Does ‘born digital’ mean ‘being global’ in characterizing millennial consumers in a less developed country context? – An empirical study in Myanmar

Abstract

This paper investigates the way millennial consumers converge into global consumption patterns through the lens of digital nativeness, within the context of Myanmar as a less developed country. Our research model identifies 1) the impact of digital nativeness on social orientation and cosmopolitanism; 2) the impact of those three digital-driven antecedents on consumer digital flexibility and global consumption patterns; and 3) the moderating role of consumer ethnocentrism on the foreign product purchase intention building process. Generation cohort theory and diffusion of innovation theory were employed for the research model. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was used for data analysis. 486 samples were collected from Myanmar, one of the least developed countries in the world. We found digital nativeness is a critical predictor of social orientation and cosmopolitanism. The digital nativeness, social orientation, and cosmopolitanism enhance digital flexibility and global consumption convergence, which results in foreign product purchase intention. The impact of consumer ethnocentrism is identified as non-effective. This paper enriches our understanding of millennial consumers' consumption behavior by capturing the underlying mechanism of the global consumption convergence of millennials in less developed markets. This paper also offers ways to realize the potential value of less developed country millennial consumers from a digital nativeness perspective.