4. What is the social class hierarchy? Households, which include families and unrelated people living together as well as singles, exert considerable influence on acquisition and consumption patterns. The proportion of nontraditional households has increased because of factors such as (1) later marriages and cohabitation, (2) dual-career families,

(3) divorce, (4) smaller families, and (5) same-sex couples. Members can play different roles in the decision process (gatekeeper, influencer, decider, buyer, and user). Also, husbands and wives vary in their influence on the decision process, depending on whether the situation is husband dominant, wife dominant, autonomic, or syncratic. The nature of children’s influence on acquisition, usage, and disposition decisions partly depends on whether the household is authoritarian, neglectful, democratic, or permissive.

In general, the older the child, the greater the influence.

Individuals in a society can be grouped into status levels

(upper, middle, and lower), making up a social class hierarchy.

Class distinctions are significant because members of a particular class tend to share common life experiences and therefore also share values and consumer behavior patterns (despite variations within groups). Individuals are most likely to be influenced by members of their own class because they regularly interact with them. Still, influence can cross class lines through the trickle-down effect (when lower classes copy upper-class values and behavior) or status float (when trends start in the lower classes and spread upward).