Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) of Consumer Preferences for Wooden Furniture (Home and Office)

Abstract

Consumer preferences were examined with respect to the decision-making process to purchase home and office furniture in Iran. A conceptual model was proposed based on the theoretical framework from literature. The data was obtained from interviews with customers who were buying wooden furniture. The main data collection tool in this study was a questionnaire. The results were processed using structural equation modelling (SEM) in SmartPLS software. SEM is a multivariate method that combines multiple regression and factor analysis aspects. PLS-SEM has been increasingly developed in various fields in recent years, due to its usability in nonnormal data, small sample sizes, and the use of formative indicators. The findings revealed a significant relationship between all research factors and consumer preferences of home and office furniture, although the model quality assessment showed that safety and environment (0.576=strong effect), salesperson's characteristics (0.197=medium effect), corporate responsibility factors (0.058=weak effect), internal factors (0.029=weak effect), and product characteristic (0.023=weak effect) had the highest impact. These independent variables accounted for 93.8% of the changes of the dependent variable of consumer preferences.