A comparison of Korean and American gift-giving behaviors

In an effort to understand diverse, multicultural consumer behavior, this study compares Korean and American gift-giving behavior and its related values. This study aims to illustrate how gift-giving behavior works and differs across cultural values; specifically, in the Confucian collectivistic nature of the Far East, Korea, and the individualistic nature of the West, America. Focus groups and in-depth interviews are conducted for initial issue exploration, and mail surveys are then utilized for testing the proposed hypotheses. Results reveal Confucian collectivistic and individualistic values as significant in explaining differences in cross-cultural gift giving. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

The impact of cultural differences on technology adoption

This study examines the impact of Type I and Type II cultural differences on mobile phone adoption patterns. We use Hofstede's cultural dimensions to examine cultural differences of two countries (Type I: the U.S.; Type II: S. Korea) and employ the Bass diffusion model to delineate innovation and imitation effects on mobile phone adoption. The results show that in Type I culture innovation factor has a significantly higher level of effect on adoption than it does in Type II culture; and in Type II culture imitation factor has a higher degree of effect on adoption than it does in Type I culture. These findings imply that in individualistic cultures, people tend to seek information on their own from direct and formal sources, whereas in collectivistic cultures, people rely more on subjective evaluation of an innovation, conveyed from other-like-minded individuals who already have adopted the innovation.     

The Effects of Fear Appeal: A Moderating Role of Culture and Message Type

This study explores the moderating role that culture plays on the effects of fear-appeal advertisements on subjects’ message acceptance. Secondly, this study investigates the role of message type in two different cultures (South Korea and the United States). As predicted, culture played as a moderating variable in the process of fear-arousing, antismoking ads. The main difference, however, was found in the collectivistic culture; although no significant difference was found for the individualistic culture. Further, the findings also suggest that the different message strategy should be considered in the different cultures to increase message acceptance among people.     

The Role of Culture in Creative Execution in Celebrity Endorsement: The Cross-Cultural Study

ABSTRACT

In advertising literature, an area rarely explored is cross-cultural studies on celebrity endorsements. A good deal may be learned from understanding how a culture's communication style can shape the type of advertising most effective for that culture. This study examines the creative styles (creative executional factors) found in the advertising of Korea and America. The two countries represent two distinct cultures—Korea being a collectivistic culture and the United States being individualistic. Both cultures affect the norms and rules that guide their inhabitants’ behavior, directly affecting communication styles. The study finds that embedded in the use of celebrity endorsement are cross-cultural characteristics. The details of these findings will be useful to international advertisers executing celebrity endorsement campaigns in different cultural settings.     

Self-identity and internal environmental locus of control: Comparing their influences on green purchase intentions in high-context versus low-context cultures

This study empirically examines the combined effect of two crucial internal consumer predispositions, self-identity (SI) and internal environmental locus of control (INELOC), among consumers in a collectivistic culture and an individualistic culture. The study validated the extended theory of planned behaviour to predict consumers' green purchase intentions. Structural equation modelling was used to analyse primary data collected from 365 American and 408 Indian respondents. Analysis revealed differences between the two cultures. Green self-identity influenced attitude more than perceived behavioural control among American consumers, while the reverse was true for Indian consumers. Conversely, INELOC positively and significantly affected only Indian consumers’ perceived behavioural control, not that of American consumers.     

Resolving the complexity in Gen Z's envy occurrence: A cross-cultural perspective

Envy is an impactful emotion on consumer behaviors, yet envy is quite complex to be comprehended due to its two different forms (malicious and benign). Therefore, it is significant to find out the factors occurring envy to consume to understand the impact and consequences of envy. This empirical study improves our understanding of envy occurrence (malicious or benign) in Generation Z (Gen Z) consumers by comparing two countries (the United States and Mexico) as representing individualistic and collectivistic cultures. We apply complexity theory as a basis for the configurational model, which we test using fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis. We use three configurations—personality, attitudes, and attached importance to participants on social networking sites—to explore causal recipes leading to malicious and benign envy. The findings of this study highlight the differences in Gen Z consumers' envy occurrence regarding configurational factors. In addition to said factors, this research indicates that culture plays a significant role in Gen Z's envy occurrence, thus contributing to the current knowledge set.     

