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2016/2017  KAN-CIBCV2054U  Consumer theories and practices in East and West: When Western businesses meet Asian Consumers – and vice versa

English Title
Consumer theories and practices in East and West: When Western businesses meet Asian Consumers – and vice versa

Course information
Language English
Course ECTS 7.5 ECTS
Type Elective
Level Full Degree Master
Duration One Semester
Start time of the course Autumn
Timetable Course schedule will be posted at calendar.cbs.dk
Max. participants 55
Study board
Study Board for Master of Arts (MA) in International Business Communication in English
Course coordinator
  • Fumiko Kano Glückstad - Department of Management, Society and Communication (MSC)
Main academic disciplines
  • Customer behaviour
  • Globalization and international business
  • Intercultural studies
Last updated on 18-02-2016
Learning objectives
To achieve the grade 12, students should meet the following learning objectives with no or only minor mistakes or errors:
  • Formulate a research question integrating some of the key concepts introduced in the course
  • Design and implement their own survey by defining the unit of analysis
  • Compare theories introduced in the course and account for the selection of these applied to their own research question(s)
  • Compare methods introduced in the course and account for the selection of these applied to their own research question(s)
Course prerequisites
The course is open for master-level students who are interested in cross-cultural consumer behaviors, micro/macro cultures, survey designs and basic quantitative methods. Please take note that statistical knowledge is NOT a prerequisite for this course.
Examination
Consumer theories and practices in East and West: When Western businesses meet Asian Consumers ¿ and vice versa:
Exam ECTS 7,5
Examination form Home assignment - written product
Individual or group exam Individual exam
Size of written product Max. 10 pages
Assignment type Written assignment
Duration Written product to be submitted on specified date and time.
Grading scale 7-step scale
Examiner(s) One internal examiner
Exam period Winter
Make-up exam/re-exam
Same examination form as the ordinary exam
Description of the exam procedure

The students have to formulate their own research questions, selecting and applying theories introduced in the course, design and implement a survey, and analyze data by selecting and employing methods learned through the course.


The students are welcome to use the materials from the group works and assignments made through the course.
Course content and structure

The identity formation and thereby value formation of modern consumers are becoming increasingly complex due to their belonging to local, national and global communities accessible via contemporary media technologies and the world wide web. The influence of globalization is in particular prominent in non-Western markets where modern Western values are mixed with traditional local values.


Asian companies are well-equipped with in-depth market knowledge and skills to satisfy their local consumers in Asia. On the other hand, it can be highly challenging for European/Western companies to penetrate these markets without comprehending the characteristics of demanding Asian consumers. Moreover, Asian companies are also facing their market penetration challenges in Europe because of cultural and language barriers between East and West.

 

The course addresses the intercultural marketing challenges from the viewpoint of consumer-centric marketing and discusses various types of consumer segments that are influenced by both macro- and micro cultural environments. The course introduces several key theoretical concepts: Acculturation to the Global Consumer Cultures, Ethnocentrism, Cosmopolitanism, Human Basic Value theory, and Happiness & Satisfaction; and discusses how these concepts are related to international marketing research and are dealt with by both Asian and Western business practices.

 

Based on these theories, we will discuss how to approach consumer-centric communication from the perspective of dynamics of cultures in our modern globalized society.
Teaching methods
The course consists of lectures, discussions, hands-on sessions and group work. Through hands-on sessions and group work, students apply theories introduced in the course to formulate research questions, design questionnaires and analyze intercultural data by defining the unit of analysis.

The course is taught and coordinated by a teacher with more than 10 years experience in consumer behavior research and product concept design obtained from one of the largest Japanese high-tech consumer enterprises, as well as having significant experience in Japanese marketing coordination from a Danish high-tech enterprise.

The course uses real-world cases from an Asian marketing company and from Asian consumer industries, and encourages students to work with themes relevant to real-world problems in intercultural marketing suggested by both Asian and European industries.
Student workload
Preparation (reading course materials etc.) 55 hours
Group work and assignment 75 hours
Written exam 53 hours
Course participation 24 hours
Expected literature

Expected literature (indicative):

  • Schmidt, B. (2013) The Changing Face of the Asian Consumer: Insights and Strategies for Asian Markets. McGraw Hill Higher Education
  • Craig C.S. & Douglas S.P. (2005) International Marketing Research 3rd edition, Willey  http://eu.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-EHEP000860.html
  • Douglas S.P. & Craig C.S. (2006) On improving the conceptual foundation of international marketing research. Journal of International Marketing 14(1), 1-22.
  • Janssens, W. (2008) Marketing research with SPSS. Harlow ; FT Prentice Hall

 

 

Supplemental materials (indicative):

  • Zhang, J. , Beatty, S. E., & Walsh, G. (2007) Review and future direction of cross-cultural consumer services research. Journal of Business Research 61, 211-224.
  • Cleveland, M., Laroche, M. Takahashi, I. & Erodogan, S. (2014) Cross-linguistic validation of a unidimensional scale for cosmopolitanism. Journal of Business Research 67, 268-277.
  • Cleveland, M., Laroche, M. & Takahashi, I. (2015) The intersection of Global consumer Culture and National Identity and the Effect on Japanese Consumer. Journal of International Consumer Marketing 27, 364-387.
  • Sharma, P. (2015) Consumer Ethnocentrism: Reconceptualization and Cross-Cultural Validation. Journal of International Business Studies 46, 381-389.
  • Shimp, T. A. & Sharma, S. (1987) Consumer Ethnocentrism. Construction and Validation of the CETSCALE. Journal of Marketing Research 14, 280-289.
  • Cleveland M, Laroche M. (2007) Acculturation to the global consumer culture: scale development and research paradigm. Journal of Business Research 60(3):249–59.
  • Cleveland, M. et al. (2011) Cosmopolitanism, individual-level values and cultural-level values: A cross-cultural study. In: Journal of Business Research 64, pp. 934-943
  • Raajpoot, N. (2004) Reconceptualizing Service Encounter Quality in a Non-Western Context. Journal of Service Research, 7(2), 181-201.
  • Parasuraman, A., Zeithaml, V.A. & Berry, L.L. (1988) SERVQUAL: A Multiple-Item Scale for Measuring Consumer Perception of Service Quality. Journal of Retailing, 64(1), 12-40.
  • Griffin, M., Babin, B.J. & Christensen, F. (2004) A cross-cultural investigation of materialism construct: Assessin the Richins and Dawson’s materialism scale in Denmark, France and Russia. Journal of Business Research 57, 893-900.
  • Richins M.L. & Dawson, S. (1992) A consumer value orientation for materialism and its measurement: scale development and validation. Journal of Consumer Research 19, 303-316.
  • Uchida, Y., Norasakkunkit, V. & Kitayama S. (2004) Cultural Construction of Happiness: Theory and Empirical Evidence. Journal of Happiness Studies 5, 223-239.
  • Markus, H.R. & S. Kitayama (1991) Culture and the self: Implication for cognition, emotion, and motivation. Psychological Review 98, 224-253.
  • Schwartz, S. H. (2012) An overview of the Schwartz theory of basic values, Online Readings in Psychology and Culture, 2(1). http://dx.doi.org/10.9707/2307-0919.1116
  • Bearden, W.O., Netemeyer, R.G., Haws, K.L. (2011) Handbook of Marketing Scales: Multi-Item Measures for Marketing and Consumer Behavior Research. Sage publications
  • Rose. C. (2010) Consultation and Communications in relation to motivational needs. Published by Department for Business Innovation & Skills, ScienceWise Expert Resource Center
Last updated on 18-02-2016