ABSTRACT
The first point to make is that the nature of the family varies dramatically from one country to another. In the USA and Northern Europe, the family usually means the ‘nuclear family’ with two parents and between one and three children. However, in Southern Europe, the Middle East and many Asian countries, there is the phenomenon of the ‘extended family’ with a higher number of children and the inclusion of other relatives in the holiday party and/or their involvement in the purchase decisions.
