ARTICLE IN PRESS

Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services 11 (2004) 9–17

Refinement and re-assessment of the consumer decision-making

style instrument
Vanessa Prier Wickliffe*
315B Erikson Hall, Lexington, University of Kentucky, Kentucky 40506-0050, USA

Abstract

This study examined the psychometric properties of a popular instrument used to measure consumer decision-making styles. The
findings of this study were compared to previous studies. An examination of psychometric properties of the instrument revealed that
the instrument is not a reliable or valid measure of decision-making styles in both Korea and the United States. New constructs were
identified that were in contrast with previous studies. Recommendations for future research are offered.
r 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Instrument reliability; Decision-making styles

1. Introduction (Adler, 1983; Sekaran, 1983; Cheng, 1989; Nasif et al,

The development of valid and reliable instruments
that measure a phenomenon cross-culturally is a difficult
task in research projects (Green and White, 1976). The
validation of an instrument in a cross-cultural setting
has been traditionally addressed as either emic and/or
etic. That is, the development of individual emic
(culturally specific) measures for each culture or the
creation of etic (culturally universal) measures for
multiple cultures (Green and White, 1976; Van Raaij,
1978; Cavusgil and Das, 1997). Emic equivalence
supports functional equivalence in individual cultures,
while etic equivalence supports what Green and White
(1976) call ‘formal equivalence’. Formal equivalence
fosters the use of identical questions or items for all
nations (Cavusgil and Das, 1997). Emic equivalence
supports functional equivalence in that each instrument
is developed to measure the phenomena in the manner in
which it is manifested in various countries.
Cavusgil and Das (1997) supports Green and White
(1976) that most domestic research employs emic
measures. These measures are then used in cross-cultural
studies with little or no changes to the instrument. With
that comes some concerns related to creating functional
equivalence, instrumentation consideration, data-collec-
tion methodology, sampling design and data analysis
1991; Samiee and Jeong, 1994; Parameswaran and
Yaprak, 1987; Cavusgil and Das, 1997). These concerns,
therefore, questions the usefulness and generalizability
of findings. Mullen (1995) questions whether similarities
and differences in cross-cultural studies are in fact real.
Adler et al. (1989) suggest that researchers should
examine whether the findings really are due to true
cultural differences. The researchers further question
whether findings may be prone to measurement and
scaling problem.
An example of an instrument used by many to
examine and compare consumer shopping characteris-
tics is that of the Consumer Styles Inventory (Durvasula
et al., 1993; Fan and Xiao, 1998; Hafstrom et al., 1992;
Lysonski et al., 1996). Sproles and Kendall (1986)
initially developed the scale in an attempt to characterize
consumer decision-making styles in the United States.
Others have also used the Consumer Styles Inventory as
a measure for segmenting consumers for the purpose of
identifying consumer niches and to compare their
findings to that of other researchers (Durvasula et al.,
1993; Fan and Xiao, 1998; Hafstrom et al., 1992;
Lysonski et al., 1996).
2. Research objectives

*Tel.: +1-859-257-7776; fax: +859-257-1275. Researchers believe that activities may have different
E-mail address: vpwick0@pop.uky.edu (V.P. Wickliffe). functions in different cultures, and therefore cannot be

0969-6989/03/$ - see front matter r 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
PII: S 0 9 6 9 - 6 9 8 9 ( 0 2 ) 0 0 0 5 7 - 7
 ARTICLE IN PRESS
10 V.P. Wickliffe / Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services 11 (2004) 9–17

