Drivers of consumer behaviour-the economic crisis in our every day's life

Is it possible to anticipate the consumers’ behaviour in a time of radical and unexpected change? This paper intends to demonstrate that as unpredictable as the future may be, there are certain factors that have always influenced consumers behaviour, which has never been random or erratic, but driven by mental processes that operate at an unconscious level, such as: perception, attitude, motivation. These three coordinates have been constantly the drivers of human behaviour in general. Most decisions seem to be rather the result of cognitive-affective and emotional decisions than reason-based. Globalisation and Internet communications are reshaping consumers’ behaviour, causing the shift from “mega-trends” to “micro-trends” due to the intricate maze of choices.