(The Role of Consumer Affinity on the Relationship Between Ethnocentrism and Foreign Product Purchase Intention)

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to investigate whether the effect of consumer ethnocentrism on the intention to purchase foreign products differs based on consumer affinity. Design/methodology/approach – This is study is a descriptive and quantitative study. The data is gathered via a two-step process. At first, a pilot study was conducted to identify the affinity country. Afterward, multi-group path analysis was applied to the data gathered from 314 participants. Findings – The study shows that consumer ethnocentrism consists of three dimensions, emotional support, cognition, and habituation. For consumers who have a lower affinity for a specific country, emotional support and habituation have significant negative effects on intention to buy the products of that country. On the other hand, for consumers who have a higher affinity for a specific country, cognition has a significant negative effect on the intention to buy the products of that country. Discussion – The effects of these dimensions vary based on the level of consumer affinity. It can be stated that for the sample consumer ethnocentrism is the result of emotions and habits.