• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.35 no.12
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• pp.1440-1453
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• 2011

Proper consumer segmentation is receiving more attention from industry professionals as markets become more diverse and consumer-centered. Researchers have recognized the limitations of the traditional cluster analysis technique and this research study analyzes market segmentation using Mixture-model or latent-class segmentation. This study used a questionnaire to determine the characteristics of clothing shoppers using a new technique that proved its superiority over traditional techniques. Questions included items measuring fashion shopping behavior, store choice criteria, apparel consumption styles, price perception by product type, and demographic characteristics. Data were collected from 1074 males and females in their 20s and 30s through an online survey. SPSS 16.0 and Latent GOLD 4.0 were used to analyze the data. The ideal typology of clothing shoppers using the Mixture-model were: 'brand loyalty orientated group', 'group of conservative late 30s', 'group of pleasure-emotion early 20s', 'value oriented consumer product with high-income group', 'group of eco/symbol oriented consumer', and 'group of utility/goal oriented male consumer'. This study showed differences in fashion product purchasing behavior by conducting market segmentation for clothing shoppers using the Mixture-model.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.11 no.5
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• pp.63-76
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• 2013

Purpose - For the past several decades, behavioral economics or behavioral decision theory has undergone rapid development. This study provides a critical review of the development of behavioral economics with a focus on what are deemed to be core theories in the field. Starting from the utility function proposed by Daniel Bernoulli in the 18th century, the development history of utility functions until the emergence of the prospect theory is thoroughly reviewed. Some of the experimental results violating the traditionally assumed utility function and supporting the prospect theory value function are summarized. The most representative principles of rational choice are transitivity, independence from irrelevant alternatives (IIA), and regularity. The development of behavioral economics has been triggered by finding counter-examples to these principles. Some of the choice behaviors discussed in this study as counter-examples to the traditional theories of rational choice are the St. Petersburg paradox; the Allais paradox; gambling behavior; and the various context effects including the similarity effect, attraction effect, and the compromise effect. The Elimination-by-Aspects (EBA) model, which was proposed as an explanation for the similarity effect, is discussed in detail as well. Based on the literature review and further analysis, this study summarizes the relationship between the context effects, prospect theory, and EBA model. Research design, data, and methodology - This study provides an extensive literature review on several important theories in the field of behavioral decision theory and adds some critical comments to the theories and the relationships among them. This study first reviews the development of utility functions. Daniel Bernoulli introduced the concept of utility function to solve the St. Petersburg paradox. In the mid-20th century, Herbert Simon proposed the "satisficing" heuristic and presented a value function with a shape different from traditional utility functions. This study highlights the strengths and weaknesses of several utility functions proposed until the emergence of the prospect theory value function. Results - This study posits that prospect theory and EBA model are the two most important theories in the field of behavioral decision theory. They can explain various choice behaviors that traditional utility maximization analysis has been unable to. The application of these models to various fields is further increasing nowadays. This study explains how prospect theory and the EBA model can be used to explain the context effects. Conclusions - The traditional economic theory relies on a single variable called "utility" in explaining consumer choice. However, this study argues that, in investigating consumer choice, several other variables should also be considered. These are the similarity among alternatives, an alternative's prototypicality within the category, the dominance relationship between alternatives, and the reference point in evaluating alternatives. Due to the development of behavioral economics, we are now closer to a more complete understanding of consumer choice behavior than in the past when we had only a single tool called utility.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.10 no.5
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• pp.210-219
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• 2010

Consumers differ in both horizontally and vertically. Market segmentation aims to divide horizontally different (or heterogeneous) consumers into more similar (or homogeneous) small segments. A specific consumer, however, may differ in vertically. He (or she) may belong to a different market segment from another one where he (or she) belonged to before. In consumer panel data, the vertical difference can be observed by his (or her) choice among brand alternatives are changing over time. The consumer's vertical difference has been defined as 'dynamics'. In this research, we have developed a binary probit model with random-walk coefficients to capture the consumer's dynamics. With an application to a consumer panel data, we have examined how have the random-walk coefficients changed over time.