used for comparative purposes (Davis et al., 1981;
Parameswaran and Yaprak, 1987). Other research
indicates that socio-cultural behavior patterns and
sample induced differentials may effect comparative
market studies (Parameswaran and Yaprak, 1987;
Sekaran, 1983; Sekaran and Martin, 1982; Douglas
and Craig, 1983).
The literature indicates that cross-cultural research
should follow a methodology that facilitates the
production of reliable information (Churchill, 1979;
Peter, 1979; Cavusgil and Das, 1997; Davis et al., 1981;
Parameswaran and Yaprak, 1987). Churchill (1979)
offers a framework for the development of instruments
that have desirable reliability and validity properties.
Both Churchill (1979) and Peters (1979) suggest that
good reliability and validity of an instrument is
important to the generalizability of findings. Peters
(1979) suggests that reliability of constructs must be
assessed before generalizability of findings can be
determined, and suggest the use of statistical techniques
such as factor analysis and coefficient alphas to purify
an instrument. The reliability of findings in both cultures
suggest that researchers could generalize that a parti-
cular phenomena exist in both cultures. Variations could
suggest that perhaps the phenomena are assessed and/or
exist differently in each culture.
The problem with previous research using the
Consumer Style Instrument is that it is emic in nature.
That is, the instrument was designed for domestic use,
but has been used in other cultural settings, and also all
of the research uses the same sample units. This study
attempts to evaluate previous research, and conduct
research using varying samples to determine if it is
feasible to use an emic style of research or an etic style of
research when examining consumer decision-making
styles cross-culturally. If the instrument is found to be
reliable and valid measure of the concepts in both
countries, then we can assume that perhaps an etic style
of instrument can be used to measure decision-making
styles in these countries. However, if variations in the
decision-making styles are found to exist, then perhaps
an emic style instrument would be more feasible, and the
researchers would have to identify statistical techniques
that could compare the differences. Therefore, the
objectives of this study are (1) to examine the findings
of previous studies using the Consumer Styles Inven-
tory, (2) re-examined the psychometric properties of the
instrument using different samples, (3) provide a
comparative discussion of findings of this study to that
of previous studies, (4) offer recommendations for
future research and CSI use.
3. Consumer decision-making styles instrument
Previous studies agree that a consumer decision-
making style is ‘‘a mental orientation characterizing a
consumer’s approach to choices’’ (Sproles and Kendall
1986, p. 268). Many studies have used the scale to
identify the decision-making styles of consumers in
foreign markets (Durvasula et al., 1993; Fan and Xiao,
1998; Hafstrom et al., 1992; Lysonski et al., 1996) (see
Table 1). Variations in these studies related to number
of reliable factors item loadings and the decision-making
styles of the groups sampled. The studies used principal
component factor analysis with varimax rotation to
identify the factors. A second statistical analysis used
was that of Cronbach alpha coefficients to determine if
the instrument was a reliable measure of constructs. The
last analysis is a comparative of the actual identified
decision-making style dimensions.
Sproles and Kendall (1986) used factor analysis with
varimax rotation, to identify the consumer decision-
making styles of high school students, and Cronbach
alpha to assess the instrument’s sub-scale reliabilities.
The researchers used 0.40 as the cut-off for inclusion of
a factor as a reliable measure of a construct. The
Cronbach alphas for subscale items loading above 0.40
indicated that only the Perfectionistic, Brand Conscious,
Novelty-Fashion, Recreational Shopping, Confused by

Table 1
Reliability assessments (Cronbach alphas)

Variable Sproles and Hafstrom et al. Durvasula et al. Lysonski et al. Fan and Xiao
Kendall (1986) US (1992) Korean (1993) (1996) (1998)

