Understanding cultural inuence on price perception: empirical insights from a SEM application

Juan (Gloria) Meng

Minnesota State University, Mankato, Minnesota, USA
Abstract Purpose The purpose of this paper is to review and understand the underlying structure of price perception, to recognize how cultural factors inuence price perception, and to develop and empirically test a model of cultural differences and price perception. Design/methodology/approach This project gathered data from both China and the USA. Using the LISREL 8.52 program, a proposed model was tested and modied in order to obtain a parsimonious underlying structure explaining cultural inuences on consumers price perceptions. Findings Results of the data analysis show that culture factors do have signicant effects on price perception. Internal reference price has a consistent and negative effect on the overall price perception of both goods and services purchase and durable and non-durable goods purchase. However, the signicant associations between price perception factors and overall price perception were only found in the services and non-durable goods purchase but not in the durable goods purchase. Practical implications This study helps international marketers understand the cross-cultural consumer behavioral differences in general and the price perception differences in particular. It also provides a series of guidelines for international pricing strategy and international promotion strategy on an operational level. Originality/value Theoretically, the paper integrates the solid base of work on domestic pricing from the Lichtenstein et al. study on price perception as well as work on culture from anthropology and sociology, international business, international marketing, and Hofstedes culture theory. Keywords China, Culture, Goods, Internal reference price, Price perception, Services, Structure equation modelling, United States of America, Pricing Paper type Research paper

Introduction
In recent years, there have been several calls to expand the geographic scope of consumer research to include participants from cultures outside of the USA (Aaker, 2000; Aaker and Williams, 1998; Alden et al., 1999; Gorn, 1997; Klein et al., 1998; Steenkamp and Baumgartner, 1998; Williams and Aaker, 2002; Wong et al., 2003). However, the lack of robust frameworks across cultures has severely limited the development of theory-based empirical work (Maheswaran and Shavitt, 2000). One particular aspect of such crosscultural differences is price perception and pricing strategy, which is one of the most persistently understudied subjects in international marketing (Clark et al., 1999). In the existing marketing literatures, there is a general agreement that consumers price perceptions do vary across different cultures (Dickson and Sawyer, 1990). In the limited amount of such research, Meng et al. (2008) summarized two research streams. One research stream was to simply test differences among culture groups regarding consumers price perception factors and consumers reactions to certain pricing strategies. In testing this, it was found that there are price
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perception differences among cultures (Ackerman and Tellis, 2001; Jin and Sternquist, 2003; Sternquist et al., 2004; Zhou and Nakamoto, 2001). The other stream of such crosscultural price perception research was conducted based on the Lichtenstein et al. (1993) price perception model. This model revealed that price is, in fact, a multidimensional phenomenon and this multidimensionality hinges on the positive and negative aspects of price. They identied seven constructs of consumers price perceptions: value consciousness, coupon proneness, price consciousness, sales proneness, price mavenism, price-quality schema, and prestige sensitivity. These constructs have either a positive or negative effect on behavior. Since this seven factor price perception model was discovered in American culture, variables underlying the tendency to view price as positive or negative must be examined in order to understand price acceptability across cultures (Lichtenstein et al., 1993, p. 244).Several studies applied this model to consumers outside of the USA and tested the model equivalence among different cultures, such as Japanese (McGowan and Sternquist, 1998; Meng et al., 2008), Polish (Moore et al., 2003), and Chinese cultures (Meng et al., 2008). What was revealed from these studies is somewhat consistent although the model did exist in all cultures tested, the factor loadings showed split image. Moreover, the correlation among factors, the measurement errors, and the variances of factors were signicantly different among the different cultures. In sum, there does seem to be grounds for assuming that different price perceptions do exist across cultures. However, 526

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what remains unclear is why these perceptions differ. Differences existing among various cultures do not ensure that cultural factors antecede those differences. If we cannot answer the question of why price perceptions differ across cultures, we will be hindered in generalizing across studies. An implication of this is that we will have to actually discern how consumers behave in each culture. This makes crosscultural study a very inefcient way to proceed since each study makes only a small contribution to the overall picture. A better way is to treat cultural factors as exogenous factors and integrate them into price perception models. According to Hofestedes (1980, 2001) culture theory, culture can be treated as a ve-dimension construct, which includes longterm orientation, individualism/collectivism, uncertainty avoidance, masculinity/femininity, and power distance. Using this approach, it is expected that we will reveal insight into whether and how culture inuences price perception. This study attempts to answer why consumers in different cultures perceive price differently. By testing the relationships among cultural factors and price perception factors, this study attempts to show that a cultures various sub-dimensions play signicant roles on constructively inuencing consumers price perceptions. Although this is not the rst study to examine the effects of cultural differences on price perception, this study is among the rst to broadly examine price and cultural factors in the context of a single model. Using advanced LISREL 8.52, we expected to obtain a parsimonious model which would reveal the underlying structure on consumers price perceptions with the consideration of cultural effects.

As for the other two dimensions, power distance was excluded from the proposed model because it is the cause of human inequality, is socially determined, and is therefore less relevant to individual consumers price perceptions. Likewise, the masculinity/femininity dimension is also a phenomenon on a socially collective level. He used the term masculinity to represent a cultural preference for achievement, assertiveness, and material success and femininity to describe a greater importance placed on maintaining relationships, on caring for members, and on a high quality of life (Hofstede, 1980, p. 176). It is quite clear that this dimension also has little to do with individual consumers price perceptions.

Confucian Dynamic factor and price perception factors

In re-analyzing the IBM data from the 40-country study, a separate set of values that was not adequately captured by the original Hofstede (1980) dimensions was identied. In a follow-up study of 23 countries using the Chinese Value Survey, or CVS (Chinese Culture Connection, 1987) the LTO construct was formally developed. This is a social norm of frugality and sophistication in money handling among the Chinese that contributes to greater concern for money spent in the purchase of all goods. First of all, LTO shares a possible relationship with value consciousness. Value is dened as a customers subjective assessment of benets relative to the cost in determining the worth of a product (Pride and Ferrell, 2012, p. 15). Since people in the long-term-oriented cultures have a more frugal lifestyle and show a tendency to save money, it is assumed that they are more likely to be concerned with the worth of the money and to maximize its value relative to the money spent. People in the long-term oriented cultures also highly value long-term relationships with others with whom they interact family, friends, coworkers, and even buyer-seller relationships. The core of building, maintaining, and developing this longterm relationship rests in the sincerity, honesty, openness, and generosity of those with whom they interact (Ji, 1993). For example, social parties in the Peoples Republic of China are serious events for building long-term relationships because the wellbeing of the host is an important way to demonstrate the aforementioned virtues (Anderson and He, 1998). Likewise, the foremost criterion consumers use to evaluate a sellers sincerity, honesty, and generosity is to determine the value of the product offered. This value is the determining factor in deciding whether to maintain a long-term relationship with that product. Therefore, we hypothesize that: H1. The higher the level of LTO, the higher the level of value consciousness.

