The country of origin effect for Brazilian fresh fruits: a study using Partial Least Squares Procedures

The image of a product or brand refers to the set of associations related to this product or brand, which is stored in the consumer’s memory, and it directly affects the evaluation of products made in this country, leading to what is called “country of origin effect”. In spite of this subject’s importance, Brazilian studies on the effects related to COO information are still in their first steps. This study intended to investigate the COO effect in the consumer’s evaluation process of buying alternatives, considering Brazilian fresh fruits. The problem investigated was: What is the impact of Brazil’s image in the evaluation of this country’s fresh fruits? A quantitative, descriptive study was carried. The empirical research has used an indirect approach to measure the COO effect, which has not been seen before in past researches: a structural equation modelling approach. The resulting dimensions of Brazil’s image herein found were Product Evaluation, Brazil’s Respect and Importance, Art Evaluation, Affection toward Brazil and Communication and Distribution Evaluation. In conclusion, it was seen that the COO effect exists for Brazilian fresh fruits and it is positive, meaning that the image respondents have about Brazil positively affects their attitudes toward such product.

[1]  J. Rempel,et al.  Attitudes: A new look at an old concept. , 1988 .

[2]  Akira Nagashima.  A Comparison of Japanese and U.S. Attitudes toward Foreign Products , 1970 .

[3]  Michel Laroche,et al.  The influence of country image structure on consumer evaluations of foreign products , 2005 .

[4]  C. Fornell,et al.  Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. , 1981 .

[5]  G. Ger,et al.  Product-Country Images: Towards a Contextualized Approach , 1998 .

[6]  P. Kotler,et al.  Marketing places : attracting investment, industry, and tourism to cities, states and nations , 1993 .

[7]  Nicolas Papadopoulos,et al.  Effects of subcultural differences on country and product evaluations , 2003 .

[8]  S. Bhaskaran,et al.  Contextual and methodological issues in COO studies , 2007 .

[9]  Janaina de Moura Engracia Giraldi,et al.  Personal values and the ‘country‐of‐origin effect’: the moderating role of consumers' demographics , 2009 .

[10]  Ikujiro Nonaka,et al.  Assessing the Impact of Country of Origin on Product Evaluations: A New Methodological Perspective , 1985 .

[11]  Biing-Hwan Lin,et al.  America's Changing Appetite: Food Consumption and Spending to 2020 , 2002 .

[12]  D. Strutton,et al.  Russian Consumer Perceptions of Foreign and Domestic Consumer Goods: An Analysis of Country-of-Origin Stereotypes with Implications for Promotions and Positioning , 1995 .

[13]  Robert D. Schooler.  Product Bias in the Central American Common Market , 1965 .

[14]  G. Ger.  Country Image: Perceptions, Attitudes and Associations, and Their Relationship to Context , 1991 .

[15]  Nicolas Papadopoulos,et al.  Product-Country Images: Impact and Role in International Marketing , 1993 .

[16]  A. Diamantopoulos,et al.  Advancing the country image construct , 2009 .

[17]  A. d’Astous,et al.  The importance of country images in the formation of consumer product perceptions , 1999 .

[18]  Peeter W. J. Verlegh,et al.  A review and meta-analysis of country-of-origin research , 1999 .

[19]  Goutam Chakraborty,et al.  Measuring Images of Developing Countries: A Scale Development Study , 2000 .

[20]  A. Kruglanski,et al.  The Social Psychology of Knowledge , 2010 .

[21]  Subhash Sharma,et al.  Consumer Ethnocentrism: Construction and Validation of the CETSCALE: , 1987 .

[22]  R. Parameswaran,et al.  Confirmatory Factor Analysis of a Country-Of-Origin Scale: Initial Results , 1992 .

[23]  William K. Darley,et al.  An assessment of demand artefacts in country‐of‐origin studies using three alternative approaches , 1997 .

[24]  Israel D. Nebenzahl,et al.  Personifying Country of Origin Research , 2003 .

[25]  T. Melewar,et al.  The human values’ lenses of country of origin images , 2002 .

[26]  Jean-Claude Usunier.  Relevance in business research: the case of country‐of‐origin research in marketing , 2006 .

[27]  D. Maheswaran,et al.  Country of Origin as a Stereotype: Effects of Consumer Expertise and Attribute Strength on Product Evaluations , 1994 .

[28]  J. Hair.  Multivariate data analysis , 1972 .

[29]  Israel D. Nebenzahl,et al.  National Image and Competitive Advantage: The Theory and Practice of Country-Of-Origin Effect , 2001 .

[30]  D. Wittink,et al.  A model of consumer perceptions and store loyalty intentions for a supermarket retailer , 1998 .

[31]  Math J. J. M. Candel,et al.  The influence of the image of a product's region of origin on product evaluation , 2003 .

[32]  David Shipley,et al.  A METHOD FOR MODELLING CONSUMER PERCEPTIONS OF COUNTRY OF ORIGIN , 1988 .

[33]  Ingrid M. Martin,et al.  Measuring a multi-dimensional construct: Country image , 1993 .

[34]  D. Maheswaran,et al.  Determinants of Country-of-Origin Evaluations , 2000 .

[35]  S. Jain,et al.  Handbook of Research in International Marketing , 2005 .

[36]  M. Roth,et al.  Matching Product Catgeory and Country Image Perceptions: A Framework for Managing Country-of-Origin Effects , 1992 .

[37]  C. Min Han,et al.  Country Image: Halo or Summary Construct? , 1989 .

[38]  C. McDaniel,et al.  Contemporary Marketing Research , 1991 .

[39]  John Hulland,et al.  Use of partial least squares (PLS) in strategic management research: a review of four recent studies , 1999 .

[40]  J. Cacioppo,et al.  The Elaboration Likelihood Model of Persuasion , 1986 .

[41]  W. Kamakura,et al.  Country of Origin: A Competitive Advantage? , 1999 .

[42]  John O. Summers,et al.  An assessment of country of origin effects under alternative presentation formats , 1994 .

[43]  Nicolas Papadopoulos,et al.  Country Equity and Product-Country Images: State-of-the-Art in Research and Implications , 2003 .

[44]  K. Rajendran,et al.  Consumer Profiles and Perceptions: Country‐of‐origin Effects , 1993 .