• Journal of Families and Better Life
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.19-30
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• 2003

In this study, housewives' attitudes toward genetically modified foods (GM foods) and their willingness to purchase GM foods were examined. The findings of this study could provide useful information for consumer education and consumer policy development regarding GM foods. The specific purposes of this study were: (1) to examine consumers' attitudes toward GM foods, (2) to analyze the effect of the perception of GM foods and demographic variables on consumers' attitudes toward GM foods, and (3) to analyze the effect of the perception of GM foods and demographic variables on consumers' willingness to purchase GM foods. The questionnaire used in the survey was constructed by the author, based on existing literature. The survey was conducted with 1,100 housewives, and 723 of the completed survey forms were used in the final analysis. Frequencies, percentages, means, standard deviation, t-tests, ANOVA, Duncan-test, Pearson's Correlation, factor analysis, and discriminant analysis were employed for data analysis methods. Major findings are: (1) Consumers' attitudes toward GM foods consist of three factors, that are, attitude regarding potential danger, attitude regarding the use of GM technique on plants, and attitude regarding the use of GM technique on animals. (2) Consumers with a higher level of education tend to perceive GM food as more dangerous, whereas consumers with a lower level of education tend to accept more the use of GM technique on plants. (3) Consumers who tend not to consider GM foods as dangerous, and those who acknowledged benefits in using GM technique on plants are more willing to buy GM foods.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Costume
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• v.59 no.6
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• pp.41-57
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• 2009

Evaluations of fashion products are often influenced by consumers' knowledge of the country where the products were made in. As globalization progresses, country-of-origin information is widely regarded as a powerful cue on consumers' shopping behavior. The purpose of study was to examine the consumer evaluation of apparel products with uni-national or bi-national country of origin. The effect of price level and gender were also investigated. The empirical research design took 2${\times}$2 factorial design with the country-of-origin coincidence (uni-national vs. bi-national) and price (high vs. low) of gender (male vs. female). Consumers' ethnocentrism and country-of-origin interest were taken into account as covariates in the factorial design. The consumers' evaluation of fashion products was measured in terms of brand attitudes and product attitudes. Data from 514 respondents were analyzed with t-test, one-way ANOVA, two-way ANOVA, and ANCOVA. Results of this study affirmed the importance of price information rather than country-of-origin coincidence in brand attitudes and product attitudes. Only for male consumers, interaction effects of price and country-of-origin coincidence had significant eflects on utilitarian attitude. Effects of two covariate variables included in the study were significant for female respondents but not for male respondents.

• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.39-48
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• 2015

The purpose of this study was to understand the differences of ethical attitudes as consumer and as salesperson among cosmetic salesperson. For this purpose, 128 cosmetic salespersons, Chunlabukdo, were sampled, 2007. The quesionnaire was composed of the demographic characteristics, attitudes toward the clients, the ethics related to work, and ethical attitudes as consumer. The differences were statistically tested at p<.10. The results of this study as follows; The sub-variables of attitudes toward customers were irresponsibility, understanding and respect for customers, and first priority to Sales persons. The ethics related to work's were sales of defected products, unfair sales practices, and unusual discount. Consumer ethics' were false and deception, invasion of Sales person's rights, and illegal. The types of consumer's ethics were distributed from 57.5% for the unethical consumers, 15.7% for the middle consumers, and 26.8% for the ethical consumers. The salespersons as the ethical consumers tended to show irresponsible attitudes to the clients and first priority to themselves rather than customers. Unethical consumers tended to treat their customers in an unethical sales manners.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.37 no.7
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• pp.922-934
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• 2013

This study investigates the motivations to purchase luxury brands by examining how individual characteristics (need for uniqueness, self-monitoring, and vanity) influence affective luxury brand attitudes and purchase intentions through two social function attitudes (self-expression attitude and self-presentation attitude) based on the functional theory of attitudes. On-line surveys were implemented and 314 consumers between the ages of 20 and 50 were recruited. Using SPSS 18.0 and AMOS 18.0, confirmatory factor analysis for measurements and structural equation modeling analysis for hypotheses testing were implemented. The results show that the need for uniqueness and self-monitoring by consumers have positive influences on self-expression and self-presentation attitudes toward luxury brands, respectively. The results indicate that the need by consumers for uniqueness motivates a self-expression attitude toward luxury brands and that the trait of self-monitoring motivates a self-presentation attitude toward luxury brands. Consumer vanity also positively influences both social function attitudes toward luxury brands. Self-expression and self-presentation attitudes toward luxury brands have positive influences on luxury brand purchase intentions through an affective attitude that facilitates a mediating role between two social function attitudes and the purchase intentions of consumers. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of the formation process of Korean consumers' purchase intentions for luxury brands and the literature on the role of related variables (need for uniqueness, self-monitoring, vanity, self-expression, self-presentation, affective attitude, and purchase intention). The findings provide a theoretical background to launch a cross-cultural study. The conclusion discusses the practical implications and limitations.