Moderating Role of Consumer Self-Concept on the Effectiveness of Two Nostalgia Appeals

Existing empirical studies suggest that evoked nostalgia about a brand is positively related to attitude toward the brand. However, it is unlikely that nostalgia appeals are universally effective. Therefore, this research investigates two types of consumer nostalgias—individualistic nostalgia and collectivistic nostalgia— and examines how the relative effectiveness of these two nostalgia appeals is moderated by consumer self-concept (independent versus interdependent). Based on a two-phase study with time-honored Chinese brands, we reveal that, for consumers with an independent self-concept, an individualistic nostalgia appeal is more effective than a collectivistic nostalgia appeal, whereas for consumers with an interdependent self-concept, a collectivistic nostalgia appeal is more effective than an individualistic nostalgia appeal.     

A Meta-analytic Review of Ethical Leadership Outcomes and Moderators

We develop and use an integrated individual-level model to explain the driving forces behind digital piracy (DP) practice in two nations. The proposed model combines the Norm Activation model and Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology models. This study also explores the effect of culture on intention (INT) to practice DP in two nations: US (individualistic) and India (collectivistic). A survey instrument was used to collect data from 231 US and 331 Indian participants. Use of the integrated model proves to be a powerful and a viable approach to understanding DP across cultures. In each nation, all 10 path coefficients on the research model are statistically significant thereby establishing the fact that personal norm, together with other factors, influences INT to engage in DP, which in turn, may influence the actual practice. The results reveal a support for cross-cultural generalizability and applicability of the proposed model. Culture clearly plays a strong moderating role in two out of the three paths tested. The implications of the findings are discussed.     

Vanity and public self‐consciousness: a comparison of fashion consumer groups and gender

The purpose of this study was to compare vanity and public self‐consciousness between fashion consumer groups (fashion change agents, fashion followers) and genders. Vanity has four dimensions: concern for physical appearance, a positive (perhaps inflated) view of physical appearance, concern for achievement and a positive (perhaps inflated) view of achievement. Participants (284 women; 116 men; mean age = 21.16) completed scales measuring consumer vanity, public self‐consciousness and fashion innovativeness and opinion leadership. Women scored higher on vanity physical concern, vanity achievement concern, vanity achievement view and public self‐consciousness than men. Fashion change agents scored higher on vanity physical concern, vanity physical view and public self‐consciousness than fashion followers.     

To seek variety or uniformity: The role of culture in consumers’ choice in a group setting

One stream of research suggests that individuals in a collectivistic culture tend to follow the others’ choices in a group choice setting (e.g., Markus and Kitayama 1991). Other research, however, suggests that the choices others make have little impact on the individuals’ choices in this cultural context (e.g., Kim and Drolet 2003). The current research attempts to test these competing hypotheses by examining individuals’ choices in group choice contexts (Ariely and Levav 2000). First, comparisons of 517 meal order slips from two local restaurants in Korea with simulated outcomes indicate a profound group-level uniformity seeking in dish selections. Second, our field experiment reveals that members of a collectivist culture tend to follow group members’ choices when group influence is evident. Unlike the previous findings of studies conducted on individuals from Western cultures, selections made in accordance with the cultural norm do not result in the reduction of emotional well-being for the collectivist cultural individuals. Finally, we provide more direct evidence for the hypothesized role of culture by showing that the choices of individuals with collectivistic cultural backgrounds are associated with higher uniformity-seeking tendency compared to those of individualistic cultural backgrounds.     

