Consumer Behavior Among Malaysians

A Critical Essay on Malaysian Consumer Behavior on Computers and Laptops

 

One of the dominant areas of consumer theory rests on the notion of the consumer as `chooser’ (Gabriel and Lang, 1995: 26). Those objects with which one chooses to surround oneself in the home setting are more often than not products of careful choice and selection and may also be freely discarded (Csikszentmihalyi and Rochberg-Halton, 1981: 17). Like most of the durable technological artefacts of mass production, laptops are impersonal objects, at least at the time of first use, and are therefore initially `alienated’ or externalized from the subjectivity of the user, as Miller (1987) would put it.

In this essay, I wanted to focus on Malaysians using personal computers and laptops and trace the cultural factors affecting their choice of laptops. The personal computer is of interest because it is both a functional and a symbolic object. Notwithstanding this functionality, the computer carries a range of symbolic meanings that set it apart from other workplace technologies. It is a sign of `progress’ and `sophistication’, of `the future’, of `knowledge’ and `information’, and now of interconnection with others around the country and the globe (Lupton and Noble, 2002). Moreover, all technologies substitute, enhance or compensate for human capacities.

The purpose of this essay is to design a research programme that illustrates the consumer behavior in Malaysia using IT hardware consumption, particularly laptops as the case study. Moreover, I shall demonstrate a method of interpretation based on that model, using data drawn from two distinctively different forms of cultural text: advertising and television programming. A new emphasis is given to the process of meaning creation by identifying the influence of historical habits, events, and imagery on contemporary product discourse. We suggest ways of incorporating the analysis into current research programmes in dealing with consumer-based issues and problems.

This essay also proposed a research program design that can be used in evaluating cultural and symbolic meanings of consumer behavior particularly in Malaysia’ information technology hardware industry. Furthermore, an assessment pertaining to the proposed research design program shall be tested using this essay. Consequently, the weaknesses and strengths of the research program as indicated by the research findings were also illustrated.

 

Research Methodology

This essay shall utilize the descriptive research method which uses observation and surveys. In this method, it is possible that the study would be cheap and quick. It could also suggest unanticipated hypotheses. Nonetheless, it would be very hard to rule out alternative explanations and especially infer causations. This descriptive type of research will utilize observations in the study.  To illustrate the descriptive type of research, Creswell (1994) will guide the researcher when he stated: Descriptive method of research is to gather information about the present existing condition. 

This study investigated consumer behavior in Malaysia and how it is affected by their cultural and symbolic perceptions particularly, in the area of information technology hardware consumption. The primary source of data has been the carrying out of a semi-structured, one-to-one interviews with 10 Malaysian nationals and 10 semi-structured interview conducted via electronic mail. Among other things, I explored how the participants incorporated their cultural values in their consumption behavior particularly in choosing their computers and laptops.

To do so, I adopted the kind of approach used by researchers such as Csikszentmihalyi and Rochberg-Halton (1981) and, more recently, Dittmar (1992), Livingstone (1992) and Nippert-Eng (1996). These researchers used qualitative interviews with people at home or work or both to identify and analyse the ways in which their interviewees related to mass-produced artefacts in their immediate environment.

Like these researchers, I chose qualitative interviewing as the primary data-gathering method. I was interested in exploring the nature of people’s experiences with personal computers using their own accounts as data, while simultaneously acknowledging that the interviews themselves needed to be treated as texts rather than as transparent accounts of a single reality or truth. The participants in the study were selected purposively.

To address the issue of appropriation, some of our questions asked the participants to describe their computers and to talk about their consumption patterns, the importance of branding and their cultural leanings in their choice and in their perceived effects of their buying particular brands to their consumption behavior. There are, of course, other important strategies of appropriation, such as developing mastery in using the computer, bestowing gender, personality and personal names upon computers, and the temporal and spatial arrangements around computers that could also be discussed, but because of space limitations we are unable to elaborate upon these strategies here (Lupton and Noble, 1997; Noble and Lupton, 1998).

