بررسی مدل خصومت و دشمنی در یک کشور با سطح بالایی از تجارت خارجی

Much research relating to consumer attitudes toward foreign products has been conducted in large industrialized countries, with big internal markets and a wide range of domestic brands. Little attention has been paid to the case of countries with high levels of foreign trade where, in some product markets, no domestic brands or alternatives are available and hence consumers have no choice but to purchase foreign brands in that product category. The lack of domestic brands is, however, likely to affect feelings of ethnocentrism, nationality and animosity as well as attitudes towards the purchase of foreign products. This study examines consumer attitudes towards the purchase of foreign cars and TVs in the Netherlands. The Netherlands is viewed as a prototypical example of a country with high levels of foreign trade, well integrated into the global economy. In one category—cars, there are no domestic brands, while for TVs, Philips, a Dutch multinational, holds major market share. The results show that consumer ethnocentrism and feelings of animosity have an important impact on the evaluation of foreign products, even when no domestic brands are available.

With the growth of international trade, an increasingly diverse array of products of different national origins is now available in many countries throughout the world. This has resulted in greater interest in examining consumer attitudes towards products of different national origins, as well as the underlying determinants and antecedents of those attitudes. Most research has been conducted in large industrialized countries such as the US, France, Germany, and Japan that have large internal markets and a wide range of domestic alternatives or brands in most product categories. Attention has primarily focused on examining negative attitudes towards foreign or imported products, assuming that consumers prefer domestic-made products. Negative attitudes towards foreign products can arise from a number of sources. Consumers may believe products from certain countries, e.g., emerging markets, are of inferior quality (Han, 1988). They may hold feelings of hostility or animosity towards a specific country and hence “boycott” their products (Klein, Ettenson, & Morris, 1998). Equally, consumers may have strong feelings of patriotism and pride in domestic products and consider it wrong, almost immoral to buy foreign products (Shimp & Sharma, 1987). Attitudes towards foreign products will depend not only on individual characteristics and the product category, but also on the specific country or context. A contextual aspect that has been relatively little studied to date is the availability of domestic and foreign products. In countries such as the Netherlands, Belgium or Austria, there are no domestic brands or alternatives available in a number of product categories, as, for example, cars or computers. Consequently, the relevant choice set, and hence the evoked set in this category consists solely of foreign products or brands. As a result, even if consumers have negative attitudes towards foreign products in general, they may evaluate foreign brands in this category favorably and be willing to buy them. The importance of foreign trade and of imports is another factor likely to impact attitudes towards foreign products. In countries with a high proportion of imported foreign goods, consumers will be more accustomed to foreign brands. Equally, there may be no domestic manufacturers in many product categories. Typically such countries tend to be smaller countries with small internal markets inadequate in size to support certain industries. Larger countries typically have lower levels of imports and are more self-sufficient. Table 1 for example shows that levels of foreign trade in West European countries with over 40 million population average 45%. The average for smaller countries was over 88% suggesting a much high degree of global integration. Equally, export levels were much lower in larger countries, i.e. below 29%, whereas in small countries the only country below 31% was Greece with 15%. Increasing globalization and integration of the global economy makes it critical to examine whether and how high levels of foreign trade impacts attitudes towards foreign products. The objective of this study is to examine the impact of animosity and consumer ethnocentrism, and the availability of both domestic and foreign brands, on consumers' attitudes towards the purchase of foreign products in a country with a high level of foreign trade. Previous research relating to consumer attitudes towards foreign products is first discussed. A conceptual framework incorporating the various influences on consumer evaluation and willingness to purchase foreign products in a high import context is developed. This model is then tested in the Netherlands in relation to two product categories, (1) cars, a category in which there are no Dutch brands, and (2) TVs, where there is a strong Dutch brand—Philips. The findings, relating to the overall fit of the model and the two product categories are then discussed, and directions for future research suggested.