Young adults’ responses to product placement in movies and television shows

This research examines young adults’ attitudes towards product placement in films and television shows from two countries that represent contrasting cultural distinctions: the US and Korea. The results suggest that young adults in both countries perceive film product placement in a similar way but, with respect to television, Korean respondents tend to perceive it as less effective in enhancing content realism and more unethical and misleading. In addition, the findings suggest that, for both film and TV, materialism, attitude towards advertising, and realism enhancement appeared to be significant predictors of consumer cognitive response to product placement. However, cross-cultural differences were observed for TV product placement. In the US, materialism and realism enhancement were found to be most powerful predictors of cognitive response to product placement. In contrast, attitude towards advertising and materialism were found to be the strongest predictors in Korea. Implications for both advertising researchers and practitioners are provided.     

Gender,fashion consumer group,need for touch and Korean apparel consumers' shopping channel preference

Shopping preferences are affected by the culture in which an individual grows up as well as by individual differences in consumers such as differences in gender, fashion leadership and need for touch. The current study examined the influence of consumers' need for touch and fashion leadership on preference for shopping outlets (e.g. touch and non‐touch shopping channels) between genders and within a particular culture. The purpose of this study was to examine gender, fashion consumer group, need for touch and Korean apparel consumers' shopping channel preference. Participants were a convenience sample of 262 Korean college students who were recruited in Changwon, South Korea. A questionnaire was compiled that included a request for demographic information, the Need For Touch scale, the Measure of Fashion Innovativeness and Opinion Leadership, and items assessing preference for touch and non‐touch shopping channels for clothing. Women and men did not differ in overall need for touch or instrumental need for touch. Fashion change agents and fashion followers did not differ in their preference for touch and non‐touch shopping channels. Preference for touch shopping channels was more greatly affected by variables such as need for touch, gender, and fashion innovativeness and opinion leadership than preference for non‐touch shopping channels. Preference for non‐touch shopping channels was virtually unaffected by the variables examined in the current study. Implications for theory and research are provided.     

Hedonic shopping motivations in collectivistic and individualistic consumer cultures

We reinvestigate what constitutes hedonic customer experiences in collectivistic versus individualistic cultures using four country samples (N=2,336) in Germany and the U.S. as well as Oman and India. Across country samples, intrinsically enjoyable customer experiences are associated with the same underlying hedonic shopping motivations as shown in the original U.S. context. In comparison with individualistic cultures, we find that a hedonic shopping experience in collectivistic cultures is less strongly associated with selforiented gratification shopping, yet more strongly associated with others-oriented role shopping.     

Effects of functional green advertising on self and others

This study examines the effects of a functional green advertising promoting the environmental advantages of a product. It presents the results of three experiments designed to (a) explore consumers’ perceptions of a functional green ad's effects on themselves and others, (b) determine how those perceptions are influenced by consumer environmental concern, and (c) examine how individualism–collectivism relates to self–other effect perceptions. Findings indicate that (a) consumers believe that functional green advertising exerts a stronger influence on others’ purchase decisions than on their own purchase decisions; (b) the self–other difference is more salient among consumers with high environmental concern; (c) in the individualistic culture, the perceived effectiveness on self, not on others, predicts consumers’ support for the regulation of functional green ads, while this effect is reversed when consumers are in collectivistic cultures. The study's findings extend several lines of research, including the literature on green advertising and the third‐person effect.     

Gender as a moderator of the relationship between materialism and fashion clothing involvement among Indian youth

The research examines the role of gender in moderating the relationship between materialism and product involvement with fashion clothing among the Indian youth. The Richins materialism scale and the product involvement and purchase involvement scales developed by O'Cass were used to understand the behaviour of Indian youth towards fashion clothing. The sample (n = 254) comprised of university students from different parts of India. The findings indicate that Indian youth do not possess a high level of materialistic tendencies. Gender has a moderating influence on the relationship between materialism and involvement with fashion clothing. Young men and women differ with respect to their involvement with fashion clothing and even more with regard to their involvement with the purchase of fashion clothing, with women reporting a higher level of involvement in both cases.     