Conceptual framework
It is not possible to deal with culture in the eld of business without becoming aware of the long shadow cast by the work of Geert Hofstede. Hofstede (1980) dened culture as the collective programming of the mind that distinguishes the members of one category of people from those of another (p. 13). This denition applies to corporate cultures as well as to national cultures; however, in this study, the level of analysis is on the nation. Hofstedes(1980) dimensions were originally derived from a 1970 international questionnaire study of IBM employees. His study involved 11,600 IBM employees in more than 40 countries who answered questions about their jobs, work environments, and the elements of an imaginary ideal job. This was known as the Value Survey Module (VSM). Hofstede (1980) analyzed their responses using factor analysis and found that work-related dimensions along with national cultures varied in respect to four dimensions: individualism/ collectivism, power distance, uncertainty avoidance, and masculinity/femininity. In his later work (Hofstede, 2001), he further added the fth culture dimension, Confucian Dynamism (long-term orientation (LTO)), to consider the increasing power of East Asian economies. Of the ve dimensions in Hofstedes(2001) culture theory, only three dimensions were integrated into the proposed model: Confucian Dynamism (LTO), uncertainty avoidance, and individualism/collectivism. This is because they are directly relevant to the consumer based price perception, and therefore, to this study. 527

In addition, it is expected that the US consumers will be less price conscious than consumers in Asia because of different market environments. Every day low price (EDLP), a lowprice guarantee policy, and price comparison advertisements, which reduce price risks, are more frequently used in the USA, while Asian consumers must compare prices from shop to shop to nd the lowest possible price. Furthermore, negotiating and bargaining price still occur in the traditional markets in Asia while they do not tend to occur as frequently in American markets. Because of these factors, the US

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consumers will exhibit a lower level of price consciousness than Asian consumers: H2. The higher the level of LTO, the higher the level of price consciousness.

Likewise, LTO has roots in the Confucian values concerning time, tradition, perseverance, and saving for the future; countries which emphasize this value tend to be in Asia (Hofstede, 2001, p. 500). Because of the characteristics of frugality and saving money for the future, which LTO cultures have, consumers in this type of culture are more likely to take advantage of sales discount. The situation is different in the USA. Being relatively shortterm-oriented, American consumers do not strongly tend to save money for their futures. Moreover, the advanced credit card system in the USA, which is not available in most Asian countries, allows American customers to spend their future incomes (Nakatani, 1995): H3. The higher the level of LTO, the higher the level of sale proneness.

consumption involves the purchase of goods and services to show off wealth and status (Veblem, 1899). A person who is a collectivist or who has an interdependent self-concept may be concerned with others view of his or her purchases; therefore, they are more likely to show off their social status through their consumption. Since prestige sensitivity has a positive effect on price perception, individualism/collectivism also inuences price perception through the mediating effect of prestige sensitivity. In a collective culture, consumers may use the price attribute of the products they own to show their social status and wealth and to win face for themselves. This is especially true in Chinese culture. Price, therefore, is not purely sacricial in order to obtain a specic product, but is also a gain of social preference and respect because one is able to pay the set price: H5. The higher the level of collectivism, the higher the level of prestige sensitivity.

Individualism/collectivism and price perception factors Individualism-collectivism is perhaps the most central dimension of cultural variability identied in cross-cultural research (Hofstede, 1990). Members of individualist cultures (e.g., the USA, Australia, and Canada) tend to hold an independent view of the self that emphasizes separateness, internal attributes, and the uniqueness of individuals. In contrast, members of collectivist cultures (e.g., China and Japan) tend to hold an interdependent view of the self that emphasizes connectedness, social context, and relationships (Cousins, 1989; Singelis, 1994; Triandis, 1989). Therefore, it could be concluded that people in the individualistic cultures have strong characters, which make them distinctly different from one another. In addition to the original function of the product, people also buy products for the purpose of showing their specialty and differentiating themselves from others. They view a product as an extension of themselves (Lopez and Brennan, 2000); therefore, they purchase a product for many reasons in addition to utilizing the product itself. However, collective cultures de-emphasize the individuals characteristics and personal desires. Consumers are less likely to purchase a product only for the purpose of satisfying their personal preferences. Therefore, the value of the products becomes the only concern, or at least the predominate concern, in collective consumers minds: H4. The higher the level of collectivism, the higher the level of value consciousness.

Uncertainty avoidance and price perception factors A low uncertainty avoidance index (UAI) is dened as a greater willingness to take risks; therefore a high UAI is dened as a greater willingness to avoid risks. Since price is considered as an indicator of monetary sacrice during an exchange, this type of sacrice is simply another expression of risk where the higher price implies a higher level of risk (Meng et al., 2009). Consequently, consumers in high uncertainty avoidance cultures will view price cue as a more negative factor than the consumers in low uncertainty avoidance cultures (Moon et al., 2008; Sternquist et al., 2004): H6. The higher the level of uncertainty avoidance, the lower the level of price perception.

