Moon-Yong Kim and Byung Il Park
The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of country of origin (COO) information as an important/salient categorical attribute on choice context effects. Specifically…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of country of origin (COO) information as an important/salient categorical attribute on choice context effects. Specifically, this research examines whether the introduction of a unique COO in the choice set will have a differential influence on context effects depending on the relative position of the third option (the asymmetrically dominated option vs the extreme option).
Design/methodology/approach
Five experiments were conducted in this research. Study 1 had a 2 (set size: two-option core set vs three-option asymmetric dominance set)×2 (competitor’s COO: common vs unique) between-subjects design. Study 2 had a 2 (set size: two-option core set vs three-option extreme option set)×2 (competitor’s COO: common vs unique) between-subjects design. To address the robustness of the effects, Studies 3-5 replicated the results of Studies 1 and 2. The data were analyzed by χ2 tests and logistic regression analyses.
Findings
The current research demonstrates that the attraction effect is attenuated by the introduction of a unique COO information in the competing option, whereas the tendency to prefer a middle option is not significantly affected.
Originality/value
The present research adds to the current understanding and the practical relevance of COO effects and context effects in marketing by examining the impact of COO as an important/salient categorical attribute on context effects.