| Abstract: | 從史前時代開始，人們對「運」產生好奇，而「運」從初始所意指的「命運」，逐漸演變成「機運」、「時運」及「幸運」等等概念，從此人亦想要對命運及未來等未知的事情作掌控，簡單的說，就是中國文化裡的趨吉避凶概念。曾經無常的命運不再神秘無解，透過推算、觀測、妝飾等等物品，命運不但有解，還處處可供探詢，讓人親近。 在泛消費的年代裡，消費者往往將自我的信念依附在所消費的具體物品上，並且會賦予商品特定的意義，因此產生本研究所提出的「好運消費」行為。本研究將好運消費定義為:消費者透過祈求或是攜帶好運產品來提升自己的狀況或是規避一些厄運，而這些行為可能是有金錢交易的消費或是單純由他人給予的餽贈。此外，本研究利用消費者行為的內在因素:信念與價值、動機與需求、內外控人格；以及外在因素:社會文化、宗教、迷信與禁忌和流行與潮流，來探討消費者對好運消費的相關信念和態度，及其所受到的影響、產生的體驗和情感投入。 本研究採用質性研究的焦點訪談法，將訪談對象分為「隨身攜好運產品」與「作無形算命服務」兩大類，訪談樣本採立意抽樣原則，從2010年2月~6月開始訪談具不同職業背景的人士，包含學生、金融業、服務業、老師、工會行政人員等；訪談者的年齡分布為20~25歲:6人；26~30歲:3人；31~35歲:1人；40~45歲:1人；45~50歲:1人，共計訪問12名消費者。本研究希望從中探詢好運消費的動機、使用頻率與對象(年齡、宗教背景、職業等)、使用好運物品的經驗、使用後的歸因，以及上述心路歷程對於消費者日後的消費動機所產生的影響。根據研究結果，本研究發展出以下11點命題，可分為建立好運消費的信念、好運消費的態度、好運消費的價值與消費感受四部分。在建立好運消費的信念部分:(1)消費者的好運消費資訊來源多靠親友口碑，且容易形成長期光顧關係；(2)消費者會因特定情況而作好運消費，但「拜拜行為」已經演變成民眾生活的一部份；(3) 個人背景和生命階段影響好運消費的深度和廣度；(4)對消費者而言，廟宇提供才具有「神聖性」，一般市面販售的好運產品較為「世俗性」。在對好運消費的態度部分:(5)消費者對不同種類的好運產品的態度各異；(6)消費者對於避凶的態度較趨吉強烈；(7)好運消費在消費者心中同時存在正面價值與存疑態度；在好運消費的價值部分:(8)好運消費必須要被消費者認定和認可才具有價值；(9)好運消費的價值在於產品背後隱含的想像；在好運消費的感受部分:(10)單次消費行為的經驗對消費者的影響力量較強大，也更容易作歸因；以及(11)好運消費是全面性與整體性的行為。
The mystique of “Fortune” (Yun, How-Yun) has permeated throughout the evolution of human history. While the original concept encompassed the idea for the unfolding of one’s ultimate “destiny”, it has gradually grown and transformed into a multidimensional construct that incorporates “opportunity” and “luck”, deluding men’s relentless effort in the control of our precarious and unforeseeable fate and future. Amongst all, the craving of good luck and aversion of ill fortune (Chu-Ji Bi Xiun) is without doubt an essential view of the belief. In addition, in the modern world where consumption dominates the act of our daily life, the once sacred and abstruse meaning of life can now be transposed into an act of profanity, thereby changing one’s fortune (Yun). In other words, through the patronage of various types of fortune telling services, such as horoscope, taro-card reading, palm reading and Zi-Wei Dou Shu etc., and the purchase of bracelets, emulets, mineral ornaments and etc., one can now transpose the predetermined flow of yun by avoiding the bad luck and attracting the good luck. Fortune was therefore no longer an abstruse subject that can only be deciphered by an oracle or fortune teller. It is now solvable, explorable and conceivable by the mortals.In the present thesis, “good luck consumption” (GLC) is defined as a consumer’s use and patronage of particular services and/or products in the faith that certain act will enhance the flow of good luck and reduce, even eradicate, the occurrence of ill luck. It can be self-paid, gifts from others, or give-aways by a sacred entity such as a temple. Specifically, this thesis intends to explore consumer’s experiential journey with GLC products/services through their beliefs, emotions, story-telling and reflections. Internal factors of GLC, including belief and value, motivation, attribution, locus of control and external factors of influence, as well as external factors, such as culture, religion, superstition, fad and fashion, were incorporated to form the framework of study. The present employed a qualitative approach in which both undisguised observation and in-depth personal interview were conducted in the months between February and June, 2010 with 12 informants of varying age groups and social-economic-cultural background. The interviews were evenly divided between two types of consumers, those who used the intangible services of GLC and those who used the tangible GLC products.Eleven propositions are raised and categorized into four levels of discovery: First, the establishment of belief in good luck consumption: (1) The information source of GLC usually stems from the direct endorsement of one’s reference group of friends and relatives, thereby enabling the building of a long-term relationship of patronage; (2) GLC often occurs under special circumstances, with the exception of temple worshiping (bei-bei) such that it has already become a part of Taiwanese’ daily life; (3) Personal background and life-stage may affect the depth and breadth of good luck consumption; (4) GLC itself can also be divided into the more sacred and profane dimension in which the “sacred” GLC object can only be acquired from a sacred entity of Taoist and/or Buddhist temple, while in contrast, the “profane” GLC are those found and sold in the market. Second, attitude toward GLC: (5) Consumers form different attitudes for different types of good luck products; (6) The need for ill-fortune reduction GLC is more robust than the need for good-fortune enhancement GLC; (7) There are pros and cons in GLC. Third, the value of GLC: (8) GLC’s value belies in the eyes of its beholder, not of its own claims; (9) the genuine worth of GLC deludes from the user’s self-attribution. Forth, the reflection of GLC: (10) it is more easily to attribute the power of GLC to a single consumption event than multiple or continual usage of the GLC product/service; (11) GLC is a universal and holistic behavior in the Chinese culture, specifically in Taiwan. |