According to Hofstede (1980), individualism describes a tendency of people to see themselves as individuals rather than as members of a group. The central element in our mental programming involved in this case is self-concept, which is the mental image that people have of themselves. A different self-concept is evident when we compare western cultures that tend to be individually focused with eastern cultures that tend to be more group focused (Ji, 1993). The self-concept patterns of individual versus group focus and ego-focused versus other-focused emotions should be taken into account to explain prestige sensitivity. Prestige sensitivity is more related to socially visible consumption behaviors (McGowan and Sternquist, 1998). Conspicuous 528

In environments where information is uncertain, price serves not only as an indicator which directly and negatively relates to price perception but also as an indicator of product quality. Quality is an attribute that every consumer is concerned with, but it is difcult to evaluate before a purchase, especially for experience products and credence products (Nelson, 1970). This price and perceived quality relationship is a heuristic that enables consumers to use an attribute like price to make judgments about a products quality. However, ndings from several studies also support the notion that some consumers are simply more likely than others to use price as a general indicator of quality regardless of situations and products (Lichtenstein and Burton, 1989; Peterson and Wilson, 1985). This implies that the cultural factor, especially uncertainty avoidance, is likely the interpretation of this phenomenon. The more often people are likely to avoid risk, the more often they will use the pricequality schema to make a choice, and therefore, show a higher degree of price-quality schema. In fact, Rao and Bergen (1992) found that highly risk-averse consumers tend to pay more for a product as a means of reducing the risk of purchasing one of inferior quality. It is assumed that consumers in high uncertainty avoidance cultures will rely more on price as an indicator to rank the product quality, especially when the search cost is high: H7. The higher the level of uncertainty avoidance, the higher the level of price-quality schema.

Consumption has traditionally been viewed as an expression of social organization, status, or hierarchy (Simmer, 1957;

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Veblem, 1970). According to Bourdieu (1984), social reality is conceptualized as a struggle over key resources, and classes reproduce themselves within the context of this struggle. Naturally, the possession and consumption of products becomes a mirror which reects consumers social status, prestige, and degree of being respected by others. So when consumers make purchase decisions, social risk is a factor of concern in addition to the potential for monetary loss, functional uncertainty, and psychological cost. This is true in American culture, but this is even truer in Chinese culture. In Chinese society, as in Japan and other Asian societies, the individual is not inner-directed at all but is controlled by a need for not losing face. Face a literal translation of the Chinese lien and mien-tsu meaning reputation and prestige obtained through ones efforts or conduct is lost when the individual, either through his action or the actions of people closely related to him, fails to meet essential requirements placed upon him by virtue of the social position he occupies (Ho, 1976, p. 867). Face makes the Chinese risk averse, slower to accept new products, and more loyal to a brand once brand image has been established compared to their counterparts in Western culture (Kindel, 1983). In sum, consumers generally try to avoid social risk through consumption: H8. The higher the level of uncertainty avoidance, the higher the level of prestige sensitivity.

The theoretical model The theoretical model proposed here is based on a modication of the 7-factor perception model of Lichtenstein et al. (1993) and Hofstedes (1980) cultural dimensions. In addition, internal reference price is added to the model. It can be illustrated in Figure 1.

Research methodology
Measurement of the constructs in the model The items which measure culture constructs and price perception constructs were adopted from Hofstedes 1980 and 2001 works and the Lichtenstein et al. (1993) work without revision since they have been replicated many times. The dependent construct of price perception was operated using Berkowitz and Waltons (1980) multi-item scales: perceived worth, price acceptability, perceived saving, value for the money. All of these constructs were measured by the subjects indicating their agreement using the ve-point Likert scale with 1 indicating strongly disagree and 5 indicating strongly agree. The only construct in the model which was not measured by the established scales was internal reference price, as very few studies in the literature relate to cross-cultural internal reference price measurement. This study derived three items for each product directly from the denition of internal reference price. Likewise, the constructs were measured by ve-point scales with 1 indicating extremely low and 5 indicating extremely high. Research design and data collection In selecting product(s) for the study, several criteria were used. In particular, a product was sought for which: . absolute prices were comparable across different cultures; . the product was equally popular across cultures tested; . the product was available and attractive to most segments; . substitutes for the product existed; . the product had the same function in different cultures; and . the size, set, package, and other substantial attributes were consistent across different cultures. By checking these criteria, a McDonalds fast food meal and a Sony CD player were selected as the subject products. A survey questionnaire was used in this study. American respondents completed the survey in English, whereas the Chinese respondents completed the survey in Chinese, as most Chinese are not uent in English. The English version of the questionnaire was translated into Chinese and backtranslated into English for validation. A pilot test was also conducted among several Chinese consumers to capture any potential comprehension problems in the questionnaire. Through this iterative and extensive process of revision, the questions asked in both the English and Chinese versions of the questionnaire were deemed to be consistent. The English and Chinese versions of the questionnaire were distributed to undergraduate students from a large university in the Midwestern USA and a four-year university in Northern China, respectively, and yielded a total of 172 valid American cases and 236 valid Chinese cases. While females (80 percent) outnumbered males (20 percent) in the Chinese dataset, gender was evenly distributed in the US dataset (51.7 percent male vs 48.3 percent female). 529

Price perception factors and dependent variable Along with the Lichtenstein et al. (1993) price perception model, price factor can be broken down into multiple dimensions such as value consciousness, price consciousness, sales proneness, prestige sensitivity, and price-quality schema. Each dimension has either a positive or a negative effect on price perception. Based on this, the following hypotheses were proposed: H9. H10. H11. H12. H13. The higher the level of value consciousness, the lower the level of price perception. The higher the level of price consciousness, the lower the level of price perception. The higher the level of sale proneness, the lower the level of price perception. The higher the level of prestige sensitivity, the higher the level of price perception. The higher the level of price-quality schema, the higher the level of price perception.

Additional factor relevant in a cross-cultural study internal reference price Besides culture factors, some factors of little relevance to price perception within one culture may become very relevant in a cross-cultural study. Internal reference price (IRP) is one of them. By denition, IRP is a price (or price scale) in buyers memories that serves as a basis for judging or comparing actual prices (Grewal et al., 1998, p. 47).Given the dramatically different market environments, consumers in different cultures possess different internal reference prices. Therefore, when we test price perception across cultures, the difference in internal reference price is a factor that cannot be ignored: H14. The higher the level of internal reference price, the lower the level of price perception.