Characteristics of materialism and its measurement: assessing the Belk's materialism scale in Hungary

In terms of consumer values, the socialist system (altruism, acting for the good of the community, interest in culture, etc.) reflects a post‐materialist orientation. According to data from World Value Surveys, however, there was a strong shift towards materialist values in the former socialist countries after the political changes; this also holds true for Hungary. Most likely, this shift is due partly to the success of the market economy, competition and private enterprise and partly to the disappearance of the obligatory system of values of the socialist regime. The present research study uses the materialism scale developed by Belk to measure possessiveness, non‐generosity and envy in Hungary. The research study focused on the quantitative analysis of a national representative sample (n = 500) in 2002 and 2007 respectively. The results of the study indicate that in both periods surveyed, possessiveness was the most significant dimension within the three examined features of materialism. Changes in the nature of possessiveness, however, corresponded to the changes in consumer behaviour. Based on our findings, we can assume that possessions have a central place in people's life.     

A cross‐cultural comparison of consumer vanity in the People's Republic of China,South Korea and Thailand: an exploratory study

In response to calls regarding the applicability of marketing scales in other cultures, the current study re‐examined the psychometric properties and measurement equivalence of the consumer vanity scale. The sample consisted of 723 undergraduate participants from China, South Korea and Thailand. Results revealed that the 21‐item, four‐factor (physical concern, physical view, achievement concern and achievement view) model of consumer vanity exhibited a satisfactory condition of psychometric properties across three samples. Multigroup analysis also revealed that the consumer vanity scales have partial factorial invariance. More specifically, the results as related to latent means comparison revealed that there are differences and similarities between the four dimensions of consumer vanity among Chinese, South Korean and Thai participants. Implications and future research directions are discussed.     

Sex Appeal in Advertising: What Consumers Think

This study examined consumers’ attitude toward the use of sexual content in advertisements among there different cultural groups; i.e., individualistic sample (White American), collectivistic sample (US temporal visitors from Asia), and acculturation sample (Asian immigrants). Sixty participants were asked about cultural acceptability of sexual content ads and the favorable attitude toward those ads by using Q-methodology. Asian participants reported less cultural acceptability for sexuality, than either Asian American or North American participants. The findings also revealed that North Americans are more likely to prefer the use of sexual content in advertisement than Asians. Asian-American participants agreed with North American participants in regard to sexually explicit advertising. Implications and limitations were discussed.     

The State of Augmented Reality Advertising Around The Globe: A Multi-Cultural Content Analysis

As a new form of advertising, augmented reality (AR) advertising offers a unique opportunity to study how new technology-facilitated ad campaigns are constructed across cultures. This research analyzes the content of 117 AR ad campaign videos uploaded on YouTube, and reveals the prevalent characteristics of AR campaigns. We compared videos from individualistic countries with those from collectivistic countries. Results suggest that AR ad campaigns from more individualistic cultures tend to include product information and enable a user to control the virtual AR content, whereas AR ad campaigns from more collectivistic cultures tend to allow a user to become part of the virtual AR content without manipulating it. In closing, we discuss managerial implications for marketers and advertisers as well as opportunities for future research.     

Cultural Differences among Young Adult Consumers in Hong Kong,Japan, and Korea

This study examines Northeast Asian consumer cultural dimensions and their differences by using Hong Kong, Japanese, and Korean college students as initial data points. While the cultural dimensions of Northeast Asia cannot be represented fully by this limited analysis, these data points provide preliminary insights toward more thoroughly mapping Northeast Asian culture. Common cultural dimensions of normativeness, communitarianism, conservatism, personality expression, and connectedness were identified in this study. Statistically significant differences were found in communitarianism (p < .01), conservatism (p < .001), and connectedness (p < .001). Specifically, Korea is higher than Japan in communitarianism, and Korea and Hong Kong are higher than Japan in conservatism. For connectedness, Japan and Hong Kong are higher than Korea. Also, differences in consumer culture are found. Japan is lower than Korea and Hong Kong in perceptions of promotion and additional values. Korea is higher than Hong Kong and Japan in emotional advertising.