The influence of the media on the development of consumer culture in the Republic of Croatia

Ovaj je rad izrađen temeljem pregledavanja, istraživanja, analiziranja i interpretacije rezultata utjecaja medija na razvoj potrošačke kulture u Republici Hrvatskoj. S razvojem globalizacije došlo je do velikog razvoja interneta i informacijsko-komunikacijske tehnologije, zbog čega su nastali novi digitalni mediji. Digitalni mediji predstavljaju medije kodirane u formatima koji su čitljivi na tehnologijama poput pametnih telefona, računala, tableta i tako dalje. Društvenim je medijima potrebna društvena mreža s ciljem distribuiranja sadržaja ostalim korisnicima na platformi. Društvena mreža podrazumijeva mrežu na internetu putem koje korisnici izrađuju svoje korisničke profile te se povezuju s ostalim korisnicima na platformi društvene mreže. Društvene su mreže danas smatrane najboljim načinom socijalizacije između poduzeća i potrošača. Potrošnja danas predstavlja glavno obilježje društva, budući da je život pojedincu lakši kada on posjeduje razne materijalne stvari te kupuje i troši proizvode i usluge. Istraživanje u radu provedeno je putem anketnog upitnika na 72 ispitanika. Rezultati istraživanja u ovom su radu pokazali kako mediji imaju velik utjecaj na razvoj potrošačke kulture u Republici Hrvatskoj. Ispitanici primjećuju proizvode koji su promovirani putem promocijskog alata društvenih medija, no povratne informacije ostalih korisnika jesu najvažniji čimbenik odluke o kupnji određenog proizvoda ili usluge. Isto tako, otkriveno je kako ispitanici smatraju da društveni mediji imaju negativan utjecaj na njihove kupovne navike te kako zbog društvenih medija kupuju više proizvoda nego što im je potrebno.This paper was created based on reviewing, researching, analyzing and interpreting the results of the influence of the media on the development of consumer culture in the Republic of Croatia. Along with globalization development, there was a great development of the Internet and information and communication technology, due to which new digital media were created. Digital media represent media encoded in formats that are readable on technologies such as smartphones, computers, tablets, and so on. Social media needs a social network with the goal of distributing content to other users on the platform. A social network is a network on the Internet through which users create their user profiles and connect with other users on the social network platform. Today, social networks are considered to be the best way of socialization between companies and consumers. Consumption is the main characteristic of society today, since life is easier for an individual when he owns various material things and buys and consumes products and services. The research in this paper was conducted through a questionnaire and it included 72 respondents. The results of the research in this paper have shown that the media have a great influence on the development of consumer culture in the Republic of Croatia. Respondents notice products that have been promoted through a social media promotional tool, but feedback from other users is the most important factor in the decision to purchase a particular product or service. It was also revealed that the respondents believe that social media has a negative impact on their shopping habits and that because of social media they buy more products than they nee