The changing nature of consumer animosity and cosmopolitanism among young, individualistic consumers in emerging Asia: evidence from China

Abstract

PurposeThis study is designed to address how rising individualism in emerging Asia changes consumer values and subsequent consumer behavior toward foreign brands. For this, we investigate consumer animosity (CA) and consumer cosmopolitanism (COS) in China and their impacts on consumer dispositions toward Japanese brands.Design/methodology/approachThe study hypothesizes that CA and COS mediate the effects of consumer individualism and age on brand attitudes and purchase intentions. Online surveys were conducted with 421 consumers in China.FindingsThe results indicate that consumers with individualistic values show favorable dispositions toward Japanese brands because of weak CA and strong COS values. In addition, the study found that younger consumers also harbor weak CA and do not avoid Japanese brands because of it. However, younger consumers were not found to be more cosmopolitan than their older counterparts.Originality/valueOur findings suggest that the modernization and individualization of a society can have impacts on consumer values in emerging Asia and that changes in consumer values among young and individualistic consumers can lead to increased preferences for foreign brands, especially brands from a country with historical animosity.

Decreasing consumer animosity: The relationship between fast food businesses and social conflicts in Latin America and the Caribbean

“…The results obtained allow us to show that there is a negative and significant relationship between individualism and consumer animosity, thus confirming hypothesis 1 (H1), as well as previous studies by Han (2017); and Han et al (2020).…”

“…In this way, and based on previous studies by Han (2017), Leonidou et al (2019), and Han et al (2020) we formulate the following hypothesis: H1: Individualism has a negative and significant effect on consumer animosity.…”

Consumer brand engagement in the US–China trade war

“…Since numerous brands manufacture and source materials in China, COO and purchase intention (PI) have no significant effects on young Chinese consumers (Wong et al, 2008); as Chinese consumers have become more individualistic, the effects of hostile emotions (e.g. ethnocentrism) have decreased accordingly (Han et al, 2020). Nonetheless, the influence of the US-China trade war is dramatic; therefore, this study proposes seven hypotheses to verify not only the positive relationship between COO and CBE regarding PI, but also the negative EA effect on PI.…”

The impact of service category and brand positioning on consumer animosity in the service sector – a social identity signaling perspective

“…As Klein et al (1998) published their seminal study, the effect of consumer animosity on foreign product purchases has been thoroughly documented in the literature (Abraham and Reitman, 2018;Amine et al, 2005;De Nisco et al, 2020;Funk et al, 2010;Gineikiene and Diamantopoulos, 2017;Grappi et al, 2020;Han et al, 2020;Han, 2017;Heinberg, 2017;Khan et al, 2019;Klein, 2002;Lee et al, 2020;Lee et al, 2017;Leong et al, 2008;Lin and Bruning, 2020;Papadopoulos et al, 2017;Riefler and Diamantopoulos, 2007;Russell and Russell, 2006). The central rationale of consumer animosity research is that consumers resist purchasing foreign goods because their hostile attitudes toward a particular country exceed their product quality judgments (Klein, 2002;Klein et al, 1998).…”