The application of fuzzy logic in measuring consumption values: Using data of Chinese consumers buying imported fruit

The conventional approach used to examine consumption values of consumers for a given product category is the Means-End Chain (MEC) approach. The MEC retrieves values through establishing links between product attributes and consumption values by an interviewing technique called laddering. The laddering technique is a qualitative approach with limited ability to deal with segments of consumers who hold multiple consumption values. In this research fuzzy logic theory is applied in conjunction with laddering to measure the consumption values of Chinese consumers purchasing imported fruit. Results demonstrate that fuzzy logic is not only an effective approach to quantifying the consumption values that consumers pursue in a give context, but also, when consumers hold multiple values of unequal weights, it can reveal how consumption values are mingled.