US New Zealand New Zealand Greek US Indian Chinese

Perfectionist 0.74 0.69 0.77 (7) 0.74 0.75 0.8 0.65 0.72 0.61 0.59
Brand Conscious 0.75 0.63 0.80 (11) 0.75 0.59 0.59 0.68 0.63 0.71 0.60
Novelty-Fashion 0.74 0.76 0.74 0.70 0.75 0.63 0.75 0.72 0.59
Recreational 0.76 0.71 0.70 0.76 0.82 0.82 0.61 0.85 0.45
Price-Value 0.48 0.48 0.30 (3) 0.48 0.50
Impulsive 0.48 0.41 0.50 (4) 0.48 0.71 0.71 0.64 0.68 0.41
Confused by Overchoice 0.55 0.51 0.50 (5) 0.55 0.66 0.66 0.55 0.69 0.64
Habitual, Brand Loyal 0.53 0.54 0.30 (3) 0.53 0.58 0.54 0.34 0.62 0.51
Time-Energy 0.40 (3) 0.62
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V.P. Wickliffe / Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services 11 (2004) 9–17
Overchoice, and Habitual, Brand Loyal factors were
considered to be reliable construct (see Table 1). The
Price-Value Conscious, and the Impulsive sub-scales had
reliability scores of 0.48. When the researchers re-
examined the scales, using only the top three items, the
results were the same. The Price-Value Conscious, and
the Impulsive sub-scales were still at 0.48. The reliabil-
ities of these two factors are marginal in that they are
lower than the acceptable Cronbach alphas of 0.70, and
0.50 for exploratory studies (Hair et al., 1995). The
researcher attributes this to the young age of the
participants and the psychological nature of impulsive-
ness (Sproles and Kendall, 1986).
Hafstrom et al. (1992) compared the decision-making
styles of young Korean and American students.
Hafstrom et al. (1992) confirmed all but one of the
eight original constructs, which was identified as
‘‘Novelty-Fashion’’. The eight factors identified by
Hafstrom et al. (1992) included Brand Conscious,
Perfectionistic, Recreational shopping, Confused by
Overchoice, Impulsive, Time-Energy, Habitual-Brand
Loyal, and Price-Value Conscious. The researcher found
that most Korean student sample were Brand Conscious
Perfectionistic and Recreational Shopping consumers
while the American student sample were Perfectionistic
Brand Conscious and Novelty-Fashion Conscious con-
sumers. A closer look at the reliabilities of the study
indicates that the Time-Energy (0.35) Habitual-Brand
Loyal (0.34) and Price-Value Conscious (0.31) were not
reliable measures of the constructs. The newly identified
Time-energy construct contains items from the Brand
Conscious and Habitual Brand-Loyal decision-making
styles found in US consumers. Korean consumers
characterized as Time-Energy decision-makers tend to
conserve energy by shopping the same stores and
consult magazines and advertisements before they
actually buy a product.
Durvasula et al. (1993) examined the dimensionality
of the scale and found that the factor loadings of the
New Zealand sample were not entirely equivalent to the
US sample (see Table 1). The eight factor model
explained 56% of the variance for the New Zealand
sample and 46% of the variance for the US sample. The
factor analysis with varimax rotation revealed eight
factors for both samples however the Cronbach alphas
revealed that the Perfectionistic Novelty-Fashion Con-
scious and Recreational Shopping Conscious factors
were found to be the most stable of all. Based on the
Cronbach alphas the researchers found that the factors
entitled Price-Value Conscious, Confused by Over-
choice, and Habitual, Brand-Loyal require further
refinement (Durvasula et al., 1993). The Brand Con-
scious factor showed lower reliability for the
New Zealand sample than the American sample which
may indicate underlying factors are influencing the
outcome.
11
Lysonski et al. (1996) surveyed college students in two
developed and two developing countries to determine if
consumer decision-making styles are universal. The
researchers found that the instrument was more applic-
able to the United States and New Zealand (developed
countries) than to India and Greece (developing
countries) (Lysonski et al., 1996). Internal consistency
of each decision-making factor (Cronbach alphas)
estimates were also calculated. Seventy-one percent of
the New Zealand, Greek and Indian samples had alpha
coefficients exceeding 0.60. All of the factors in the US
sample had factor loadings of 0.60 (see Table 1).
Fan and Xiao (1998) compared the number of factors
identified, item loadings, and the profiles for Chinese
consumers in their study with that of previous studies
(see Table 1). Their research suggest that there were
possible overlappings of the original constructs, and
recommended some new ones. Fan and Xiao (1998)
suggest that ‘‘Impulsive’’ overlaps with the ‘‘Habitual,
Brand Loyal’’ construct, and the ‘‘Time Energy Con-
serving’’ construct overlaps with the ‘‘Recreational
Shopping Consciousness’’ dimension. The researchers
also recommended that the new dimension ‘‘information
utilization’’ include the ‘‘confused by overchoice’’
construct. This factor describes how consumers use
product information. Those that score low on this scale
take advantage of product information, and those that
score high seem to be overwhelmed by the abundance of
information.
Table 1 compares the scale reliabilities, and identified
factors developed in each study. In summary, compara-
tive of all of the previous studies indicate that the initial
eight factors are not consistent in other cultures.
Specifically, the Novelty-Fashion, Price-Value, and
Time-Energy factors are not identified in some studies.
Moreover, some of the constructs have higher reliability
in some cultures, and lower reliabilities in others.
Additionally, some studies identified new or overlapping
constructs such as the informational utilization and
Time Conscious constructs identified by Fan and Xiao
(1998).
4. Methodology
4.1. Sample characteristics
Samples of students and factory workers living in
Korea, and American college students and factory
workers were used for this study. Sixty percent of the
American samples were female, with 71% being single,
and over 40% having had some college education. The
mean age of the American sample was approximately
30, with a mean income of approximately $25,000.
Sixty-five percent of the Korean sample was female
and married, with approximately 71% having had a
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12 V.P. Wickliffe / Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services 11 (2004) 9–17

