British Food Journal

Incidence of psychographic variables on purchasing behavior in an emerging olive

oil market
Rodrigo Romo-Muñoz, Francisca Romo-Muñoz, Jairo Stefano Dote-Pardo, Ricardo Troncoso-
Sepúlveda,
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Rodrigo Romo-Muñoz, Francisca Romo-Muñoz, Jairo Stefano Dote-Pardo, Ricardo Troncoso-

Sepúlveda, (2018) "Incidence of psychographic variables on purchasing behavior in an emerging
olive oil market", British Food Journal, https://doi.org/10.1108/BFJ-01-2018-0010
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Incidence of
Incidence of psychographic psychographic
variables on purchasing behavior variables

in an emerging olive oil market

Rodrigo Romo-Muñoz
Department of Business Management, University of Bío-Bío, Chillán, Chile
Received 8 January 2018
Francisca Romo-Muñoz Revised 17 May 2018
Accepted 29 June 2018
Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile, and
Downloaded by UNIVERSITY OF NEW ENGLAND (AUS) At 07:15 02 October 2018 (PT)

Jairo Stefano Dote-Pardo and Ricardo Troncoso-Sepúlveda

University of Bío-Bío, Chillán, Chile

Abstract
Purpose – The study focused on the Chilean olive oil market. The purpose of this paper is to determine the
incidence of psychographic variables in the purchasing frequency of this product in an emerging market.
Design/methodology/approach – A face-to-face survey was applied to a stratified sample in the Biobío
Region (Chile). The food neophobia scale (FNS) and list of values (LOV ) were used simultaneously to measure
psychographic variables. A multinomial logit model was estimated to determine the relationship between
olive oil purchasing frequency and psychographic variables.
Findings – Results suggest that psychographic variables can explain olive oil purchasing frequency in the
Chilean market. For a new food product, neophilia and the values of external and hedonistic dimensions can
explain the higher purchasing frequency of the product. Just as in other research studies, the combined use of
psychographic and sociodemographic variables performed well in segmenting a new food market.
Research limitations/implications – Results should be interpreted for the purchasing behavior of a new
food in the context of an emerging market. Future research should expand the geographic zone to apply the
survey and incorporate other variables such as ethnocentrism or ethnic identity.
Originality/value – Most available research studies have investigated separately the incidence of both
variables in food consumption in developed, cosmopolitan and intercultural markets. This is the first
approach in jointly applying the psychographic variables FNS and LOV in an emerging market and using
olive oil as a case study.
Keywords Chile, Olive oil, Psychographic, Food neophobia scale, List of values
Paper type Research paper

