LITERATURE REVIEW

LITERATURE REVIEW

Introduction

Consumer behavior may be influenced by cultural, social, personal, and psychological factors (Kotler 2000). Cultural factors include national culture, subculture, and social class, whereas social factors include reference groups, family, roles, and statuses. Personal factors encompass those demographic variables such as age, occupation, income and lifestyles, whereas psychological factors encompass those variables such as motivation and perception. In this light, consumer consumption of counterfeit goods is expected to be influenced by a considerable set of variables. In this study, a handful of variables associated with consumer demographic and psychographic characteristics were selected as key constructs influencing consumer behavior toward the use of counterfeit goods and the frequency of usage.

Demographic Characteristics

Gender and family affluence level were selected as two key demographic characteristics. It is possible that women in general may pay more attention to personal appearance than men. Hence, women are more likely to use counterfeit products and use them more frequently than men. Family affluence level may also have some impact on the use of counterfeit goods. Students from a less affluent family may have limited income to spend on genuine brand name products and, hence, may switch to buy counterfeit items instead. In this light, it is possible that students who are from a less affluent family are more likely to be users of counterfeit goods than those who are from a more affluent family.

Psychographic Characteristics

Psychographic characteristics refer to those characteristics concerning social and psychological factors. The selected characteristics consist of social acceptance, personal image, taste for western products, and materialism.

Social Acceptance

Social acceptance is based on the concept of reference group influence. Groups often influence personal values and lifestyles. Individuals often adopt the expressed values of their friends and the celebrities they adore. Two types of group influence are relevant to the use of counterfeit goods. One is membership group and the other is aspiration group (Assael, 1992). Membership group refers to the group in which the individual is a part of. Membership groups can be classified into primary and secondary groups. A primary group refers to the group in which the individual has a regular contact with. These primary groups may include family members, friends, or colleagues. On the other hand, a secondary group refers to the group in which the individual has less frequent contact with. These secondary groups may involve political groups or club members. In this study, the influence of membership group will be confined to that of friends. The individual is often in close contact with friends and, hence, may have a tendency to conform to group behavior. If other members of the group wear and use brand name products, the individual will try to wear and use similar products. Thus, it is likely that the use of counterfeit goods is a means for the individual to try to fit in. An aspiration group, on the other hand, refers to the group in which the individual is not a part of but wishes to be a part of. Two types of aspiration groups can be classified. These are anticipatory aspiration groups and symbolic aspiration groups. Anticipatory aspiration groups refer to groups the individual expects to be a part of in the future, whereas symbolic aspiration groups are groups that an individual is not a part of and is not likely to be a part of. In this study, the influence of aspiration groups will be confined to that of symbolic aspiration groups. Celebrities, such as movie stars and singers, are considered members of symbolic aspiration groups. Consumers who are attached to the celebrities they adore will likely to purchase and use the products these people endorse. In this light, it is plausible that the individual who has a favorable attitude toward celebrities but has limited income may purchase and use counterfeit products as an alternative to enhance one’s own status.

Personal Image

Image has been extensively studied in the retail settings. It has been defined as consumer evaluation of salient attributes, which could be tangible and intangible or functional, and psychological (Thompson and Chen, 1998). In this study, personal image is defined as the tangible appearance of the individual. It is analogous to the level of impression one would like to have (Sampson 1995). Some people consider personal image an important characteristic, whereas some do not give much weight to personal appearance. If one has a tendency to try to impress others, one will be more concerned with personal appearance and likely to purchase and use counterfeit goods with the purpose of trying to enhance one’s own image (Nia and Zaichkowsky, 2000).

Taste for Western Products. Taste is analogous to the concept of brand preference. In this study, taste for western goods is defined as individual preference given to western brand name products. For these individuals, the use of western brand name products would help satisfy their personal needs and, at the same time, help increase their personal status in the society. Drawing from this line of reasoning, it may be argued that consumers with high levels of taste for western products are likely to be users of counterfeit products.

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