 

Symbolic and Cultural Properties of Products

For more than four decades, advertising and marketing researchers have been intrigued by the symbolic properties of products (Gardner and Levy 1955; Hirschman and Holbrook 1982; Levy, 1986; Umiker-Sebeok 1987). During that period, it has become increasingly clear that the consumption of any product is richly embroidered by the symbolism of the practices, rituals, and texts surrounding it and, further, that the meanings associated with products are crucial to understanding their exchange value in the marketplace (Hirschman, Scott and Wells, 1998).

Research inquiry has generally proceeded along two relatively independent paths: recording and analyzing the symbolism of product consumption practices (Arnould and Wallendorf 1994; Belk, Wallendorf, and Sherry 1989) and interpreting the symbolism of products as presented in cultural texts, such as advertisements, films, television programs, and novels (Hirschman, 1990; Holbrook, Bell, and Grayson 1989). Only a few theoretical attempts have been made to join the symbolism of practice with the symbolism of text (Otnes and Scott 1995). Further, although products and their consumption practices are generally acknowledged to acquire symbolism in a processual way, the actual dynamics of embedding products within meaningful cultural practices has been neither conceptualized nor analyzed in any detail. Thus, this essay shall use a symbolic approach in evaluating the consumption behavior of Malaysian particularly in IT hardware or laptops as compared to that of other countries.

Given the ever-increasing globalization of economies, growing numbers of marketing firms are expecting more of their profits to be derived from international sales (Singhapakdi, et al., 1999). Global competition is ferocious; thus, developing long-term partner relationships often becomes a significant competitive advantage. Failures to account for the effects of differences in consumers’ culturally-based ethical values will hinder a marketer’s efforts to expand internationally (Singhapakdi, et al., 1999).

 

Malaysian Consumerist Culture

The changes in Malaysia have been acknowledged by its admirers and critics alike. Two decades of uninterrupted economic growth and political stability have managed to guarantee nearly-full employment and a constant rise in living standards for the population (Noor, 1996). The volume of consumption within Malaysia alone should deter even the most gloomy of skeptics, for here we see that the universal right to consume is protected most zealously. For the economic prosperity of Malaysia has partly been based upon this as well: the right to buy your own CD player, latest TV and Video entertainment system, computers, laptops and soon, private TV cable-channels as well. Therefore as far as these economic and cultural rights are concerned, Malaysia can be said to have done no wrong whatsoever; on the contrary, her record has been one of successive achievements.

The rise of this consumerist culture would not have been possible had it not been for the loyal support of Malaysia’s youth, for it is they who are both the patrons and targets of this youth-oriented consumerism (Noor, 1996). The ever-increasing numbers of urban and suburban youths who flock to these centres of youth culture, be it in officially-Islamic Kelantan or in the Metropole of Kuala Lumpur itself, are added proof to the claim that such consumerist culture has gained popular foothold on the Malaysian imagination today. For those still in doubt, the government regulated television channel will confirm these observations when it broadcasts its regular karaoke contests to an audience hungry for such insubstantial entertainment.

The home and office of the 1990s has become a showplace for advances in computerized technology. Embedded computer chips are found in nearly every kitchen appliance, business machine, and entertainment device. Many children’s toys are computerized. The situation in Malaysia is not different (Rosen and Weil, 1995).

Social roles and identity study by Otnes et al (1993) suggested that gift-givers express different social roles in relation to different gift recipients. Kleine et al (1993) suggested that consumers are attracted to products congruent with their own social identity or role. Research also examined changing social roles and their impact on consumption (Lavin 1995).

For instance, culture within the United States, Hispanic consumers perceive advertisers of ads that are partly or fully in Spanish as more sensitive to Hispanic culture and prefer these to English ads (Koslow et al 1994). Research also focused on the relation of culture to consumption (Sirsi et al 1996) and suggested that intracultural variation (e.g. between experts and novices) is important.

However, to break away from this state of dependency upon Western consumerist culture is something that the Islamic youth of Malaysia cannot do by themselves. They lack both the means as well as the resources, and as yet no credible alternatives have been given to them. Against the mighty weight of MTV and MacDonalds, the Islamic elite have only been able to produce endless diatribes about the evils of Western culture and lifestyle without offering something else in its place.

 

Malaysian Attitudes on Marketing of Products

The study conducted by Singhapakdi, et., al. (1999) compared Malaysia and the US in terms of their perceptions of marketing situations, their attitudes toward business and salespeople, and their personal moral philosophies. The survey results reveal some significant differences between the consumers from these two countries. It indicated that Malaysia is more oriented towards cultural leanings than that of the United States.

