**DETERMINE AND VALIDATE JORDANIAN CONSUMER
ETHNOCENTRISM ANTECEDENTS
Abbas Natheir Albarq
University Utara Malaysia, Department of Marketing, 06010 Sintok, Kedah, Malaysia
Tel.: +601 64737370
[email protected]
Nik Kamuriah Nik Mat
University Utara Malaysia, Department of Marketing, 06010 Sintok, Kedah, Malaysia
Tel.: +601 64737399
[email protected]
Ernest Cyril Dr Run
University Malaysia Sarawak, Deputy Dean Faculty of Economic and Business, Tel.: +601 888430
[email protected]
Abstract
This study attempts to determine and validate the antecedents of consumer ethnocentrism in Jordan.
Ethnocentrism is one of the oldest concerns of international marketers is whether the “foreignness” of a
product will make it less preferable to consumers in different countries. From the literature, seven
antecedents of customer ethnocentrisms were identified. Each variable is measured using 7-point
Likert-scale: culture openness’ (6 items), conservatism (6 items), collectivism/ individualism (6 items),
patriotism (6 items), control belief (5 items), interest in foreign travel (4 items) and attitude toward
foreign product (4 items). Using survey method, 115 questionnaires were distributed for data
collection, calling by telephone, household – selected randomly from yellow pages. The responses
collected were 93 questionnaires representing 81 percent response rate. Exploratory factor analysis
using principle component and varimax rotation method performed on the data produces seven
underlying components consisting of culture openness’ (6 items), conservatism (5 items), collectivism/
individualism (6 items), patriotism (6 items), control belief (5 items), interest in foreign travel (4
items), attitude toward foreign product (4 items) and Consumer ethnocentrism was measured using the
CETSCALE 17 items. Thus, the antecedents of customer ethnocentrism were substantiated and its
construct validated in this study. The finding is discussed in the light of consumer ethnocentrism in
Jordan.
Keywords: ethnocentrism, culture openness, conservatism, patriotism
1.1
Introduction
Despite globalization, barriers to success in foreign markets remain. One such barrier, ethnocentrism,
was introduced by Sumner (1906), who defined it as the view of things in which one’s own group is the
center of everything, and all others are scaled and rated with reference to it. Each group nourishes its
own pride and vanity, boasts itself superior, exalts its own divinities and looks with contempt on
outsiders. Ethnocentrism is considered a component of attitude that is deeply rooted in most
sociological and interracial1 relations (Adorno, Frenkel-Brunswick, Levinson, and Sanford 1950;
Chang and Ritter 1976; LeVine and Campbell 1972; Sumner 1906). It refers to an inflated preference
for one’s own group and, at the same time, indifference and/or dislike for others. An ethnocentric
individual strongly supports traditions, symbols, icons, and products of his or her own culture and,
simultaneously, dislikes those of other cultures. Over time, individuals develop perceptions about
various cultures that form a basis for comparing products of other countries with those of their own
country.
Ethnocentrism is learned and is part of an individual’s socialization. In addition, ethnocentric
tendencies are reinforced by an individual’s experiences with outside cultures and the cultures’
products, it is a construct which has been widely used in studying consumer attitudes toward foreign
products, its one of the oldest concerns of international marketers is whether the “foreignness” of a
product will make it less preferable to consumers in different countries (Schooler 1965, 1971).
Consumer ethnocentrism derives from this general construct of ethnocentrism and refers to people who
view their own group as central. One of the most important definitions nowadays Shimp and Sharma
(1987) as beliefs held by consumers about the appropriateness or morality of purchasing foreign
products. Purchasing imported goods is seen as wrong as it will harm the domestic economy, have an
adverse impact on domestic employment, and is unpatriotic. Along with increased nationalism and
heavy emphasis on cultural and ethnic identity, consumer ethnocentrism will be a potent force in the
global business environment in the years to come.
Increased global business has also led to a renewed interest in the effect of consumer ethnocentrism;
concepts evoke certain attitudes towards products from abroad on consumer decision making
(Papadopoulos and Heslop, 1993). Globalization which tend to be increasing in import from and export
to various countries around the world, it facilitate and brought culture closeness, but have we reached
an era where geographical borders become less important as consumers across nations are becoming
more homogeneous. Or, as globalization forces are intensified, consumers are more concerned about a
product’s country of origin? To which extent nations prefer domestic products as opposed to foreign?
Although still a long way from the "global village" that Ted Levitt (1985) predicted over a decade ago,
an increasing number of consumer markets are characterized by global competition. Moreover
globalization trying to integrate nations, peoples and culturally into a larger community, Schütte and
Ciarlante (1998) argue that globalization will not obliterate cultural differences and standardize
consumer behavior around the globe.
