WESTERNIZATION OF JAPANESE CONSUMER PREFERENCES: AN ANALYSIS OF CONTROLLING FUNCTION OF NATIONAL CULTURE IN PRODUCT CHOICE PREFERENCES

Abstract

It has been well established in the literature that Japanese consumers possessed a high or strong culture enabling remarkable economic achievements during 70’s and 80’s. Nationalistic feeling coming from this high culture initially favored indigenous products by the Japanese consumers creating a natural control of influx of foreign products to the country. However, with the advent of the new wave of cultural dilution, consumer product preferences have begun to incline towards western products in general with marked preference toward American products. This shift in consumer preferences has created significant dynamics in the product choice behavior of Japanese consumers. The aim of this exploratory qualitative study is to analyze theoretically with some empirical support the controlling role of a national culture in product choice behavior of consumers. Methodology used in the study is qualitative and it includes case analysis of individuals purchase preferences. In-depth interviews were conducted to unearth dynamics of cultural change and control function of the national culture with special emphasis on as to how national culture affect individual product choice behavior. Whilst a major component of this paper is theoretical, the individual in-depth cases are used to support the theoretical reasoning. The study reveals that the national culture has a controlling effect on the product choice behavior of Japanese consumers. Presence of high culture or strong culture tends to favor domestic products. With the dilution of this high culture, product preferences of Japanese consumers have begun to incline toward foreign products and brands. The managerial implications of the study are: 1. Product choice behavior is a function of national culture, thus culture has a controlling function, 2. Presence of strong national culture tends to favor domestic products, 3. Low national culture has triggering effect on consumers to favor foreign products

Keywords: Japanese Consumer Preferences, National Culture, Controlling Function of Culture

For full paper: fmscresearch@sjp.ac.lk