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The adverse effects on environmental sustainability, human health and animal welfare are often cited as the main reasons for reducing animal-based meat production and consumption. This study explored the food choice motives that determine consumer attitude toward plant-based meat (PBM) as a sustainable meat alternative. The theory of planned behavior (TPB) was applied to further determine whether an individual’s attitude toward PBM, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control influence their willingness to try novel meat substitutes (i.e. PBM). Finally, the moderating effect of meat attachment was also considered.

Online self-reported questionnaires were administered in Taiwan, and 294 valid questionnaires were collected. Structural equation modeling (SEM) and moderated regression were employed for analysis.

The results clarified the food choice motives that influenced consumer attitude toward PBM and revealed that attitude and subjective norms pertaining to trying PBM explained up to 35.03% of the variance in consumer willingness to try PBM. Notably, consumer meat attachment moderated the positive relationship between consumer attitude toward PBM and willingness to try PBM such that it became negative.

On the basis of the empirical findings regarding the food choice motives that influence consumer attitude and willingness to try PBM, this study provided practical implications for marketers seeking to increase consumer willingness to try PBM.

The main theoretical contribution of this research is that food choice motives should be considered in a TPB model to explain consumer willingness to try PBM. The moderating effect of consumer meat attachment should also be considered.

This study aims to understand the influence of cartoon characters on the generation alpha (GA) in purchase decision-making, supported by the theory of planned behaviour.

Quantitative study was used to collect data from 294 Indian parents on behalf of their children (between 8 and 12 years) using convenience sampling and 20 items Likert scale questionnaire. Partial least squares-structural equation modelling was used to analyse the data and for hypothesis testing.

The study shows the favourable impact of cartoon characters to influence the behaviour of GA while making the final purchase decision. The likability was found to be significantly related to the recall, willingness to try/buy. The recall was significantly related to willingness to try/buy and purchase intention. Willingness to try/but was significantly related to purchase intention, but it has no significant relation with the final purchase decision, whereas purchase intention had significant relation with the final purchase decision.

The study indicates that generating likability for cartoon characters among GA is important. Managers should recognize that although parents make the final purchase decision, however, children play an influential role. Advertisers should plan their communication accordingly. An emotional connection with cartoons can influence GA, which further impacts recall, willingness to try/buy, purchase intention and decision.

Various studies have been conducted in western countries, but very few studies have been conducted in emerging markets like India, highlighting cartoon characters’ influence on GA’s purchase decision-making, with theoretical underpinnings. The study also explores the importance of GA, an emerging consumer market in today’s digitalized era, which is highly influenced by technological gadgets. It becomes challenging for marketers to promote their products on television to influence GA purchase behaviour.

In response to today’s marketplace in which many Asian brands are trying to expand their businesses into Western nations, this study investigated the strategic use of cultural authenticity that Asian brands may employ for their success. Although the benefits of using cultural heritage in brand strategies have been noted by past literature, the efficacies of how Asian brands can use brand logo designs to positively influence their brand success have not been studied. To fill this gap, the purpose of this paper is to examine how Chinese brands can increase willingness to try among US consumers by establishing brand uniqueness via culturally authentic brand logo designs.

The data from 289 respondents via online between-subjects factorial experimental research surveys were collected using a national US population as the sample frame. The Chinese brand logos communicating Asian heritage were created by manipulating the cultural authenticity of the brand logo mark and the language of the logotype.

The results suggested that the Asian-themed brand logo is an important tool in exuding a Chinese brand’s sense of cultural authenticity to US consumers. In turn, the perception of cultural authenticity for the Chinese brand positively influenced the US consumers’ perceptions of the brand’s uniqueness, which led to greater willingness to try the brand.

The research provides empirical insights into how “Asian-ness” can be manifested via brand logos to convey cultural authenticity as well as to build perceived brand uniqueness and the willingness to try among US consumers.

This paper analyzes consumers’ attitudes and behaviors towards online piracy and their willingness to try subscription-based music services. The objective is to develop and test an attitude-intention model which includes ethical considerations in consumers’ decision making process regarding music consumption.

The study analyzes 505 consumer questionnaires using a structural equations model.

Attitude toward online piracy is positively determined by economic and hedonic benefits and negatively by moral judgment. A favorable attitude toward online piracy, in turn, negatively influences consumers’ willingness to try subscription-based music services, which is also directly determined by their interest and involvement with the services themselves.