It has been hypothesized that cultural differences are still, by looking for the current conflict in the
Middle East and events like September 11, serve as a reminder that the world is still not a cohesive
international community, and geographic loyalties likely influence consumer preferences. Following
the Gulf War in the early 1990s, the slogan “Made in America” urged American consumers to pledge
loyalty to U.S. products, thereby showing their support of overseas military efforts. September 11 and
the Afghanistan and Iraqi conflicts led to the quick depletion of American flags in stores, implying that
positive U.S. sentiments were developing throughout the country.
Thus, the objective of this study is to identify the antecedents of customer ethnocentrism and to
validate the internal consistency of each antecedent construct. This paper is structured as follows. First,
we review the marketing literature on the antecedents of customer ethnocentrism. Next, we present the
research framework, methods, measures and findings. Finally, the results were discussed in terms of its
contribution to global banking business and recommendations for future research.
2.1
Literature Review: Antecedents of customer ethnocentrism
The term “ethnocentrism” derives from a more general concept; researchers have investigated the
relationships between consumer ethnocentrism and a number of socio-psychological variables. From
our reading we have identified seven main antecedence vis-à-vis, cultural openness (Sharma et al.,
1995; Howard, 1989; Berkowitz, 1962; Skinner, 1959; Rosenblatt, 1964), patriotism (Sharma et al.,
1995; Sumner, 1906; Adorno et al., 1950; Mihalyi, 1984; Han, 1988; Klein and Ettenson, 1999;
Balabanis et al. 2001), conservatism (Sharma et al., 1995; Wilson and Patterson, 1968; Balabanis et
al., 2002; Anderson & Cunningham, 1972; Wang, 1978) Collectivism/individualism (Sharma et al.,
1995; Nishina, 1990; Ettenson et al.’s, 1988; Hui&Triandis,1986; Triandis, Brislin, & Hui, 1988),
control belief (TPB Theory, Ajzen, 1998), interest in foreign travel (Mooij, 1997; Douglas, Susan P.
and Edwin J. Nijssen, 1998), attitude toward foreign product (TPB Theory, Ajzen, 1998).
2.1.1 Cultural openness
Cultural openness, is defined as awareness, understanding, and acceptance of other cultures (Sharma et
al., 1995). Studies that found a negative relationship between cultural openness and CET (Shimp and
Sharma, 1987; Howard, 1989) seem to have relied heavily on conventional wisdom that “cross-cultural
interactions and travel opportunities can broaden one’s mind” (Berkowitz, 1962). As a matter of fact,
Skinner (1959) observed that members of a group that have “the most contact with new cultures such
as border dwellers, travelers and diplomats tend to be extremely ethnocentric or nationalistic”
(Rosenblatt, 1964, p. 138).
2.1.2 Patriotism
Sharma et al. (1995) put forward the argument that patriotism, defined as love for or devotion to one’s
country, is positively related to CET. Their logic was imported from earlier studies that dealt with
ethnocentrism in general. For example, several authors contended that patriotism is not only related to
ethnocentrism, but also acts as a defense mechanism for the in-group (Sumner, 1906; Adorno et al.,
1950; Mihalyi, 1984). Empirical support for a positive relationship between patriotism and CET is
provided by studies such as Han (1988), Sharma et al. (1995) and Klein and Ettenson (1999). Balabanis
et al. (2001) found that patriotism had a positive relationship with ethnocentrism, but only for one of
the two samples surveyed. They concluded that the effect of patriotism on ethnocentrism may vary
from country to country, often because of historical events.
2.1.3 Conservatism
Conservative persons are those that “show a tendency to cherish traditions and social institutions that
have survived the test of time and to introduce changes only occasionally, reluctantly and gradually”
(Sharma et al., 1995, p. 28). In its extreme form, conservatism can manifest itself as religious
intolerance, insistence on strict rules and punishments and an anti-hedonic outlook (Wilson and
Patterson, 1968 in Sharma et al., 1995). Studies such as Sharma et al. (1995) and Balabanis et al.
(2002) found a positive relationship between conservatism and costumer ethnocentrism. A positive
relationship was found by country-of-origin researchers between conservatism and attitudes toward
foreign products (Anderson & Cunningham, 1972; Wang, 1978). A conservative consumer typically
exhibits characteristics such as religious fundamentalism, pro-establishment orientation, insistence on
strict rules and punishments, preference for the conventional and anti-hedonic outlook
2.1.4 Collectivism/individualism
Collectivism/individualism is another socio-psychological variable used in past research as an
antecedent to consumer ethnocentrism. In the field of psychology, extensive research has revealed
differences between collectivist cultures and individualistic cultures (Hui&Triandis, 1986; Triandis,
Brislin, & Hui, 1988). Collectivistic persons are likely to show ethnocentric tendencies because they
consider their actions in relation to their societal group. Individualistic persons, on the other hand, will
act for their own benefit and will show lesser degrees of ethnocentrism. These findings were confirmed
in a study conducted by Sharma et al. (1995). As collectivists consider the effect of their actions on the
larger group or the society, people with collectivistic goals “tend to reveal more intensive ethnocentric
tendencies than those with individualistic goals” (Sharma et al.,1995, p. 28). Empirical support for
positive correlation between collectivism and CET can be found in studies such as Nishina (1990) and
Sharma et al. (1995).
