Search behaviour and motor vehicle purchase : an investigation among Maltese students

Abstract

This dissertation seeks to explore the association between searching behaviour and buying a car amongst Maltese students, based on (Srinivasan, 1987)’s research paper. The purpose of this research is to uncover how Maltese students perceive risk when it comes to car purchasing, the amount of search that they undertake prior to making a purchase, what motivation drives them when conducting searches and what perceived benefits are seen from the whole process. Four concepts related to searching behaviour will be explored – Perceived risks, Amount of search, Motivation to search and Perceived benefits. These concepts will be applied to the Maltese student demographic when purchasing a car in order to gain insight into their buying behaviour. This research could provide an invaluable resource for further studies on decision-making processes in general. A quantitative approach was taken to collect the data for this study. Structured questionnaires were distributed to students at the University of Malta. The results of the study indicate that Perceived risk and Motivation to search have a significant effect on student's buying behaviour of motor vehicles. Those who stated that they do not work have a higher motivation to search when purchasing a vehicle. Part-time working students, however, are likely to view perceived risks with high caution. Cross tabulation of the gathered information showed that Ownership, Gender, Age, Locality, and Course had no influence on the four constructs. This could mean that there is an alternate collection of parameters responsible for influencing a person's result in these areas Understanding car buying decisions require a holistic approach that considers individual preferences, brand perception, pricing, product features, and external influences. Interdisciplinary collaboration and continuous adaptation in marketing practices are crucial for effectively engaging car buyers (Lakshman et al., 2000).