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Faculty of Management Sciences

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Author: search.filters.author.Kamwendo, Andrew Ronald

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Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
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    Analysing consumer product preferences for selected hedonic and utilitarian shopping goods in Durban
    (2019) Kamwendo, Andrew Ronald; Maharaj, Mandusha
    The retailing environment has shown that consumer purchases are dependent upon the consideration and subsequent evaluation of product attributes. As such, retailers have sought to investigate the sales affinities that exist between products. Given that consumer purchases are goal driven, researchers have investigated consumer purchases for goal derived product categories (utilitarian and hedonic products). The aim of this study was to investigate product attribute preferences for the establishment of a consideration set of selected hedonic and utilitarian cross-category shopping products in Durban. The quantitative study design based on a cross-sectional descriptive survey was conducted in two sequential phases. The study population consisted of consumers within the city of Durban. The study sample of 444 students selected from the Durban University of Technology, Mangosuthu University of Technology and the University of KwaZulu-Natal. Phase one of the study sample consisted of 231 respondents while Phase two sample was 213 respondents. Research respondents were chosen using convenience sampling. Quota sampling was also used to select respondent belonging to four generational groups. Respondents were purposely selected based on their capacity to give meaningful information relevant to the study. Two separate, self- developed instruments were used in each phase. The Cronbach alpha test was conducted to test for reliability of the first instrument. The results indicated acceptable, consistent scoring patterns for the sections of the research instrument. Respondents rated the importance of skincare and clothing detergent product attributes during the first phase. The findings of phase one of the study revealed that respondents classified skincare and clothing detergent products as slightly and moderately utilitarian, respectively. The study also revealed that the consideration of clothing detergents and skincare products is predominantly utilitarian in nature. No significant differences were found in the respondents rating of skincare and clothing detergent attributes. Product attributes valued by the consumer were found to be important to the consideration of clothing detergent and skincare product categories. The findings from the first phase of the study were used to develop questions used in the second phase of the study. Through the use of conjoint analysis techniques, skincare and clothing detergent product profiles were identified and ranked by respondents in their order of preferences. Pearson’s and Kendall’s tau correlation coefficient was used to validate the findings of phase two. Phase two of the study revealed that for clothing detergent products, product form is the most important attribute followed by product effectiveness. It is important to note that significant differences were found in the respondent's preferences for product attributes in terms of the respondent's demographics. For clothing detergents, significant differences were found in terms of respondents preferences for the price, scent, size and product form of clothing detergents. For skincare products, durability was the most important attributes followed by the brand of skincare products. In terms of demographics, significant differences were also found in the respondents preferences for skincare product attributes. The findings of the study are limited due to the low response rate among older respondents. Sampled respondents do not represent the population distribution in the city of Durban. The majority of respondents were unemployed students, therefore the findings of the study cannot be generalised. The findings of the study may also be limited due to the broad nature of the purchasing goals as well as the product categories. Consequently, generalised product attribute preferences were obtained. Therefore, future studies may benefit from narrowing the development of narrow purchasing goals and investigating subcategories. This study is the first to use conjoint analysis techniques to measure product category attribute preferences in South Africa. The study enhances to the existing body of knowledge in the South African retailing and marketing environment. The study has produced theoretical and practical contributions to the management of product categories offered by retailers. Moreover, the model proposed by the study simplifies the category management process enabling a retailer to simplify the investigation of consumer category preferences. Future studies should also test the model using other product categories and a larger population sample.
