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Culture, materialism and renting

behaviour in EuropeTissier-Desbordes, Elisabeth (2007). “Culture, materialism and renting behaviour in Europe”.

EsicMarket, 129, pp. 35-50.

Elisabeth Tissier-DesbordesESCP-EAP. Professeur, département Marketing. 79 avenue de la Repúblique. 75011 Paris. France.

Abstract

Renting behaviors differs all over Europe. Through a survey of 1000 ques-

tionnaires conducted in France, Germany, United Kingdom and Italy, we

investigate the links between materialism and renting behaviours, and wetry to explain the differences over the countries with cultural variables: lan-

guages, the relationship to the land and the habit of sharing products. Ren-

ting behavior is measured for forty products, and developed for three pro-

ducts: cars, skis and DVDs. Renting is more developed in Germany, less

developed in Italy. Materialism is negatively related to renting behavior.

“If my life is for rent, and I don’t learn to buy, well I deserve nothing more

than I get, because nothing I have is truly mine”, Dido Armstrong, 2003,

Life for Rent, bmg UK & Ireland.

In her song, Dido explains that the ultimate goal of the life is property: if

your life is for rent, you have nothing and you deserve nothing.

In marketing, many researches have investigated possessions or product

attachment (Belk, 1985; Richins, 1994a, 1994b). These authors underline

the essential role of ownership as a means of self-definition or self-expres-

sion.

Conversely, some contemporary lifestyle analysts put forward the theory

of “dematerialisation” of Western societies: the move from an era of

ownership to an “era of access” which better suits our fragmented, mobi-le lifestyles (Rifkin, 2001). Postmodern analysts underline the trend to

nomadism, the permanent transformation of our society in a liquid world,

with moving boundaries (Baumann, 2000).

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culture, materialism and renting behaviour in europe

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Is it still necessary to own to exist? Will renting become the prevalent con-

sumer behaviour in today’s ‘hyper-modern’ society? Will the hypermodern

consumer be a renter more than an owner?

Data on property around the world suggest that the attachment to the

land and to the product is deeply cultural. We expect cross cultural varia-

tions on renting behaviours too.

The purpose of this research therefore was to investigate the reasons for

rental versus ownership in a multi-cultural European context. If Europe

has been organised in a Union of nations, many differences still appears in

consumer behaviours: eating habits, TV watching, leisure, and so on.

Our aim is to understand renting behaviours in four European countries:

France, Germany, United Kingdom and Italy. Are there differences among these countries? Can culture help us to understand these differences?

Among the variables explaining the will to possess, materialism has been

identified as a key variable (Belk, 1985, Richins, 2004). So, we investiga-

te the links between materialism and the proneness to rent or to possess.

We are not only interested in house rentals but in renting behaviours for

many products. In the first part of our survey, we study renting behaviours

for 40 products, and then we develop on three products: cars, skis, DVDs.

A brief literature analysis is presented, followed by an outline of the met-

hodology, some of the main findings, and suggestions for possible furtherresearch.

Keywords:

JEL Code:

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1. Buying and renting - a multi-disciplinary subject“In the new era, markets are making way for networks, and ownership is

steadily being replaced by access… more costly items like appliances,

automobiles and homes increasingly will be held by suppliers and acces-

sed by consumers in the form of short-term leases, rentals, memberships,

and other service arrangements.” (Rifkin, 2001, pp. 4-6). Similarly, other

authors underline the dematerialisation of society, accompanied by a ten-

dency to buy objects to facilitate access and experience. Used as a simple

means to access temporarily the experience of consumption, goods are

increasingly being rented as opposed to acquired. “When virtually everyt-

hing becomes a service, capitalism is transformed from a system based on

exchanging goods to one based on accessing segments of experience” (Rif-kin, p. 94), an access that results in a kind of ‘rental’ of these goods.

