Cash or Card: Consumer Perceptions of Payment Modes - Scholarly ...

During the 1950s, researchers began to examine the concept of money from a cultural
perspective. Mauss (1914) observed that money is “essentially a social fact”, and attaches to
a variety of social relations rather than to individuals. The notion that cultural values and
social relationship also shape the meaning of money is now widely accepted (Baker and
Jimmerson, 1992; Poggi, 1993; Zelizer, 1994; Dodd, 1994; Carruthers and Babb, 1996;
Wuthnow, 1996; Singh, 1997; Zelizer, 1989). Zelizer (1994, p.18) contends that money can
be seen as socially constructed, shaped by social relations and as something that
also….’exists outside of the market and is profoundly influenced by cultural and social
structures. In addition, ‘values and social relations reciprocally transmute money by
investing it with meaning and social positions’. The meaning of money changes, dependent
on use; domestic (shopping/grocery), investment, inherited, gifted For example, money that
enters the household can come from a number of sources- incomes from employment,
welfare money and other sources. Each type of money is regarded as different and use and
status can differ (Bohannan, 1955 and Douglas, 1967 cited in Singh, 2000; Singh, 1994, cited
in Singh 2000, p.4; Zelizer, 1994).
Singh (1997) suggests money has a different meaning across different contexts. For instance,
a joint account in marriage shows trust and togetherness. Demosthenous, Robertson, Cabraal,
and Singh (2006) explored cultural identity and financial literacy among Australian
Aboriginals. They conclude that cultural identity shapes the meaning of money and money
management practices. Fleming et al., (1997) suggest that the meaning of money changes
based on the medium of payment. The study contrasted forms of payment using credit card
payment and cash payment for the ritual of a Maori funeral in New Zealand.
The Singh and Slegers (1998) investigation of the use of electronic money in the home and
by small business show that the use of a particular form of payment and transaction mode is
influenced by purchase type, for example, payment by cash is still widely used for grocery
shopping as cash gives immediate information on the money in hand, the money that is spent
and the money that is left.
Pahl (1999) found that the use of electronic systems varied inter and intra households. The
study also indicated that education and gender play a significant role in the use of electronic
based payments. Education provides the necessary knowledge to make use of new forms of
electronic media and so correlates with use. Men tend to be heavier users of credit card-
perhaps do to availability credit. Singh and Ryan (1999) also made similar observations.
Further, Simester and Prelec (2001) suggest that older consumers tend to have better money
management skills using cash compared to electronic cards.
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