2.1.5 Control belief toward foreign product
Ajzen (1998) refers the PBC control beliefs as the perceived ease or difficulty of performing the
behavior and it is assumed to reflect past experience as well as anticipated impediments and obstacles"
(Ajzen, 1988, p. 132). This refers to perceived control over a behavior, not the objective, actual amount
of control a person has in a certain situation. Therefore, perceived control over a certain behavior in the
same situation may differ, depending on the person's perception of the control.
2.1.6 Interest in foreign travel
This tends to reduce tendencies towards ethnocentrism where these stem from a lack of experience or
knowledge rather than prejudice (Mooij 1997). Individuals often learn about other cultures in school by
reading about them, or by watching programs on television. However, actual experience of visiting or
living in another country is likely to have the most profound effect on knowledge about other countries
and other peoples' life-styles and increase receptivity towards foreign products. Positive attitudes
toward travel abroad will reflect a more international orientation. Douglas, Susan P. and Edwin J.
Nijssen (1998) found that, while negative attitudes towards the purchase of foreign products are
associated with patriotism, they are not necessarily strongly associated with lack of interest in foreign
travel. On the other hand, more nuanced attitudes towards the purchase of foreign products appear to be
associated with love of foreign travel and exposure to foreign countries.
3.1
Research Framework
Figure 1 shows the research framework of the study. The literature indicates that culture openness,
conservatism, collectivism/ individualism, patriotism, control belief, interest in foreign travel and
attitude toward foreign product are direct antecedents of customer ethnocentrism.
FIGURE 1: RESEARCH FRAMEWORK
Culture Openness
Conservatism
Collectivism
Patriotism
CET
Control belief
Foreign travel
Attitude
4.1
Methodology
A total of 115 calling by telephone, household respondents from yellow pages of Jordan– was
randomly selected for the survey, The responses collected were 93 questionnaires representing 81
percent response rate. Each variable is measured using 7-point Likert-scale: culture openness measure
was adopted from Sharma. (1995) Jeongshin (1993)-(6 items), conservatism was adopted from Rays
(1983)- (6 items), collectivism/ individualism was adopted from Hui (1988)-(6 items), patriotism was
adopted from Andorno, (1950) - (5 items), control belief was adopted from Ajzen. (1998). and interest
in foreign travel was adopted from (Douglas and Nijssen, 1998) (4 items). Attitude toward foreign
product was adopted from Martin and Stewart (2001) and Hastak and Olson (1989) - (4 items).
Consumer Ethnocentrism, Consumer ethnocentrism was measured using the CETSCALE 17 items
(Shimp & Sharma, 1987). The data collected was analyzed using SPSS software mainly utilizing
factor analysis, descriptive statistics and reliability test. The cronbach alpha readings of all measures
are presented in Table 1. All alpha readings are above .70 indicating a high internal consistency in all
measures utilized.
TABLE 1: RELIABILITY COEFFICIENT
Variable Name
N
No. of Items
Alpha Coefficient
Culture Openness
93
6
.964
Patriotism
93
6
.928
Conservatism
93
6
.842
Collectivism/individualism
93
5
.940
Control Belief
93
4
.855
Interest in foreign travel
93
4
.854
Attitude toward foreign
product
93
4
.964
93
17
.990
Ethnocentrism
5.1
Findings
An exploratory factor analysis using principal component extraction method with varimax rotation was
applied in the first instance to test for sample adequacy in running this method of analysis. The KMO
or Measure of Sampling Adequacy (MSA) reading is .812 (>.5) and Bartlett's test of sphericity stands
at significant level of .000 (sig<.05), thus making the following factor analysis permissible (Hair.et
al.2006). Next, an exploratory factor analysis using principle component extraction method with
varimax rotation method was duly conducted. The KMO has increased to .812 and Bartlett’s test of
sphericity shows a significantly high reading (sig at .000). Table 2 illustrates the result of the
exploratory factor analysis. The final results produced seven components with eigenvalues above 1
and explaining a total of 79.374 percent of variance cumulatively. Factor 1 which represents culture
openness’ contains 6 items remaining from 6 items proposed originally. Factor loadings above .50 were
selected and it explains 29.609 percent of variance in factor one. Factor two which is patriotism
contains 6 items. Only one item of the original collectivism/individualism with factor loading less 0.5
was drop in this component. Conservatism measure indicates a 12.092 percent variance. The fifth
factor produced by the CFA is interest to travel consisting four items with factor loading above .5 and
percentage of variance explained is 7.444. Control belief forms the six factor consisting of 5 items
with factor loadings readings above .5 and percentage of variance of 4.907. The seventh component is
attitude toward foreign product which consists of 4 items with factor loadings of above .5 and
percentage of variance is 3.553. To conclude, the CFA conducted indicates that all seven factors are
likely constructs of each measure. The internal consistency of each construct are somewhat
substantiated.
