Preface

Chapter 7 **Explicative Factors Driving the Tomato Consumption in the Mediterranean Basin: A Panel Data Approach 111**

**VI** Contents

Jaime de Pablo Valenciano, José Ramos Pires Manso, Miguel Ángel

Giacinti Battistuzzi, Juan Milan García and Juan Uribe Toril

No time in the history, consumption is considered to be as important as in today's world. It defines who we are, how well/perfect we perform our multiroles within the society (buying the most expensive clothes means being the best mom for instances), what symbolic mean‐ ings we attribute to our belongings, and how rich/clever/fashion conscious or innovative we are. Due to multidisciplinary and multimethod character of the concept of consumer behav‐ ior, it is appropriate to study it accordingly in order to understand the subject with its differ‐ ent aspects and holistically. Especially with the cultural, social, and technological changes within today's world, this issue becomes prominent. This book, with its seven chapters, is a modest try for that end.

The first chapter is called "Consumer Behavior in New Era." In this introductory chapter, the meaning of consumer behavior in today's world according to several disciplines is dis‐ cussed. It is assumed that in today's world consumption gains so much importance that has never happened before. Beside the multidisciplined character of the issue, it is argued that it can be understood through multimethodology and method also.

The second and third chapters are about the technological change and its effects on consum‐ er behavior. The second chapter is "The Mystique of Customers' Saturation in Online Brand Communities." In this chapter, the author sheds light on a popular subject in the consumer behavior era, which is "online brand communities," but with a different perspective relying on both marketing and information system literature. Doing so, the author focuses on the possible negative effect of those communities that is customers' saturation. The study pro‐ vides an early understanding about the customer saturation in online brand communities developing five related propositions. While reading the chapter that provides a comprehen‐ sive relevant literature, the reader may go through those propositions.

The third chapter, "Consumer between WEB 2.0 and WEB 3.0," discusses the changes in the consumer behavior era with the development of Internet technology. Accordingly, the paper argues that this technological improvement paves way to empowered, socially and interac‐ tively connected consumers. In other words, consumers are now actively seeking for the brands and products they need, want, and desire and developing an emotional bond with those brands using Internet and social media.

The fourth and fifth chapters discuss the social dimension of the consumer behavior. The fourth chapter, "Understanding Consumer Behavior toward Social Enterprise Products," discusses the importance of social enterprise concept. In doing so, it asks the question whether consumers' knowledge about those enterprises makes a difference on their buying behavior. Besides, "consumers' perceived ethical and environmental awareness or rational consideration" is also discussed. In the study, the author applied regression analysis in or‐ der to bring light to the subject.

The fifth chapter, "Measuring Public Acceptance Value of Rural Biogas Development through Logistic Regression and Willingness to Pay," discusses the acceptance of renewable energy technologies and the consumers' willingness to pay tendencies for those technolo‐ gies. For this end, logistic regression is applied in order to study the acceptance of biogas farmers, nonbiogas farmers, and nonfarmers toward biogas technology.

The sixth and the seventh chapters provide some different examples for the consumer be‐ havior concept. The sixth chapter, "Children's Consumer Behavior," considers the children as consumers that reveal an important issue for different disciplines such as marketing, psy‐ chology, sociology, and pedagogy. Accordingly, the chapter discusses the cognitive devel‐ opment of children within the preoperational period, considering both children and the parents' perspectives.

The last chapter "Explicative Factors Driving the Tomato Consumption in the Mediterranean Basin: A Panel Data Approach" studies tomato consumption behavior of different Mediterra‐ nean countries. With panel data method, the author tries to find out the most important ex‐ planatory factors regarding the tomato consumption within these different countries.

With different perspectives, theories, methodologies, and methods, these seven chapters try to study and discuss some important issues regarding consumer behavior literature. I am really excited with these different aspects of the issue shedding light on different spots of the elephant. I hope you also consider them useful and interesting.

> **Senay Sabah** Ankara University, Turkey

**Section 1**

**Introductory Chapter**

The fifth chapter, "Measuring Public Acceptance Value of Rural Biogas Development through Logistic Regression and Willingness to Pay," discusses the acceptance of renewable energy technologies and the consumers' willingness to pay tendencies for those technolo‐ gies. For this end, logistic regression is applied in order to study the acceptance of biogas

The sixth and the seventh chapters provide some different examples for the consumer be‐ havior concept. The sixth chapter, "Children's Consumer Behavior," considers the children as consumers that reveal an important issue for different disciplines such as marketing, psy‐ chology, sociology, and pedagogy. Accordingly, the chapter discusses the cognitive devel‐ opment of children within the preoperational period, considering both children and the

The last chapter "Explicative Factors Driving the Tomato Consumption in the Mediterranean Basin: A Panel Data Approach" studies tomato consumption behavior of different Mediterra‐ nean countries. With panel data method, the author tries to find out the most important ex‐

With different perspectives, theories, methodologies, and methods, these seven chapters try to study and discuss some important issues regarding consumer behavior literature. I am really excited with these different aspects of the issue shedding light on different spots of

**Senay Sabah**

Ankara University, Turkey

planatory factors regarding the tomato consumption within these different countries.

the elephant. I hope you also consider them useful and interesting.

farmers, nonbiogas farmers, and nonfarmers toward biogas technology.

parents' perspectives.

VIII Preface

Provisional chapter
