The asymmetric dominance of cognitive versus affective country image in driving purchase: Conditioning roles of cognition-affect intra-valence nature and product type

Abstract

Despite the vast amount of research on country image, extant country-of-origin (COO) literature remains ambiguous about which of the country image dimensions, cognitive country image (CCI) or affective country image (ACI), is more important in driving purchase. Drawing on the primacy of affect theory, this research develops a nomological framework that clarifies this ambiguity and explains whether, when, and why ACI/CCI takes precedence in determining purchase decision. With a large-scale study on Chinese consumers responding to two types of products from four countries, the findings unveil the asymmetric dominance of CCI and ACI in influencing purchase intention via consumer cognitive product judgment and affective product evaluation, which is conditioned by the dyadic effects of country cognition-affect intra-valence nature and product type. This research contributes through illuminating the differential roles of CCI and ACI in influencing consumer reactions to foreign products, the boundary conditions and underlying mechanism of the differences.