Methodological Considerations in Cross-national Consumer Research

Abstract

The field of consumer behavior has evolved rapidly in a relatively brief perod of time. The depth as well as the breadth of the research on consumer behavior has been impressive. However, most of the research in the area has one common limitation: it is culture bound. Nearly all consumer studies have been conducted in the United States. Thus, the principles which have been developed are associated only with U.S. consumer behavior; the theories which have been derived can legitimately be used to describe, predict, or understand consumer behavior only in the United States.