Empirical examination of the effect of consumers' product origin familiarity on their quality perceptions

Product familiarity has been shown to interact with an array of marketing concepts. Indeed, it is often a prime choice for boundary testing attitudinal concepts; since the effect of many attitudinal concepts depends upon the customer¿s familiarity with the concept. In this study, the role of product origin familiarity in influencing consumer attitudes is examined. The concept is conceptualized and empirically examined. The results show that higher familiarity with a product origin is related to more positive quality perceptions. Interestingly, it was found that this relationship is fully mediated by the consumer¿s product origin image.