Chapter III Methodology
3.5 Measurement of research variables and reliability test
In the literature review I have presented the potential moderating variables of reliance on country of origin. Based on the review independent and dependent variables of the research were formulated. This study adopts four independent variables, namely product knowledge, consumer ethnocentrism, consumption occasion, and socio-demographics.
Reliance on country of origin serves as a dependent variables, together with reliance on price, packaging, wine sweetness, and wine color. In order to analyze the collected data from distributed survey statistical software SPSS was used.
First, factor analysis and reliability test of product knowledge and consumer ethnocentrism were conducted. The resulting factor loadings and Cronbach’s α are presented in Table 1. The factor loading values for three- item subjective and objective knowledge scales were all found to belong to one dimension, and have high validity with scores between 0.7< factor loading>1. When it comes to ten-item consumer ethnocentrism scale, the factor analysis had resulted in items being grouped into two dimensions with three items in the latter one. However, the factor loading of those three item did not have high validity 0.7< factor loading>1. Thus, I did not look into the dimensions of these variables and instead I have used one factor solution to force ethnocentrism to load on one dimension.
The Cronbach’s α for shortened ethnocentrism seven- item scale, and three- item subjective and objective knowledge scales are acceptable to good reliability where all the Alpha values are between 0.5< α >0.8.
Table 1
Measurement of research variables
Measurement items Factor Loading Cronbach's α
Subjective knowledge
feeling knowledgeable about wine .909
having strong interest in wine .872 .880
others ask your advice on wine .934
Objective knowledge
white wine goes well with fish .725
rose wine is made of red grapes .702 .737
chardonnay is a grape variety .734 Ethnocentrism
Taiwanese should always buy Taiwanese products .792 only unavailable in Taiwan products should be imported .776 purchasing foreign made products is un-Taiwanese .826
a real Taiwanese should always buy Taiwanese products .780 .831 It is not right to purchase foreign products .751
we should purchase product manufactured in Taiwan .835 there should be little purchasing from other countries .820
Finally, as the measurement items resulted in exhibiting appropriate reliability, composite measures were constructed by computing the indicators of each research variable, namely subjective knowledge, objective knowledge, and consumer ethnocentrism. Those will be further used in multiple hierarchical regression analysis, testing hypothesis 2 and 3.
CHAPTER 4
DATA ANALYSIS AND RESULTS
A total of 210 responses have been gathered in the period of 10 days in April 2018.
Completed surveys which did not meet the sample requirements were deleted. Also, to ensure the survey was not answered multiple times by the same person, the respondents were asked to leave their e-mail address at the end of the survey. In a situation where the e-mail address has been repeated the survey responses were deleted. After conducting data cleaning, five of the respondents did not meet the research criteria, with the research subjects being foreigners or not belonging to the Generation Y. Thus, those responses were removed, leaving 205 to analyze. Among the respondents 51.7 % were male and 48.3% were female.
The age of the respondents was also spread evenly, with 55.6% being of age between 20-30, and 44.4% ages 31-40. All income, education and consumption frequency groups were represented in the sample. The precise number of the respondents' socio-demographics can be found in Table 2, 3, and 4.
College/ University or higher 197 96.1 100.0
Total 205 100.0
Table 3
Respondent’s monthly income in New Taiwanese Dollar
Frequency Percent data, descriptive analysis was employed. Furthermore, in order to compare the importance of country of origin in relation to other criteria upon wine purchasing, one-way repeated measure ANOVA analysis has been used. The reliance on country of origin was tested in Part D of the questionnaire. Moreover, to test the research H1, H2, and H4, hierarchical multiple regression analysis was run measuring the significance of independent variables, such as socio demographics, product knowledge, consumer ethnocentrism, in connection to reliance on country of origin while purchasing wine. To test H3, SPSS paired-samples t-test was used, comparing reliance on wine quality signals during two different consumption occasions.
4.1. Reliance on country of origin Table 5
One-way repeated measures ANOVA analysis of purchase criteria (I) factor1 (J) factor1 Mean Difference (I-J)
Sig. b
3) *. The mean difference is significant at the .05 level.
5) b. Adjustment for multiple comparisons: Bonferroni.
A one- way repeated measures ANOVA explain that wine purchase criteria were not rated equally F(1, 204) = 7594.62, p < 0.001). First, post hoc tests using the Bonferroni correction, presented in Table 5, revealed that the mean of reliance on wine sweetness is statistically different from the means of reliance on price (p<.05), country of origin (p<.05), packaging (p<0.001), and wine color (p<.01). As wine sweetness exhibits the highest mean of reliance (M=3.95), it is found to be the most important wine purchase criteria among Taiwanese Millennials.
