Understanding the Psychology of Mobile Phone Use and Mobile Shopping of the 1990s Cohort in China: A Lifestyle Approach

As the first of its kind, this study presents a theory-informed large-scale survey of China's most independent-minded and media-savvy citizens — the 1990s cohort of the Millennial generation — to understand the psychology of their mobile telephoning and shopping habits. In doing so, we applied the lifestyle segmentation approach to predict mobile media consumption and mobile shopping. Using data collected from a probability sample 1,600 respondents from China's leading cities, this study identifies six population segments within the 1990s cohort and analyzed the media consumption and mobile shopping habits for each segment. Results show mobile shopping was in its infancy in China. The segment of Online Social Climbers spend the most on mobile handsets and on mobile services, while the Bargain-Seekers segment spent the least. Implications of the findings for mobile marketers are discussed.