IP Outreach Research > IP Crime
Reference
| Title: | Purchase Intent for Fashion Counterfeit Products: Ethical Ideologies, Ethical Judgments, and Perceived Risks |
| Author: | Sejin Ha [Ohio State University] and Sharron J Lennon [University of Delaware] |
| Source: | Clothing and Textiles Research Journal 24, no. 4: 297-315 |
| Year: | 2006 |
Details
| Subject/Type: | Counterfeiting |
| Focus: | Apparel and Shoes, Brands (deceptive counterfeits), Brands (non-deceptive counterfeits) |
| Country/Territory: | United States of America |
| Objective: | To study factors that contribute to consumer decision making with regard to counterfeit fashion products. |
| Sample: | 115 undergraduate students in textiles and clothing classes enrolled at a large Midwestern university (study 1); 326 undergraduate students in textiles and clothing and marketing, enrolled at a large Midwestern university (study 2) |
| Methodology: | Questionnaires |
Main Findings
STUDY 1: 52.2% of respondents have purchased at least one counterfeit fashion product, and 55.7% own fashion counterfeits. The top reasons given for purchasing fashion counterfeits were “cheap price” and “identical design to original item”.
Consumer intention to purchase counterfeit fashion products was negatively influenced by perceived risk: the higher a consumer’s general uncertainty about the consequences of purchasing a fashion fake (e.g. financial loss, functional risk, feeling ashamed, etc), the smaller the likelihood is that he/she will actually buy it.
Being idealist (believing that harming others is never appropriate and always leads to bad outcomes) or relativist (believing that absoulute or universal moral principles should be tempered by a consideration of their consequences) was not found to affect the intent to purchase counterfeit fashion products.
Overall, nonpurchasers scored higher in idealism than purchasers. Counterfeit purchasers tended to perceive less risk than nonpurchasers.
STUDY 2: 48.2% of respondents have purchased at least one counterfeit fashion product, and 48.4% own fashion counterfeits. The top reasons given for purchasing fashion counterfeits were “cheap price” and “identical design to original item”.
Consumer intention to purchase counterfeit fashion products was negatively influenced by perceived risk: the higher a consumer’s general uncertainty about the consequences of purchasing a fashion fake (e.g. financial loss, functional risk, feeling ashamed, etc), the smaller the likelihood is that he/she will actually buy it.
Being idealist (believing that harming others is never appropriate and always leads to bad outcomes) did not affect purchase intention for counterfeit fashion products. However, idealism positively influenced beliefs about moral wrongness of purchasing counterfeits.
Being relativist (believing that absoulute or universal moral principles should be tempered by a consideration of their consequences) made respondents more likely to buy counterfeit fashion products. However, relativism was not found to positively influence beliefs about moral rightness of purchasing counterfeits.
Beliefs that purchasing fashion counterfeits is morally wrong lowered purchase intention for fake fashion items.
The authors of the studies highlight the following implications and recommendations: education and public policies should emphasise critical risks of fashion counterfeiting, especially because fashion fakes do not have visible and (immediate) direct negative effects on consumers; illustrate to students that counterfeiting is not a victimless crime, that it can affect them, e.g. by stating that when goods bearing their university’s logo are counterfeited, then the income their college derives from these decreases; guest speakers and class activities/projects addressing issues of counterfeiting can also be beneficial; education about negative aspects of fakes, including how they affect the economy, society, and consumers, may be helpful to effect attitude change; public service announcements underscoring the relationship between counterfeiting and terrorism could also be effective.
[Date Added: Apr 9, 2009 ]