The limitations of the paper are linked mainly to the adapted scales, to the analysis of just two subscription-based music services (Napster and Spotify) and to the fact that all respondents came from one country.

The results call for a greater commitment by music industry actors to educate consumers about the consequences and implications of online music piracy, while also stressing the value added and hedonic benefits offered by subscription-based music services.

This paper is the first to focus on consumers’ propensity toward online piracy and their willingness to try subscription-based music services as a possible alternative to the phenomenon, through the development and test of an attitude-intention model that includes ethical considerations.

Even though insect products increasingly receive attention as a sustainable food alternative to meat, consumer acceptance remains low. The purpose of this paper is to test consumer acceptance of two different insect species with varying degrees of processing which led to different degrees of insects’ visibility.

Insect dishes that varied according to species and degree of visibility were presented to participants of a self-administered personal survey within a meal context. Consumer acceptance was measured through the willingness-to-try the different dishes, and a hierarchical linear regression was applied to estimate the role of insect species.

Consumer acceptance can be improved by focusing on different forms of food processing and different insect species. The lower the visibility of insects, the higher the consumer acceptance, independent of insect species. However, this is not sufficient to overcome consumers’ widely held rejection. Main barriers for consumer acceptance seem to be low social and cultural acceptance, fear of trying unknown products and a lack of taste experience.

A huge body of literature has examined determinants of insect consumption, but the majority of these studies did not consider the effects of insect species. The study’s main objective is to close this research gap while checking the most relevant individual traits as identified through a literature review: food neophobia and familiarity, social and cultural norms, awareness of benefits of insect production, meat consumption and socio-demographics.

By integrating the diffusion of innovation (DOI) theory, technology acceptance model (TAM), and social capital theory, the purpose of this paper is to: develop a model of consumer behavior and trial willingness toward nano-foods from product, consumer, and social perspectives; examine the effects of innovative features, consumer characteristics, and trust in authority on subjective perceptions (perceived trustworthiness and perceived benefit) as well as the social influence on attitudes toward nano-foods and trial willingness; examine the moderating role of product uncertainty on the relationship between these characteristics and subjective perceptions; and examine the effect of perceived benefit on perceived trustworthiness.

The results of the structural equation model (SEM), with nano-food knowledge data collected from 431 respondents, supported the research model and revealed the main effects hypothesized in this study and the moderating effect of product uncertainty. Simple slope analysis was further adopted to test the significant moderating effects.

The SEM results indicated that innovative characteristics (relative advantage, lack of observability, and novelty), consumer characteristics (perceived technology application), and social characteristics (trust in authority) affect perceived trustworthiness or perceived benefit. Social influence also has a direct effect on attitude toward nano-foods and trial willingness. Product uncertainty significantly moderates the relationship between characteristics (relative advantage and perceived technology application) and subjective perceptions (perceived trustworthiness and perceived benefit).

With increasing numbers and kinds of nanotechnology products now being developed and sold, it is important to go further to determine consumer perceptions and attitudes toward these. This study, thus, applied the DOI, TAM, and social capital theory to examine this issue. However, other theories might also be used to carry out research from other perspectives. This study should, thus, be seen as preliminary, and it is hoped that more works will discuss consumer attitudes toward nanotechnology products in the future.

When a new nano-food is introduced, the current study suggests that food manufacturers use the description on the package as a communicative tool. Detailing the advantages of nano-foods on food packages might be a useful way to enhance trial willingness and to reduce the fears and insecurities related to the use of nano-related products. In addition, if food manufacturers could cooperate with organizations or individuals seen as having some authority in this area (e.g. nanotechnology researchers) in order to disseminate accurate information about nanotechnology and related food products, this might be an effective way to increase sales and profits.

This is the first paper integrating the DOI, the social capital theory and the TAM to empirically investigate consumer willingness to try nano-food products.

Mass customization entails the mass production of individually customized goods and services. Co‐design is a mass customization option where a product's design is based on the customer's selections from a range of design feature offerings. A model comprised of relationships between individual differences, motivations for using co‐design, and willingness to use co‐design was proposed and statistically supported using 521 university subjects from different regions of the USA and the analysis of moment structures (AMOS) statistic. As hypothesized, optimum stimulation level (OSL) predicted two clothing interest factors: experimenting with appearance (EA) and enhancement of individuality (EI). As proposed, OSL and EA predicted the two motivations, trying co‐design as an exciting experience and using co‐design to create a unique product, whereas EI only predicted using co‐design to create a unique product. Both motives were mediating variables between individual differences and willingness to use co‐design, but using co‐design to create a unique product had a stronger effect. Theoretical and marketing implications were discussed.