1. Introduction
In the last few years, both the markets for agricultural products and functional foods have
experienced significant growth worldwide, and it is hoped that this trend will continue in the
future (FAO, 2017). Regarding demand, the incorporation of new innovative processes by
companies has generated a new range of agri-food products. Coupled with globalization and
trade, this has allowed consumer exposure to more available products that consist of both
“traditional” and “new” agri-food products generated by local or foreign companies.
From the consumer’s perspective, two extreme behaviors can be generated, that is, the
acceptance of new agri-food products available in the market or the rejection of these new
products by preferring those considered as traditional. Faced with a greater number of new
food products, consumers do not demonstrate homogeneous behavior in terms of purchase
intention and attitudes (Stratton et al., 2015). In this scenario, the sociodemographic
variables reduce the ability to segment markets and generate homogenized business
strategies (Gunter and Furnham, 2014; Wedel and Kamakura, 2012; Camarena-Gómez and
Sanjuán-López, 2010; Peterson et al., 2008; Chin-Feng, 2002); this could affect the success of British Food Journal
campaigns to launch new products (Salgado et al., 2016). Recent trends have focused on the © Emerald Publishing Limited
0007-070X
use of psychographic variables for adequate segmentation, demonstrating better DOI 10.1108/BFJ-01-2018-0010
 BFJ performance that promotes the understanding of consumer behavior by studying their
psychological dimensions (Galloway et al., 2003; Kahle et al., 2000). The psychographic
variables that have been successfully used in the studies applied to the agri-food sector are
the food neophobia scale (FNS) and list of values (LOV ).
Hobden and Pliner (1995) developed the FNS, which is a scale that measures the
willingness of people to try or reject new foods in their diets. These authors defined food
neophobia as the reticence to eat and/or avoid new foods. This phobia is considered as a
personality trait that influences the daily food choices of human beings (Olabi et al., 2009).
The two extremes of the scale are defined, on the one hand, as fear of the unknown and the
rejection of novelty (neophobia) and, on the other hand, the need for change and diversity in
food consumption (neophilia). The neophobia/neophilia level varies among individuals and
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is affected by factors such as culture, economic level, education, place of residence in a city,
age and sex (Verbeke and Poquiviqui López, 2005; Flight et al., 2003; Tuorila et al., 2001).
Applied research on the topic of food neophobia began in 1987 and approximately
84 studies have been conducted since then (Web of Science database). More than 50 percent
of these were carried out in Europe (led by England and Italy) and more than 25 percent in
the USA and Canada. The rest of the studies are from Asia and Australia, and only five from
Latin America (Chile, Brazil and Mexico). Although the studies on this topic are not recent,
more than 50 percent of them have been conducted since 2015. This shows that the topic has
awakened the interest of researchers to study the underlying consumer behavior using the
FNS; studies were not only conducted in different parts of the world but also analyzed
specific food products of interest in their respective markets.
This scale has been applied in several studies and has performed well to explain
consumer behavior in transnational investigations. The FNS has been simultaneously
validated in countries such as the USA, Switzerland and Finland; its great usefulness for
understanding the underlying consumer behavior has been demonstrated (Ritchey et al.,
2003). It has also been applied to compare the willingness of people to try new foods in
Finland and England (Knaapila et al., 2007). It has also been used to investigate consumer
neophobia levels in the USA and Lebanon (Olabi et al., 2009). A first attempt has even been
made to validate this scale in Asia for 12 types of non-traditional ethnic foods (Choe and
Cho, 2011). More specific studies have been developed in the USA, which considered the
effect of neophobia/neophilia and evaluated physiological reactions, such as pulse, red blood
cell sedimentation and breathing, through images of food and non-food stimuli (Raudenbush
and Capiola, 2012). Some applications have also been made in Spanish-speaking countries,
such as Spain, where the scale was used to measure immigrant consumer preferences for
ethnic foods (Camarena and Sanjuán, 2008; Camarena-Gómez and Sanjuán-López, 2010).
Barrena and Sánchez (2012) analyzed the incidence of neophobia in the purchase of new
food products.
In recent years, scientific interest has increased to validate the FNS in other languages,
extending studies to Latin American countries and, at the same time, generate more specific
research on particular consumer groups. The FNS has been validated in Spanish
(Fernández-Ruiz et al., 2013), Brazilian Portuguese (Ribeiro de Andrade Previato and
Behrens, 2015), as well as a validation of the scale for primary school children in Italy
(Laureati et al., 2015). Some studies have also focused on developing specific scales for
particular products, such as the wine neophobia scale, which is an adaptation of the FNS
(Ristic et al., 2016). Some of the Latin American studies have been conducted in Chile; the
relationship between the FNS and nanotechnology is being investigated (Schnettler et al.,
2013), as well as life satisfaction and eating habits of university students (Schnettler et al.,
2017). The scale was used in Mexico to measure the rejection level of Mexican consumers to
try new foods (Salgado et al., 2016). The FNS has also been used to study specific consumer
segments by applying it to some food products. This is how more recent studies have
 focused on analyzing the impact of the FNS on older adults and adults in their food and Incidence of
functional food consumption preferences. In Canada, Stratton et al. (2015) analyzed the psychographic
relationship between food neophobia and the factors associated with the consumption of variables
functional foods by older adults. A study was conducted in New Zealand to analyze food
consumption preferences in a sample of adults ( Jaeger et al., 2017). However, studies
directed to children and adolescents are those that have recently been the focus of attention.
Maiz and Balluerka (2016) studied to what extent food neophobia influenced the quality of
the Mediterranean food diet in children and adolescents. The preference of children for
consuming fish in Norway has also been studied (Helland et al., 2017). The incidence of the
FNS has been studied on the fruit and vegetable consumption habits of Polish children
(Guzek et al., 2017). In the case of adolescents, a study has been conducted in Germany to
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establish a relationship between the FNS and eating habits (Roßbach et al., 2016). Recent
research has gone further and analyzed the extent to which the FNS can have an impact on
the willingness to eat insects in the context of the western culture (La Barbera et al., 2018).
Despite the knowledge acquired with studies about food neophobia, an individual’s level of
phobia depends on multiple factors ( Jaeger et al., 2017); it is therefore necessary to conduct
research in different cultures, age ranges and different types of foods.
Regarding LOV, the literature has defined the values as guiding principles of daily life
(Kahle, 1983; Rokeach, 1973). Among the activities of daily life, there are processes for
buying and selling goods and services that everyone must perform each day, so values are
considered decisive when studying the purchasing decisions of individuals (Kahle et al.,
2000). The LOV is a method developed by Kahle and Kennedy (1989), which originated in
studies on values by Vernon and Allport (1931), Maslow (1954), Rokeach (1973) and Feather
(1975). It is an abridged measurement instrument linked to the theory of social adaptation
(Kahle et al., 1989) that includes part of Rokeach’s terminal values.
There are various applications of LOV, but the FNS applications are more numerous.
Kahle and Kennedy (1989) and Durgee et al. (1996) applied LOV to commonly used products
to determine the main values affecting consumer decisions. More recent authors, such as
Chryssohoidis and Krystallis (2005), conducted a study to validate the scale proposed by
Kahle et al. (1989) for organic food consumers in an intercultural market. In Spain,
Camarena-Gómez and Sanjuán-López (2010) focused their research on agri-food products
using the LOV scale; it was mainly related to consumer preferences for a type of ethnic food.
Recently, Kraus (2015) conducted a study to learn about purchasing motives through a
measurement instrument that included attributes, such as quality and values, to determine
