Fon Sim Ong

Integrating Health Belief Model and Technology Acceptance Model: An Investigation of Health-Related Internet Use

Background Today, people use the Internet to satisfy health-related information and communication needs. In Malaysia, Internet use for health management has become increasingly significant due to the increase in the incidence of chronic diseases, in particular among urban women and their desire to stay healthy. Past studies adopted the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Health Belief Model (HBM) independently to explain Internet use for health-related purposes. Although both the TAM and HBM have their own merits, independently they lack the ability to explain the cognition and the related mechanism in which individuals use the Internet for health purposes. Objective This study aimed to examine the influence of perceived health risk and health consciousness on health-related Internet use based on the HBM. Drawing on the TAM, it also tested the mediating effects of perceived usefulness of the Internet for health information and attitude toward Internet use for health purposes for the relationship between health-related factors, namely perceived health risk and health consciousness on health-related Internet use. Methods Data obtained for the current study were collected using purposive sampling; the sample consisted of women in Malaysia who had Internet access. The partial least squares structural equation modeling method was used to test the research hypotheses developed. Results Perceived health risk (β=.135, t 1999=2.676) and health consciousness (β=.447, t 1999=9.168) had a positive influence on health-related Internet use. Moreover, perceived usefulness of the Internet and attitude toward Internet use for health-related purposes partially mediated the influence of health consciousness on health-related Internet use (β=.025, t 1999=3.234), whereas the effect of perceived health risk on health-related Internet use was fully mediated by perceived usefulness of the Internet and attitude (β=.029, t 1999=3.609). These results suggest the central role of perceived usefulness of the Internet and attitude toward Internet use for health purposes for women who were health conscious and who perceived their health to be at risk. Conclusions The integrated model proposed and tested in this study shows that the HBM, when combined with the TAM, is able to predict Internet use for health purposes. For women who subjectively evaluate their health as vulnerable to diseases and are concerned about their health, cognition beliefs in and positive affective feelings about the Internet come into play in determining the use of health-related Internet use. Furthermore, this study shows that engaging in health-related Internet use is a proactive behavior rather than a reactive behavior, suggesting that TAM dimensions have a significant mediating role in Internet health management.

Family and television influences on materialism: a cross‐cultural life‐course approach

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to examine whether the development of materialistic values in early life reflects cultural norms or is the outcome of media and family influences. It seeks to examine the role of family communication and television, which were found to promote materialistic values in individualistic countries, by assessing their effects on youths in four countries that represent the Eastern and Western cultures: Japan, Malaysia, USA, and France.Design/methodology/approach – The study used an anonymous self‐administered survey of young adults aged 18 to 32 years in two diverse Eastern countries: Japan and Malaysia (total n=351); the sample size was approximately the same for the Western countries of USA and France (n=315). The samples were equivalent with respect to demographic characteristics. The Malaysian questionnaires were available in both English and Malay. Measurement scales included in the Japanese questionnaires come from available translated versions. The French questionnai...

Path analysis of atmospherics and convenience on flow: the mediation effects of brand affect and brand trust

Although there has been extensive research on retail environments and the effects of atmospherics on consumer behaviour, research of this nature in developing countries such as Malaysia is still scant in spite of the proliferation of shopping malls. In this study, the role of atmospherics and locational convenience was examined. The mediating effects of brand trust and brand affect were also tested on the relationship between the dependent variables: atmospherics and locational convenience on flow and the dependent variable using structural equations analysis. Data for the present study were collected from shoppers exiting shopping malls in Kuala Lumpur/Petaling Jaya. A total of 698 responses from 11 malls were analysed. Results show an absence of the direct effect of atmospherics and locational convenience on flow, contrary to findings of past research which show a direct effect on approach/avoidance behaviour. The present study supports findings of more recent studies that suggest the presence of intervening variables, i.e. the hypothesised mediating role of brand trust and brand affect on the relationship between atmospherics and flow, and between locational convenience and flow. Findings suggest that the pleasant environment and locational convenience together evoked brand affect and brand trust, which in turn affects flow. Gender effect on the hypothesised relationships was tested. Results show that male and female shoppers tended to respond differently to the exogenous variables of atmospherics and locational convenience. Limitations and directions for future research are suggested.

Materialism and life satisfaction: the role of religion.

This study examines the role of religion and religiosity in the relationship between materialism and life satisfaction. The findings suggests that religion may be a key factor in understanding differences in findings of previous studies regarding the inverse relationship found in the vast majority of previous studies. Based on a large-scale study in Malaysia—a country comprised of several religious subcultures (mainly Muslims, Buddhists, and Hindus), the findings suggest that the influence of religiosity on materialism and life satisfaction is stronger among Malays than among Chinese and Indians, and life satisfaction partially mediates the relationship between religiosity and materialism. The paper discusses implications for theory development and further research.

