Korean Consumers Research Articles

Analysis of Dietary Identify Questionnaire according to perception about soybean meat of Korean consumers

Analysis of Dietary Identify Questionnaire according to perception about soybean meat of Korean consumers

A Study on the Effect of Satisfaction and Dissatisfaction Factors on Overseas Direct Purchases among Korean Consumers

Purpose This study analyzes factors of satisfaction and dissatisfaction for overseas direct purchases in order to convert or induce overseas direct purchases into domestic purchases. Design/Methodology/Approach This study used 243 samples collected through surveys from Korean consumers with overseas direct purchase experience for analysis. This study analyzed the factors of satisfaction and dissatisfaction of overseas direct purchases of Korean consumers through the use of statistical methods including frequency analysis, cross tabulation analysis, and multiple linear regression analysis. Findings As a result of classifying quality attributes based on the Kano model, 1 indifferent quality and 19 one-dimensional qualities were found. In results using Timko’s customer satisfaction coefficient, ‘cheapness’, ‘appropriateness’, ‘product diversity’, ‘economic efficiency’, and ‘delivery speed’ were ranked as the top satisfaction coefficients, and ‘cheapness’, ‘economic value’, ‘appropriateness’, ‘delivery speed’, ‘product diversity’, and exchangeability’ were ranked as the top dissatisfaction coefficients. As a result of multiple linear regression analysis, it was found that both satisfaction and dissatisfaction had the greatest effect on cheapness. Research Implications This study attempted to analyze a situation where studies on the conversion of direct overseas purchase to domestic purchase were insignificant. In order to induce or convert overseas direct purchases into domestic purchases at a time when overseas direct purchases are increasing, price factors should be prioritized, and efforts should be made to ensure that product diversity and delivery are quickly carried out, and exchanges and returns are performed properly.

Socio-Psychological Traits Effects of Chemyeon on the Consumers of Network Marketing

Purpose This study was conducted to understand the underlying cause of the negative perception towards network marketing in the Korean market, despite its firm establishment as a means to promote product sales. The research primarily focuses on Chemyeon, the unique socio-psychological traits of Korean consumers that tend to be highly conscious of the social perceptions and “face saving-”, underlying this social phenomenon. Design/Methodology/Approach To this end, an online survey was carried out with 439 male and female respondents aged 20 to 59. Findings The results are as follows: First, being conscious of others had a positive impact on consumer attitude, product attitude, and purchase intention. Second, the tendency to avoid humiliation negatively only affected purchase intention. Research Implications This research is of academic significance in that it is based on the personality and psychological traits of Koreans, which have not been dealt with by previous studies on network marketing. This study demonstrates the need to design strategies based on a proper understanding of the psychological attributes of network marketing consumers, with socio-psychological traits in particular, to successfully vitalize network marketing in Korea.

소비자의 패션감성/취향이 라이프스타일숍 선호도에 미치는 영향과 감각적 체험요소가 온라인 라이프스타일 제품구매 의도에 미치는 영향 ╶ 한국형과 유럽형 라이프스타일숍을 중심으로╶

This study aims to investigate the shopping behavior of lifestyle shops, and to examine the effects of various consumers' fashion sensibilities and tastes on the preferences of lifestyle brand shops launched in Europe and Korea. In addition, it was attempted to observe whether the sensibility experience factors of consumers in the on/offline lifestyle shop store influence the intention to purchase products of online shopping shops. The research method was a questionnaire method, for female consumers aged 20s to 30s those who have an experience in purchasing a lifestyle shop, collecting data on mobile and online by convenience sampling, and conducting statistical analysis. As a result, respondents showed that the most preferred shop was IKEA in lifestyle shop preferences, Most of consumers first looked at things offline, and mostly bought online, called “showroomig”. Second, we realized that ethnic taste had a significant negative influence on the preference of European lifestyle shops, while Korean & romantic taste and mass sense had a positive effect. Third, sensibility experience factors such as “safety of shopping due to fear of corona”, “easy exchange and refund”, “happy feeling of receiving a gift during delivery”, and “free shipping charge” are significantly positive in product purchase intentions at online lifestyle shops. Among the factors, the stability of shopping has the greatest impact on the purchase intention. In addition, the most important factor influencing the repurchase intention of an online lifestyle shop is the “purchase review”. The findings was significant in proposing product planning and VMD strategies that could appeal to Korean consumers in terms of marketing, considering the competition of domestic brands with global SPA lifestyleshop brands.