Self-image, product image and their combination, self-congruity, are important concepts in consumer behaviour. They have been hypothesised and found to affect significantly product choice and purchase intention. Questern, Karunaratna and Goh (2000) studied two samples (Australia and Malaysia) from contrasting cultural backgrounds are compared in relation to the importance of self-congruity with respect to four brands of two products categories of contrasting involvement levels. Unexpectedly, samples from Australia and Malaysia were found to use differently actual vs ideal self-image in their product evaluation. This confirms overall the role of self-congruence in consumer’s choice and points to the need for further investigation of this concept in a cross-cultural context. 

Internationalism vs. Nationalism in Consumer Behavior

When a firm decides to export products to new markets it faces two fundamental decisions: which markets to enter, and whether to use a global or a localized strategy (Klein, 2002; Jain, 1989). Regarding the first issue, managers must identify the intrinsic factors of each potential new market that might predict future success or failure. These factors are extremely varied and range from matters concerning infrastructure and political stability, market size and consumer income levels, to issues related to the presence of local or previously established multi-national competitors (Czinkota and Ronkainen, 1996; Gupta and Govindarajan, 1999).

Once a market is selected, marketing managers must determine whether a global or local approach should be taken. Brand strategies involve inherent choices between using a global brand across markets or developing brands for specific markets. Relevant issues to consider in making these decisions include consumer familiarity with the global brand (and the size of the global consumer segment), the linguistic implications of the brand name for a new market, consumer culture, the presence and nature of competing brands within a given category, and the degree to which the brand is to be positioned on the basis of its country-of-origin (Alden, Steenkamp and Batra, 1999; Batra, Ramaswamy, Alden, Steenkamp and Ramachander, 2000; Gupta and Govindarajan, 1999; Shoham, 1999)

Two constructs emerging from the marketing literature suggest important additional factors that the international manager should consider when making branding decisions: consumer animosity toward a producing nation, and consumer ethnocentrism. Consumer animosity–defined as anger related to previous or ongoing political, military, economic, or diplomatic events–has been found to affect consumers’ purchase behavior (Klein, Ettenson and Morris, 1998). Consumer ethnocentrism is defined as the belief that it is inappropriate, or even immoral, to purchase foreign products because to do so is damaging to the domestic economy, costs domestic jobs, and is unpatriotic. This construct has also been found to affect purchase behavior (e.g., Shimp and Sharma, 1987).

Research on country-of-origin effects has generally examined how a country’s image (concerning, for example, workmanship, innovation, and technological advancement) is projected on to the features of products produced by that country (Bilkey and Nes, 1982; Johansson, 1989; Johansson, Douglas and Nonaka, 1985; Papadopoulos and Heslop, 1993).

 

Price Information and Consumer Behavior

The impact of price information on consumer perception of quality has been studied rather extensively (Monroe and Dodds, 1988). Similar to country-of-origin studies, no clear picture has emerged to indicate unequivocally whether a positive price and quality relationship exists, particularly in cases where other information cues were also provided to the consumer.

Given that consumers do not possess perfect information, they are likely to rely on prior experience as well as a variety of information cues, other than price provided, to judge product quality. In such a context, for consumers who are more experienced with the product, the price-quality association is likely to weaken (Wheatley, Walton and Chiu 1977; Rao and Monroe 1988). It would seem logically consistent that as the consumer confidence in judging product quality based on other information cues such as product attributes increases, his/her inclination to rely on price as an indicator of quality naturally should tend to decrease.

Analysis and Conclusion

 

            Malaysian consumption behavior, is still largely conservative despite their choices of products and brands which is apparent in their increasing openness to Western technologies particularly computers and laptops. The result of the interviews suggested that there is also a difference in the perception of Malaysians based on their age and gender. Youths for instance are generally more susceptible to the lure of advertisements and marketing efforts whereas, the older segment of the sample has been more conservative not only in their choice of brands but more so in their acquisition of laptops and computers.

