Leonidou et al. 2006 EJM.pdf

Authors Study objectives Research methodology Major findingsThe findings provide several levels of support for theanimosity model of foreign product purchase.Animosity toward Japan and consumerethnocentrism (measured by CETSCALE) were foundto be distinct constructs. Discriminant validity wasdemonstrated, and each construct had differentconsequences in the model. Chinese consumers’animosity toward Japan was related negatively totheir willingness to purchase Japanese products, andmore important, this effect was independent of theirjudgments about the quality of Japanese productsData for the study were collected from adultconsumers in the Chinese city of Nanjing, China’s 11thlargest city. A total of 487 consumers were approachedrandomly on the street and asked to complete asurvey. Solicitation was carried out at several locationsaround Nanjing. Of these 244 agreed to participate.Respondents were asked to indicate their agreementwith statements regarding four general constructs: (a)Japanese product quality, (b) willingness to buyJapanese products, (c) consumer ethnocentrism, and (d)animosity towards Japan generally and war andeconomic animosity in particularKlein et al. (1998) To understand how attitude toward a country – inparticular, remnants of antipathy left by previousmilitary, political, or economic conflict – might affectwillingness to buy its products. Specifically, to testthe theory that animosity toward another nation canbe an important and powerful predictor of foreignproduct purchase, even when this enmity isunrelated to beliefs about the quality of productsproduced in that countryThe study shows that product specific image place amediating role between overall country image andconsumer evaluation. With product and brandfamiliarity, moderate familiarity consumers utilizecountry-of-origin information less than low or highfamiliarity consumers. Likewise, with countryfamiliarity, low familiarity consumers rely more oncountry-of-origin information than high familiarityconsumersHypotheses of the study, based on categorizationtheory, are developed and tested using a mail surveyof a random sample of 1,536 US households,identified from a reputed vendor. A total of 16versions of the questionnaire were mailed, each to 96households (16 £ 96 ¼ 1; 536)To examine the effects of grand image, countryimage, and familiarity with both brand and countryon consumer evaluation of bi-national brands. Twosub-constructs of country image: familiarity, brandfamiliarity and country familiarity are identified andutilizedLee and Ganesh(1999)Results revealed that the most common source ofinformation for evaluating products from AsianPacific countries was experiential knowledge,coupled with opinions from friends. Among thecountry origins investigated, products made in Japanappeared to be liked most, while Indian productsreceived the most negative comments. Japaneseproducts were also ranked first in terms of overallassessment, followed by products from Hong Kong,Singapore, Indonesia and India. In general, consumerdemographics did not play a serious differentiatingrole in the evaluation of products from these countriesThe study was conducted among 135 indigenousconsumers from Bulgaria. The sample consisted ofindividuals aged 18 or above who resided in thecapital of the country. The sample comprised 60males and 75 females. Data were collected by meansof personal interviewsTo identify: (1) the sources of information used byBulgarian consumers evaluating productsoriginating from Asian Pacific countries; (2) positiveor negative attitude on the part of these consumerstowards Asian Pacific products; and (c) their overallassessment of products made in Asia Pacific andhow this differs according to the consumerdemographicsLeonidou et al.(1999)Salesmen ranked COO (design and assembly) as theleast important attribute, but considered brandreputation to be the most important when consideringpurchasing electronic equipment. It was also foundthat consumers give the greatest importance to pricefollowed by brand reputation and warranty in thatorderUsing an area sampling procedure, 194 retailsalesmen of electronic equipment in three Canadiancities (Montreal, Quebec and Sherbrooke) and 190consumers in the Canadian city of Sherbrooke weresurveyedTo evaluate and compare consumer and salesmanCOO information in the context of a specificpurchase, and to assess whether brand evaluationsare affected by country-of-origin perceptionsd’Astous andAhmed (1999)(continued)US versusChinese goods791Table I.