| Abstract: | ABSTRACT Family roles in deciding household purchases have intrigued marketers for a long time, with researchers calling for more studies on the subject–especially those which look into the roles played by children and ‘others’ in the decision process. This paper investigates the relative influence of the husband, wife, children and ‘others’ in five sub-decisions involved in the choice of a school, and distinguishes families reporting different roles on their demographic characteristics. Cluster analysis was used to develop segments on the basis of family roles. Results indicate that children and ‘others’ have negligible influence in this particular service and that the wife dominates four sub-decisions, while the husband dominates one. It is also seen that couples reporting wife dominant decision-making are older and are less susceptible to interpersonal influence than those reporting joint decision-making. Implications for school management are discussed. |