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Figure 1 The proposed theoretical model

Demographic variable bias test Since data were collected from two comprehensive universities in the USA and China and the majority of the subjects were traditional four-year college students, it is fair to assume that the samples from these two countries were homogeneous to some degree. In addition, independent sample t-tests were conducted on age and gender variables, and the results show that while there was no signicant age difference between respondents (df 205:18, t 0:763, p 0:446), a signicant difference between gender proportions was found (Chi-square 62:86, p , 0:001). Since female (80 percent) Chinese subjects signicantly outnumbered male (20 percent) Chinese subjects, a series of ANOVA tests were conducted on every latent construct in the model to see whether there was a signicant difference between male and female Chinese participants. The descriptive data analysis and the results of ANOVAs are presented in Table I. The gender difference was not signicant on any of the latent constructs in the model at a 0.01 alpha level. A gender difference was only signicant on the LTO and Uncertainty avoidance factors at a 0.05 alpha level. With this information, it was determined that the gender difference was small enough to be ignored in the Chinese dataset. Data pooling In the following studies, a pooled American and Chinese dataset was used. The rationale for using the pooled dataset follows: 530

Table I Gender difference in Chinese dataset

Latent constructs Long-term orientation Collectivism/individualism Uncertainty avoidance Value consciousness Price consciousness Sale proneness Price-quality schema Prestige sensitivity Reference price (McD) Price perception (McD) Reference price (CD) Price perception (CD) Male Female Mean SD Mean SD 3.65 3.40 3.85 4.01 2.67 3.08 3.11 2.63 3.88 2.92 3.73 3.09 0.52 0.85 0.64 0.58 0.92 0.74 0.80 0.86 0.48 0.69 0.71 0.70 3.43 3.48 3.62 3.93 2.74 3.11 3.29 2.67 3.79 2.93 3.78 3.11 0.58 0.64 0.56 0.55 0.73 0.62 0.62 0.67 0.55 0.63 0.55 0.78

T
2.37 2 0.61 2.31 0.91 2 0.50 2 0.31 2 1.38 2 0.28 0.95 2 0.01 2 0.68 2 0.20

p
0.02 0.54 0.02 0.37 0.62 0.76 0.18 0.78 0.34 0.99 0.55 0.84

Sig. Y N Y N N N N N N N N N

As discussed above, these two datasets are highly homogeneous. As discussed later, culture dimensions and price perception models exist in both of the cultures tested. Sample size is critical, especially in the LISREL program. Larger sample size increases the statistical power. It is common sense that people in the same culture behave in a similar way; therefore, culture data collected from the same country share a very small variance. By pooling the data collected from different countries, the cultural effect is easier to be detected.

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Results
Study 1: CD Player 1. Measurement model for SONY CD player purchase Initially, 37 items measuring ten separate constructs, including both independent and dependent factors, were tested simultaneously in a conrmatory factor analysis (CFA). In order to improve the measurement model t, several items were deleted due to non-signicant path estimates or factor loadings on multiple constructs (see the Appendix, Table AI). All of the remaining path loadings were signicant at the 0.05 level (Table II). The results in Table III indicate an acceptable measurement model t. 2. Structure model testing (CD) The overall model t testing result for the CD purchase is summarized in Table IV. LISREL decisions should be made through evaluating three groups of information: Chi-square, t indices, and errors. For this model, the ratio of the Chisquare statistic to the degrees of freedom (df) was 2.29, lower than the 3.0 threshold, and the error indices (RMSEA and RMR) were lower than 0.08 (0.06 and 0.07 respectively). Finally, although the t indices were not excellent (none were higher than 0.90), given the nature of cross-cultural study, these indices were not disappointing. Fully considering all of the information mentioned above, it is fair to accept this model. This indicates that the model remains valid in the situation of consumers purchasing durable goods, such as the SONY CD player. It also implies that cultural factors do inuence consumers price perceptions. However, model t testing only provides evidence that cultural factors have signicant effects on consumers price perceptions. We are still blind to how culture inuences price perception (which cultural dimensions inuence which price perception factors) and how large the inuence is (the magnitude of the path coefcients). In order to explore the answers to these two questions, hypothesis testing was conducted, and the results are reported as follows. 3. Hypotheses testing (CD) By freeing up the paths proposed in the model, the LISREL program calculated a standardized path coefcient and t-value for each path proposed in the model. As reported in Table V, although the path coefcients were generally low (none higher than 0.30), six out of eight paths linking the cultural factors to price perception factors were statistically signicant in the durable goods purchase setting. Also, internal reference price played a signicant role in building consumers price perceptions toward durable products. However, Lichtensteins ve price perception factors value consciousness, price consciousness, sale proneness, price-quality schema, and prestige sensitivity do not signicantly antecede the dependent factor, price perception. It should not be interpreted that price perception factors are irrelevant in consumers overall price perception toward a durable product. It is highly possible that other factors not tested in this model mediate the relationships among price perception factors and consumers overall price perception toward durable products. More discussion is provided later in the section comparing and contrasting the CD purchase model and the McDonalds meal purchase model. 531

Table II Measurement model results (CD player)

Factors/variables Standardized loading t-value SE Reliability 0.71 0.41 0.73 0.52 0.74 0.37 0.76 0.76 0.41 0.57 0.72 0.71 0.68 0.60 0.77 0.53 0.53 0.60 0.63 0.78 0.74 0.86 14.62 7.76 15.14 10.10 15.50 6.72 12.96 13.01 7.76 11.28 14.78 14.65 13.90 11.84 16.11 10.41 10.37 11.86 13.35 17.73 16.55 20.29 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.06 0.06 0.06 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.04 0.04 0.04 0.83 0.65

Long-term orientation C1 C2 C3 C4 C5a C6a C7 C8a Individualism C9 C10a C11a C12 C13 Uncertainty avoidance C14 C15 C16 C17 C18 Value consciousness P1 P2 P3 P4 P5a P6a P7 Price consciousness P8 P9a P10 P11 P12 Sale proneness P13a P14a P15a P16 P17 P18 Price-quality schema P19 P20 P21 P22 Prestigious sensitivity P23a P24 P25 P26 P27a P28a P29 P30a P31 Internal reference price S8 S9 S10 Price perception S12a S13 S14 S15 S16a

0.75

0.76

0.73

0.55 0.91 0.71 0.71 0.62 0.75 0.66 0.77 0.86 0.84 0.64 0.60 0.80 0.83 0.65 0.59 0.43 0.67

11.06 18.83 14.39 14.69 12.43 15.52 13.26 17.55 20.79 19.85 13.70 12.63 16.98 17.94 13.47 8.45 6.80 9.00

0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.04 0.04 0.04 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.07 0.06 0.07

0.74

0.76

0.86

0.80

0.60

Note: All factor loadings are signicant at 0.01 level; athese items were deleted from the scale for further analyses

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Table III Fit indices for the measurement model (CD player)
Chi-square 1,549.65 DF 695 Ratio 2.23 Sig. 0.00 RMSEA 0.058 RMR 0.064 NFI 0.84 CFI 0.90 IFI 0.90 GFI 0.83 NNFI 0.89 Decision Accept