the incidence in a functional food. The most recent research has reached Asian countries,
thus expanding the geographic coverage of the studies. The incidence between LOV and the
purchasing styles of Indonesian consumers was analyzed by Helmi (2016). The LOV has
also been applied to analyze the incidence of the scale on the intention of people to return to
ethnic restaurants, considering Japanese restaurants in Thailand and Thai restaurants in
Japan (Prayang et al., 2017).
There are many studies applying the FNS and LOV in the agri-food product market.
Most of them have studied the FNS and LOV separately in developed markets in which
different cultures and religious beliefs converge, thus conforming cosmopolitan and
intercultural markets. However, there is a gap in the literature as to the joint application of
these variables in agri-food products in emerging countries. However, it is not yet clear how
these psychographic variables, especially the FNS, influence consumer behavior. The FNS
can vary because of different factors, such as sex, age, education (Salgado et al., 2016),
openness to different cultures, availability of new foods on the market (Roßbach et al., 2016)
and the type of food to be studied. As more studies are conducted in different countries and
cities, more knowledge about the influence of psychographic variables on the underlying
consumer behavior will be acquired.
 BFJ The present study can be considered as the first to be conducted in the Chilean market by
applying both scales simultaneously and using as a case study a product considered foreign
by consumers of an emerging market.
Olive oil is a good example to analyze the incidence of the FNS and LOV in the
segmentation of this market in Chile. This is mainly due to the product characteristics and
the manner in which it was introduced to the country. World olive oil production was
3,154,800 tons in 2016 and has increased 14 percent in the last ten years. A total of
74 percent of the production and approximately 50 percent of world consumption are
concentrated in the producer countries of the European Union led by Spain (44 percent),
Italy (15 percent) and Greece (10 percent) (IOOC, 2017). As regards consumption, the leader
was Italy (20 percent), followed by Spain (17 percent) and Greece (5 percent). Chile is
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classified as a “new world” producer country. Although it only represents 0.7 percent of
world production, it has demonstrated great dynamism in the last few years (Romo et al.,
2014, 2015). Production increased from 5,000 tons in 2006 to 16,500 tons in 2016, which is a
230 percent gain for that period. Exports increased from 1,000 tons to 10,500 tons during the
same period and grew by 950 percent. Consumption (per capita) has also exhibited
significant growth, going from 77 mL in 1997 to 950 mL in 2016; this is still far from the per
capita consumption found in leading countries such as Spain (12 kg), Italy (11 kg) and
Greece (21 kg) (IOOC, 2016).
Development of this market began in Chile in 1990, and three stages identify its
evolution. Before 1990, the only available oil was sunflower oil, which was integrated in
the population’s eating habits. The first stage started in 1990 with 50 tons of products
imported from Spain and Italy (IOOC, 2017). Marketing campaigns focused on
highlighting the “imported oil” attribute and identifying the product as foreign and as
an important element of the Mediterranean diet. The second stage commenced in 2008
when Chilean olive oil exports exceeded imports; at the same time, domestic olive oil
production started exhibiting increased marginal gains. It can be observed in the third
stage that part of the Chilean oil production was exported and another portion was
destined to the local market, whereas imports remained constant. This situation has
generated availability of both domestic and imported olive oil and exposed the consumer
to indecision at the time of purchase due to the range of accessible alternatives. This is
emphasized by two elements: marketing and consumer education campaigns generated in
the first stage and low consumer exposure to the use and consumption of the product
(Romo-Muñoz et al., 2017).
In this context, the objective of the study was to determine to what extent the FNS and
LOV psychographic variables affect olive oil purchasing frequency by Chilean consumers.
The contribution of the present study will increase existing knowledge about psychographic
characteristics of Latin American consumers as related to a food product that has become
important in the Chilean market and has exhibited significant increases in production and
consumption in recent years. From the producer’s perspective, results are especially useful
for producer and trading companies because they will reveal the underlying factors
influencing consumer behavior. Therefore, companies can carry out successful marketing
strategies and product promotion, especially the oil producing sector that mainly consists of
small producers that achieve high oil quality standards and do not have the information to
successfully commercialize their product and generating public policies to support small
producers to directly commercialize their product. From the consumer’s perspective,
relevant information is offered, which increases product consumption and take advantage of
the beneficial properties of olive oil for health.
The rest of the paper is structured in the following way: Section 2 includes the materials
and methods and Section 3 shows the results and discussion obtained in the study. Finally,
the main conclusions are presented in Section 4.
 2. Materials and methods Incidence of
A survey was specifically designed to achieve the research objectives of the present study. psychographic
It was applied to a representative sample in the city of Chillán in the Biobío Region (the variables
second most important region in terms of economy and population). The survey
respondents were older than 18 years and responsible for household purchasing decisions.
A total of 221 participants were selected from a sample stratified for sex, age and residential
area. The information to stratify the sample was obtained from the Chilean National
Institute of Statistics (INE, 2012).
The surveys were conducted face-to-face at the exit of the shopping mall and
supermarkets. Prior to the preparation of the definitive survey, a pre-test was conducted and
a pilot questionnaire was applied to 30 and 80 people, respectively. This allowed us to
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correct the final questionnaire that would be applied by improving the wording of the
questions, the order and structure of the sections, and eliminating some questions. The final
questionnaire was divided into three sections and applied to a random sample stratified for
sex, age and geographic zone. This stage did not include individuals who participated in
either the pre-test or the pilot questionnaire (the survey was approved by the Ethics
Committee of the University and did not contain any identification information). The
questionnaire proposed by Romo et al. (2014) and Romo-Muñoz et al. (2017) was used in the
present study. The first section contained questions about purchasing and consumption
habits related to olive oil. The second section asked the respondents to assess the FNS and
LOV. Finally, the questions in the third section were aimed at collecting sociodemographic
information about the respondents. Table I displays the sampling technical fact sheet.
To apply the FNS and LOV scales, respondents were asked to make a hedonic
assessment of each item in both scales using a seven-point score in which 1 is the minimum
and 7 is the maximum score. The FNS consists of ten items and reverse scoring must be
applied to five items. The validated Spanish-language version was used in the present study
(Fernández-Ruiz et al., 2013). The LOV scale consists of nine items of which six correspond
to an internal dimension and three to an external dimension. The scores from both scales
were used to perform factor analysis in order to gather the different aspects that each scale
measures in a few factors. Numerous studies on this topic have used the mean and median
as cut-off points to segment consumers into groups. However, if we consider that the
application of these scales is novel in the study area, it is necessary to consider statistical
analysis to obtain the underlying structure of the items that make up both scales and
without knowing a priori the possible relationship between them. Factor analysis is
appropriate for this purpose and has two important advantages: it reveals the
interdependence of any latent variable contained in the data, especially when the
researcher does not have clear expectations about their structures and reduces the number
of items of the original variables into two or three factors that allow explaining and
characterizing a high percentage of variance of the original data (Fabrigar and Wegener,
2011; Pérez, 2004).

