Kak Yoon

A Cross-Cultural Comparison of the Effects of Source Credibility on Attitudes and Behavioral Intentions

In this article, we investigated (a) whether the commonly reported 3 dimensions of source credibility (expertise, trustworthiness, and attractiveness) are applicable to both Americans and Koreans, and (b) which of those 3 dimensions exerted more influence on the dependent variables in each country. Findings suggest that the dimensionality of source credibility was remarkably similar between the 2 samples. The influence of 3 source credibility dimensions varied by the dependent variables. Attractiveness, expertise, and trustworthiness were equally important to purchase intentions. All 3 dimensions affected involvement with the advertisement message equally. Only trustworthiness had a significant impact on attitude toward brand and brand beliefs. In terms of attitude toward the advertisement, perceived attractiveness of the endorser was more important than expertise and trustworthiness.

Comparison of Beliefs about Advertising, Attitude toward Advertising, and Materialism Held by African Americans and Caucasians

This research investigated the relationship between advertising and materialism across African-American and Caucasian groups (87 students and 79 community adults) as well as general attitude toward advertising and beliefs about advertising. The association between attitude toward advertising and materialism was positive. The African-American respondents held more materialistic values than their Caucasian peers; they exhibited a more favorable general attitude toward advertising and held more favorable beliefs about advertising. These findings are consistent with the criticism that advertising is at least connected with materialistic values in our society.

Conflict resolution styles among COLLECTIVIST cultures: a comparison between Japanese and Koreans

Abstract Traditionally, Koreans and Japanese have been considered collectivistic in their communication behavior, in comparison to U.S. Americans. However, the important cultural differences (possibly subtle) in conflict management styles among the two collectivist cultures have been overlooked. This article aims to explore how Japanese and Koreans may differ in their preferences for different conflict management styles, focusing on the importance attached to conversational constraints in conflict situations. This article focuses on the following four conversational constraints: (1) concern for clarity; (2) concern for minimizing imposition; (3) concern for avoiding hurting the hearers feelings; and (4) concern for avoiding negative evaluation by the hearer. Several hypotheses were formulated based on the origins behind the conversational constraints in relation to the cultural orientations of Japanese and Koreans. A total of 534 undergraduate students, studying in Japan N = 235) and Korea (N = 299), participated in the study. Each participant was provided descriptions of the three conflict situations and was asked to rate the perceived importance of each constraint in each conflict situation. The main findings of this study point to a picture that Koreans are more collectivistic in conflict communication styles than Japanese. Specifically, the results of this study seem to suggest different processes of conflict management in the two cultures: Japanese as focusing on clarity constraint (conveying the message clearly and efficiently) more than Koreans, and Koreans focusing on social-relation constraints (avoiding imposition to the hearer or loss of face by the hearer) more than Japanese.

A comparison of Korean and American attitudes towards advertising

This paper reports the preliminary findings of an investigation comparing the attitudes and behavioural tendencies of Korean and American college students towards advertising. The results indicate that Koreans generally view advertising in a less favourable light than do Americans. Interestingly, however, Koreans from our sample reported more attention to and less avoidance of advertisements. Furthermore, they perceived the effect of advertising on their purchase behaviour to be greater than that reported by subjects from our American sample. Other information concerning media usage, ad exposure levels, and the perceived influence of other marketing and social factors on purchase behaviour is also presented and discussed. In addition, practical and theoretical implications are offered.

A content analysis of the cultural values reflected in 1987 and 1997 Korean magazine advertisements

This study investigated whether Korean magazine advertising has become more Westernized during the last decade or so, using individualistic appeals ¡as opposed to collectivistic appeals) and hard sell (as opposed to soft sell) approachs as indicators of Westernization. A sample of ads from 1987 and 1997 were content analyzed in terms of individualistic and collectivistic appeals used in the ads. A modest increase in the use of individualistic messages from 1987 to 1997 was found. Interestingly, however, the majority of the ads from both time periods employed individualistic appeals. In addition, the study clearly demonstrates that the majority of Korean ads employ the hard sell approach. These findings seem to suggest that Korea, contrary to the literature, may be a highly Westernized country strongly favouring ‘individualism’.