Table 2 questionnaires were returned, yielding a response rate of

Demographic characteristics of American and Korean samples 80%. Seventy-four questionnaires were distributed to
Variable American Korean the Korean factory workers, and all of them were
returned. A total of 300 questionnaires were distributed
Marital status
to Korean students in the United States, and 100 in
Single 70.6 64.5
Married 29.4 34.1 Korea. Eighty-two useable questionnaires were re-
turned, yielding a 21% response rate.
Gender
Male 40.5 38.4
Female 59.5 65.0
5. Data analysis
Income
Less than $5,000 30.2 5.1
Functional equivalence in this study examines
$5,000 –$9,999 19.8 2.2
$10,000–$24,999 12.7 13.8 whether consumer behavior concepts related to this
$25,000 –$49,999 11.1 24.6 phenomenon have the same meaning in the two
$50,000 –$74,999 10.3 23.2 countries. Functional equivalence, in this case, is
$75,000–$99,999 6.3 15.2 measured by determining if the decision-making styles
$100,000–$149,999 2.4 7.2
existent in the United States are the same in Korea.
Education Specifically, whether consumers in Korea have a
High school degree 11.2 10.1 particular type of decision-making style when approach-
College degree (2 years) 40.2 2.2 ing the market to purchase a product, and if those
University degree 11.2 52.6 decision-making styles are similar to those identified in
Master’s degree 2.4 22.5
the United States. Previous studies used principal
Mean age 30 33 component factor analysis with varimax rotation to
Mean income $25,427 $59,085a identify the consumer decision-making styles. The first
a part of the analysis for this study was therefore, an
Computed at 850 Won per dollar.
exploratory principal component factor analysis with
varimax rotation.
Measurement equivalence refers to whether an
university degree. The mean age of the Korean sample
instrument can be a reliable and valid measure of
was approximately 31 years, with a mean income of
constructs cross-culturally. Instrument equivalence in
approximately $59,085. The Korean income was con-
this case examines whether the pre-established scale is
verted at 850 won per US dollar, the prevailing exchange
internally consistent when attempting to identify the
rate at the time of data collection (Table 2).
decision-making styles of consumers. This study used
samples of Korean and American students and factory
4.2. Instrument
workers. The analysis used for this part of the study was
Cronbach alpha coefficients.
The 40 item Consumer Styles Inventory scale was
developed by Sproles and Kendall (1986) to identify
consumer decision-making styles. The instrument used
in this study was revised by Hafstrom et al. (1992). 6. Results
Using a five point Likert scale, respondents were asked
to indicate their level of agreement with the items 6.1. Exploratory factor analysis
(1=strongly disagree to 5=strongly agree). The ques-
tionnaire was double-blind translated into the Korean The decision-making styles identified in this study are
language for distribution in Korea. not consistent with those identified in previous studies.
The instrument reliability was established in Sproles Table 3 and 4 reports the findings of the exploratory
and Kendall (1986). Scale reliability was also established factor analysis using principal component factor analy-
by other researchers (Fan and Xiao, 1998; Lysonski sis with varimax rotation for the American and Korean
et al., 1996; Durvasula et al., 1993; Hafstrom et al., samples. Variation in the number of reliable constructs
1992) (see Table 1 for comparative). (decision-making styles) also is noted when compared to
A total of 175 questionnaires were distributed to the previous studies. Secondly, based on the factor analysis
American factory workers during their monthly meet- (factor loadings), the findings only incorporate the use
ing. A total of 46 useable questionnaires were returned, of 17 of the original items for the American sample, and
yielding a response rate of 22.3%. One hundred only 20 items for the Korean sample as compared to
questionnaires were distributed to the American stu- previous studies. Compared to previous studies, varia-
dents at the end of their class period. Eighty useable tions in the reliability (Cronbach Alphas) for the
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V.P. Wickliffe / Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services 11 (2004) 9–17 13