• Journal of Fashion Business
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• v.21 no.6
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• pp.1-15
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• 2017

This study examines the various responses of Chinese consumers, depending on the nationality of the fashion advertising model featured in an advertisement; it explores the effects of a congruence between self-image and advertising image (CSIAI) on consumer attitudes. This study was conducted by collecting data online; 200 samples selecting a Korean model and 200 samples selecting a Chinese model with a fashion brand were analyzed. A structural equation model confirms the conceptual framework for the influence of CSIAI on consumer attitudes and purchase intentions. The results show that the perceived CSIAI of consumers positively influences their attitude toward the advertising and the brand, and further, that advertising and brand attitudes significantly affect the purchase intention of consumers. This positive relationship is moderated by the nationality of the model. These findings suggest that the nationality of the model can serve as an important retail mix for global marketers. Other results and management implications are also discussed.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Costume
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• v.63 no.1
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• pp.120-134
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• 2013

This study was intended to investigate the designs that are displayed on fashion windows, specifically the originality of its designs, from here on noted as "design originality", and the effects it has on the attitudes of consumers toward fashion brands and their purchasing intentions depending on their level of clothing involvement. For the purpose of this study, 10 pictures of creative fashion window display designs from Fifth Avenue in New York were selected and they were shown to 200 college students in Busan in order to collect data for the analysis. The results are as follows: 1) Factor analysis identified four factors that impacted how consumers judged design originality, uniqueness, humor, favorable impression and advanced design. 2) The four factors of design originality in fashion window display significantly affected consumer's evaluation on usefulness of information provided by the window display, attitudes toward fashion brands and purchase intention. 3) The respondents were separated into two groups depending on their level of clothing involvement. Consumers with high level of clothing involvement showed that they were influenced more by the design originality when making purchase decisions. Especially, the uniqueness factor and advanced design factor had more effect on brand attitudes and purchase intention in high level of clothing involvement group. The results revealed that creative fashion window display design are important marketing strategic tools that affect attitudes of consumers toward brands and their purchasing intentions.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.48 no.2
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• pp.282-299
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• 2024

This study aimed to examine the impact of virtual influencers' characteristics on purchase intentions through attitudes toward the influencer and the brand, and to identify which factors are important depending on involvement. We used a scenario-based online survey of 320 female consumers in their twenties and thirties, and analyzed their responses through structural equation modeling using AMOS 21.0. Virtual influencers' attractiveness, reliability, familiarity, and virtuality had significant effects on consumers' attitudes toward those influencers, while their attractiveness, familiarity, and virtuality had significant effects on consumers' brand attitudes. Notably, in contrast to the other variables, virtuality had a negative effect. In addition, consumers' attitudes toward the virtual influencer significantly affected their brand attitudes and purchase intentions. We also analyzed which characteristics had significant impacts on high- and low-involvement groups. We found that reliability had the greatest influence on purchase intentions in the high-involvement group and that familiarity had the greatest influence on purchase intentions in the low-involvement group, which confirmed that the variables affecting purchase intentions differ depending on the level of involvement.

• Journal of Fashion Business
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.67-79
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• 2017

This study investigated consumers' enjoyment, perceived risks, expected values, and innovativeness factors and the effects of the convenience and personalization of "online to offline" (O2O) fashion mobile commerce on its perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and consumers' attitudes and intention to use O2O mobile commerce. A research model was developed using the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). A mobile survey was conducted through smartphone messengers and SNSs targeting male and female college students in their 20s who are living in the Seoul Metropolitan Area. A total of 192 questionnaire responses were used in the analysis. "Among the consumer characteristics, only enjoyment and expected values were found to make consumers feel that the O2O fashion mobile commerce is useful and easy to use. Among the mobile commerce characteristics, only convenience was found to have significant effects on consumers' perceived usefulness and ease of use regarding O2O fashion mobile commerce. Perceived usefulness was found to have the effects on attitudes as well as intention to use toward O2O mobile commerce. It was shown that positive attitudes toward O2O mobile commerce led to positive use intention toward O2O mobile commerce.