Universe Persons over 18 years belonging to census districts (cd):

cd1, cd2, cd3, cd13, cd14 and cd15 in the city of Chillán
Sample size 221 surveys
Error 6.72% (P ¼ 0.5)
Confidence level 95.5% (Z ¼ 2)
Sampling Random sampling stratified by sex, age and geographic zone
Pre-test and pilot questionnaire 30 and 80 questionnaires, respectively Table I.
Field work Downtown at the mall and different supermarkets Sampling technical
Study date January to March 2012 fact sheet
 BFJ After obtaining the results of the FNS and LOV factor analysis, a multinomial logit (MNL)
model was estimated, which relates the incidence of both scales in olive oil purchasing
frequency. Factor analysis, as well MNL estimation, was done using the SPSS (v21)
software. The MNL model is appropriate when it is necessary to relate a categorical
dependent variable with other variables (continuous or categorical). It is expressed by the
following formulation:
0
ebj xi
P ðyi ¼ jÞ ¼ P3 b0 x ; (1)
j¼1 e
j i
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where ( j ¼ 1, 2, 3) represents each olive oil purchasing frequency of the dependent variable
and x is a vector of explanatory variables that influence each olive oil purchasing
frequency defined in Table II. Given the objective of the present study, two relevant
explanatory variables, the FNS and LOV, should be included in the model. The estimation
of the MNL model requires establishing a base category of the dependent variable to be
able to identify all the parameters. In this case, the “Does not purchase olive oil” category
has been established as the base category. Results of the model estimation should be
interpreted for both their magnitude (consumption probability in a determined frequency)
and for sign. In addition, some explanatory sociodemographic variables are included in
the model.

