Journal of Business and Economic Management 1(4): 048-052, July 2013
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15413/jbem.2013.0105
ISSN: 2315-7755
©2013 Academia Publishing
Research Paper
An empirical examination of consumer ethnocentrism
Accepted 19th April, 2013
Shahid N. Bhuian
Department of Management & Marketing,
College of Business & Economics
Qatar University, Doha,
Qatar.
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 974-4403-5049,
Fax: 974-4403-5001
ABSTRACT
Utilizing the City scale, this study attempts to examine consumer attitudes toward
ethnocentrism in a small Mid-Western town in the U.S.A. The results indicate that
these consumers display some degree of ethnocentric tendencies and these
tendencies are homogeneous across consumer demographics.
Key words: consumer ethnocentrism, domestic products, foreign products
INTRODUCTION
The ethnocentrism of consumers is the tendency of
consumers to prefer domestic goods to imported goods
based on the belief that the purchase of imported goods will
adversely affect the home country (Han, 1988; Niss, 1996;
Kwak et al., 2006; Josiassen et al., 2011; Ranjbarian et al.,
2011; Shimp and Sharma, 1987). Such a tendency can have
significant influence on consumers' consumptive behavior.
In fact, consumer ethnocentrism is believed to be more
comprehensive and deeply rooted source of consumer bias
than the country-of-origin effect (Sharma et al., 1995).
Researchers have been investigating consumer
ethnocentrism in various markets (Caruana and Magri,
1996; Festervand and Sokoya, 1994; Good and Huddleston,
1995; Han, 1988; Josiassen et al., 2011; Kwak et al., 2006;
Sharma et al., 1995). The common findings in the extant
literature suggest that consumers in different markets have
slight to moderate tendencies of ethnocentrism. Also, such
ethnocentric tendencies can vary across consumer
demographics.
This study attempts to investigate consumer
ethnocentrism among college students in a small town,
Aberdeen, in the Mid-Western region in the U.S.A. The
population of this study is unique in many respects. They
are primarily farm-oriented and believed to be
conservative. These people are less traveled and have little
direct exposure to foreign countries. Using the term of
Perreault, Jr. and McCarthy (1997), they can be called
localites as opposed to metropolites. All these may suggest
that this population will be highly ethnocentric. On the
other hand, the economy of this area is highly dependent on
foreign trade. One third of the farm products of this area
are exported abroad. Also, like any other markets, this
area’s retail stores are inundated with foreign-made
products. The region’s economic policies have been
increasingly emphasizing and promoting foreign trade.
These factors can have inverse effect on ethnocentrism.
Under these circumstances, a study measuring the
ethnocentrism of this population can help better
understand these consumers of a small town.
Background
The origin of the literature on ethnocentrism goes back to
the year nineteen hundred and six when Sumner defined it
as "the view of things in which one's group is the center of
everything, and all others are scaled and rated with
reference to it" (Summer, 1906). The same sociological
literature later expanded its view on ethnocentrism by
asserting that this form of cultural bias manifested itself in
all groups, and evolved into a form of cultural pride,
sectionalism, religious prejudice, racial discrimination, and
patriotism (Murdock, 1931). A relatively recent effort had
identified a number of properties of ethnocentrism. These
properties included the tendency to distinguish among
groups, perceive events (social, political, and economic) in
terms of one's own interests, and view one's culture as
being superior and the standard for comparison purposes,
and question and show disdain for others (LeVine and
Campbell, 1972).
Journal of Business and Economic Management; Bhuian
This ethnocentric tendency can substantially influence
the consumptive behavior of consumers. In fact, this
sentiment can become dominant over the utilitarian and
economic value of consumption decisions. Consequently,
this can be a challenge for the trend of globalization that is
moving toward creating a market driven world economy.
Hence, researchers in business and economic disciplines
have been studying ethnocentrism of consumers in various
markets.
A closely related area that is extensively studied is the
country-of-origin effect or country-image effect. These
works have determined that the mere country-of-origin
information in products or in any other elements of the
marketing mix can influence consumer choice making.