Table IV Fit indices for the structure model (CD)

Chi-square 1,622.69 DF 710 Ratio 2.29 Sig. 0.00 RMSEA 0.06 RMR 0.07 NFI 0.83 CFI 0.89 IFI 0.90 GFI 0.82 NNFI 0.88 Decision Accept

Table V Summary of hypotheses testing results (CD player purchase)

Hypotheses Path a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Path coefcient 0.19 0.26 0.18 0.25 0.02 0.14 0.12 2 0.22 0.11 2 0.08 2 0.06 0.05 2 0.01 2 0.15

t-value
2.93 * * 4.36 * * 2.99 * * 4.11 * * 0.35 1.80 2.00 * 2 3.67 * * 1.23 2 0.98 2 0.78 0.65 2 0.15 2 2.24 *

Sig. Y Y Y Y N N Y Y N N N N N Y

H1. The higher the level of long-term orientation, the higher the level of value consciousness H2. The higher the level of long-term orientation, the higher the level of price consciousness H3. The higher the level of long-term orientation, the higher the level of sale proneness H4. The higher the level of collectivism, the higher the level of value consciousness H5. The higher the level of collectivism, the higher the level of prestige sensitivity H6. The higher the level of uncertainty avoidance, the lower the level of price perception H7. The higher the level of uncertainty avoidance, the higher the level of price-quality schema H8. The higher the level of uncertainty avoidance, the higher the level of prestige sensitivity H9. The higher the level of value consciousness, the lower the level of price perception H10. The higher the level of price consciousness, the lower the level of price perception H11. The higher the level of sale proneness, the lower the level of price perception H12. The higher the level of price-quality schema, the higher the level of price perception H13. The higher the level of prestige sensitivity, the higher the level of price perception H14. The higher the level of internal reference price, the lower the level of price perception.
Notes: *p , 0:05; * *p , 0:001

4. Nested model testing (CD) It is generally agreed on among researchers conducting SEM tests that nested models should be assessed and compared with the original (full) model in order to obtain the most parsimonious model, which will accentuate the effects of critical factors. Although nested models will always make the model t worse, degrees of freedom will be gained as the result of deleting paths. If there is no signicant difference between the full model and the model with lesser paths, then the researcher should accept the model with fewer paths (the nested model) for parsimony. In this study, since the path between collectivism/ individualism and prestige sensitivity (path e; H5) was not signicant and the path coefcient was extremely low (0.02), the path was deleted in the nested model, and the results are shown in Table VI. The ratio of Chi-square to degrees of freedom, the RMSEA and RMR, and the t indices were still good enough to accept the nested model. In addition, the change in Chi-square (0.12 at 1 df)between the nested model and the full model was not signicant at 0.05 level. This simply means that the nested model was not signicantly Table VI Fit indices for nested model testing (CD player)
Chi-square Full Nested 1,622.69 1,622.81 DF 710 711 Ratio 2.29 2.28 Sig. 0.00 0.00 RMSEA 0.06 0.06 CFI 0.89 0.89

worse than the full model. As the nal decision, the nested model was accepted, and the full model was rejected. In the nested model, all the path coefcients keep consistent with ones in the full model, except for the path coefcient between internal reference price and price perception (H14), which increased 0.01. The nal model with the path coefcients is shown in Figure 2. Study 2: McDonalds meal 1. Measurement model testing (McDonalds meal) Following the same procedure, the measurement model for a McDonalds meal purchase was also puried. All the factor loadings were signicant at the 0.05 level (Table VII). The results indicated an acceptable measurement model t for the McDonalds meal purchase (Table VIII). 2. Structure model testing (McDonalds meal) Consumers price perceptions in a McDonalds meal purchase also t the proposed model quite well (Table IX). Although the Chi-square was signicant (df 710, p , 0:000), the ratio of Chi-square to the degrees of freedom was 2.26, which was lower than the 3.0 threshold.

IFI 0.90 0.90

NNFI 0.88 0.88

D Chi-square 0.12

D DF 1

Sig. N

Decision Accept Accept

532

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Figure 2 Structure model for CD player purchase (nal)

Both error measures, the RMSEA and RMR, were lower than 0.08. The CFI and IFI reached 0.90, and the other indices, such as NFI, GFI, and NNFI, were also close to 0.90. Overall,the proposed model ts the data well and was accepted for further analysis. 3. Hypotheses testing (McDonalds meal) Hypothesis testing showed that all of the paths that involved cultural factors were signicant except for path e. The model suggests that cultural factors are more relevant for nondurable goods than for durable good purchases and are more signicant for services than for goods. This is also consistent with the consensus that services are more culturally related than goods, thus services are more difcult to compete overseas. Similar to the results of the CD player analysis, internal reference price plays a signicant role in consumers price perceptions in the McDonalds meal purchase setting as well. However, differing from the CD player purchase, all ve price perception factors tested in the model held signicant effects on overall price perception (Table X). 4. Nested model testing (McDonalds meal) Since path e (H5) was not signicant, it was deleted from the full model, and the model was tested as a nested model. The t indices (Table XI) only changed slightly and the change in Chi-square (0.07) was not signicant at 1 degree of freedom, which indicated that the nested model was not signicantly worse than the full model. In the consideration of parsimony, the nested model (without H5) was accepted instead of the full model. 533

In the nested model, none of the path coefcients were changed from the full model. The nal model and all of the path coefcients were demonstrated in Figure 3.

General discussion
Overall, the LISREL results conrmed the proposed model, which supported the signicant inuence of culture on consumers price perceptions. In addition, path analysis provided us detailed information on how culture factors affect consumers price perceptions, and the path of H5 was deleted from the proposed model as suggested by the nested model testing result. All of the hypotheses were tested twice in both the CD player purchase setting and the McDonalds meal purchase setting, and all of the relationships among culture dimensions and price perception factors were found to be very stable across different product classes. This is arguably the rst study which incorporated an internal reference price factor into a price perception model. The acceptable t indices suggested that internal reference price is a very relevant factor in building consumers price perceptions. In addition, the path analysis further suggested a negative relationship between internal reference price and overall price perceptions. Likewise, this signicant and negative relationship is also consistent in different product classes. This provides researchers and practitioners with valuable guidance for dealing with global pricing strategy issues, which will be expanded on in the contribution section.

