VALS Survey

Primary: Experiencer: Defined as an individual who is motivated by self expression, young, enthusiastic, and impulsive consumers, Experiencers quickly become enthusiastic about new possibilities but are equally quick to cool. They seek variety and excitement, savoring the new, the offbeat, and the risky. Their energy finds an outlet in exercise, sports, outdoor recreation, and social activities.


Secondary: Innovator: Successful, sophisticated, take-charge people with high self-esteem. Because they have such abundant resources, they exhibit all three primary motivations in varying degrees. They are change leaders and are the most receptive to new ideas and technologies. Innovators are very active consumers, and their purchases reflect cultivated tastes for upscale, niche products and services.


After completing the VALS survey and reflecting on the results, I began reading through all of the other categories in which people fall into. I was surprised to see that my results were spot on with my personality. I often if not always am motivated by self expression. Over the years clothes have seemed to define my life. I express mood and personality through style and fashion. I am motivated by the thrill of new and exciting opportunities and believe sports and exercise to be a part of my everyday life. 


I can also identify myself as an innovator in many ways. After my summer internship I believe to demonstrate leadership qualities that I never knew existed within me before. I am able to lead by example while motivating others and managing talent in order to accomplish a given task. This personality trait is often seen in relation to my consumption. When purchasing new products, I strive to find the newest and most up to date wears. I love trendy, yet unique pieces that can be paired with anything no matter the occasion. 


When looking at the VALS survey as a whole, it is easy to see how culture plays a huge role in determining the outcome in results. Referring back to McCrackens Reading we can see that "The model of consumption says that the world of goods is a cultural construction and that culture is constantly being played out in goods. The ideational and material aspects of the world are intimately linked in ways that we understand and in ways that we are only beginning to understand. Cultural meanings, those in goods and those outside of them, make up the cultural context of consumption." This goes to show that the way one is raised is a direct influence on the outcome of the VALS survey results. When breaking down and relating this to my family as a whole, I believe that my sister and I would both be categorizes as experiences and innovators, mainly because of what we consider to be our culture. 

You are where you live

New Hampshire though of by many as a small rural state with miles and miles of farms and grass land. Little do people that that Manchester, one of the southern most points, is actually a little city within itself. With an estimated population of 110,000 and according to the 2009 census, Manchester is referred to as the most populous New England city north of Boston.

When depicting the information from the prizm I was surprised at some of the information. The breakdown between the different groups is very interesting. When thinking of which category I put myself into, I began thinking about my family and where we would fall. Due to the fact that I have grown up in Manchester all my life, I found it fitting to categorize my parents into the category of "Home Sweet Home."

"Widely scattered across the nation's suburbs, the residents of Home Sweet Home tend to be upper-middle-class married couples living in mid-sized homes without children. The adults in the segment, mostly under 55, have gone to college and hold professional and white-collar jobs. With their upper-middle-class incomes and small families, these folks have fashioned comfortable lifestyles, filling their homes with exercise equipment, TV sets, and pets."

After comparing this to the New England breakdown I found that my parents fit the category of the "Affluentials." This is what I find alarming. My laid back outdoorsy yet modernized family is far from the definition portrayed by the affluentials. I feel as though this is the best category out of my zip code prizm, but when looking at it through the bigger realm we could be depicted by something much different.

Personal Identity

Last Christmas I revived a Pandora bracelet from my mom. A jewelry feign herself is obsessed with the company, already having two bracelet of her own. She bought the bracelets for my sister and I telling us how significant every bead is and how the bracelet itself depicts a story of the events in our life. Assuming I rolled my eyes and laughed, I have now come to realize how correct she was. When looking at my bracelet, I am able to recall at exactly which instance I received each bead, who gave it to me and for which reason I received it. In essence it is like a scrapbook. Each bead significantly different, yet all tied together by a common bond. As i look back over the past year I am able to see the many occasions, holidays and turning points in which I now have a collection of memories. To any outsider while looking at this bracelet one is able to see my personality, hobbies, and interest just gazing at my wrist. This bracelet is not only a direct reflection on my identity, but my life as a whole as well. As Karen states in the reading "The house is not merely a possession or a structure of unfeeling walls. It is an extension of my physical body and my sense of self that reflects who i was, am and want to be."