When consumers prefer domestic products than foreign
products for affective reasons, the influence of
ethnocentrism becomes evident.
This sentiment of
ethnocentrism is comprehensive and deeply rooted in the
sociopolitical orientation of consumers.
A number of ways, consumers can manifest their
ethnocentrism. Consumers may perceive that the
consumption of foreign products will have adverse
economic impact in the domestic economy. Further,
consumers can seek and support government interventions
in protecting domestic products from foreign competition.
Also, consumers simple may express favorable attitudes
toward domestic products and unfavorable toward foreign
products. Finally, consumers may dislike foreign products
because of those foreign countries’ different social and
religious philosophies.
The population of interest in this study can have the
earlier noted perceptions about domestic versus foreign
products. First, the recent trade conflict with Canada shows
that this farming community believes that they are
adversely affected by the import of farm products from
Canada. The same perception can permeate among other
imports. The strong political mobilization and resistance of
this region against Canadian imports testifies that this
population sees government interventions in protecting
domestic products favorably. Further, as a conservative
and a farming community this population is likely to be
inward looking, and they are likely to prefer domestic
products better than imports. Finally, as mentioned earlier,
these primarily localites and conservative population may
be more adversely influenced by the negative publicity of
the social and religious conditions in some foreign
countries than the metropolites. In turn, this population’s
attitudes toward foreign products can become unfavorable.
Based on the earlier discussion, the following research
issues are examined in this study:
R1: What is the nature of ethnocentrism of consumers in a
small town in the Mid-West?
R2: Does the nature of ethnocentrism of consumers in a
small town in the Mid-West differ with respect to academic
major, education, age, sex, and income?
049
METHODOLOGY
Data for this study was collected from the students of
Northern State University (NSU). A group of four students
distributed 80 questionnaires to their fellow students in
classes and dorms. A total of 53 questionnaires were
retrieved through a drop-off and pick-up method. The
student samples were selected based on convenience. The
sample characteristics indicate that the representations of
various concentrations range from 15.1 to 20.85% except
one, 07.5%, related to general business. Also, over 96% of
the students belong to the age group of equal to or below
25 years. Further, more than 90% has a monthly income
level of equal to or less than $1,000. In addition, the
proportions of students in the four classes range from 17.3
to 32.7. Finally, the sample consisted of 60.4% females and
39.6% males. These properties of the sample closely
represent the student body NSU.
The Cetscale that is a 17-item scale developed by Shimp
and Sharma (1987) measured the construct of consumer
ethnocentrism. The respondents indicated their agreement
or disagreement with the statements on a 7-point scale that
ranges from 1=strongly disagree to 7=strongly agree. The
reliability scores are given in Table 1 and are satisfactory.
The factor loading ranges from 0.62 to 0.82 with an
exception of 0.30. The item to total correlation scores
range from 0.56 to 0.79 except one item that has a score of
0.28. The cronbach alpha is 0.94.
The data was analyzed by both descriptive and inferential
statistics. The means for all the statements were calculated
to get some idea about the ethnocentric tendencies of the
students at NSU (R1). Then, ANOVA analyses were
undertaken with five demographic variables, that is
academic major, education, age, sex, and income, to see if
these students' ethnocentric feelings were affected by
demographics (R2).
RESULTS
R1 is examined by the mean responses given in both Tables
2 and 3. Out of 17 means, 13 are over 4.0, 1 is over 5.0, and
4 are over 3.0. From these mean values, it can be said that
these students have, to some extent, ethnocentric
tendencies.
Five statements addressed consumer perceptions of the
economic impact of imports and the consumption of foreign
products. The statement, "Buy American made products,
Keep America working," generated the highest mean rating
of 5.40. However, a lower mean value was received by the
statement, "It is not right to purchase foreign products,
because it puts Americans out of jobs." The next statement,
"Americans should not buy foreign products, because this
hurts American business and causes unemployment"
pertaining to the economic impact received a mean rating
of 4.6. The two other statements, "We should buy from
Journal of Business and Economic Management; Bhuian
050
Table 1. Sample characteristics.
