By Arik Hesseldahl

Consumers: Recessionary Creatures of Habit

Consumers are creatures of habit when it comes to cutting back during a downturn. Amid recessions in the past four decades, Americans have tended to reduce spending in the same areas, while continuing to seek value in comparable ways. For instance, they curtail high-end dining and vacations, but slake their thirst for cutting-edge technology that they believe saves money.

GfK Roper Consulting has studied these consumer buying habits through periodic surveys since 1973, and most recently in February. This BusinessWeek.com slide show highlights this survey information, underscoring the sometimes predictable ways we behave when the financial going gets tough.

Business Exchange related topics:
Recession Spending and Investing
Consumer Spending
U.S. Financial Crisis