• Asia Marketing Journal
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.131-159
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• 2014

Corporate rebranding has been evident in the qualitative corporate rebranding studies as an imposed organizational change that induces mixed reactions and ambivalent attitudes among consumers. Corporate rebranding for the established and familiar corporate brands leads to more ambivalent attitudes as these companies represent larger targets for disparaging information. Consumers are found to hold both positive and negative reactions toward companies and brands that they are familiar with. Nevertheless, the imposed change assumption and ambivalent attitude, in particular corporate rebranding, have never been widely explored in the quantitative corporate rebranding studies. This paper aims to provide a comprehensive empirical examination of the ambivalence towards rebrandingrebranded brand attitude-purchase intention relationships. The author proposes that corporate rebranding for familiar corporate brands is a double-edged sword that not only raises the expectation for better performance, but also induces conflicted and ambivalent attitudes among consumers. These consumers' ambivalent attitudes are influenced by both the parent brands-related and general attitude factors which further affect their rebranded brand attitude and purchase intention. A total of 156 useable questionnaires were collected from Malaysian working adults; and two established Malaysian airfreight operators were utilized as the focal parent brands. The study found a significant impact of prior parent brand attitudes on ambivalence towards rebranding (ATR). The parent brand attitudes served as anchors in influencing how new information was processed (Mazaheri et al., 2011; Sherif & Hovland, 1961) and closely related to behavioral intention (Prislin & Quellete, 1996). The ambivalent attitudes experienced were higher when individuals held both positive and negative reactions toward the parent brands. Consumers also held higher ambivalent attitudes when they preferred one of the parent brands; while disliked the other brand. The study also found significant relationships between the lead brand and the rebranded brand attitude; and between the partner brands and ATR. The familiar but controversial partner brand contributed significantly to the ambivalent attitudes experienced; while the more established lead brand had significant impact on the rebranded brand attitude. The lead and partner brands, though both familiar, represented different meanings to consumers. The author attributed these results to the prior parent brand attitudes, the skepticism and their general ambivalence toward the corporate rebranding. Both general attitude factors (i.e. skepticism and general ambivalence towards rebranding) were found to have significant positive impacts on ATR. Skeptical individuals questioned the possibility of a successful rebranding (Chang, 2011) and were more careful with their evaluations toward 'too god to be true' or 'made in heaven' pair of companies. The embedded general ambivalent attitudes that people held toward rebranding could be triggered from the associative network by the ambiguous situation (Prislin & Quellete, 1996). In addition, the ambivalent rebranded brand attitude was found to lower down purchase intention, supporting Hanze (2001), Lavine (2001) and van Harreveld et al. (2009)'s studies. Ambivalent individuals were found to prefer delay decision making by choosing around the mid-ranged points in 'willingness to buy' scale. The study provides several marketing implications. Ambivalence management is proven to be important to corporate rebranding to minimize the ambivalent attitudes experienced. This could be done by carefully controlling the parent brands-related and general attitude factors. The high ambivalent individuals are less confident with their own conflicted attitudes and are motivated to get rid of the psychological discomfort caused by these conflicted attitudes (Bell & Esses, 2002; Lau-Gesk, 2005; van Harreveld et al., 2009). They tend to process information more deeply (Jonas et al., 1997; Maio et al., 2000; Wood et al., 1985) and pay more attention to message that provides convincible arguments. Providing strong, favorable and convincible message is hence effective in alleviating consumers' ambivalent attitudes. In addition, brand name heuristic could be utilized because the rebranding strategy sends important signal to consumers about the changes that happen or going to happen. The ambivalent individuals will pay attention to both brand name heuristic and rebranding message in their effort to alleviate the psychological discomfort caused by ambivalent attitudes. The findings also provide insights to Malaysian and airline operators for a better planning and implementation of corporate rebranding exercise.

• International Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.79-94
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• 2007

Previous studies showed that traditional attitudes toward consumer credit and the accumulation of debtare declining, especially among younger life stage groups. The social stigma of high debt levels has largely gone. However, only a few researchers have studied and changes in consumers' attitudes toward credit and its determinants. This study investigates factors related to the probability of respondents having favorable or unfavorable attitudes using the 1992-2004 U.S. Surveys of Consumer Finances. A logistic analysis was used since the dependent variables were binary. All other things equal, respondents in 1995, 1998, 2001 and 2004 were significantly less likely to have favorable or unfavorable attitudes toward credit than otherwise similar respondents in 1992, but the patterns did not correspond well to the changes in the bankruptcy rate. Black and Hispanic respondents were more likely to have favorable attitudes and less likely to have unfavorable attitudes than were otherwise similar white respondents, but those in the Other group, mostly Asians, were not significantly different from whites. Respondents with college degrees were less likely to have a positive attitude and more likely to have a negative attitude than those without a college degree. Respondents who took risks with investments were more likely to have a positive attitude and less likely to have a negative attitude than those unwilling to take risks. Implications for understanding of credit use are discussed. This publication was made possible by a generous grant from the NASD Investor Education Foundation.