Functional Practice and Conceptual Function—the Inherent Dichotomy of Marketing

Abstract

Definitions of marketing are legion, tending to reflect the origin of the proponent, as practitioner or academic theorist: much discussion has focused upon the extent to which theory and practice can, and do, coincide. The paper discusses the recent opinion of R. A. Kent (JMM 2(2) Winter, 1986) which suggests a transference of a handy tool—the notion of the Four Ps—from theory to practice, and which postulate a resultant misconception of the context and nature of the marketing management decision process. The conclusion ultimately reached not only questions the basis of Kent's argument but also suggests that whilst there are many interfaces between the functional and the conceptual views of marketing, the dichotomy remains, largely on account of the inherently differing objectives of the two branches of the discipline.

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