An Exploratory Investigation of the Structure of the Buying Center in the Metalworking Industry
基于2151名采购影响者的代表性样本，研究了金属加工行业采购决策过程中不同阶段的参与模式，并提出了分析这些模式的方法。
The results of an exploratory study of patterns of purchase influence in the metal-working industry are reported. The data set used was a representative sample of 2151 purchase influencers in the metalworking industry. Respondents reported their involvement or noninvolvement in each of seven phases of the purchasing decision process. The authors show the presence of identifiable patterns of reported involvement in the organizational buying process and suggest an approach for analyzing those patterns.