Country of origin and country of service delivery effects in transnational higher education: a comparison of international branch campuses from developed and developing nations

ABSTRACT Over the last decade, international branch campuses have been established by universities from developing countries as well as developed countries. Little research has been conducted into students’ perceptions of branch campuses from different countries, or how universities from different countries compete in the increasingly competitive market. A framework incorporating the concepts of country of origin and country of service delivery is adopted to assess how potential undergraduate students in Malaysia perceive the home and international branch campuses of universities from the United Kingdom (UK) and India, which are used to represent universities from developed and developing nations. It was found that for a university from a developing nation, students perceived the image, reputation, quality and brand equity of its home campus more positively than its international branch campus. The results suggest that although all universities must devise and implement strategies that enhance the image and reputation of their international branch campuses, institutions from developing countries should seek niche markets where they do not have to compete directly with prestigious universities from developed countries.

Materialism and well-being: the moderating effects of religiosity on young Malaysian consumers

This article presents the results of a large-scale study of the relationship between materialism and well-being by examining the moderating role of religiosity. By confining the present study to a sample of young consumers drawn from Malaysia – a country of diverse subcultures who share similar cultural values (collectivistic), we attempt to validate findings of previous research that may reflect the influence of age, country, culture, subculture, and the variety of measures of religiosity, materialism and well-being. This study finds that having strong religious orientations makes Muslim youths happier, whereas such a relationship does not hold for their Buddhist counterparts. The present study also finds no relationship between materialism and well-being among youths in either religious subculture, but finds that religiosity has a significant negative effect on the well-being of Muslims who have strong materialistic values as their Buddhist counterparts who hold equally strong materialistic orientations.

Effects of life status changes on changes in consumer preferences

This article examines the effect of life status changes on consumer preferences. It seeks explanations for continuities and changes in consumer preferences and examines the role of cultural and subcultural influences. Data used in the present study come from a large-scale survey that used face-to-face interviews with a total of 645 respondents from three different ethnic backgrounds in Peninsular Malaysia. The findings show some consistencies with those of past research. They also suggest subcultural differences in consumer responses due to life-changing events. The study suggests the value of adopting the life course paradigm as a blueprint for further research across countries.

Clarifying the relationship between materialism and well-being: testing for reciprocal and third-variable effects

Although consumer researchers have investigated the relationship between materialism and well-being (life satisfaction and self-esteem) for decades, their findings have been neither consistent about the nature of this relationship nor conclusive as to the direction of causality. The present study attempts to examine the reciprocal relationships of these variables using a large-scale survey in Malaysia. The emerged relationships between materialism and the two measures of well-being are subjected to a rigorous test for assessing the direction of causality. The results show that materialism has no significant impact on well-being, and the same two measures of well-being (life satisfaction and self-esteem) have no effect on materialism. However, the study finds stress to moderate the causal effect of well-being on materialism. High levels of well-being appear to promote materialistic values only among those Malaysians who report low levels of chronic stress. Implications and directions for future research are suggested for marketing practitioners and consumer researchers.

Understanding the relationships between age, gender, and life satisfaction: the mediating role of stress and religiosity

Although hundreds of investigations have examined the relationship between age and life satisfaction, a recent review of these studies reveals that relatively little is known about the nature of this relationship, especially between genders and across cultures, and the mechanisms that link age to life satisfaction. Using a large-scale study in Malaysia, the present research explores the mediating effects of stress and religiosity that might be responsible for the empirical findings reported in previous studies. Contrary to previous findings based on US studies, this study finds that women are more satisfied with their lives than men in the early and later stages of life. Chronic stress and religiosity were found to partially mediate the relationship between age and life satisfaction, suggesting that these may be mechanisms that explain the findings of previous studies.

Shopper perception and loyalty: a stochastic approach to modelling shopping mall behaviour

Purpose – The study of shopping mall patronage behaviour includes concepts such as mall attributes and attractiveness, motivations and patronage choice. The purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of shopper loyalty and perception towards shopping malls. Design/methodology/approach – A survey using a systematic random sampling method was conducted on mall shoppers in major shopping malls in the most developed urban centres of Malaysia. Using a series of multivariate techniques, a stochastic model was developed to measure the impact of perception of malls on patronage loyalty. The model also estimated the mediating effects of brand trust and brand affect on patronage loyalty. Reliability and validity tests were conducted to measure the internal consistency and validity of the constructs. Findings – The results provided support for the hypothesised relationships between perception and loyalty. The results also suggested that malls generally have their own loyal patrons who not only perceive the mall...