The effect of gender roles on consumer purchasing decision process: A comparative analysis in terms of X, Y and Z generations

The aim of this thesis is the analysis of the effects of gender roles on the attitudes of consumers during the purchasing decision process. The analyzes are made comparatively in terms of X, Y and Z generations. The study consists of three chapters. In the first chapter, a literature review on gender and gender roles is conducted. In the second chapter, a literature review is conducted on the basic characteristics of the consumer purchasing decision process and generations. In the third chapter, a case study is made to determine the effects of gender roles on consumer purchasing decision process in clothing purchasses. The reason of choosing clothing purchases in the case study is, clothing does not only serve the purpose of 'meeting the basic dressing needs of individuals' with the effect of 'consumption culture', which is an important force in today's globalizing world. Moreover, since clothing is one of the important factors that determine the image of the individual in society, it also serves to meet the psychological and social needs of consumers. Since the aim of the study is to analyze the attitudes of consumers from X, Y and Z generations, clothing shopping is an area where consumer groups from all three generations can easily evaluate. Quantitative and qualitative methods are used together in the evaluation of the survey data. In the quantitative analysis part, the data obtained from the questionnaire is analyzed by using SPSS 25 and AMOS programmes. T-test, ANOVA test and regression analysis are used in order to test the hypotheses. In the qualitative analysis part, a content analysis is made. As a result of the research; the hypothesis that consumers' gender roles differ according to their sexes is partially accepted. The hypotheses that there is a significant difference between the sexes of the consumers in the X, Y and Z generations and their attitudes at the stages of the purchasing decision process were partially accepted. The hypotheses that the sexes and gender roles of consumers in three generations have an impact on their attitudes in the purchasing decision process stages have also been partially accepted.