Secondly, according to post hoc tests using the Bonferroni correction, mean of reliance on wine color is significantly different from the reliance on wine sweetness (p<.01), and packaging (p<.001). Further, the mean reliance on price is also significantly different from the reliance on wine sweetness (p<.05), and packaging (p<.001). Lastly, the mean reliance on country of origin is as well significantly different from the reliance on wine sweetness (p<.05) and packaging (p<.001). Thus, the results show that wine color (M=3.70), price (M=3.68), and country of origin (M=3.64) together are found to be of secondary importance to Taiwanese Millennials.
Finally, the mean of reliance on packaging is significantly different from the reliance on price (p<.001), country of origin (p<.001), wine sweetness (p<.001), and color (p<.001).
Taking into account that this criteria exhibits the lowest mean (M=2.95), it can be stressed that wine packaging is the least important wine purchase criteria.
4.2. Analysis of research hypothesis 1 and 2
In the described below multiple hierarchical regression analysis hypothesis 1 and hypothesis 2 are measured to test whether reliance on country of origin when purchasing wine depends on product knowledge and also on consumer ethnocentrism (Table 6).
First, product knowledge was measured by testing respondents’ subjective and objective knowledge where both were analyzed using three-item index, with all items measured on a five level Likert scale. A bivariate Pearson Correlation was employed to test whether subjective and objective knowledge should be summated or treated as separate variables in further multiple hierarchical regression analysis. The results indicated that there is a strong correlation between the two variables (r=.66, N=205; p<.001), and thus I constructed composite measures by summating subjective knowledge and objective knowledge into one composite measure—product knowledge. Furthermore, consumer ethnocentrism was tested using ten-item CETSCALE, where all the items were analyzed on a five- level Likert scale.
Table 6
Hierarchical multiple regression analysis with country of origin as a dependent variable Model influence reliance on country of origin is consumer's knowledge about wine (β = -.18 , p <.05).
The provided outcome indicate that the less knowledge an individual has about wine the more
he or she will rely on country of origin. Respectively the more knowledgeable a person is the less likely he or she will be to rely on country of origin. Hypothesis 1 is supported.
Meanwhile, hypothesis 2 suggesting that those who exhibit higher level of ethnocentrism will have greater reliance on country of origin is not supported (β = .04 , p
>.05).
4.3. Reliance on price, packaging, wine sweetness, and color, and test of hypothesis 4 In addition to testing the research hypothesis 1 and 2 hierarchical multiple regression analysis was also used to examine the relative importance of socio- demographics, product knowledge and consumer ethnocentrism in explaining the reliance on other purchase criteria, namely price, packaging, wine sweetness and wine color.
Table 7
Hierarchical multiple regression analysis with price as a dependent variable
Model
Table 7 (continued) 3
R=.406
Adjusted R2=.165 F (6, 198) = 6.190 p=.021
Age -.074 -.849 .397
Gender -.054 -.811 .418
Income -.097 -1.022 .308
Consumption frequency
-.159 -1.792 .075
Knowledge -.179 -2.228 .027
Ethnocentrism .010 .149 .882
Notes:
1) Dependent Variable: price
According to the results presented in Table 7, the only significant factor that may influence reliance on price is consumer's knowledge about wine (β = -.18 , p >.05). The more knowledgeable consumers are the less likely are they to rely on price.
Table 8
Hierarchical multiple regression analysis with packaging as a dependent variable
Model
The results of the three step hierarchical regression, presented in Table 8 suggest that from socio demographics only age was found to be a significant predictor of reliance on packaging (β = -.20 , p <.05), with younger consumers depending on it more. Also knowledge (β = -.22 , p <.01) was found to be a predictor of reliance on packaging where consumers who are less knowledgeable about wine rely on packaging cue on a higher level.
Table 9
Hierarchical multiple regression analysis with wine sweetness as a dependent variable Model
From the results depicted in Table 9, I conclude that gender (β = .12, p<.001) is a significant predictor of reliance on sweetness of wine. Women, compared to men, are more likely to rely on wine sweetness. In addition, product knowledge (β = .44, p<.001) was found to be a significant moderator of reliance on wine sweetness. The more knowledge an individual has about wine the more likely he or she will look at sweetness when purchasing wine.
Table 10
Hierarchical multiple regression analysis with wine color as a dependent variable Model
Beta t Sig. (p) 1
R=.215
Adjusted R2=.046 F (3, 201) = 3.244 p=.012
Age -.047 -.512 .609
Gender .164 2.376 .018
Income .178 1.948 .053
2
R=.501
Adjusted R2=.251 F (5, 199) = 14.279 p=.000
Age -.115 -1.407 .161
Gender .124 1.990 .048
Income .115 1.290 .199
Consumption frequency
-.134 -1.600 .111
Knowledge .530 7.131 .000
Table 10 (continued)
Lastly, socio demographics, wine knowledge and consumer ethnocentrism were tested whether they moderate the reliance on wine color (Table 10). It was found that only gender (β= .16 , p<.05) and wine knowledge (β = .53, p<.001) significantly predict reliance on wine color where women and those who acquired more knowledge about wine exhibit higher level of reliance on wine color.