Table 3 Table 4
Consumer decision making scale (factor loading and Cronbach alpha Consumer decision making scale (factor loading and Cronbach Alpha
scores) American Sample scores) Korean sample

Factor Factor
loading loading

Factor # 1 Brand Conscious Factor # 1 Brand/Quality Consumer

I usually buy the newest style. 0.690 I usually buy the newest styles. 0.702
The higher the price of a product, the better its quality. 0.681 I keep my wardrobe up-to-date with the latest 0.691
I keep my wardrobe up-to-date with the changing 0.642 fashions.
fashions. I usually buy well-known, national, or designer 0.661
Nice department and specialty stores offer me the best 0.659 brands.
products. Nice department and specialty stores offer me the 0.646
I usually buy well-known, national, or designer brands. 0.652 best products
Highly advertised brands are usually very good. 0.626 The more expensive brands are usually my choice. 0.644
The well-known national brands are usually very good. 0.513 Highly advertised brands are usually very good. 0.612
I enjoy shopping just for the fun of it. 0.565
Alpha 0.842 The well-known national brands are usually very 0.584
good.
Factor # 2 Perfectionist, High-Quality Conscious Expensive brands are usually the best. 0.564
My standards and expectations for products I buy are 0.800 When it comes to purchasing products, I try to get 0.562
very high. the very best or perfect choice.
When it comes to purchasing products, I try to get the 0.734 Its fun to buy something new and exciting. 0.536
very best or perfect choice. I make special efforts to choose the very best quality 0.383
I make special effort to choose the very best quality 0.698 products.
products.
I look carefully to find the very best value for the 0.637 Alpha 0.839
money.
Factor # 2 Confused Impulsive
Alpha 0.659 Often I make careless purchases I wish I had not. 0.675
I am impulsive when purchasing. 0.637
Factor # 3 Confused Impulsive Consumer All the information I get on different products 0.612
Often I make careless purchases I wish I had not. 0.758 confuses me.
I am impulsive when shopping. 0.682 There are so many brands to choose from that often 0.604
There are so many brands to choose from that often I 0.663 I feel confused.
feel confused. I should plan my shopping more carefully than I do. 0.569
I should plan my shopping more carefully than I do. 0.660
All the information I get on different products confuses 0.629 Alpha 0.622
me.
Sometimes its hard to choose which stores to shop. 0.609 Factor # 3 Price-Value Conscious
I usually compare three brands before shopping. 0.585
Alpha 0.718 The lower price products are usually my choice. 0.555
I consider price first. 0.551

Alpha 0.563
constructs also exist for each of the factors for both
samples.