Purchasing frequency (%)

Sample Once or twice per Once every 2 or 3
Variable Category % month months Never

Consume olive oil Yes 71 55 16 –

No 29 – – 29
Olive oil consumption Average monthly 839 328 –
consumption in Ml
Sex Male 49 46 49 54
Female 51 54 51 46
Age (years) 18–34 38 32 51 40
35–49 34 36 32 32
W 50 21 32 17 28
Marital status Married 57 63 49 49
Single 36 30 49 40
Other 7 7 2 11
Children No 28 20 51 31
Yes 72 80 49 69
Education level Secondary 46 42 37 57
Postsecondary 42 41 49 41
Postgraduate 12 17 14 2
Income (Thousands o $1,500 73 64 71 89
Chilean pesos) $1,500–$2,500 18 24 23 5
W $2,500 9 12 6 6
Residential area North 33 42 20 21
Table II.
Sample Center 35 36 37 34
characterization based South 32 22 43 45
on consumption Percentage (%) 100 55 16 29
frequency Total (n) 221 121 35 65
 3. Results and discussion Incidence of
This section shows the main results obtained in the present study. First, results of the psychographic
sample characterization are disclosed based on olive oil purchasing frequency. These are variables
followed by the results of the FNS and LOV scale factor analysis. Finally, the results of
the MNL model estimation are provided. Table II displays the sample characterization.
The olive oil consumption frequencies are also defined.
The information in Table II establishes that 71 percent of the respondents declared they
consumed olive oil. Of these, 55 percent consumed it once or twice per month and 16 percent
consumed it once every two or three months. Married respondents were 57 percent of the
sample and 72 percent of them had children. A total of 54 percent of the respondents had
postsecondary or postgraduate education, and 73 percent had an average monthly family
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income of $1,500,000 Chilean pesos. Respondents were distributed fairly evenly in the
different residential areas.
Factor analysis was performed with the scores obtained from the FNS respondents
to determine the structure of the factors and identify which items were related to the
factors. Table III shows the factor loads as well as the mean and typical deviation of
each item.
Two factors were obtained from the analysis, which explain 50 percent of the total
variance of the ten items of the FNS. The first factor was defined as “Neophobia” and
included people who had a high resistance to trying new foods. This factor considered two
items with a negative sign: “I would eat almost anything” and “I would try new foods on
special occasions.” The negative sign means that the item is interpreted as being in the
opposite direction. The second factor was defined as “Neophilia” and consisted of people
who are open-minded about trying new foods. This factor had only one item with a negative
sign, “Ethnic food seems too strange to be eaten,” which should be interpreted as people who
are willing to eat ethnic food. The FNS presented a suitable level of internal consistency
(Cronbach’s α ¼ 0.801). This result is within the range of values obtained in other studies
conducted in Chile (Schnettler et al., 2017; Schnettler et al., 2013), as well as other
studies carried out in Latin America, such as Mexico (Salgado et al., 2016) and Brazil
(Ribeiro de Andrade Previato and Behrens, 2015). The consistency value is also within the
ranges of studies conducted in Spain (Camarena and Sanjuán, 2008; Barrena and Sánchez,
2012; Fernández-Ruiz et al., 2013; Maiz and Balluerka, 2016).
Factor analysis was also performed for the LOV scale; three factors explained 69 percent
of the original variance of the nine items making up the LOV scale. The first factor was