Consequently, consumption behavior among the interviewees showed an irregular pattern- they are highly dependent on advertisement and marketing on some products while they are not so particular with some products. This is especially true between food consumption and computers and laptops. Majority of the respondents replied that they would rather eat Malaysian-made food items but added that in terms of technology, they prefer Western brands as opposed to Asian brands.

The most popular brands mentioned by the respondents are Apple McKintosh and Dell, computer brands that are located in the Western countries. Moreover, the respondents showed resistance to laptops made in China as they argued that it is less durable and the qualities are not as good. Moreover, when asked if they consider price as a factor in their choice of products, majority of the respondents agreed. The primary reason for such agreement can be reflected in their definition of value as being “getting the best least costly alternative.” Thus, I can say that while they would have preferred to buy computer brands from Western countries, they are oftentimes restricted by the pricing of the products.

 

Six of the interviewees said that price is the main factors that affect their choice of a computer or a laptop. They said that they have to be practical in buying. Three stated that they buy computer or a laptop regardless of the price as long as they believe that the computer or a laptop that they are purchasing has the highest quality. They said that they would not risk buying those with low prices. On the other hand, an interviewee said that when buying one, he first looks at the physical appearance: the color, size, shape. If the computer looks as hip as the ones he sees on TV, he will proceed on to examining if it has a high quality. Then if he finds that it has a high quality feature, he will look at the price.

The interviewees gave different answers as to where do they usually get information regarding computer. Three said that advertisement in magazines and newspapers provide them information about a computer or a laptop. They said that they have access to daily newspapers so finding information about computer or laptop is not difficult. Another three cited the Internet as the main provider of computer and laptop information. They stated that in the Internet, searching is so easy. Further, they contended that information is complete, plus, inquiry about the price, the feature is done over an e-mail. So the response from the company is fast. In addition, these interviewees expressed their satisfaction when they get information over the Net.

Two interviews pointed TV as the main medium on where they can gat information about computer or laptop. Although ads on the computer products are rare, there are numerous programs which feature anything about technology, including computer. They said that these programs give them what they want to know. Also, these programs features the newest models and innovations about computers. Another two interviewees said that their friends are the ones who inform them. 

All of the interviewees agreed that marketing and advertising significantly affects their choice of a computer brand. They said that marketing and advertising nowadays are so clever and innovative. Moreover, the interviewees believed that advertising uses deception through imagery, symbolism, sounds, theme and other effects; however, three of the interviewees said that they are a willing victim to advertising deception. The other said that it is inevitable to be under the hegemony brought about by advertising, but they accepted the fact that they are influenced by advertising.

Generally, the Interviewees thought that Western brands of computers are still superior to that of the Asian brands, although they considered that in years to come, Asia would overtake the west in producing high-quality computers. If the interviewees were to buy a computer, they would prefer those with Western brands over Asian brands. The interviewees were also asked whether they would buy a computer brand from Malaysia, if the country has any. Seven responded that they would still prefer Western brands because their quality has been tested; while three would buy Malaysian brands because they want to support their own economy rather that the West. Further, when asked what would they prefer between Western and Malaysian brand if all things were equal regarding the quality and price of the computer brand, the same seven said they would buy the Western brand. Their reason was that they want to possess things that have a good image. The other three still after the betterment of Malaysia’s economy.

Finally, all the interviewees said that Malaysians are more open to Western standards compared to ten years ago.

            Malaysian culture had been described earlier as evolving. This is also shown in the consumption behavior of its nationals. For instance, while they have been shown to be highly conservative in their choices of products, the influx of western-educated professionals and the advent of MTV, the internet, and the media had allowed the penetration of Western culture among Malaysians. Thus, it was not surprising to hear that they prefer Western goods from Asian goods. What is disturbing though is their ability to connect with Western civilization to a larger extent than their Asian counterparts.

The effects of the internationalization of goods has been severe to several cultural segments particularly that of Third World and developing countries such as Malaysia. The implication has been they tend to identify and look up to the Western ideals as better than their own. This is shown in their consumption of products. In information technology, Malaysians had shown leaning towards Western products. Again, this can also be attributed to the fact that Malaysia has also yet to establish its own brand of computer thus, in Asia, it is only Japan that can be considered as a competitor for Western computer manufacturers. In fact, on food items, Malaysians still showed their preference for domestic brands.

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