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Table VII Measurement model results (McDonalds meal)

Factors/variables Standardized loading * t-value SE Reliability 0.71 0.42 0.72 0.51 0.75 0.37 0.72 0.81 0.42 0.58 0.72 0.71 0.68 0.62 0.77 0.54 0.50 0.56 0.63 0.78 0.74 0.86 14.91 8.09 15.08 9.88 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05

Long-term orientation C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 * * C6 * * C7 C8 * * Individualism C9 C10 * * C12 C13 Uncertainty avoidance C14 C15 C16 C17 C18 Value consciousness P1 P2 P3 P4 P5 * * P6 * * P7 Price consciousness P8 P9 * * P10 P11 P12 Sale proneness P13 * * P14 * * P15 * * P16 P17 P18 Price-quality schema P19 P20 P21 P22 Prestige sensitivity P23 * * P24 P25 P26 P27 * * P28 * * P29 P30 * * P31 Internal reference price M8 M9 M10 Price perception M12 * * M13 M14 M15 M16 * *

0.75

15.99 0.05 6.67 0.06 12.35 0.06 13.38 0.06 8.06 11.59 15.12 14.75 13.86 12.66 16.41 10.58 10.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.65

0.76

0.73

Inuence of LTO The ndings provide strong support for LTO as an important antecedent factor to several price perception factors. More specically, LTO was found to have a positive relationship with value consciousness, price consciousness, and sale proneness. In other words, consumers who are more longterm oriented are concerned more with the value of the products, are more willing to make efforts to get a lower price for the same products, and are more likely to purchase products which are on sale. All of these characteristics are associated with the long-term plans consumers have in their minds. For the long-term oriented consumers, the future is more important than what they have today; therefore, they have strong intentions to save money for the future. This intention is reected in their behaviors of value consciousness, price consciousness, and sale proneness. It is also worth mentioning that the effects of LTO on the three price perception factors mentioned above are invariant across different product types (services vs goods) or different product classes (durable vs non-durable goods). This provides us evidence to say that consumers price perception factors are general factors and are closer to consumers personalities. These personalities are not very product sensitive; therefore, cultural factors have relatively constant effects on them. Inuence of individualism/collectivism The results of hypothesis testing also supported the idea that individualism/collectivism has signicant and positive effects on value consciousness. People in collective cultures are more conscious about the value of the products than the consumers in individual cultures. This conrms that consumers in a culture that respects individual preferences are more likely to purchase products to satisfy their varied needs, although maximizing the value of the product may be one of the goals of buying behaviors. This is very different from the case in collective cultures, in which people have only one consensus view toward value. Therefore, maximizing the monetary value on purchasing becomes the only concern. Again, this path was found to be signicant in both the CD player purchase and the McDonalds meal purchase settings. Very surprisingly, the relationship between individualism/ collectivism and prestige sensitivity was not signicant in either the CD player or the McDonalds meal purchases. This contradicts the idea that people in collective cultures are more likely to judge an individuals prestige and social class based on his or her consumption. Inuence of uncertainty avoidance Uncertainty avoidance was also found to be a very relevant factor in building consumers price perceptions. First, uncertainty avoidance positively antecedes the price-quality schema. People in cultures with a high degree of uncertainty avoidance view risk more negatively than people in a culture with a low degree of uncertainty avoidance. Thus, they are more likely to use price as a cue to adjust quality. People in the high uncertainty avoidance culture, therefore, hold a stronger price-quality schema. Second, the signicant relationship between uncertainty avoidance and prestige sensitivity was also detected for both products. However, very confusingly, the direction of the relation was opposite to what was proposed. This is possibly because there are some mediators which have not been taken 534

10.87 0.05 13.22 0.05 17.83 0.04 16.39 0.05 20.28 0.04 0.83

0.55 0.89 0.72 0.71 0.62 0.75 0.66 0.76 0.86 0.84 0.63 0.61 0.91 0.78 0.67 0.37 0.19 0.74

10.85 0.05 18.42 0.05 14.73 0.05 14.56 12.46 15.67 13.47 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05

0.74

0.76

17.35 0.04 20.81 0.04 19.89 0.04 13.51 0.05 13.03 0.05 21.56 0.04 17.56 0.04 14.56 0.05 5.09 0.07 2.89 0.07 6.50 0.11

0.86

0.82

0.38

Notes: * All factor loadings are signicant at 0.01 level; * *these items were deleted from the scale for further analyses

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Table VIII Fit indices for the measurement model (McDonalds meal)
Chi-square 1,556.17 DF 695 Ratio 2.24 Sig. 0.00 RMSEA 0.057 RMR 0.067 NFI 0.85 CFI 0.91 IFI 0.91 GFI 0.84 NNFI 0.90 Decision Accept

Table IX Fit indices for the structure model (McDonalds meal purchase)
Chi-square 1,603.27 DF 710 Ratio 2.26 Sig. 0.00 RMSEA 0.06 RMR 0.07 NFI 0.84 CFI 0.90 IFI 0.90 GFI 0.83 NNFI 0.89 Decision Accept

Table X Summary of hypotheses testing results (McDonalds meal purchase)

Hypotheses Path a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Path coefcient 0.13 0.27 0.18 0.27 0.02 2 0.31 0.13 2 0.21 0.59 2 0.37 2 0.18 2 0.18 0.13 2 0.27

t-value
2.13 * 4.58 * * 2.98 * * 4.51 * * 0.26 2 5.49 * * 2.09 * 2 3.51 * * 7.98 * * 2 5.83 * * 2 2.95 * * 2 3.03 * * 2.27 * 2 3.98 * *

Sig. Y Y Y Y N Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y

H1. The higher the level of long-term orientation, the higher the level of value consciousness H2. The higher the level of long-term orientation, the higher the level of price consciousness H3. The higher the level of long-term orientation, the higher the level of sale proneness H4. The higher the level of collectivism, the higher the level of value consciousness H5. The higher the level of collectivism, the higher the level of prestige sensitivity H6. The higher the level of uncertainty avoidance, the lower the level of price perception H7. The higher the level of uncertainty avoidance, the higher the level of price-quality schema H8. The higher the level of uncertainty avoidance, the higher the level of prestige sensitivity H9. The higher the level of value consciousness, the lower the level of price perception H10. The higher the level of price consciousness, the lower the level of price perception H11. The higher the level of sale proneness, the lower the level of price perception H12. The higher the level of price-quality schema, the higher the level of price perception H13. The higher the level of prestige sensitivity, the higher the level of price perception H14. The higher the level of internal reference price, the lower the level of price perception
Notes: *p , 0:05; * *p , 0:01