In contrast other authors defend the dominance of ‘material culture’

(Warnier, 1999). Objects, even those originating from mass production,

are still central to our basic motivations and actions despite new techno-

logies of communication and virtual markets. For sociologists (Tisseron,

1998) and consumer behaviour analysts (Ball & Tasaki, 1992; Belk, 1988,

2001; Richins, 1994a, 1994b), products play an essential role. Objects are

expressions of our identity (Belk, 1998). They make sense of everyday

experiences; they support internal processes (such as the transitional

object) or individual and collective memory. For these researchers,

ownership remains the final objective of individuals.

Moreover, the boundary between buying and renting is often unclear,

a phenomenon reinforced by the ‘servicisation’ of products outlined,

amongst others, by Gronroos (2000). Many products require added servi-

ces often acquired by temporary rental type agreements. Likewise, some

cases of rentals are closer to purchase decisions such as lease-buy or hire

purchase. An individual can appropriate an object to himself, even if itdoes not belong to him (Serfaty-Garzon, 2003). The possession of an

object here is more in the psychological, affective sense rather than the

strictly legal sense of ownership. Rented objects therefore enable us to

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make sense of our everyday experiences just as much as owned possessions

(Tisseron, 1998).

Other product-specific factors may also be relevant. If renting is pri-

marily applicable to durable products, then the propensity to rent could

vary according to the number of products used simultaneously in the

same category, to the intensity and diversity of their use (Shih & Venka-

tesh, 2004), and to the need for pre-purchase evaluation, (Nelson 1974).

Also the propensity to rent could depend upon direct or indirect external

network factors, which could encourage multiple access channels. Rese-

arch on the simplification of purchase decisions (Trocchia & Beatty,

2003) and on perceived risk reduction (Gronroos, 1996; Zeithaml & Bit-

ner, 1992) could also be interpreted as implying a preference for rentingover buying.

Possessions and materialism

Materialism is considered by Belk as “the most significant macro deve-

lopment in modern consumer behaviour. Some researchers have develo-

ped various scales to measure it. Belk (1985) proposed a scale with

three dimensions: possessiveness, non generosity and envy. Possessive-

ness is defined as ‘the inclination and tendency to retain control or

ownership of one’s possessions, Non generosity is defined as “an unwi-

llingness to give possessions to or to share possessions with others”,

and envy is considered as “the displeasure and ill at the superiority of

another person in happiness, success, reputation, or the possessions of

anything desirable”.

Richins and Dawson(1992) proposed an other scale, MVS. Richins

refined it in 2004. We choose the last Richins scale, because she recently

proposed a short form and this short form has been translated and tested

on the French market by Ladwein (2003). This scale has three dimensions:success, centrality and happiness. After a first test we cancelled some

items, as Ladwein demonstrated it, items formulated in a negative way are

misunderstood by French consumers.

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2. MethodologyA first phase was based upon in-depth interviews with English, French,

German and Italian consumers to identify which products, and which

situations, are associated with renting versus buying. In order to identifythe cultural differences between the four countries, the analysis of the

interviews was undertaken independently by researchers in each country

before collectively comparing their conclusions (Lerman & Callow, 2003).

Each researcher analysed the interviews in the light of conceptual and lin-

guistic differences, the variations in rental choice available, and rental pre-

ference, and in consumer attitudes (Prime & Usunier, 2003 ; Usunier,

1998).

After this first phase, a questionnaire was written in the four langua-

ges, with retro translation in order to check the understanding of the ques-

tionnaire. A pre-test was conducted, and 1000 consumers were intervie-

wed by phone in 4 countries with quotas of gender, age and occupations

(appendice 1).

3. Main findingsWe proposed a list of 40 products. Two groups appeared: Latin countries,

with less than 6 rented products and northern European countries with

Germany and UK with more than 7 rented products, Italy presenting thelowest rate.

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If we looked at car renting, the two groups still appears, with the domi-

nance of Germany

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237254250256N =

PAYSTOT

Grande-BretagneAllemagneItalieFrance

9 5 % I

C T O U T P R O D

9

8

7

6

5

4

Table 1. Means and standard deviation of the number of rented products

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Respondents spontaneously declare to rent 1.8 products, but when we

propose list of forty products, the mean of rented products is 6.5, with lar-

ge differences: 7.5 for the Germans, 7.4 for the British, 5.8 for the French,

5.2 for the Italians.