• The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business
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• v.8 no.8
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• pp.465-473
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• 2021

This study is the application of a choice experiment to assess Mekong Delta urban households' preferences and motivations for ecosystem conservation in the U Minh forest. The study applied a choice modeling approach to estimate the economic values of the proposed ecosystem conservation program in the U Minh forest by accessing urban consumer preferences and their willingness to pay for the project. Discrete choice experimental data was collected from 450 residents in the cities of the Vietnamese Mekong Delta. The multinomial logit model was employed to identify consumer's stated preferences for the environmental and sustainability attributes of the conservation project. The results showed that Mekong Delta urban residents paid much attention to the proposed project to protect and develop the U Minh forest. In addition, the results showed that higher education, income, and knowledge of the U Minh forest revealed a higher likelihood of selecting the project, while the older residents would select the status quo more than the younger ones. The study also proved that the effect of participation had a strong impact on the willingness to pay for the project. The findings could be useful for policymakers to take action to raise resident's awareness and willingness to pay for the U Minh forest project.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.36 no.8
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• pp.837-848
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• 2012

This study examines how the overseas residence experience of Korean consumers influences the relationship of global fashion brand knowledge and brand choice confidence. We contrast two kinds of consumer brand knowledge, using the concepts of Alba and Hutchinson's expertise and familiarity. Considering the effect of positive affect on intuitive information processing, the present study investigated the role of positive affect in consumer brand knowledge and brand choice confidence link. The proposed model was tested with structural-equation analysis. The results show that expertise and familiarity effect the positive affect. Positive affect, in turn, influences brand choice confidence. The results indicate that the processes underlying global fashion brand knowledge and brand choice confidence link are different between the consumers with overseas residence experience for more than a year and the consumers without it. The route from expertise to positive affect has a significant impact on the consumers with overseas residence experience but not on the consumers without it; however, the route from familiarity to positive affect and the path from positive affect to brand choice confidence have a greater impact on the consumers without overseas residence experience than the consumers with it. We find that the consumers with overseas residence experience favor expertise in the process underlying global fashion brand knowledge and brand choice confidence link, whereas the consumers without it favor familiarity and affect based thought.

• Journal of Distribution Research
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.81-102
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• 2010

The present study analyzes the choice factors and possibility of traditional and other competing markets through consumer behavior analyses in order to suggest factors that can help reactivate traditional markets. Hence, Multinomial Logit Model is used as it is an optimum model to understand discrete selection. The results suggested some tendencies regarding traditional market. For example, traditional market is more activated when the market is large and has more parking spaces, and when the level of consumer satisfaction is high. While, increased travel distance and time have negative effects on visitor's choice. Governmental supports are turned out to have less to do with the consumer attraction. People with higher incomes tend to prefer other types of market. The results also suggested there is more likelihood of traditional markets being reactivated if the market is not fiercely competing with other types of markets. Internet market is ranked top in consumer's choice possibility, while traditional market is ranked at the bottom. The plausible factors to reactivate traditional market were physical factors(including increasing shops and parking facilities), which is followed by governmental support.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.29-38
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• 2011

Since a distribution market was opened in 1993 after the conclusion of the Uruguay Round (UR), various new businesses emerged in the Korean retail industry, such as convenience shops, supermarkets, specialty stores, non-store marketing methods, and cyber shopping malls, in addition to traditional markets and department stores. Competition among these retail businesses has intensified. According to the National Statistical Office (NSO), the growth rate of the total retail industry has shown a 32% increase in the past 5 years. While department stores, supermarkets, specialty stores, and other non-store retailing venues have shown signs of stagnation at a growth rate of 20-30%, which is similar to the growth rate of the entire retail industry, convenience shops and non-store marketing have shown 60-70% growth over the same period. By comparison, the growth rate of cyber shopping malls has nearly tripled. When applying development aspects of retail businesses through the competition to the retail life cycle, mom-and-pop stores and traditional markets have already entered the decline phase as specialty stores reach their maturity phase and demonstrate their limit of growth. Department stores are now in the latter part of the growth phase, which is still considered to have some growth potential. Big super markets are still in the early part of their growth stage although they were introduced 20 years ago. Meanwhile, retail businesses such as convenience stores, supermarkets, mail order houses, and warehouse stores are entering the middle growth phase and are expected to continue with their quantitative growth. At a time when most retail businesses in Korea are in a state of development or in the full growth stage, what kind of new innovative retailing will appear and develop? Moreover, what growth engine will drive it? This study analyzes the appearance of innovative retailing and its development process by establishing a discussable consumer's choice model through the interlocking mutual behavior of differentiated competitiveness and consumers' choice based on an awareness of this issue. The analysis of the results of this study can be summarized as follows. First, if a new vacuum zone emerges at the retail market level, innovative retailing such as low price/low service or high price/high service will emerge simultaneously. Second, if the number of new businesses in the vacuum zone increases, this will create competitiveness among the businesses, and each retailer will develop raising of level. Third, if a new business that raises the level develops, competition between the new and the existing retailer will occur, and an assimilation process between the existing retailing and the new retailing will be unfolded. Fourth, each retailing will promote distribution innovations in order to break the frontier of the existing distribution technology, and other retailing will follow the innovator. On the basis of an analysis of the abovementioned results, this study presents the following three suggestions. First, responding to the consumer's decision-making process on the attributes of retail shops that promote differentiation in strategies, this study established a consumer's choice model that can be discussed in relation to changes in market share. Second, this study provided an analysis of the emerging and developmental processes of innovative retail businesses using a more precise logical structure on the basis of the consumer's choice model described in this study. Third, the development process of retail businesses discussed in this study presented retailing solutions regarding management aspects on how to compose a strong retail mix that can help retail businesses gain competitive advantages in the market.

