Re-imagining the country-of-origin effect: a promulgation approach
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JPBM-11-2017-1666 |
| Date | 19 November 2018 |
| Published date | 19 November 2018 |
| Pages | 884-896 |
| Author | Mikael Andéhn,Jean-Noel Patrick L’espoir Decosta |
| Subject Matter | Marketing,Product management,Brand management/equity |
Re-imagining the country-of-origin
effect: a promulgation approach
Mikael Andéhn
Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, UK, and
Jean-Noel Patrick L’espoir Decosta
Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
Abstract
Purpose –The country-of-origin effect (COO) has, as a research domain, suffered from several theoretical and methodological problems and
tendencies including an incomplete conceptualization of its constituent components. The purpose of this study is to first problematize the concept in
extant literature and to consequently propose a reconceptualization of the concept.
Design/methodology/approach –As part of lateral promulgation, the authors use theoretical and methodological ideas from other disciplines
such as psychology, ethnography and geography to problematize the present conceptualization of COO in extant literature to reveal research
possibilities relevant to, but underrepresented or absent in, COO research.
Findings –This study identifies several central theoretical and methodological problems and reveals that (1) COO is not necessarily linear and
alternative modes of engagement with consumption need to be considered; (2) many of these problems can be addressed by altern ative
methodologies; and (3) COO operates at the level of symbolic orders that require a further engagement with the role of place in human experience.
Research/limitations/implications –The findings suggest that in future research, field experiments be considered to resolve some of the
methodological artefacts that have hampered past research; qualitative methods be applied to uncover unexpected uses of place association beyond
being mere quality proxies; and alternative areas of relevance, such as macro-level trade and exports from emerging economies, be entertained.
Originality Value –The study’s approach to problematizing and refining extant knowledge enable it to promulgate new knowledge and research
directions for a research area that has historically suffered from a tendency to be self-referential.
Keywords Branding, Country image, Country-of-origin effect, Product origin, Place mythology, Product geography
Paper type Conceptual paper
Introduction
It has been more than 50 years since scholars like Ernst Dichter
and Robert Schooler first delved into the issue now widely
known as the “country-of-origineffect”(COO). This milestone
coincides with the 30-year anniversaryof Levitt’s (1983) highly
influential article in the Harvard Business Review that
popularized the concept of “globalization”. Despite numerous
claims since thenthat globalization has reduced the importance
of national boundaries, COO, which finds its raison d’être in
the existence of those boundaries, albeit in their more abstract
form, is not waning as a field of study. The recent nationalistic
economic measures put forth by US President Trump and the
potential trade wars they augur (Ewing, 2018, NYT March 9)
provide further support to the continuing significance of the
concept.
Interestingly, the number of transnational legal devices and
agreements such as NAFTA and GATT, which among other
effects help to protect and promoteorigin labelling, has surged
in recent decades. Tan and Farley (1987) had alreadyreported
that COO was one of the most studied topics in international
marketing. About ten years ago, Usunier (2006) observedthat
there were more than 800 scholarly publications dedicated to
reporting studies in this area. A review today would probably
find more than a thousand journal articlesdealing in some way
with COO. In spite of the impressive volume of publicationson
the topic and the seemingly consistent finding that origin
matters (Verlegh and Steenkamp, 1999), COO research as a
whole is frequently said to be suffering from a variety of
problems, including methodological shortcomings (Samiee
et al., 2005), a lack of conceptual clarity (Bloemer et al., 2009)
and a tendency to be atheoretical (Samiee, 2011). Another
problem relates to what constitutes the basis of the call for
paper for this present issue,namely the need:
[...] to get away from the narrow conceptualization of ‘COO’in general and
from the notion of ‘origin’specifically, and to consider instead the bigger
picture of place-brand associations and the role that place image plays in
consumer behaviour and brand strategy.
To that end, and against the backdrop of the aforementioned
issues, this paper proposestwo interlinked objectives.
Re-conceptualizing the construct
The first main objective, whichswims against the field’s narrow
methodological trend, is to effectivelyproblematize the present
conceptualization of COO in extant literature. This is
accomplished through a novel approach that firstclarifies some
of the conceptual bases of the effect and then dissects its
different components with the help of a “problematizing”lens.
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on
Emerald Insight at: www.emeraldinsight.com/1061-0421.htm
Journal of Product & Brand Management
27/7 (2018) 884–896
© Emerald Publishing Limited [ISSN 1061-0421]
[DOI 10.1108/JPBM-11-2017-1666]
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