Determinants and Effects of the Use of ″Made in″ Labels

Abstract

Selected empirical findings on the effects of a product′s “made‐in” label are integrated with theoretical developments in consumer information processing and the economics of consumer search. The result is an internally consistent theory of how country‐of‐origin effects vary across situations, individuals and products. The new perspective explains why country stereotyping influences decisions more among well‐informed buyers and dismisses the idea that country‐of‐origin cues are necessarily misleading or bad. It also generates predictions of when country‐of‐origin effects are greater and when they are smaller.