Johny K. Johansson

Image Variables in Multi-Attribute Product Evaluations: Country-of-Origin Effects

An empirical investigation is conducted to determine the effects of image variables on beliefs and attitudes in the multi-attribute model framework. Simultaneous equation regression is used to estimate a model linking a particular type of image variable, country of origin, to attitudes and beliefs obtained through a survey of evaluations of automobile alternatives. The results indicate that country of origin affects beliefs but not attitudes.

The Role of Price in Multi-attribute Product Evaluations

The potentially multifaceted role of price in product evaluations is investigated with an empirical analysis of surveyed beliefs, attitudes, and intentions regarding automobile brands. It is found that price beliefs both influence and are influenced by beliefs about a brands quality, thereby contributing to the attribution definition process. However, price is not a significant determinant of overall attitude. It is also found that price becomes a negative factor when behavioral intentions are involved, lending support to an economic interpretation of price.

Determinants and Effects of the Use of ″Made in″ Labels

Selected empirical findings on the effects of a product′s “made‐in” label are integrated with theoretical developments in consumer information processing and the economics of consumer search. The result is an internally consistent theory of how country‐of‐origin effects vary across situations, individuals and products. The new perspective explains why country stereotyping influences decisions more among well‐informed buyers and dismisses the idea that country‐of‐origin cues are necessarily misleading or bad. It also generates predictions of when country‐of‐origin effects are greater and when they are smaller.