Cognitive rationality and sustainable decision based on Maslow's theorem: A case study in Slovakia

Abstract

Nowadays, the social pressure on the producers of passenger cars in the scope of their pro-environmental innovativeness is accelerating. However, on the other hand, the market does not accept the shift from traditional fuel technologies, and thus, a significant consumption schism has been created. One of the possible reasons for such a situation is a structured analysis of the principles of needs saturation and heading motivations of consumers in this aspect, where the phenomenon of car brand is also significant. However, stating the general functional mechanisms and patterns is enough in this aspect, but the structure of consumer characteristics relevant for these mechanisms and patterns would be useful. Thus, this article investigates the possibilities of reducing the emissions caused by individual road vehicle users and analyses the possible marketing tools from the marketing management side. The hypothesis is that the individual passenger car influences more levels of the Maslow pyramid. Therefore, changes are harder to be reached. Some preliminary car usage data has been collected in Slovakia to investigate the socio-economic dependence of car usage. These data have been evaluated via descriptive statistics. The results serve as a platform for further research. It has been found that socio-economic characteristics could significantly influence Maslow's theorem. Thus, contemporary knowledge about the influence of psychographic characteristics should be revised in favor of this new knowledge.