Citizens are substantial stakeholders in every e-government system, thus their willingness to use and ability to access the system are critical. Unequal access and information and communication technology usage, which is known as digital divide, however has been identified as one of the major obstacles to the implementation of e-government system. As digital divide inhibits citizen’s acceptance to e-government, it should be overcome despite the lack of deep theoretical understanding on this issue. This research aimed to investigate the digital divide and its direct impact on e-government system success of local governments in Indonesia as well as indirect impact through the mediation role of trust. In order to get a comprehensive understanding of digital divide, this study introduced a new type of digital divide, the innovativeness divide.

The research problems were approached by applying two-stage sequential mixed method research approach comprising of both qualitative and quantitative studies. In the first phase, an initial research model was proposed based on a literature review. Semi-structured interview with 12 users of e-government systems was then conducted to explore and enhance this initial research model. Data collected in this phase were analyzed with a two-stage content analysis approach and the initial model was then amended based on the findings. As a result, a comprehensive research model with 16 hypotheses was proposed for examination in the second phase.

In the second phase, quantitative method was applied. A questionnaire was developed based on findings in the first phase. A pilot study was conducted to refine the questionnaire, which was then distributed in a national survey resulting in 237 useable responses. Data collected in this phase were analyzed using Partial Least Square based Structural Equation Modeling.

The results of quantitative analysis confirmed 13 hypotheses. All direct influences of the variables of digital divide on e-government system success were supported. The mediating effects of trust in e-government in the relationship between capability divide and e-government system success as well as in the relationship between innovativeness divide and e-government system success were supported, but was rejected in the relationship between access divide and e-government system success. Furthermore, the results supported the moderating effects of demographic variables of age, residential place, and education.

This research has both theoretical and practical contributions. The study contributes to the developments of literature on digital divide and e-government by providing a more comprehensive framework, and also to the implementation of e-government by local governments and the improvement of e-government Readiness Index of Indonesia.

Individuals perceive multiple barriers to consuming cultured meat. This study empirically investigates whether different types of social norms enhance behavioural intentions towards this novel food technology. Specifically, it examines the impact of general norms, in-group norms and out-group norms (based on meat-eaters or non-meat eaters, respectively) on consumers' willingness to try cultured meat.

A two-factorial between-subject online experiment was conducted using a sample of 431 Austrian consumers. The data were analysed using structural equation modelling in AMOS.

This study finds empirical support that both general norms and dietary in-group norms enhance consumers' behavioural intentions towards cultured meat, whereas dietary out-group norms do not affect the latter. The effect of in-group norms on behavioural intentions is mediated by identification with the respective dietary in-group. In addition, in-group identification and out-group disidentification as well as dietary identity also directly affect willingness to try cultured meat. Overall, meat-eaters report greater behavioural intentions than non-meat-eaters.

The findings indicate that using normative dietary cues in marketing campaigns might assist in efforts to increase consumer acceptance of cultured meat. Such efforts might be particularly relevant when introducing cultured meat to European markets.

This study is the first to experimentally examine the principles of the focus theory of normative conduct and social identity theory in the context of consumer-oriented cultured meat research. It contributes to the current literature by empirically demonstrating the relevance of social (group) norms in this domain.

Do consumers in countries that differ widely in cultural values and in economic development also differ in their resistance to innovations? And, if so, why? Addressing these questions will help international marketing managers formulate an appropriate strategy for a successful product introduction in diverse foreign markets. In this five‐country study, the cultural values of fatalism, traditionalism, and religious commitment were found to explain cross‐cultural variation in innovation resistance in Senegal and in the United States, but not in India, South Korea, or Thailand. Even though the results were different for every country, fatalism was generally associated with less willingness to try new non‐technical products and with higher levels of perceived product risk. Differences were found to be related to entertainment and media innovations as opposed to technical or fashion‐oriented innovations. The results do not support the contention that a global, standardised marketing strategy may be appropriate for the introduction of new products in foreign markets.