How do consumers perceive the dual quality of goods and its economic aspects in the European Union? An empirical study

Abstract

Dual quality goods have been present in Europe for over 30 years. But only recently this problem has become current. More and more EU citizens complain about its presence in the united European market. In several countries, product testing, as well as population opinions, were conducted, but the results were not uniform. The European Commission itself acknowledged the existence of dual quality and began to address it. It has developed a common testing methodology and is also preparing legislative changes. In this respect, the examination of the situation in Slovakia as one of the EU countries is up to date. The aim of this research is to examine the opinions of Slovak consumers on the dual quality of daily consumer goods in the EU and its economic aspects, to compare them with the results from abroad and to formulate conclusions and recommendations. The survey used a questionnaire method, which examined the opinions of Slovak consumers on a sample of 919 respondents. Subsequently, the hypotheses were tested by the binomial test and Pearson correlation coefficient. The study provides an overview of the results of product testing carried out in Slovakia and abroad, as well as the results of a questionnaire survey of the opinions of Slovak consumers and their comparison with abroad. In Slovakia and the Czech Republic, more than 80% of respondents disagree with the existence of dual quality. The results of the study support the demand of Central and Eastern European countries for dual quality in the EU to be banned and eliminated.

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