociodemographic factors related to irrationality in purchasing decisions for basic necessities. The factors considered were age, gender, educational level, income level, and marital status, while irrationality was assessed through the presence of heuristics and cognitive biases. The research adopted a mixed approach whose quantitative sample included 664 consumers and the development of a multiple regression model to estimate the explanatory power of the factors. Qualitatively, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 30 intentionally selected participants. The research determined that the sociodemographic factors studied have limited explanatory power over irrationality in purchasing circumstances (adjusted R² = 0.021). Only educational level and income level showed significant associations, while the others were not determinative. Qualitatively, it was observed that although consumers perceive themselves as rational, in practice their decisions are affected by heuristics and biases, as well as emotions, customs, and commercial stimuli. In conclusion, the variation in irrationality is poorly explained by sociodemographic factors and depends to a greater extent on cognitive aspects and circumstantial factors that affect the purchasing decision environment.
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Data Availability Statement
Buenos dias señores editores. El trabajo presentado fue expuesto en la XLIV Jornada Nacional-XXXI Jornada internacional de investigacion cientifica de Posgrado organizada por la Universidad Nacional de Trujillo entre el 09 y 10 de setiembre del 2025.
Resalto que se trató tan sólo de una ponencia ante un jurado e interesados en el tema mas no hubo ningun compromiso de publicación o algo similar.
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