Preface

Students of marketing have long recognized the existence of a Negro market within the American economy. Differences in Negro-white behavior in the marketplace are associated with the wide disparity in the social and economic positions of the two groups within American society. The Negro's consumption practices are said to reflect his cultural orientation, although--as with other cultural groups--many variations in consumption patterns within groups have been recognized by some stu-dents. The absence of uniform consumer behavior patterns among Negroes has prompted the marketing industry to undertake analyses of Negro market orientations. The complex behavior patterns of this cultural group have since been reduced to simplistic levels. Using the American white middle class as a reference group, the American Negro consumer is said to occupy one of two positions in the consumer market--th t · th t · 1e s r~ver or e non-s r~ver