Summing up, Hypothesis 4 stating that socio-demographics moderate the reliance on country of origin, price, packaging, wine sweetness and wine color was partially supported, as only age and gender of the respondents were found to be a significant predictors, where age moderates the reliance on packaging, and gender moderates the reliance on wine sweetness and color.
4.4 Analysis of research hypothesis 3
In compliance with the literature review when wine is purchased for a home consumption buyers tend to rely greatly on the product's price where the lower price is more favored. However, when wine is bought to offer as a gift or consumed during a special occasion, people look for more details of the beverage, such as packaging. Thus, H3 was formed suggesting that consumers' reliance on country of origin will be stronger during purchasing wine for gift and special occasions.
Table 11
Wine purchase criteria for different occasion
Mean
Home consumption
Special
occasion T Df Sig.
I choose the cheapest wine regardless
of its origin 3.5707 2.9366 5.080 204 .000
I choose wine by its country of origin 3.2146 4.1073 -8.766 204 .000 I choose wine in a fancy bottle 2.3902 4.0098 -16.116 204 .000 I choose wine by its sweetness 3.8146 3.5707 3.494 204 .001
I choose wine by its color 3.4049 3.3220 1.087 204 .279
According to the results of the independent sample t-test analysis shown in Table 11, the level of reliance on country of origin in both presented in the study consumption occasions differs significantly, t (204)= -8,77, p<.01. The results imply that consumers depend on country of origin signal more when purchasing wine for a gift and for formal dinner (M= 4.11, SD=.93) than when they purchase wine for home consumption (M=3.21, SD=1.10). Thus, hypothesis 3 is supported. In addition, the results of the independent sample t-test analysis explain that when it comes to sweetness of wine there is also a significant difference in the scores for home consumption (M=3.81, SD=1.08) and special occasion (M=3.57, SD=0.96) conditions; t (204)=3.49, p< 01. Thus, sweetness of wine is a more crucial quality signal for Taiwanese Millennials when the alcoholic beverage is bought to be consumed at home. Furthermore, the research backs previous finding saying that consumers prefer cheaper products when purchased for home consumption (M=3.57, SD=1.20) compared to purchase as a gift and a special occasion (M=2.93, SD=1.26); t (204)=5.08, p<.01. Also, the wine packaging is a more crucial factor when wine is to be consumed on a special occasion or bought as a gift (M=3.57, SD=1.20) in contrast to home consumption (M=2.94, SD=1.26); t (204)= -16.12, p<.01.
CHAPTER 5
CONCLUSIONS AND DISCUSSIONS
The final discussion chapter will be devoted to summarizing the obtained research results and debate implications of the outcomes. Furthermore, I exhibit the limitations of the study and propose future research that will again broaden the knowledge about country of origin.
5.1. Summary of research results Table 12
Summary of research hypothesis and outcomes of the analysis
Research hypothesis Outcome
H1: Level of Millennials’ product knowledge influences reliance on country of origin cue when evaluating quality of wine in such a way that those who have greater product knowledge will have less reliance on country of origin.
Supported p<.05 H2: Level of consumer ethnocentrism influences Millennials’ reliance
on country of origin cue when evaluating quality of wine in such a way that those who exhibit higher level of ethnocentrism will have greater reliance on country of origin.
Not supported p>.05
H3: Consumption occasion influences the level of Millennials reliance on country of origin cue when evaluating wine in such a way that those who buy wine as a gift will have greater reliance on country of origin.
Supported p<.001
H4: Socio- demographics influence Taiwanese Millennial consumers’
reliance on wine purchase criteria, such as country of origin, price, packaging, wine sweetness and wine color.
Partially Supported
p<.05
When it comes to wine consumption frequencies among Millennials it could be concluded that vast majority belongs to low frequency consumption with 73.1% drinking wine once a week or less. The remaining 26.9 % drink wine twice a week or more often.
When comparing the results with wine consumption frequency in the United Stated, the
numbers are on a par. According to the WMC Economic Outlook Survey done on over a thousand of American members of generation Y in 2016 30% of Millennials belong to high frequency wine consumption group (O’Donnel & Nielsen, 2016). Also, as mentioned previously, according to the 2014 Health Promotion Administration Ministry of Health and Welfare report done on Taiwanese consumers with each year wine is consumed by more and more Millennials (Health Promotion Administration Ministry of Health and Welfare Report, 2005; Health Promotion Administration Ministry of Health and Welfare Report, 2014).Thus, we can assume that in the future the frequency of consumption will be also rising. However, as for now the results of the study explain that wine consumption frequency does not influence reliance on country of origin, or any other purchase criteria.