Table XI Nested model testing (McDonalds meal purchase)

Chi-square Full Nested 1,603.27 1,603.34 DF 710 711 Ratio 2.26 2.26 Sig. 0.00 0.00 RMSEA 0.06 0.06 CFI 0.90 0.90 IFI 0.90 0.90 NNFI 0.89 0.89 D Chi-square 0.07 D DF 1 Sig. N Decision Accept Accept

into consideration in this study and which affect this association. Third, a more interesting result was found on uncertainty avoidances direct relationship to the dependent variable overall price perception. According to the literature, a negative relationship is supposed to exist because price is a kind of loss or sacrice to consumers, which can be viewed as a risk when people make a purchase decision. However, this negative relationship is only signicant in non-durable goods/ services, like the McDonalds meal. This is because durable goods contain more physical attributes, which make it much easier for consumers to assess the quality than for nondurable goods and services. Thus, when consumers purchase durable products, they are more rational and more likely to perceive price and make purchase decisions through the evaluation of objective criteria. However, when objective criteria are not available in non-durable goods or even services, uncertainty avoidance becomes much more inuential on consumers alternative evaluation and purchase decision making. In other words, the effect of 535

uncertainty avoidance is overridden by the substantial physical attributes that durable products have. Inuence of price perception factors Although many studies have replicated and applied the Lichtenstein et al. (1993) price perception structure to a variety of conditions, few studies actually tested these price perception factors effects on the overall price perception toward a specic product. This study lled this gap by applying the price perception model to the CD player and the McDonalds meal purchase settings and by testing the effect of ve out of seven price perception factors on the overall price perception of these two products. The results followed the pattern as the ones discussed in the direct relationship of uncertainty avoidance towards price perception. The relationships between all ve price perception factors and the dependent factor of price perception are signicant in the McDonalds meal purchase and insignicant in the CD player purchase. This could also be interpreted that consumers are more likely to rely on objective product attributes to form an overall perception of price. In the non-

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Journal of Product & Brand Management Volume 20 Number 7 2011 526 540

Figure 3 Structure model for McDonalds meal purchase (nal)

durable goods and services purchase situation, since very few objective product attributes are available, consumers are more likely to form their price perceptions based on their personal characteristics, which include some price perception factors discussed in this study.

Contributions
This research may contribute to the growing body of literature on pricing issues, especially to the behavioral approach of pricing research in a number of ways. First of all, this study replicated the results of previous studies and conrmed that consumers in different cultures do have signicantly different price perceptions. This nding made another call for breaking the American Box and for expanding domestic marketing research to global markets. The second methodological contribution is the purication of measurement. The original measurement for the constructs in the model, especially the measurement for the price perception factors, has been applied to various studies in the USA and has been found to be stable across different settings. However, this study applied the measurement model to other cultures and found that some of the items do not work well in other cultures. Although the puried measurement model in this study is still culture specic and lacks generalizable information, it at least provided a guideline and basis for future cross-cultural research when dealing with measurement established in the USA. Third, this study further answered a critical question why consumers price perceptions vary across cultures by integrating cultural dimensions into the original price 536

perception model. The acceptable t indices are strong evidence to conclude that the differences between consumers price perceptions in different cultures were caused, or partially caused, by culture factors. Hypothesis testing suggested how specic cultural factors inuence price perception. This once again brought our close attention to the importance of culture studies in contemporary marketing science. Fourth, adding the internal reference price into the proposed model and measuring the signicant path coefcient result suggested us that the internal reference price contributes greatly to products overall price perceptions across different product classes. Therefore, the Lichtenstein et al. (1993) original seven-factor (ve were tested in this study) price perception model should be expanded by adding other relevant factors, such as the internal reference price, in order to obtain a more comprehensive picture of consumers price perceptions. This is especially necessary when doing cross-cultural research because relevant factors like internal reference price share a much larger variance in different cultures. Finally, the study also contributes to our understanding that although price perception factors value consciousness, price consciousness, sale proneness, price-quality schema, and prestige sensitivity are consumers personality factors, they work differently in different product purchase settings in building consumers overall price perceptions toward a specic product. In addition, some culture factors, such as uncertainty avoidance, showed inconsistent effects on overall price perception in different product purchase situations. These suggest that when considering consumers overall price

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perceptions of specic products, different products price perceptions should not all be treated in the same way.

Implementations
Since pricing is a fundamental issue for every company and for every product, in addition to theoretical contribution, this research is valuable for all practitioners who are involved in international business or are trying to expand their business to other countries. First and foremost, this study clearly suggests that consumers in different cultures have different perceptions on price, and culture has signicant inuence on consumers price perceptions. Marketers selling products overseas must open their minds, carefully investigate foreign cultures, and adjust their pricing and promotion strategies in different cultures. Assuming that business is business everywhere and price perception is the same everywhere is very dangerous. Second, this study also provides marketers suggestions on an operational level because this study specically tested some relationships among cultural factors and price perception factors. For example, consumers in a more long-term oriented culture and/or in a more collective culture are more value conscious; therefore, improving a products quality and reducing its cost should be given equal weight when considering marketing strategy. Value-oriented strategies, such as improving product quality, emphasizing product value in the advertisements, reducing packaging cost, and so forth are appropriate strategies in the LTO cultures and in the collective cultures. LTO also made consumers more price conscious because they had strong intentions to save money for the future. Therefore, a competitors price becomes more relevant in the long-term oriented cultures. In addition, the strategy of price comparison in stores and in advertisements should be more effective. Besides price consciousness, long-term orientation also positively leads to sale proneness. Marketers doing business in the long-term oriented cultures should take advantage of all kinds of opportunities, such as traditional and political holidays and events, to offer products at a discount price and/or in a larger amount. Uncertainty avoidance was also found to be a very effective factor in price perception factors. In a high uncertainty avoidance culture, especially when it is difcult for consumers to assess product quality, high price is very likely to give the consumer an impression of a products high quality. Therefore, setting price on a higher level is suggested in this kind of situation. There are also high uncertainty avoidance segments, such as older people, and low uncertainty avoidance segments, such as younger people, within the same culture. The knowledge obtained in this study could also be applied in the different marketing segments within the same culture. Third, this research pointed out the importance of internal reference price. It has long been known that internal reference price is a crucial factor in inuencing consumers behaviors. In international markets, the internal reference price that consumers have may vary dramatically. Moreover, consumers in different cultures may compare totally different elements while assessing the prices of similar products. Therefore, the internal reference price should be carefully considered and assessed when doing business in other cultures. 537