The Structural Relationship between Service Quality and Sustainable Use Intention of Voice Search Technology in Korea

Voice search based on artificial intelligence is the fastest means of searching for information and can be easily used in a very familiar way by ordinary users without separate education or learning. Voice bot’s voice search can interact on the same level as face-to-face communication and provide customized services optimized for users. It is most important for these new technologies to develop from a non-face-to-face social structure caused by COVID-19 to a long-term sustainable technology rather than short-term development. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to empirically verify the structural relationship between the quality, interactivity, and consumers’ sustainable use intentions for voice search services called ‘voice bots’ in Korea, an advanced country of computer science and technology. A survey was conducted on Korean consumers aged 20 or older who use voice search services, and the following main results were derived. First, the playfulness, certainty, and empathy of the ‘voice bot’ have a positive effect on the interactivity with the ‘voice bot’. Second, interactivity with the ‘voice bot’ has a positive effect on consumers’ sustainable use intention. Third, the playfulness and certainty of ‘voice bot’ have a positive effect on consumers’ sustainable use intention. Fourth, the playfulness, certainty, and empathy of the ‘voice bot’ have a positive effect on consumers’ sustainable use intention through interactivity with the ‘voice bot’. This study is meaningful in that it empirically identified the importance of interactivity by deriving the service quality factors required for sustainable use of voice search services, one of the new innovative technologies.

Why did (some) consumers buy toilet papers? A cross‐cultural examination of panic buying as a maladaptive coping response to COVID‐19

AbstractThe high uncertainty around the COVID‐19 pandemic elicited an unprecedented level of panic buying during the early months. Using the framework of stress and coping, the current study conceptualized and tested a theoretical model that predicts individuals' panic buying in two countries. A survey of US (n = 311) and Korean consumers (n = 347) revealed that negative emotions (loneliness and anxiety) contributed to panic buying, yet two important coping resources, resilience and social support, were effective in protecting consumers from engaging in a maladaptive coping strategy. The hypothesis that collectivism (vs. individualism) would make consumers rely on social (vs. personal) coping resources was partially supported. The results highlight the unique circumstance of the global pandemic in which social support works as both a resource for healthy coping and a source to increase negative emotions, and call for future investigation of the complex role of social support in the context of stress and coping theory.

Consumers" Repurchase Intention and WOM on SNS for Japanese Food

This study examined how Japanese food expectations and performance formulate satisfaction among Korean consumers, which, in turn, influences their repurchase intention and word-of-mouth (WOM) on social networking service (SNS). Many people still have fears about the effect of the accident on Japanese food even more than 10 years after the radioactive contamination accident in the Great East Japan Earthquake of March 2011. Such fear is evident especially in Korea, which is one of the countries nearest to Japan. On one hand, there are concerns about the radioactive contamination of Japanese food; on the other hand, Japanese food is becoming popular in Korea. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate consumer satisfaction regarding Japanese food and how it affects repurchase intention and WOM on SNS. The results showed that expectations about Japanese food strongly influenced performance. Furthermore, this study demonstrated that consumer satisfaction has a positive effect on repurchase intention and WOM on SNS. Its findings demonstrate the causal relationship between expectation, performance, satisfaction, repurchase intention, and WOM on SNS. These findings also demonstrated the impact of increasing consumer satisfaction on repurchase intention and WOM on SNS.

A Study on the Moderating Effect of Consumer’s Intention to Use for Cross-Border Trade in Korea and Vietnam

Purpose – This study aims to identify consumer tendencies in Korea and Vietnam, focusing on the online platform called cross-border, to derive revenue generation measures and use them for strategies to advance into ASEAN. Design/methodology – The questionnaire collected 420 copies from December 1 to December 31, 2020, of which 408 were used for statistical processing. The structural equation model (SEM) and moderating effect analysis with Amos was used to test hypothesis in this research. Findings – The hypotheses were set as factors that positively influence the intention to use ecommerce, such as effort expectancy, social influence, facilitating conditions and variety seeking showed statistically significant results. Among them, the social influence factor had the greatest influence, followed by facilitating condition. The sample was divided into countries, Korea and Vietnam, and these changes and differences in influence were confirmed through moderating effect analysis. Originality/value – The moderating effect on both countries (Korea and Vietnam) was found to have a moderating effect on the intention to use. For Korean consumers, significant results were found in the effort expectancy, social influence, facilitating conditions, and variety seeking, but for Vietnamese consumers, there were significant effects on the social influence and facilitating conditions, but the effort expectancy and variety seeking had no significant effect.