Components
Neophobia Neophilia Mean Typical deviation

(3) If I do not know what is in the food, I will not try it 0.768 4.0 2.3
(8) I am very exacting about the food I eat 0.713 3.9 2.3
(7) I am afraid to eat things that I have never tried before 0.699 3.4 2.2
(2) I do not trust new foods 0.626 3.6 2.2
(9) I would eat almost anything (R) 0.470 4.3 2.2
(6) I would try new foods on special occasions (R) 0.428 1.9 1.3
(10) I like to try out new ethnic restaurants 0.829 3.6 2.2
(4) I like foods from different countries (R) 0.794 2.4 1.9
(1) I constantly try new or different foods (R) 0.651 2.8 1.9
(5) Ethnic food seems too strange to be eaten 0.535 4.1 2.2
Notes: (R): reverse scoring; extraction method: principal component analysis; rotation method: Kaiser Table III.
varimax normalization; Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin measure of sampling adequacy 0.814; χ2 546.210; Bartlett’s Food neophobia scale
sphericity test, Gl 45, Sig. 0.000; Cronbach’s α 0.801 (FNS) factor analysis
 BFJ defined as “Internal values” (IV ) and included values based on personal development.
The second factor was defined as “External values” (EV ) and consisted of values related to
the interaction with other people or with the individual’s social environment. The third
factor was defined as “Hedonism” (H) and encompassed values of personal enjoyment and
pleasure. Table IV illustrates the factor analysis results.
Based on the results, variables were selected for use in the MNL model estimation.
Table V shows these results.
The MNL model estimation was performed using the variables shown in Table V. The
model estimation results are displayed in Table VI. The model is globally significant and its
goodness of fit is adequate to McFadden pseudo R2 ¼ 0.170. Regarding the results for each
olive oil purchasing frequency, these should always be interpreted as related to the reference
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category “Does not purchase olive oil.”

Taking into account the objective of the present study, the two variables of interest (the
FNS and LOV ) were significant in explaining olive oil purchasing frequency.
By analyzing subjects classified in the first purchasing frequency “Once or twice per
month,” the FNS variable was positive in the case of neophilic individuals and this
increased by 0.48 times (exp(−0.743)) the probability of purchasing olive oil with a higher
frequency compared to those who do not (reference category). The LOV variable was also
significant and had a positive impact for the “external dimension” and “hedonism” factors.
In the case of the external dimension, consumers who assign a high evaluation to this type
of value increase by 0.69 times (exp(−0.377)) the probability of purchasing olive oil once or
twice per month as compared to those who do not purchase it. Likewise for hedonism,
people who value these attributes increase by 1.54 times the probability of purchasing
olive oil more frequently as compared to those who do not purchase the product. People’s
income was also significant; consumers in the intermediate income range (M$1,500–M
$2,500) increase by 4.22 times the probability of purchasing olive oil once or twice per
month. People residing in the eastern part of the city increase by 3.06 times the probability
of purchasing olive oil once or twice a month compared to the reference category. Finally,
another interesting variable in the estimation is the interaction of the sex and civil status
variables. Married men, married women, and single women increase by 5.02, 4.27 and
3.23 times, respectively, the probability of consuming the product more frequently than
people who do not purchase it.
The “Once every 2 or 3 months” purchasing frequency was significant only in the
income range and postgraduate education variables. People in the income range between
M$1,500 and M$2,500 increase by 5.35 times the probability of purchasing olive oil once