TABLE 2: FACTOR ANALYSIS RESULT
Factor/Variance Label
explained
Attributes
Factor 1
Culture
Openness
1. I have strong desire to overseas travel.
2. I would like to learn more about other countries.
3. I would like to have opportunities to meet people from other
countries.
4. I am very interested on trying food from different countries.
5. I am open-minded towards foreigners and their habits.
6. We should have a respect for traditions, cultures and way of
other nations.
.892
.884
.880
1. Serving the mother land is an “honorable” thing
2. I get very angry when foreigners speak ill of Jordan.
3. On every national holiday we should raise the flag
4. It’s important to sustain our national anthem.
5. If I were to be born again, I would like to be born as a
Jordanian again..
6. A real Jordanian man supports Jordanian sportsmen when
they compete in international games.
1. Jordanian should use their hand to eat (traditional mails) and
not use the spoon.
2.
Erotic and obscene literature should be prohibited from
public sale.
3. The wedding should not be mixed, must separate between
men and women.
4. School children should have plenty of discipline.
5. Low against cousin Marriage are old fashioned and wrong.
6. Teenagers should listen to their parents advice on choosing
spouses
1. There is everything to gain and nothing to lose for classmates
to group themselves for study and discussion
2. Young people should take into consideration their parents’
advice when making education/career plans
3Classmate assistance is indispensable to getting a good grade at
school.
4. It is reasonable for a son to continue his fathers business
5. One needs to return a favor if a colleague lends a helping hand
1. I like to visit exotic places during my vacation
2. I love to go abroad
3. I love traveling and visiting other countries
4. I go abroad several times a year
1. It would be convenient for me to buy foreign products.
2. It would not be difficult for me to buy foreign products.
.890
.861
.854
.849
.847
Variance 26.490
%
Factor 2
Patriotism
Variance
14.538%
Factor 3
Conservatism
Variance
12.092%
Co1
Co2
Co5
Co4
Co3
Co6
P3
P4
P2
P1
P5
P6
C1
C2
C3
C4
C5
C6
Ci3
Factor 4
Collectivism/indi
vidualism
Variance
10.350%
Factor 5
Travel
Variance 7.444%
Factor 6
Ci4
Ci2
Ci5
Ci6
F4
F2
F1
F3
F5
F4
Factor
Loadings
.868
.867
.858
.798
.899
.891
.884
.883
.877
.824
.917
.891
.891
.888
.866
.806
.794
.791
.660
.759
.702
Control belief
F1
F3
F2
3. I am extremely confident to buy foreign products.
4. It’s much more likely to buy foreign products.
Variance 4.907%
5. It’s up to me to decide weather or not to buy foreign
products.
Factor 7
A1
1. I like foreign products very much
Attitude
A3
2. I think the foreign products are high quality.
A2
3. I buy foreign products as much as possible.
Variance 3.553%
A4
4. I believe that a foreign product offers benefits to the
consumers
Extraction Method: Principal component Analysis.
Rotation Method: Varimax with Kaiser Normalization.
Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) Measure of Sampling Adequacy .812, Bartlett’s test of Sphericity:
Square= 3314.521, df = 630, Sig= .000.
.669
.646
.550
.929
.926
.901
.875
Chi-
6.1
Discussion
The objective of this research is to determine and validate the antecedent factor constructs of customer
ethnocentrism in Jordan. Seven factors were subjected to confirmatory factor analysis shows a
promising result of internal consistency. The CFA include all the six factors as possible antecedents of
customer ethnocentrism. Bearing in mind that the measurements has been usually applied in a western
culture, the construct validity gives some indications of its applicability in an Middle East (Arab)
culture such as Jordan.
7.1
Contribution and recommendation for future research
The findings could be applied for utilization in research regarding customer ethnocentrism in other
Arab countries. Furthermore, the analysis of this study could be extended to the confirmatory factor
analysis using structural equation modeling (SEM).
8.1
Conclusion
This study has achieved its objective in determining and validating the internal consistency of seven
constructs or the antecedents of customer ethnocentrism.
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