Measuring Country-of-Origin Effects in Caucasians, African-Americans and Chinese Consumers for Products and Services

Abstract

In this study, we applied a measurement model of the country-of-origin (CO) effect developed by Parameswaran and Pisharodi (1994) across three groups: Caucasian Americans, African-Americans, and Chinese consumers. We explored CO effects towards a tangible product with a different origin country (Japan) than previously examined and explored the CO effect towards a service offering. Utilizing structural equation modeling, we found that although the facets of CO effect developed by other authors were robust in different consumer purchase settings, the items measuring each factor showed significant discrepancy. Both theoretical and managerial contributions are discussed and future research is suggested.