• Journal of the Korea Society of Computer and Information
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• v.28 no.10
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• pp.217-227
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• 2023

This study aims to stratify consumer market evaluation items from the Consumer Decision Journey(CDJ) perspective and understand the relationship between laws/systems and consumer orientation through the Korea Consumer Agency's '19 Korea Consumer Markets Evaluation Indicators. This study divided consumer market evaluation items into the selection comparison stage, selection decision stage, and post-purchase experience stage. And present a model that stratified the relationship with consumer orientation of laws/systems and verified using the CDJ model's experience as a control variable. Studies have shown that the relationship between the consumer market evaluation index that evaluates consumer orientation can be stratified according to the consumer decision-making stage and positively affects the relationship with consumer orientation of laws/systems. In addition, the impact of consumer market evaluation variables (reliability, and price) on the consumer orientation of laws/systems was different depending on the presence or absence of consumer damage experience.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.79-91
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• 2015

Purpose - First, the study identifies and analyzes consumer preferences with regard to health foods and supplements. Second, it identifies and analyzes consumer preferences with regard to the properties of Vitamin C supplements. Third, in order to provide a basic data for the development of Vitamin C supplements and to measure how consumers value the properties of different Vitamin C products, a consumer survey was conducted through the choice-based conjoint model. Based on the results, the research estimates consumers' relative product-related priorities as well as price levels and willingness to pay (WTP) for different product types, and makes suggestions regarding consumer-oriented new product development and progressive directions for the successful launch of health foods and supplements. Research design, data, and methodology - This study aims to define the attributes of health foods and supplements based on several characteristics including their natural ingredients, product price, product originality, natural ingredient content, and additional functional ingredients, and makes suggestions regarding strategic market pricing and product development for health foods and supplements according to customer attitudes and characteristics. The research used choice-based conjoint analysis methodology based on the Multinomial Logic Model and collected 94 questionnaires filled out by users of Korean Vitamin C supplements. Results - Product price is the most influential factor among the five analyzed properties. When consumers buy Vitamin C products, the relative significance level of four of the examined properties is as follows: 40.9% for product price, 23.3% for product originality, 21.9% for natural ingredient content, and 13.9% for additional functional ingredients. Vitamin C content is excluded as it is not a statistically significant factor. It is interesting that supplement manufacturers and retailers consider Vitamin C content to be very important whereas consumers do not regard it as an important factor at the time of purchase. The results for the marginal willingness to pay (MWTP) for each property of Vitamin C supplements show that consumers are willing to pay an additional 11,146 Korean won for a 50% increase in the natural ingredient content. With regard to product originality, consumers are willing to pay an additional 11,301 Korean won for products manufactured in Europe than for products manufactured in China. Moreover, consumers show a greater preference for products manufactured in Korea than in Europe. However, consumers are not willing to pay more for additional Vitamin C or additional functional ingredients added to Vitamin C products. Conclusions - According to the results of consumer research on Vitamin C supplements, which represent a popular health food supplement in Korea, most Korean health food and supplement companies are not consumer- or market-oriented when developing new products. Companies gather information from either R&D specialists or sales managers and their opinions are highly reflected in new product development. The study's results will help companies recognize the importance of understanding consumers' unmet needs in advance to develop new products in the future.

• Informatization Policy
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.81-97
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• 2014

The purpose of this research is to analyze consumers'choice behavior with regard to information and communication technology(ICT) devices and related services. This research focuses on the relationships not only within each category but also among different categories by considering multiple choice situations in a variety of categories simultaneously. The multivariate probit model with demographic variables and the alternative specific constant model with variance-covariance matrix are estimated using survey data; moreover, the multi-dimensional scaling method is utilized for the presentation of the relationship map. It is evident from the results that some devices and services have a complementary or substitute relationship each other. This study can provide useful information for the development of new products and services by understanding and predicting consumer's behavior.