An integrative framework for cross‐cultural consumer behavior

TLDR

The global economy is becoming increasingly cross‑cultural, making it essential for marketers to understand how culture shapes consumer behavior in new international markets. This article introduces a framework that integrates and reinterprets existing research on cross‑cultural consumer behavior, identifies gaps for future study, and serves as a practical template for marketers. The framework combines insights from anthropological and cross‑cultural psychology traditions to provide an applied perspective on culture and consumer behavior.

Abstract

The world economy is becoming increasingly cross‐cultural. During the next decades, as marketers enter new international markets, an understanding of how culture influences consumer behavior will be crucial for both managers and consumer researchers. This article presents a framework that integrates and reinterprets current research in cross‐cultural consumer behavior. The framework also serves to identify areas that need further research and can be used as a template for marketers seeking to understand their foreign consumers. The article also attempts to integrate from an applied perspective two distinct traditions in the study of culture and consumer behavior: the anthropological approach and the cross‐cultural psychology tradition.