Renting does not seem to be an explicit “state of mind”: rental occa-

sions were not spontaneously recalled other than for property and auto-mobiles. It was only when prompted that other categories of rentals were

recalled such as sports equipment, consumer electronics, clothing, accom-

modation, and other services. Renting can therefore be interpreted as

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237254250256N =

PAYSTOT

Grande-BretagneAllemagneItalieFrance

9 5 % I C

v o i t u r e

2,6

2,4

2,2

2,0

1,8

1,6

1,4

Table 2. Means and standard deviation of frequency of car renting(scale from 1: never to 5: very often)

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more of a subliminal practice, experienced rather than consciously expli-

cit.

Products most frequently rented were property, automobiles and pro-

ducts used in leisure activities.

In our primary interviews, when analysing the situations where renting

occurred, it appeared that this was mostly driven by specific occasions,

such as a special event or a holiday, or else by lower cost. However, the

purchase of one’s primary accommodation remains a goal to realise over

the course of one’s life, especially for young, mobile consumers not yet in

a stable relationship. Renting is also related to exceptional circumstances

such as a marriage or a move.

This was confirmed by the questionnaires:

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F I All G-B TOTAL

Holidays – Week-Ends 63% 58% 63% 78% 65%

To transport, to move 43% 33% 56% 39% 45%

Professional reasons 31% 34% 43% 23% 34%

Car out of work 11% 32% 26% 15% 15%

Table 3. Opportunities to rent a car

• France 14,93 245• Italy 15,48 248

• Germany 14,07 244

• UK 13,78 228

• Total 14,58 965

Table 4. Means and number of respondents for materialism

In Italy, we find a high rate of renting a car, when one’s car is out of

work!

Can materialism help to understand these differences?

Results on materialism show significant differences across the countries:

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Complementary analysis shows that workers and students are more

prone to materialism (17.45 for workers and 16.16 for students).

As seen previously, The Italians are the lowest renters and they are the

more prone to materialism.

Materialism is correlated to the frequency of car renting and ski ren-

ting. The correlation for DVD renting was not significant.

• R2 car=0.12***

• R2 ski=0.07*

4. Culture, renting and possessionsIf we move to a micro-social level of everyday consumption then the ren-

tal versus purchase continuum can be analysed against three generic fac-tors: consumer characteristics, the type of product/service and the con-

text/situation.

These three variables are all culturally determined: the available ren-

tal offers and the consumer rental-versus-purchase preferences vary by

country; consumers are faced by different linguistic and cultural environ-

ments; and thirdly, the rental context or situation will depend upon con-

sumer lifestyle and standard of living.

In order to compare these four countries, the analysis was completed

in two stages: firstly, the market – comparison of market trends; secondly,

rental definitions – analysis of the vocabulary used in renting.

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The market: rental behaviour in the four countries studied

None of the chosen countries exhibits a higher renting tendency across all

three categories, although Italy does seem to have a slightly lower overall

profile, what was confirmed in our survey. Germany has one the lowest

rate of property in Europe, confirming that the Germans are more prone

to rent.

Definitions: different terminology and meaning

For our translations we had some difficulties with the vocabulary. In Fran-

ce, there is only one word for renting, in Italy, 3 words, and In Germany

and in UK, 5 words. Germany and UK distinguish the person who is going

to hire a product and the person who is going to rent it. Such a distinction

does not exist in France and in Italy. In Italy the distinctions are linked to

the kind of the rented products;

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France Germany UK Italy

Principal residence 2003

(Ownership %)

(Source : Euromonitor 2004

56 % 47 % 73 % 73 %

Car rental days (million) 2002

Source : Datamonitor 2003

40 32 43 19

DVD rental transactions (million)

2003, Source : Euromonitor 2004

30.58 55.09 89.73 32.63

Table 5. Rental behaviour in the four countries studied

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Country Vocabulary Meaning

Germany Mieten

Vermieten

Leasen

Chartern

Verleihen

mieten applies to the act of engaging or taking for use fixed or

transportable goods.

vermieten applies to the granting of use for fixed or transportable

goods.

leasen applies to the letting under the terms of a contract but is often

applied to hiring on a lease.

chartern applies to the hiring or letting of a vehicle (planes, boats)

usually for exclusive use.

verleihen applies to the hiring of a vehicle (cars, boats, planes) usuallyfor exclusive use.

