An experimental investigation of a reward/measurement model of organizational buying behavior

Abstract

This dissertation reports on a initial assessment of Anderson’s Reward/Measurement (R/M) Model of organizational buying behavior. The R/M Model rests on the fundamental proposition that individuals’ organizational buying behavior is determined largely by the reward and measurement system which exists in the organization. This research is a test of the model’s major assertion: the behavior of organizational buying process participants is determined to a substantial degree by their corresponding reward/measurement systems.

The research was conducted in three phases. Phase one was the development of an instrument to operationalize the experimental design. A buying game booklet incorporating a descriptive purchasing scenario with hypothetical vendors and five buying tasks was used. Respondents were allocated rewards (in the form of points) based on their vendor choice in each trial within each buying task. Phase two consisted of a pilot test of the experiment using students as subjects. Phase three was the conduct of the experiment using industrial buyers as subjects.

The experimental procedure consisted of a two-group, two factor mixed design, with repeated measures on one factor. The independent variable was the consistency or inconsistency between the stated organizational purchasing objectives, and the objectives for which rewards were given. The dependent variables were vendor choice (measured by subjects’s responses to a forced-choice question), and subjects’ vendor preferences and behavioral intentions (assessed by responses on seven-point semantic differential rating scales). Statistical techniques used to analyze the data included: (1) chi-square analyses, (2) analysis of variance tests, (3) Tukey’s multiple comparison tests, (4) inter-item correlation matrices, and (5) Cronbach’s alpha tests.

Generally, the hypotheses and consequently the R/M Model’s major assertion were supported by the results of the data analyses. Specifically, the research revealed that subjects: (1) preferred vendors which allowed them to achieve organizationally-mediated rewards, (2) intended to select vendors which would allow them to achieve organizationally-mediated rewards, and (3) for the most part, chose vendors which allowed them to achieve organizationally-mediated rewards.

The dissertation concludes by discussing contributions and implications for both the theorist and the practitioner. In addition, limitations of the study are cited and suggestions for future research are proposed.