These results confirm previous findings that consumer ethnocentrism and feelings of animosity towards a country result in reluctance to purchase a foreign country's products, even in a small open society. Evaluation of products from a given country appears, to be influenced by the availability of domestic alternatives and in particular by travel and exposure to other countries. Where there are no perceived domestic alternatives, consumers appear more likely to evaluate foreign products favorably. However, when a single domestic brand is available, feelings of economic animosity may increase. Equally, if they are internationally oriented as manifested in interest in foreign travel, consumers are less likely to be ethnocentric and to evaluate foreign products negatively. The study suffers from a number of limitations. In the first place, the cross-sectional nature of the data implies that inference especially with regard to the direct influence of travel need to be interpreted with caution. Secondly, the high level of education and the number of young people in the sample may affect findings, although these are controlled for in the analysis. However, since young educated consumers are least likely to be ethnocentric, the findings suggest that feelings of consumer ethnocentrism and animosity exist even among such consumers. Finally, the study is limited to a single country and two product categories. Further research is clearly needed. First, extension of the research to other small, outwardly oriented countries such as Denmark or Norway would help to determine how far results can be generalized beyond the specific case of the Netherlands–Germany. Such research should also attempt to look at attitudes towards foreign and domestic products in these counties and specifically whether products from neighboring countries are in fact perceived as foreign. This will help to generate insight into the extent to which societies with high levels of foreign trade provide a different context from economies or societies that are economically self-sufficient and less open. If findings are different, it suggests that conceptual models and constructs developed in a country with low levels of foreign trade, e.g., the US may not be relevant in other country contexts, especially in relation to variables such as ethnocentrism or nationalism. Consequently, both conceptual models and constructs may need to be reviewed and modified to fit the specific country context (Douglas & Nijssen, 2004). For example, in this study the CETSCALE was modified to fit the lack of domestic brands in the Netherlands by eliminating items relating to availability of such brands. Secondly, studies comparing product categories where domestic options are widely available (e.g., food products such as cheese and soft drinks), with those where they are not (e.g., computers, watches, and motorcycles) are needed. This would help to shed light on the extent to which domestic product availability impacts attitudes towards and evaluation of foreign products, and also how “halo” effects associated with products from a given country extend to specific product categories. Where consumers are not familiar with a specific category, i.e. have less product knowledge, or do not differentiate between brands, “halo” effects have been found to influence product evaluations (Erickson et al., 1984). Attention to variation at different price points the level of consumer involvement and consumer categorization and expertise may also provide further insights into the nature of consumer attitudes towards and evaluation of foreign products. Thirdly, feelings of animosity towards other countries may stem not only from hostile military acts such as the massacre in Nanjing or occupation during World War II but also from general fears of economic dominance. Future research might also investigate other political and environmental concerns, such as need for reduction of toxic emissions or negative feelings towards nations that favor genetic engineering of food products, e.g., the US. The Austrian population, for instance, has been sensitive toward transit traffic from countries shipping products across the Alps. Equally the Greeks have boycotted products from countries that do not support their policies in Cyprus. Such concerns may thus be critical factors affecting attitudes towards products from other nations in certain societies. Differences in the effect of war and economic animosity found in this study might also be probed further. Fourthly, other variables may need to be examined and included in the model. Given the product-specific level of this study, future research might consider specific associations for products from a given country (e.g., German cars are seen as of high quality). Individual characteristics such as cosmopolitanism or product involvement might also be considered. Cosmopolitanism or worldmindedness might mediate or counterbalance the two inwardly directed constructs of animosity and ethnocentrism (Yoon, Cannon, & Yaprak, 1996). Cosmopolitanism has been found to be associated with openness to innovations (Thompson & Tambyah, 1999) and may be an important new avenue to explore especially in the context of countries with high levels of foreign trade. In brief, the present study provides some interesting insights on the impact of animosity and consumer ethnocentrism on evaluations of foreign products and reluctance to buy such products in a small country context. In particular, it suggests that consumer models developed in countries with large internal markets may need modification when applied to small countries with high levels of foreign trade. The specific findings also suggest that this country context is a promising avenue for further investigation not only in relation to attitudes toward and purchase of foreign products, but also other types of purchase behavior. This in turn may help to shed light on the importance of country-related contextual effects in conducting research on international markets—an aspect that has been sadly neglected to date.