Agrifood consumer competency and organic food purchase intentions according to food-related lifestyle: based on data the 2019 Consumer Behavior Survey for Food.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVESThe increased consumers’ interests in health and food safety have increased the demand for organic foods. Many studies have been performed on consumers’ purchase intentions for organic foods and their influencing factors, and various studies have shown that the prices of organic foods and the consumers’ willingness to pay are important influencing factors. This study examined the payment value of organic foods and agrifood consumer competency index according to the food-related lifestyles in South Korean consumers.SUBJECTS/METHODSA cross-sectional analysis was performed using the 2019 Consumer Behavior Survey for Food. A total of 6,176 participants aged 19 to 74 years (male: 2,783, female: 3,393) were included in the analysis.RESULTSThree factors were extracted by factor analysis (rational consumption-seeking type, convenience-seeking type, and health, and safety-seeking type) to explain the consumers’ food-related lifestyles. The results of cluster analysis suggested that consumers were classified into 3 food-related lifestyles as the ‘exploratory consumers’ (n = 2,485), ‘safety-seeking consumers’ (n = 1,544), and ‘passive consumers’ (n = 2,147). Exploratory consumers showed a significantly higher willingness to pay for imported organic foods (P < 0.05). Safety-seeking consumers had a significantly higher willingness to pay for domestic organic foods (P < 0.05). For the agrifood consumer competency index, exploratory consumers had the highest score, followed in order by safety-seeking consumers and passive consumers.CONCLUSIONSThese results provide basic data in understanding consumption tendency for organic foods and agrifoods based on food-related lifestyles of South Korean consumers.

Korean Consumers’ Responses to Nike’s “Women’s Just Do It” Femvertising Campaign

In its evaluation of femvertising, the current study is designed to examine the roles of gender (males vs. females), the level of attitude toward feminism (weak vs. strong), and the level of congruence or “fit” between the brand and ad messages (low vs. high). This study found that female audiences have more positive attitudes toward femvertising, brand, and higher purchase intention than do male audiences. According to study results, feminists, regardless of gender, have more positive (a) attitudes toward femvertising and (b) brand and have (c) higher purchase intention than non-feminists. In addition, study findings suggest that high perceived congruence between the brand and femvertising messages results in more positive attitudes toward femvertising and brand, and to higher purchase intention. Theoretical and practical implications are also discussed.

Exposure assessment of benzoic acid from processed foods in South Korea

ABSTRACT To evaluate the dietary exposure to benzoic acid of Korean consumers, the daily intake of benzoic acid was estimated using benzoic acid concentrations from processed food survey data in South Korea and food consumption data from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey in 2018. The results were compared with the acceptable daily intake (ADI) stipulated by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives. In addition, we estimated the effects and risk of benzoic acid intake, which may be increased by including amounts of naturally occurring benzoic acid recently established by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. Benzoic acid analyses were conducted in South Korea in 2020 for a total of 127,628 samples; it was detected in 1,803 samples, a detection rate of 1.4%. The mean contents of total samples and detected samples were 1.3 mg/kg and 89.4 mg/kg, respectively. The estimated daily intake (EDI) of benzoic acid for average consumers using a mean value of detected samples was 207.3 μg/kg.bw/day, which is 4.1% of ADI. The EDI of benzoic acid for high consumers (95th percentile) of processed foods among the consumers was 1,406.7 μg/kg.bw/day, which is 28.1% of the ADI. As a result of estimating the intake of benzoic acid, which may be increased by a newly established standard on natural occurrence in South Korea, the theoretical maximum EDI of benzoic acid was 109.9 μg/kg.bw/day, which is 2.2% of the ADI.