Components
IV EV H Mean Typical deviation

(2) Self-esteem 0.835 6.6 0.74

(1) Self-realization 0.760 6.6 0.89
(8) Sense of accomplishing objectives 0.741 6.5 0.87
(3) Enthusiasm 0.674 6.4 0.92
(5) Caring relationships with others 0.864 6.6 0.79
(9) Be respected 0.641 6.5 1.13
(7) Sense of belonging to a group 0.622 5.9 1.25
(4) Pleasure and enjoying life 0.881 6.6 0.76
(6) Security 0.642 6.4 1.05
Table IV. Notes: IV, internal values; EV, external values; H, hedonism. Extraction method: principal component
List of values (LOV ) analysis; rotation method: Kaiser varimax normalization; Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin measure of sampling adequacy
factor analysis 0.858; χ2 747.990; Bartlett’s sphericity test, Gl 36, Sig. 0.000; Cronbach’s α 0.853
 Dependent variable
Olive oil purchasing frequency
Independent variables
Type of phobia (FNS)
List of values (LOV )
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Categories
Incidence of
Three-level categorical variable: psychographic
1. Once or twice per month variables
2. Once every 2 or 3 months
3. Does not purchase olive oilRc
Categories
Continuous variable that establishes two factors consisting of two types
of phobia (FNS):
Factor 1: neophobia
Factor 2: neophilia
Continuous variable that establishes three factors consisting of values
(LOV ):

Factor 1: internal dimension

Income range (thousands of
Chilean pesos)
Education level
Residential área
Sex × Civil status
Note: Rc, reference category
Factor 2: external dimension
Factor 3: hedonism
Three-level categorical variable:
1. o M$1,500Rc
2. M$1,500–M$2,500
3. W M$2,500
Three-level categorical variable:
1. SecondaryRc
2. Postsecondary
3. Postgraduate
Three-level categorical variable:
1. North
2. Center
3. SouthRc
Four-level categorical variable:
1. Male × Married
Table V.
2. Female × Married Variables used for
3. Female × Single multinomial logit
4. Male × SingleRc (MNL) model
estimation

every two or three months compared to those who do not consume the product.
Consumers with postgraduate education increase by 9.37 times the probability of
purchasing at this frequency.
According to the results of the different studies, it is not possible to know a priori the
influence that the FNS can have, in magnitude and sign, in the analysis of different variables
of interest. For studies conducted in Chile, the FNS had a negative and significant
relationship with the use of nanotechnology in food production, as well as with lifestyle
satisfaction and food satisfaction (Schnettler et al., 2013, 2017). The FNS was significant in
Mexico, but very low in individuals living close to the border with the USA (Salgado et al.,
2016). Studies in Spain revealed that when analyzing the incidence of the FNS in ethnic food,
this result was low because it is a multicultural market (Camarena and Sanjuán, 2008).
Similarly, the FNS showed that neophobic people only had minor exposure to new product
consumption (Barrena and Sánchez, 2012), and there is no relationship between the FNS and
the body mass index in Spanish adolescents (Maiz and Balluerka, 2016). The effect of FNS in
other European countries is different depending on the group of people being analyzed. In
adolescents, the FNS was an important factor to explain the willingness to try new foods
(Laureati et al., 2015), but also for the consumption of foods considered traditional in
countries such as Norway and Poland (Helland et al., 2017; Guzek et al., 2017). In more
cosmopolitan countries with a great diversity of foods, the FNS had quite a low impact
(Roßbach et al., 2016).
 BFJ Purchasing frequency Once or twice per month Once every 2 or 3 months
Variables B (typical error) B (typical error)