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    South African consumer ethnocentrism and attitudes towards foreign convenience products
    (Business Perspectives, 2014) Kamwendo, Andrew Ronald; Corbishley, Karen Margaret; Mason, Roger Bruce
    The evolution of country-of-origin research has led to the development of the consumer ethnocentrism concept. This study looks into the concept of consumer ethnocentrism (CE) and its relationship with product selection and investigates the relationships between consumer ethnocentrism and South African consumers’ attitudes towards foreign convenience products. The aim of the study is to determine the extent to which CE affects consumer behavior among South African consumers. Through the use of the CETSCALE questionnaire, an analysis of the levels of consumer ethnocentrism displayed by consumers of different demographic characteristics is conducted. A research model highlighting the antecedents to consumer ethnocentrism is developed and tested using an Analysis Of Variance (ANOVA) test. The study is in the form of a descriptive survey. 500 questionnaires are distributed, with 476 useable questionnaires being obtained. SPSS 21.0 is used to analyze the data. Non parametric tests are used as the data was not normally distributed using a Kolmogorov Smirnov test. The research hypotheses were tested using a nonparametric Chi square test. The Pearson chi-square test is used to test for the existence of variances within the responses provided by the respondents to individual question. The study reveals that only ethnicity has a significant relationship with CE. Ethnocentric tendencies are the strongest among Black South Africans. Theoretical and practical implications of the study are presented with the provision of suggestions regarding future research.
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    The Country-of-Origin effect and its influence on consumer attitudes and convenience product consideration in Durban, South Africa
    (MCSER Publishing, 2014-11) Mason, Roger Bruce; Corbishley, Karen Margaret; Kamwendo, Andrew Ronald
    County of origin studies have analysed the influence of the origins of a product on consumer attitudes. In the same context, the categorisation both domestic and foreign products into sets for selection possess the potential for research especially within the convenience product category. The literature suggests that the country of origin effect will mean that South African consumers would prefer local over foreign convenience products. Consequently, a cross-sectional descriptive survey was conducted within Durban, South Africa using a research instrument developed from preceding attitudinal studies. 476 useable questionnaires were obtained for the purpose of the study and a presentation of the results obtained was provided. Data was analysed using SPSS 21.0. A Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test was conducted to measure consideration. The Pearson’s chi-square test was used to test for the existence of variances within the responses provided by the respondents. The results showed the existence of a weak positive effect on attitudes and consideration for foreign products among South African citizens. Theoretical and practical implications of the study are presented with the provision of suggestions regarding future research.
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    The effects of consumer ethnocentrism on the establishment of a consideration set of convenience products
    (2014-05-20) Kamwendo, Andrew Ronald; Corbishley, Karen Margaret; Mason, Roger Bruce
    The establishment of choice set from which consumers identify their preferred product and/brand choices arouses some interest among researchers, specifically within the context of international marketing. This curiosity about the influence of a product’s place of origin (country-of-origin: COO) on the establishment of consumer choice sets chiefly emanates from the growth of international trade and globalisation. The gap within the knowledge base surrounding consumer behaviour with respect to the purchase of foreign and domestic brands, specifically within Africa created the potential for research. As part of the evolution of COO research, this study looks into the construct of consumer ethnocentrism (CE) and its relationship with product selection and consideration. The aim behind the study can be summed up in the following objectives: firstly, to identify the moderating effects of consumer demographic variables on ethnocentric tendencies; secondly, to determine consumer attitudes towards foreign convenience goods; and, thirdly to establish the association between consumer ethnocentrism (CE) and brand selection for a consideration set. A structural model was developed illustrating the relationships (assumed) between consideration and CE. This resulted in the developed of five hypotheses. A cross-sectional descriptive survey was conducted within Durban. A research instrument was developed combining ethnocentrism research and the concept of consideration. Within the study, an explanation of the research methodology utilised was provided. 500 questionnaires were distributed in order to obtain primary data for the purpose of the study. A presentation of the results obtained was provided. An analysis of the collected data was also provided using SPSS 21.0 with the aid of graphs and the appropriate inferential statistics. The research hypotheses were tested using an independent sample Kruskal-Wallis test and a Mann-Whitney U-test. A Spearman’s correlation test was used to test the relationship between consumer ethnocentrism and brand consideration. The chi-square test was used to test for the existence of variances within the responses provided by the respondents. The study revealed that only race had a significant relationship with consumer ethnocentrism while other demographic characteristics did not. Ethnocentric tendencies were strongest among Black South Africans. An association was also discovered between consumer ethnocentrism and the consideration of convenience products. The study, therefore, provides a better understanding into South African consumers’ selection of convenience products as influenced by consumer ethnocentrism. The theoretical and practical implications from the research findings have also been discussed within the report with the provision of suggestions regarding future research.