Consumer Behaviour and Social Entrepreneurship: The Case of South Korea

Although social entrepreneurship has gained popularity and our understanding of social entrepreneurship has evolved, insufficient attention has been given to understand the behaviours of consumers, a key stakeholder of social entrepreneurship. Because consumers directly impact the performance of social enterprises, it is imperative to address this research gap. Relying on the theory of planned behaviour, we examine the relationship between consumers’ intentions and behaviours when purchasing social enterprise products and services. Moreover, this study explores how consumers’ sociodemographic characteristics, such as political ideology, trust towards social entrepreneurship, and household income, influence the relationship between consumers’ intentions and behaviours. Based on a sample of randomly selected 972 Korean consumers, this study finds a consumer’s intention is positively associated with behaviour, and the positive relationship between intention and action is strengthened when a consumer has a progressive political ideology and higher income level.

Perceptions of large Korean corporations from a social cognition perspective

ABSTRACT Large corporations can be important symbols in the lives of Korean consumers, but little is known about the way their corporate imagery might be seen by the public. The imagery of 10 such companies was found to be described by and grouped around three theorized image dimensions: warmth, competence, and status. The same dimensions predicted satisfaction and brand-person congruence. We tested competing theories of whether status associations are independent of competence evaluations or are their antecedents. Our data supported the former view. We also tested the theory that warmth evaluations best predict satisfaction and brand-person congruence and found only qualified support.

Use of Mobile Grocery Shopping Application: Motivation and Decision-Making Process among South Korean Consumers

With the revitalization of the online grocery trading market, many consumers are using mobile applications to purchase groceries. Although past studies were conducted on online grocery purchases, few measured mobile app users in a conceptual model that combines both motivational needs and behavioral components. Grounded in the uses and gratifications theory and the theory of planned behavior, this study investigated utilitarian motives, hedonic motives, experiential motives, attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, purchase intention, and purchase behavior among mobile grocery app users in South Korea. As an additional analysis, a comparison between users and non-users of mobile grocery apps was implemented. The results showed that the utilitarian motives of grocery app users significantly influenced attitudes, attitudes and subjective norms influenced user intention, and user intention influenced grocery purchase behavior. Users showed statistically higher utilitarian motives, hedonic motives, and attitudes than non-users. The results suggest that South Korean consumers hold positive attitudes toward mobile grocery shopping and that the opinions of others may influence the decision to use the services. Mobile groceries in South Korea may have the potential for continued growth if individuals’ perceived control of the service improves. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.

A Study on the Effect of Country Image on Korean Consumers’ Intention to Purchase Foreign Products: A Comparative Study of the United States and China

Purpose - This study analyzes the impact of the country image on Korean consumers’ intention to purchase foreign products with the U.S. and China, and aims to use the analysis results to satisfy the needs of foreign consumers and increase their utility at the national or corporate level. Design/Methodology/Approach - National images were studied in subdimensions of political and legal, socio cultural, technical, relational images, and regression analysis was performed based on a total of 125 survey data. Findings - Analysis shows that in both China and the United States, political, legal and social and cultural images have no significant impact on purchase intent, while technical and relational images have a positive (+) effect on purchase intention to foreign product. Research Implications - Based on the analysis results, in order to increase a lot of overseas demand for Korean electronic products, it is important to conduct active research and development and to conduct marketing that emphasizes technology, and to build favorable relationship at the national or corporate level.

Implicit Values of Functional Attributes in Fluid Milk Products: Hedonic Analysis of Korean Fluid Milk Market

Competition in the Korean milk market is being intensified with the emergence of a variety of product-differentiated milk. The purpose of this study is to measure implicit values of functional attributes of fluid milk products in Korea, which is a representative example of product differentiation. Hedonic price analysis and households’ milk purchase data were employed for this study. Our findings suggest that Korean consumers have a high value for lactose-free property (25.4% price premium) over conventional milk. This reflects the fact that many Korean adults have lactose intolerance and the lactose-free properties can help digest milk without negative symptoms. In addition, the estimated price premium for the calcium-fortified attribute was positive but a little higher over the base case at 2.4% level. In the case of vitamin fortification, it was found to have a negative value (-34.6%). Our results are expected to be useful for the milk industry to make decisions about the investment, production, or pricing strategy.