Major
Age
Income
Characteristics
Finance/Accounting
General Business
Marketing/ Management
Education
Undecided
Others
%
15.1
07.5
18.9
20.8
20.8
17.0
Below 21 years
21 – 25
26 – 30
Above 30
37.7
56.6
03.8
01.9
Less than $500
$501 - $1,000
$1,001 - $2,000
Above $2,000
62.3
28.3
03.8
05.7
Education
Freshman
Sophomore
Junior
Senior
%
25.0
17.3
32.7
25.0
Sex
Male
Female
39.6
60.4
Table 2. Descriptive statistics and reliability measures.
Statement
Composite of all statements
American people should always buy American made products instead of imports (v1)
Only those products that are unavailable in the U.S. should be imported (v2)
Buy American made products. Keep America working (v3)
American products first, last, and foremost (v4)
Purchasing foreign made products is un-American (v5)
It is not right to purchase foreign products, because it puts Americans out of jobs (v6)
A real American should always buy American made products (v7)

4.29
4.38
4.60
5.40
4.58
3.28
3.98
3.58
0.76
0.76
0.30
0.70
0.71
0.78
0.82
0.73
0.72
0.28
0.67
0.67
0.75
0.79
We should purchase products manufactured in America instead of letting other countries
get rich off us (v8)
4.36
0.77
0.74
It is always best to purchase American products (v9)
4.38
0.59
0.56
There should be very little trading or purchasing of goods from other countries unless out
of necessity (v10)
4.08
0.71
0.68
Americans should not buy foreign products, because this hurts American business and
causes unemployment (v11)
4.60
0.78
0.76
Curbs should be put on all imports (v12)
It may cost me in the long run but I prefer to support American products (v13)
Foreigners should not be allowed to put their products on our markets (v14)
Foreign products should be taxed heavily to reduce their entry into the U.S. (v15)
4.13
4.66
3.72
4.22
0.78
0.62
0.68
0.68
0.75
0.59
0.65
0.65
We should buy from foreign countries only those products that we cannot obtain within
our own country (v16)
4.66
0.62
0.60
American consumers who purchase products made in other countries are responsible for
putting their fellow Americans out of work (v17)
4.28
0.60
0.58
 = Response mean,  = Factor loading,  = Cronbach Alpha, = Item-to-Total Correlation.


0.94

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Table 3. ANOVA results.
Variable
V1
V2
V3
V4
V5
V6
V7
V8
V9
V10
V11
V12
V13
V14
V15
V16
V17
Summate
Mean
4.38
4.60
5.40
4.58
3.28
3.98
3.58
4.36
4.38
4.08
4.60
4.13
4.66
3.72
4.22
4.66
4.28
4.29
Major F(Pr>F)
0.25(.936)
0.78(.571)
1.80(.132)
0.28(.924)
1.83(.126)
0.96(.452)
1.03(.414)
0.61(.696)
0.38(.863)
1.06(.397)
0.25(.939)
1.11(.366)
1.13(.357)
1.46(.221)
0.62(.684)
0.99(.434)
0.65(.663)
0.70(.624)
Education F(Pr>F)
1.37(.264)
0.48(.698)
1.66(.188)
0.72(.547)
0.25(.859)
0.17(.915)
0.50(.682)
0.35(.786)
0.38(.769)
2.03(.122)
0.94(.428)
0.88(.458)
0.25(.863)
1.94(.136)
1.12(.3495)
0.86(.469)
0.15(.929)
0.69(.560)
foreign countries only those products that we cannot obtain
within our own country" and "American consumers who
purchase products made in other countries are responsible
for putting their fellow Americans out of work" created
mean values of 4.66 and 4.28 respectively.
