Functional equivalence in cross‐cultural consumer behavior: Gift giving in Japan and the United States

Abstract

The functional equivalence of products and consumer activities across cultures is a largely unexplored area. Yet, the lack of functional equivalence that exists may suggest the need for modification of some concepts and theories of consumer behavior. The study reported in this paper explores the functional equivalence that exists between U.S. and Japanese consumers in an important consumer activity—gift giving. The results suggest a lack of functional equivalence of this activity and illustrate how researchers should give explicit consideration to this issue in the development and testing of consumer concepts and models.

A comparison of Korean and American gift-giving behaviors

“…In contrast to Green and Alden (1988), this study avoided student subjects because students give gifts less and are more limited financially than nonstudent consumers. Seven Americans (two males and five females) and seven Koreans (five males and two females) were recruited for the focus group interviews and four Americans (two males and two females) and four Koreans (two males and two females) participated in the in-depth interviews.…”

“…Before developing hypotheses and testing them quantitatively, this study employed focus groups and in-depth interviews as exploratory approaches in order to clarify the issues, generate hypotheses, and understand consumer's experiences (Green & Alden, 1988;Sherry, 1983).…”

What qualitative research can be

“…A complete review of many of the complex issues involved in such cross-cultural research is beyond the scope of this article. However, discussion of these and related issues may be found in Cohen and Swerdlik (1999), as well as the large and growing literature on this subject (e.g., Alden, Stayman, & Hoyer, 1994;Brislin, Lonner, & Thorndike, 1973;Cheng & Schweitzer, 1996;Conrad, Brown, & Harmon, 1997;Dichter, 1986;Donthu & Cherian, 1992;Goldsmith, Freiden, & Kilsheimer, 1993;Green, 1996;Green & Alden, 1988;Gregory & Munch, 1997;Han & Shavitt, 1994;Hays, 1996;Hinkle, 1994;Hirschman, 1981;Irvine & Berry, 1983;Keillor, Parker, & Schaefer, 1996;Lonner, 1985;Lopez & Hernandez, 1987;Ownbey & Horridge, 1997;Pitts, 1986;Roslow & Nicholls, 1996;Stern, 1988;Stith, 1989;Sundberg & Gonzales, 1981;Webster, 1991;Yau, 1988;Yi, 1998).…”

A study of Japanese consumers' cognitive hierarchies in formal and informal gift‐giving situations

“…The LOV instrument (Kahle, 1983) is composed of nine values encompassing internal (e.g., self-fulfillment, self-respect) and external (e.g., sense of belonging, warm relationships with others) dimensions. The personal-values scale was adapted by information gleaned through the focus groups with Japanese housewives and literature searches (e.g., Beatty et al, 1991Beatty et al, , 1993Green & Alden, 1988;Gudykunst & Antonio, 1993;Hofstede, 1980;Larke, 1994;Sai, 1995). The following six items were added to reflect Japanese-specific values: (a) harmony with others, (b) self-discipline, (c) achieving identity through affiliation with peers, (d) living up to position or status in life, (e) fulfill duties in honorable manner, and (f) family relationships.…”