“In consumer research, the relation between quality cues (product characteristics), quality attributes (abstract benefits) and personal values is modelled in Means-Ends Chains theory. In Means-End Chains theory the quality cues are the means to infer quality attributes. The quality attributes are the means to obtain desired consequences, and the consequences are the means to reach valued end states. Recurring connections between quality cues, quality attributes and personal values across individuals can be summarised in a Hierarchical Value Map. The hierarchical value map explicitly shows the dominant cognitive and motivational structures that usually remain implicit among informal experts.

References

Urrea-Hernandez, C., Almekinders, C.J.M., van Dam, Y.K., 2016. Understanding perceptions of potato seed quality among small-scale farmers in Peruvian highlands. NJAS – Wageningen Journal of Life Sciences 76, 21–28. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.njas.2015.11.001