Further, six statements pertained to consumer patriotism
and personal response towards imports. These statements,
"American people should always buy American made
products instead of imports," "American products first, last,
and foremost," "Purchasing foreign made products is unAmerican," "A real American should always buy American
made products," It is always best to purchase American
products," and "It may cost me in the long run but I prefer
to support American products" produced mean values of
4.38, 4.58, 3.28, 3.58, 4.38, and 4.66 respectively. It can be
noted here that out of the six statements, respondents are
agreeable with five statements but slightly disagreeable
with one statement, "Purchasing foreign made products is
un-American." In other words, respondents feel that
Americans should buy American products, however, it
should not be considered un-American if someone buys
foreign products.
Three statements attempted to assess respondents'
opinions about responses of the authority to imports. The
statement, "Only those products that are unavailable in the
U.S. should be imported" generated a mean response of 4.6.
The two other statements, "Foreigners should not be
allowed to put their products on our markets" and "Foreign
products should be taxed heavily to reduce their entry into
the U.S." resulted into mean values of 3.72 and 4.22
respectively.
Age F(Pr>F)
0.15(.932)
0.32(.813)
1.42(.248)
1.33(.275)
0.24(.869)
1.20(.321)
0.97(.415)
0.70(.557)
1.32(.279)
2.20(.100)
0.54(.655)
0.87(.461)
0.87(.462)
0.12(.946)
0.36(.782)
1.64(.193)
0.34(.795)
0.93(.432)
Sex (Pr>F)
0.03(.865)
0.00(.956)
0.01(.940)
2.08(.156)
2.97(.091)
0.88(.352)
0.89(.351)
2.16(.148)
0.03(.863)
0.07(.786)
0.19(.665)
0.10(.753)
0.00(.980)
0.02(.880)
0.00(.968)
0.11(.740)
1.07(.306)
0.00(.953)
Income F(Pr>F)
0.86(.468)
0.58(.629)
1.39(.256)
2.27(.092)
0.13(.942)
0.28(.842)
2.00(.126)
2.15(.105)
0.89(.453)
1.57(.208)
1.09(.363)
1.03(.386)
0.65(.584)
0.48(.697)
0.46(.710)
0.70(.560)
0.69(.562)
1.12(.326)
Finally, three statements examined the political posture
of the respondents and its impact of their evaluation of
imports. The statements were, "We should purchase
products manufactured in America instead of letting other
countries get rich off us (mean=4.36)," "There should be
very little trading or purchasing of goods from other
countries unless out of necessity (mean=4.08)," and "Curbs
should be put on all imports (4.13)." The respondents were
consistently agreeable with all these three statements.
For examining R2, ANOVA were conducted for all the 17
variables (Table 3).
Results clearly show that the
respondents’ ethnocentrism is homogeneous across
academic major, education, age, sex, and income. None of
the results is significant. These findings are somewhat
unique. It appears that the sociopolitical and cultural
underpinnings of ethnocentrism equally affect consumers
of a small Mid-Western town. It may also because of the
cohesive nature of the society in this area that consumers’
ethnocentric sentiment is common across the demographic
variations.
Conclusion
This study was undertaken to measure consumer
ethnocentric tendencies in a small Mid-Western town.
Specifically, the study examined the nature of consumer
ethnocentrism and if consumer ethnocentrism varied
across various demographics. An examination of a sample
of 53 college students revealed that these consumers are
ethnocentric and their ethnocentrism is homogeneous
Journal of Business and Economic Management; Bhuian
across demographic variations.
This finding may be useful for global marketers seeking
to develop or expand a market position in a small MidWestern town. To overcome this ethnocentric tendency of
consumers, global marketers can emphasize on localization
of value-added activities to give some domestic identity to
the products.
Future studies should utilize a probabilistic sampling
technique to assess ethnocentrism of these consumers in
order to enhance the generalizability of the research. Also,
an investigation of the sociopolitical and cultural factors
that shape the ethnocentric tendencies of consumers will be
worth to undertake. Finally, an examination of the impact
of ethnocentric tendencies on actual purchases should be
done to see to what extent this attitude is producing
actions.
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Cite this article as:
Bhuian SN (2013). An empirical examination of consumer
ethnocentrism. J. Bus. Econ. Manage. 1(4): 48-52.
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