Constant −1.123** (0.496) −1.140** (0.557)

Type of phobia (FNS)
Neophobia 0.197 (0.182) 0.117 (0.226)
Neophilia −0.743*** (0.194) −0.373 (0.237)
List of values (LOV )
Internal dimension −0.367 (0.244) −0.260 (0.270)
External dimension −0.377* (0.229) −0.372 (0.253)
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Hedonism 0.434** (0.194) 0.287 (0.237)

Income (thousands of Chilean pesos)
$1,500–$2,500 1.441** (0.693) 1.677** (0.770)
W$2,500 0.492 (0.692) −0.107 (0.971)
Education
Postsecondary −0.053 (0.386) 0.532 (0.482)
Postgraduate 1.611 (1.114) 2.238* (1.201)
Residential area
East 1.118** (0.484) −0.396 (0.633)
Center 0.315 (0.434) −0.330 (0.528)
Civil status × Sex
Married × Male 1.613** (0.559) 0.205 (0.669)
Table VI.
Results of the Married × Female 1.452** (0.554) 0.513 (0.659)
multinomial logit Single × Female 1.171** (0.573) 0.517 (0.656)
(MNL) model Notes: Reference category ¼ “Does not purchase olive oil”; Likelihood ratio contrasts: χ2 ¼ 73.785;
estimation significance ¼ 0.000; McFadden pseudo R2 ¼ 0.170. *po 0.01; **p o0.05; ***p o0.01

As regards LOV, the “external dimension” and “hedonism” had a positive and significant impact
on the purchasing frequency of olive oil. Just as occurs with the FNS, results obtained in the
different studies are not uniform and should be analyzed on the basis of the context in which
they were conducted. Results of the present study differ from those in other studies in which
only the “internal dimension” was the principal motivator to purchase organic products in
Greece (Chryssohoidis and Krystallis, 2005). The “internal dimension” in Spain also showed
greater influence in consumers who were more sensitive to ethnic food prices (Camarena-Gómez
and Sanjuán-López, 2010). Similarly, values exhibited a great influence on Indonesian consumers
who were hedonists (Helmi, 2016). Finally, values for Thai and Japanese consumers had a
positive incidence with the intention to return to ethnic restaurants (Prayang et al., 2017).

4. Conclusions
The objective of the present study was to determine to what extent the FNS and LOV
psychographic variables influence olive oil purchasing frequency of Chilean consumers.
Although market segmentation using psychographic variables is more complete and
appropriate than sociodemographic variables, the use of multi-segmentation
(psychographic and sociodemographic) provides more market information and is a
powerful tool for companies when segmenting the market. The results should be
considered taking into account two important elements: the important process of
commercial openness occurring in Chile in the last two decades, which has allowed the
entry of new food products into the market and Chile has traditionally not been a country
open to the entry of foreigners. This has changed in the last five years with the arrival of
 immigrants of different nationalities from Latin America (especially from neighboring Incidence of
countries) and Spain. psychographic
Results suggest that the simultaneous use of the FNS and LOV variables perform well to variables
explain the purchasing frequency of a product that is still considered as foreign in an
emerging market such as Chile, which has traditionally shown little openness to the entry of
new cultures and traditions. In this case, neophilia had a higher incidence in olive oil
purchasing frequency, followed by the “External dimension” and “Hedonism” values. These
results suggest that neophilic people, as well as those who assign a higher importance to
pleasure and enjoyment in life, have a higher probability of purchasing new foods more
often than neophobic individuals or those who only value personal development (internal
dimension of LOV ). These results are similar to those found in other studies in which the
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LOV and FNS scale have had a greater impact on consumer behavior.
The results of the present study are useful for both the oil production sector and
consumers. For the production sector, the information can be used to generate successful
marketing strategies, especially considering that part of the olive oil production comes from
small producers. It is also possible to generate public policies that provide sustained support
over time to the production sector. From the consumer’s perspective, it is possible to provide
relevant information to increase olive oil consumption, which is recognized as an important
source of antioxidants.

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Corresponding author
Rodrigo Romo-Muñoz can be contacted at: rodrigoromo77@gmail.com

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