UK Hire

Let

Lease

Rent

Charter

Hire and Let are complementary terms: Hire referring to the engaging

or taking for use and Let the granting of use.

Lease implies a letting under the terms of a contract but is often

applied to hiring on a lease.

Rent stresses the payment of money for the full use of property and

may imply either hiring or letting.

Charter applies to the hiring or letting of a vehicle or vessel usually for

exclusive use.

France Louer Louer applies to both the acts of granting or receiving a lease of a fixed

or transportable good

Italy Locare

Affittare

Noleggiare

Locare refers to the granting by one party to another the use of a fixed

or transportable good for a defined period with remuneration, normally

financial, usually paid periodically

Affittare refers to the granting or acquisition of a lease of a fixed item,

such as property, land, fixed equipment (‘fittings’)

Noleggiare refers to the granting or acquisition of a lease of a

transportable item, originally in a marine context but by extension to

any form of transportation

Table 6. Vocabulary of renting

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Therefore in approaching the study of renting, which in itself seems to

have received relatively little attention in the marketing literature, in a

Western, or European, context, it is important to do so from a multi-cul-

tural perspective. Four close, yet distinct, European cultures were therefo-

re selected, through the analysis of British, French, German and Italian

consumers.

The differences in vocabulary outlined previously were reflected in the

responses: for example one can ‘hire’ a priest for a wedding in the UK but

not in France.

The products rented showed distinct differences: renting in Germany

was more often associated with DIY or high-tech equipment, with a hig-

her range of products, especially audiovisual products in Great Britain,and with clothing in both countries in contrast to the other two. A com-

mon finding from the two Latin countries was the greater rejection of ren-

ting products that directly touch people’s bodies, such as clothes, bath

towels, skiing footwear, or a snorkel. This reticence seemed to come from

a greater concern over the history of the product as well as the ‘contami-

nation’ by previous users. In Germany, ethical considerations were more

prevalent, especially in respect of the environment, also there was a more

dominant ‘rational’ assessment concerning cost and time optimisation.

The possibility to share purchased products was accepted more in Ger-

many and in Italy. In the UK there was a stronger reference to the emo-

tional values of ownership, to concepts of ownership and asset value.

ConclusionsThe interviews and the questionnaires demonstrated an intellectual, or

rational acceptance of renting combined with some emotional rejection.

This finding possibly reflects the implicit dilemma arising from the litera-

ture review outlined earlier: the cherished goal of ownership, to “have andto hold”, versus the rational need to cope with the speed of technological

change and economic activity which make conventional ownership pro-

blematic.

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This study demonstrates a certain convergence in the attitudes to ren-

ting across the four selected European countries, combined with a number

of divergent views with respect to context, vocabulary and motivation.

The analysis has several limitations. If we have a sample of 1000 inter-

viewees globally, we have only 250 respondents by countries. The research

could be extended to other countries, out of Europe in order to make com-

parisons.

The authors wish to acknowledge the ‘Institut de la Ville en Mouvement’ for their

support in conducting the research.

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Appendice 1

Country Nb. cit. Fréq.

France Paris 121 12%

France Tours 125 13%

Italy Turin 151 15%

Italy Rome 99 10%

Germany Francfort 154 16%

Germany Dresde 100 10%

UK London 105 11%

UK Manchester 132 13%

TOTAL 987 100%

Age Nb. cit. Fréq.

25-34 years old 326 33%

35-44 years old 190 19%

45-54 years old 203 21%

55-64 years old 118 12%

65-75 years old 151 15%

TOTAL 988 100%

SEX Nb. cit. Fréq.

Men 483 49%

Women 505 51%

TOTAL 988 100%

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