• International Journal of Costume and Fashion
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.33-40
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• 2012

The purpose of this study was to investigate the differences of clothing majors and non-majors in clothing knowledge and consumption behavior. Subjective and objective knowledge were compared and factors of clothing consumption behavior were analyzed across the two groups. The subjects of this study were female student who went to University in Seoul. Data from 150 college female students were analyzed using SPSS. Results indicated that clothing majors had significantly higher level of clothing knowledge. The differences were smaller for subjective knowledge levels than objective knowledge levels. Clothing majors tended to reform their clothes and coordinate their clothing items better than non-majors. They considered styles more importantly than brands but have some level of conformity. Among clothing consumption behavior factors, reform ability and coordination ability significantly affected clothing knowledge.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.641-654
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• 1997

The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between the consumer's product knowledge and his/her ability to obtain information when buying clothing. For the purpose of this study, questionnaires were given to 550 university students living in Seoul and the Kwgi area. The questionnaires were designed to measure the consumer's knowledge about examine his/her method of gathering information and to obtain some personal information Vsing a base of 407 students, data was analyzed through cross- tabulation, the chi square test, the t-test, the one-way ANOVA accompanied by a post-hoc analysis with the Tukey method, Pearson's correlation coefficient, and the Spearman rho. The results of this study were as follows. 1) There was a significant difference in the amount of iuormation seeking between groups with different knowledge related to clothing. 2) The use of information sources was found to be significantly related to the consumer's subjective and objective knowledge. 3) The consumer's level of knowledge about clothing was related to the store characteristics that he/she took into consideration. The difference between the groups came from the number of store characteristics taken into consideration, rather than from the contents. The group that had more knowledge related to clothing was more aware of store characteristics than the other level stoup. Price, quality, uniqueness, and variety of clothing were equally important to by groups. 4) A moderate relationship was found between the consumer's subjective and objective knowledge, and between his/her purchasing experience and objective knowledge. There was a relatively high relationship between purchasing experience and subjective knowledge.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.353-364
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• 1998

Consumer knowledge has been discussed as an important concept to understand information processing such as information search and evaluation process. It has been defined as the amounts and contents of information in consumer's memory accumulated by experiences. According to literature review, experts who have much knowledge are likely to retrieve their information related to products for a purchase efficiency. Therefore, they are likely to simplify the information processing for a choice. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between clothing product knowledge and evaluative criteria for a purchase. The results were as follows; First, it was found out that evaluative criteria were composed of four dimensions such as the management, the esthetic, the fitness and the brand. Therefore, it is implied that evaluative criteria for purchasing clothing products were multidimensional. Second, the level of objective knowledge was low, and consumers perceived that they didn't have much knowledge related with clothing products. Also, the relationships between objective and subjective knowledge were positive but low. Third, the evaluative criteria were effected by the level of consumer's knowledge significantly. In subjective knowledge, the subjects in a high group considered all criteria more deeply than in a low group. But there was a significant difference only in the esthetic between two groups in objective knowledge. The results of this study imply that consumer knowledge may influence evaluation process. Knowledgeable consumer would consider product attributes deeply for evaluating clothing products, and especially, the esthetic would be an important factor as an attribute including the instrumental and expressive functions in a purchase phase. Therefore, consumer knowl- edge would be a basis of predicting expert's information processing and managing heavy buyer or loyal consumers in apparel industry.

• The Research Journal of the Costume Culture
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.476-487
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• 2010

The purpose of this study was to identify the determinants of decision-making confidence of clothing. As determinants, this study examined consumer susceptibility to interpersonal influence, vanity, and clothing knowledge. Data were collected through surveying university students in Seoul metropolitan area using convenience sampling method. Out of 324 distributed, 300 useful questionnaires were returned. The results showed that identical conformity among consumer susceptibility to interpersonal influence factors significantly influences, both directly and indirectly, decision making confidence through vanity. Although normative conformity does not influence decision-making confidence directly, it does significantly influence decision-making confidence indirectly through influencing vanity and clothing knowledge. The results suggest clothing is a manifestation tool for managing public self, which finally leads to increased clothing knowledge and decision-making confidence of clothing. These findings may be used by marketers in developing strategies for product development and promotion.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.628-638
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• 1998

This study, the second in two part series, focuses on effect of product involvement and consumer knowledge on consumers' perceptions of six dimensions of clothing price: price -quality schema, prestige sensitivity: sale proneness, price mavenism, value consciousness, and price consciousness. Additionally, correlation between product involvement and consumer knowledge was examined. Multi-item measures of six dimensions of price, product involvement, and consumer knowledge were included in the questionnaires. The subjects were 264 college students living in Seoul, Korea. The data were collected by self-administered questionnaires and analyzed by factor analysis, regression analysis, and correlation analysis using SPSS PC. In addition, two focus group interviews were conducted to obtain qualitative data for the result interpretation. Results of this study showed that the degree of consumers' product involvement significantly affects consumers' perceptions of each price dimension except price consciousness dimension. Consumers' knowledge about clothing has a significant effect on consumers' perceptions of all price dimensions. Dimensions of product involvement and consumer knowledge were partially correlated. Marketing implications based on these results were suggested.

• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.13 no.6
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• pp.935-941
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• 2004

The purpose of this study is to survey fabric knowledge about apparel products, and to identify not only clothing purchase criteria but the impact of fabrics on the decision-making process in clothing purchase. The 234 questionnaires were distributed to university students(120 males, 114 females), and were analyzed by frequencies, t-test, $x^{2}$ and ANOVA. The results are as follows: 1) The students had apparel fabrics knowledge above the average, and there were partially significant differences in the knowledge by genders. 2) They put a higher priority, in purchasing apparel products, on factors such as design, size, color, fabric, and price of clothing than those including ease of care, sewing, and fashion trend. 3) The consideration of fabrics influenced a post-purchase process. 4) Male students showed less concern, except information search process, with the fabric than females in the decision-making process for clothing purchase.

• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.172-178
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• 2010

The purpose of this study was to explore relationships among technology development strategy, marketing competence, knowledge management competence, and company performance of textile and clothing companies. Survey data collected from 187 employees in the textile and clothing companies were analyzed by descriptive statistics, factor analysis, reliability analysis, correlation analysis, and multiple regression analysis. In results, certain levels of correlations were found among technological development strategy, marketing competence, knowledge management competence, and company performance. Specifically, technological gap which was one of the technology development strategy factors was a variable significantly affecting innovation performance and financial performance of textile and clothing companies. Knowledge management competence affected innovation performance whereas marketing competence affected financial competence of textile and clothing companies.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.32 no.9
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• pp.1343-1355
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• 2008

This study examined the influences of product knowledge(subject knowledge, purchase experience and information search) on perceived risks and benefits to natural dyeing product. Data were collected from a total of 213 Korean females ranging from 20 to 50 years old who know natural dyeing product through online survey. There were significant differences between(or among) groups with different levels of subject knowledge, purchase experience and information search in several types of perceived risks and benefits to natural dyeing product. Consumers with high knowledge of natural dyeing product perceived several types of risks lower than consumers with low knowledge but they perceived several types of benefits higher than consumers with low knowledge.

• Journal of the Korean Home Economics Association
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.37-49
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• 1991

The purpose of this study was to investigate the visual effects of clothing design. The specific objectives were: 1) to develop a clothing design evaluation instrument using semantic differential scales for the purpose of measuring visual responses with clothing design: 2) to identify the factor structure of the clothing design evaluation instrument: 3) to test the differences of perception to the clothing design depending on sex and knowledge about clothing design. The major findings were: 1. 37 pairs of descriptors of clothing form were found to include five factor dimensions (total variance:62.1%). Five major factors were found: attractiveness, practicability, elegance, comfort, hardness and softness. 2. for the visual evaluation of silhouettes, there were significant differences. H-line was explained by the simple image. A-line was explained by the comfortable image. V-line was explained by the mature and refined image. X-line was explained by the attractive and femine image and evaluated positively. 3. For the visual evaluation of observers, there were partly significant differences depending on sex and knowledge about clothing design in the observers' responses. But there were greater differences depending on sex than knowledge about clothing design in the observers' responses.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.1025-1036
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• 2001

This paper explores the effects of price discount frequency on consumer evaluation of clothing brand equity as well as the impact on consumers who exhibit different consumer characteristics. Following a preliminary investigation, two clothing brand groups were identified according to the frequency of their price discounts, one with a high frequency of price discounts, the other with a low frequency. Each brand group consisted of three women's clothing brands. A questionnaire was developed and administered to 351 females between the ages of nineteen and thirty-four in October 2000. The questionnaire included questions on evaluations on clothing brand equity (i.e., perceived quality, brand image, perceived value, reliability and brand knowledge), on consumer characteristics (i.e., clothing knowledge, clothing evaluative criteria, price perception and demographic characteristics), as well as on price discount frequency. Statistical tests, such as factor analysis. t-test and pearson's correlation, were used to analyze the data. Results of this research showed that price discount frequency negatively impacted consumer perception of clothing brand equity. The negative influence was particularly strong on the perceived quality and brand image dimensions of brand equity. The findings also suggested the effect of price discount frequency on consumer assessment of clothing brand equity was related to consumer characteristics as well. The equity of the clothing brand group with a low frequency of price discounts was positively related to clothing knowledge, price-quality inference, price-prestige inference, sale prone-ness. price mavenism, valuing the fashionable and symbolic uses of clothing and family income. On the other hand, it was negatively related to low price consciousness. The equity of the clothing brand group with a high frequency of price discounts was positively related to utilitarian economic aspects of clothing values as well as to low price consciousness. To establish and maintain high brand equity, marketers must pay attention to the frequency of price discount as it may have a negative impact on clothing brand equity.