The main aim of this research was to examine whether Taiwanese Millennials take country of origin into consideration when buying wine and if the reliance on country of origin is influenced by product knowledge, consumer ethnocentrism and consumption occasion.
The results from data analysis indicate that, indeed, members of generation Y coming from Taiwan take country of origin into account when making a purchase. As many as 72%
of respondents expressed the importance of the cue when choosing wine. Furthermore repeated measures ANOVA results depict that consumers depend on country of origin as much as on price or wine color. That is why I conclude that origin of wine has a strong position among other quality signals and that wine producers can still use it in their marketing campaigns. Thus, previous finding, stressing the consumers’ reliance on country of origin, are supported (Bredahl, 2004, Lopez- Lamelas, 2011, Zdravkovic, 2013).
Figure 2 Importance of purchase criteria among Taiwanese Millennials
Although Taiwanese Millennials depend on country of origin, there are certain moderators of the level of the reliance. Supporting hypothesis 1 of the research it was found that depending on how knowledgeable a consumer is the reliance on country of origin varies.
So, Taiwanese Millennials who have acquired greater knowledge about wine are less likely to look at country of origin when choosing wine, but also are less likely to take price, and packaging into account. On the other hand, they exhibit higher reliance on wine sweetness and color. This is due to the fact that consumers with greater knowledge present different attitudes towards extrinsic and intrinsic cues of a product where those who are knowledgeable about wine will be able to assess the alcoholic beverage based on its intrinsic cues such as wine sweetness or color. However, consumers who know little about wine would not be able choose wine based on those criteria as they would not know the true meaning behind them. In the end, they would rely on country of origin, price, and packaging, which are substitute predictors of quality. In addition, as many as 64% of respondents do not feel knowledgeable about wine and that is why Taiwanese Millennials highly depend on country of origin in their purchasing evaluation.
wine sweetness
wine color, price, country of origin
packaging
Moreover, the results show that women, as compared to men, are more inclined to look at wine sweetness and color. This fact might be due to the previous findings stressing that women are better at detecting differences in tastes and have more acute sense of taste ,compared to men, as a result of having more taste buds on the tongue (Bartoshuk, Duffy
& Miller, 1994; Bartoshuk et al., 1996).
Furthermore, it was found that younger Millennials pay more attention to wine packaging than older member of generation Y. The reason behind it might be that the younger consumers are the more unique experience they seek (Betti & Dad, 2016). Thus, when purchasing wine younger group of Millennials will chose wine base on its unique packaging.
The research aim was also to examine whether consumption occasion is a predictor of reliance on country of origin. As there are no previous research done on the topic, it needs to be underlined that this study greatly contributed to the theory of country of origin and consumption occasion. As the hypothesis 3 of the research was supported, the research proved that Taiwanese Millennials indeed depend on different criteria when purchasing wine as a gift and a special occasion and when buying it for home consumption. The results show that generation Y consumers in Taiwan attach importance to country of origin and packaging when it comes to special occasion and purchase as a gift. They are also willing to spend more money on the wine. The reason behind it might be the nature of human behavior. Usually, when people purchase a product to offer as a gift they tend to choose it more carefully looking at more details, compared to buying the product for home consumption. Also the reason why consumers spend more money for a gift might be due to the Dunn and Aknin’s (2009) finding proving that spending money on others elicit greater happiness, than spending money on oneself.
When it comes to consumer ethnocentrism a significant predictor of reliance on country of origin was not found. This situation could be explained by stressing that Taiwanese Millennials are sensible consumers who know that the true quality of wine is the most important purchase criteria. And although some consumers exhibit higher level of ethnocentrism, they are not willing to purchase local Taiwanese grape wine, as it is of low quality. In a situation where quality of Taiwanese wine and foreign wine would be about the same, then consumer ethnocentrism might be an influential moderator of reliance on country of origin. However, currently there are no existing theories that could support the explanation of the outcome of hypothesis 3. In order to say for sure that the reason why consumer
ethnocentrism was not found influential when it comes to reliance on country of origin because of the difference in quality of wine, further studies must be undertaken.
Summing up, despite the rapid globalization, Taiwanese consumers indeed take country of origin into account when purchasing wine. Thus, this purchasing criteria can still
Summing up, despite the rapid globalization, Taiwanese consumers indeed take country of origin into account when purchasing wine. Thus, this purchasing criteria can still