Country-of-origin effects

Abstract

Country-of-origin (COO) research has been heralded as one of the most widely researched topics in international marketing. This chapter provides a state-of-the-art review of extant literature on COO, ranging from conceptual underpinnings like the place that is actually associated with a country (i.e. country-of-manufacture vs. country-of-brand) to the (cognitive, affective, symbolic, and normative) processes underlying the COO effect. Next, critical issues in COO research are raised, such as the tendency of consumers to not to know the origin of the products and brands they buy (also known as brand origin recognition accuracy, or BORA), as well as the failure to use ecologically valid designs to assess the true effect of COO information on consumer behaviour. The chapter concludes with concrete suggestions that could help to overcome such criticisms and increase the relevance of COO research.