Finally and most excitingly, this study explored that the proposed price perception model works differently in the durable goods purchase versus non-durable goods/services purchases. Some factors, such as uncertainty avoidance, value consciousness, price consciousness, sale proneness, pricequality schema, and prestige sensitivity do not have signicant inuences on the overall price perception in the durable goods purchase (the CD player) but do on the non-durable goods and services purchase (the McDonalds meal). This suggests that managers establish different pricing and promotional strategies corresponding to different product classes. More specically, when dealing with durable goods, managers should make more effort to improve and to promote the products quality, features, and functions; consumers, when building their price perception, rely more on the objective information about the products than on their varied backgrounds, cultures, and personalities. While the situation is totally different in a non-durable goods and services purchase, consumers price perceptions toward this kind of product come primarily from their cultural backgrounds and their different personalities. This requires non-durable goods/services managers to have a higher level of understanding toward other cultures and a higher level of capability to adjust their strategies towards other cultures. Since the US economy has not only become more service oriented, but increasingly dependent on exporting these services, this study is timely and important.

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Journal of Product & Brand Management Volume 20 Number 7 2011 526 540

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Further reading
Gurhan-Canli, Z. and Maheswaran, D. (2000), Cultural variations in country of origin effects, Journal of Marketing Research, Vol. 37, August, pp. 309-17.

Understanding cultural inuence on price perception: empirical insights Juan (Gloria) Meng

Journal of Product & Brand Management Volume 20 Number 7 2011 526 540

Appendix
Table AI Measurements used with labels
Labels C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13 C14 C15 C16 C17 C18 P1 P2 P3 P4 P5 P6 P7 P8 P9 P10 P11 P12 P13 P14 P15 P16 P17 P18 P19 P20 P21 P22 P23 P24 P25 P26 P27 P28 P29 P30 P31 S8 Items 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 1. Respect for tradition is important to me I plan for the long term Family heritage is important to me I value a strong link to my past I work hard for success in the future I dont mind giving up todays fun for success in the future Traditional values are important to me Persistence is important to me An individual should not pursue his or her own goals without considering the welfare of the group It is important for a manager to encourage loyalty and a sense of duty in the group Being accepted by the group is more important than working on your own Individual rewards are not as important as group welfare Group success is more important than individual success It is important to spell out job requirements and instructions in detail so that people always know what they are expected to do Managers expect workers to follow instructions and procedures closely Rules and regulations are important because they inform worker what the organization expects of them Standard operating procedures are important for the workers on the job Operating instructions are important for workers on the job I am very concerned about low prices, but I am equally concerned about product quality When grocery shopping, I compare the prices of different brands to be sure I get the best value for the money When purchasing a product, I always try to maximize the quality I get for the money I spend When I buy products, I like to be sure that I am getting my moneys worth I generally shop around for lower prices on products, but they still must meet certain quality requirements before I buy them When I shop, I usually compare the price per ounce information for brands I normally buy. I always check prices at the grocery store to be sure I get the best value for the money I spend I am not willing to pay extra effort to nd lower prices I will grocery shop at more than one store to take advantage of low prices The money saved by nding low prices is usually not worth the time and effort I would never shop at more than one store to nd low prices The time it takes to nd low prices is usually not worth the effort If a product is on sale, that can be a reason for me to buy it When I buy a brand that is on sale, I feel that I am getting a good deal. I have favorite brands, but most of the time I buy the brand thats on sale One should try to buy the brand that is on sale I am more likely to buy brands that are on sale Compared to most people, I am more likely to buy brands that are on special Generally speaking, the higher the price of a product, the higher the quality The old saying you get what you pay for is generally true The price of a product is a good indicator of its quality You always have to pay a bit more for the best People notice when you buy the most expensive brand of a product Buying a high priced brand makes me feel good about myself Buying the most expensive brand of a product makes me feel classy I enjoy the prestige of buying a high priced brand It says something to people when you buy the high priced version of a product Your friends will think you are cheap if you consistently buy the lowest priced version of a product I have purchased the most expensive brand of a product just because I knew other people would notice I think others make judgments about me by the kinds of products and brands that I buy Even for a relatively inexpensive product, I think that buying a costly brand is impressive Compared to the average price of a CD player on the market, a CD player made by Sony is . . .

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Understanding cultural inuence on price perception: empirical insights Juan (Gloria) Meng

Journal of Product & Brand Management Volume 20 Number 7 2011 526 540

Table AI Labels S9 S10 S12 S13 S14 S15 S16 M8 M9 M10 M12 M13 M14 M15 M16

Items 2. 3. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 1. 2. 3. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Compared to the average cost of electronic products, a CD player made by Sony is . . . Compared to the average cost of Japanese products, a CD player made by Sony is . . . Perceived worth of a Sony CD player is . . . Price acceptability of a Sony CD player is . . . Perceived saving of a Sony CD player is . . . Value for the money of a Sony CD player is . . . Willingness to buy a Sony CD player is . . . Compared to your average cost of eating outside the home, a meal from McDonalds is . . . Compared to your average cost of eating at home, a meal from McDonalds is . . . Compared to other fast food meals, a meal from McDonalds is . . . Perceived worth of a meal from McDonalds is . . . Price acceptability of a meal from McDonalds is . . . Perceived saving of a meal from McDonalds is . . . Value for the money of a meal from McDonalds is . . . Willingness to buy a meal from McDonalds is . . .

About the author

Juan (Gloria) Meng completed her rst 12-year education in China, received her Bachelors and MBA from Japan, and earned her PhD in Marketing from The Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. At present she is an Associate Professor of the Department of Marketing and International Business at Minnesota State University, Mankato. She has

published articles in the proceedings of national and international conferences and journals, including International Journal of Marketing Research, Journal of Product & Brand Management, Journal of International Consumer Marketing , European Journal of Management, Marketing Management Journal, Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, and others. Juan (Gloria) Meng can be contacted at: juan.meng@mnsu.edu

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