Does culture matter to Chinese consumers? Empirical evidence

• The paper explores the influence of culture on product evaluation of Chinese consumers in three Chinese locations.
• Three locations were Chongqing, Hong Kong and Shanghai.
• Consumers in these locations differ in their cultural orientations and their product evaluations.
• However, we found no relationship between the differences in culture and differences in product evaluations.
• Results therefore support the argument for “cultural convergence” in Chinese consumer behaviour.

The purpose of the paper is to explore the issue of regional cultural differences within China and their potential impact, if any, on consumers' purchasing decisions. It examines, firstly, if there are any significant cultural differences among Chinese consumers in different regional locations in China. Secondly, it examines if there are any significant differences in product evaluation behaviours among these groups, and, thirdly, it examines whether these differences, if any, in product evaluation behaviours, can be linked to regional cultural differences. The study reports a survey of consumers in three regional Chinese cities (Shanghai, Chongqing and Hong Kong) and measures of differences in cultures and product evaluation behaviour. Results indicate that, for the product bundles studied, groups of Chinese consumers displaying differences in Hofstede's cultural dimensions do not differ significantly in their product evaluation processes.

Chinese abstract本论文的目的是探讨中国各地区的文化差异及其对消费者购买决策的潜在影响。首先要探讨的是，中国不同地区消费者所处的位置是否有任何显著的文化差异；其次要探讨的是，这些人群对产品评价行为有什么明显的差别；第三要探讨的是，这些产品评价行为的差异是否可以链接到地区文化差异。该研究报告了在三个地区内的中国城市（上海、重庆和香港）进行的调查和对文化和产品评价行为差异的测量。产品调查结果表明，中国消费者群体在霍夫斯泰德的文化维度方面显示的差异，在其产品评价进程中，并没有显著的不同。