Empirical Analysis of Korean Consumers' Satisfaction with Chinese Small Electronic Products, Repurchase Intention and Recommendation by Others

소비자들은 소형전자제품을 구매하는 경우 어떤 특성들이 만족도에 영향을 미치는지 그리고 미래소형전자제품의 재구매 의도와 타인 추천에 어떠한 의사결정을 내릴 것인지에 대한 연구의 필요성이 제기되고 있다. 본 연구는 한국시장에서 중국 소형전자제품을 구매하는 소비자를 대상으로 제품의 품질, 가격, 편리성, 디자인 그리고 신뢰도가 만족도에 대한 영향을 실증분석하고, 만족도가 재구매 의도와 타인추천 미치는 영향을 실증 분석하고자 한다. 이의 연구를 통해 한국 소비자가 중국 소형전자제품의 만족도에 관한 연구를 하여, 한국 소형전자 제품의 가격경쟁, 품질 경쟁에 대응하는 전략을 수립하는데 도움을 주고자 한다. 요인분석을 통하여 발견된 중국 소형전자제품의 품질, 가격, 편리성, 디자인, 신뢰도 등 제품속성들에 대한 만족도와 전반적인 만족도의 관계를 살펴보면, 품질, 가격, 편리성, 신뢰도 요인은 한국 소비자들의 만족도가 높은 것으로 나타났으면, 반면 디자인 요인은 만족도에 별다른 영향을 미치지 않는 것으로 나타났다. 이는 중국 소형전자제품의 디자인 측면은 한국 소비자들은 고려하지 않은 것이다. 그리고 중국 소형전자제품을 구매한 한국 소비자들의 만족도가 재구매 의도와 타인추천에 모두 정(+)의 영향을 미치고 있으며, 중국 소형전자제품에 대한 재구매 의도가 타인추천에도 긍정적인 영향을 미치고 있다는 것이다.

How do consumers choose to click ‘like’ on luxury ads in social media? Role of envy, number of likes, and culture

We conducted two experimental studies to examine how malicious and benign envy and the number of likes as a social proof determine the intention to click “like” on luxury advertisements on social media. As expected, benign enviers reacted positively to an ad with high like totals. In contrast, malicious enviers reacted positively to an ad with low like totals. Testing the effects of culture on this relationship revealed individualistic versus collectivist cultural differences. US consumers tend to have higher intentions to click “like” when malicious envy is paired with low numbers of likes. Comparatively, Korean consumers show higher click intentions when benign envy is paired with high numbers of likes. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.

An Examination of Partitioned Pricing and the Influence of Culture and Familiarity on Sport Consumer Behavior

Prior research has examined consumer behavior toward partitioned pricing in various capacities, including types and number of surcharges and the use of dollars versus percentages. Given the fact partitioned pricing is not employed in every country, this investigation focused on consumer behavior toward this pricing strategy based on familiarity with partitioned pricing and cultural differences. An experimental design was implemented to examine South Korean and US sport consumers’ attitudes and behaviors related to ticket prices for a mega-sporting event. The findings showed all-inclusive pricing, in general, is preferred and culture does not significantly impact consumer behavior in this context. Additionally, familiarity moderated the relationship between cultural differences and consumer behavior. Consumers who were familiar with partitioned pricing were more attracted to partitioned pricing ticket offers and had higher purchase intentions compared to consumers who were less familiar with the practice. Implications of these findings are discussed along with directions for future research.

An Examination of Partitioned Pricing and the Influence of Culture and Familiarity on Sport Consumer Behavior

Abstract: Prior research has examined consumer behavior toward partitioned pricing in various capacities, including types and number of surcharges and the use of dollars versus percentages. Given the fact partitioned pricing is not employed in every country, this investigation focused on consumer behavior toward this pricing strategy based on familiarity with partitioned pricing and cultural differences. An experimental design was implemented to examine South Korean and US sport consumers’ attitudes and behaviors related to ticket prices for a mega-sporting event. The findings showed all-inclusive pricing, in general, is preferred and culture does not significantly impact consumer behavior in this context. Additionally, familiarity moderated the relationship between cultural differences and consumer behavior. Consumers who were familiar with partitioned pricing were more attracted to partitioned pricing ticket offers and had higher purchase intentions compared to consumers who were less familiar with the practice. Implications of these findings are discussed along with directions for future research.