6.2. The American sample
Principal component factor analysis with varimax
rotation revealed three major decision-making styles
that describes the American sample in this study. They
included Brand Conscious, Perfectionist, High Quality,
and Confused Impulsive. Variations exist in all three
relative to item loadings, scale development, and
reliabilities (cronbach alpha computations).
Factor one, entitled Brand Conscious, contained four
of the items established in Hafstrom et al. (1992), and
only three from the original Sproles and Kendall (1986)
construct for Brand Conscious. These items dealt with
the importance of nice department stores, national
brands and price as indicators of quality. The other
items in this factor reflected the consumers concern for
highly advertised, well-known, national, designer
brands, keeping their wardrobe up-to-date, and buying
items that were the nicest of styles. The overall alpha for
this factor was 0.842.
Factor two, entitled Perfectionists, High-Quality
Conscious, contained four of the original items from
Sproles and Kendall (1986), and Hafstrom et al. (1992).
All of the items deal with the importance of quality
when selecting a product. Price was equated with quality
among these consumers. The alpha coefficient for this
factor was 0.659.
Factor three, entitled Confused Impulsive Consumers,
was identified as a new factor among this sample group.
The items in this factor suggest that these consumers
 ARTICLE IN PRESS
14 V.P. Wickliffe / Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services 11 (2004) 9–17
tend to get confused by too much information on
products and brands, and may therefore impulsively
shop. Purchases made may be regretful. These con-
sumers also find it hard to choose which stores to shop.
The reliability for this factor was 0.718.
6.3. Sub-group analysis
Previous studies used samples of high school and
college students as samples. This study used a combina-
tion of students and factory workers, and therefore
offered a wider range in age. In order to compare
findings, the samples were also separated and tested.
The factor analysis identified three similar factors for
the two sub-groups of the overall sample (factory
workers and students). The Brand Conscious construct
was found to be comparably reliable for both the
student and factory worker samples. Cronbach alphas
were 0.842 for the student sample, and 0.826 for the
factory worker sample. The second factor, Perfectionist,
High Quality was identified for both groups. However,
the construct was found to be more reliable for the
factory worker sample (a ¼ 0:802), than for the student
sample (a ¼ 0:655). The third factor, Confused Impul-
sive, was somewhat more reliable for the student sample
(a ¼ 0:748) than for the factory workers (a ¼ 0:601).
The Confused Impulsive factor is somewhat similar to
Fan and Xiao (1998), in that it examined the use of
information by consumers. However, the new factor
suggests that these consumers become impulsive when
too much information is given. Because of the range in
age of the sample, a test to determine if there was a
relationship between age and Confused Impulsive factor
was conducted. Pearson correlation indicated that as a
consumer increased in age, their level of confusion and
impulsive buying decreased. The study also showed that
more participants under the age of 30 were characterized
as Confused Impulsive than those over the age of 30.
6.4. Korean sample
Factor one, entitled Brand/Quality Conscious is a
combination of items from the Sproles and Kendall
(1986) and Hafstrom et al. (1992) Brand Conscious and
Perfectionist constructs. Three of the items were from
the Perfectionist construct, and six were from the Brand
Conscious construct. These items reflect consumers who
are concerned about the newest styles, keeping their
wardrobes up-to-date, and shopping at nice stores.
These consumers are characterized as placing impor-
tance on choosing expensive brands because they
consider them to be of good quality, and they put forth
a special effort in purchasing these products. The alpha
coefficient for this factor was 0.839, which suggest that
this construct could be a reliable measure for brand
quality conscious consumers in Korea.
The second factor, entitled Confused Impulsive is a
combination of Sproles and Kendall’s (1986), and
Hafstrom et al. (1992) Confused by Overchoice and
Impulsive, Careless constructs. These consumers
would be characterized as impulsive shoppers who
make purchases they wish they had not, and also
become confused when too much information and too
many brands are available at one time. The range of
factor loadings were 0.569 to 0.675. Based on the overall
alpha of 0.622, this construct could be somewhat
reliable when examining Korean consumers.
Factor three, entitled Price-Value Conscious consists
of one item from the Perfectionist, Price-Value, and
Confused by Overchoice constructs developed by Sproles
and Kendall (1986), and revised by Hafstrom et al.
(1992). These consumers consider more than one brand
while shopping, and are very price conscious. The alpha
coefficient was 0.563.
6.5. Sub-group analysis
The previously identified factors were examined using
the combination of factory workers & students. The
Brand, Quality Conscious consumer factor was found to
be somewhat more reliable for the student sample
(a ¼ 0:850) than for the factory worker sample
(a ¼ 0:760). The reliability of the Confused Impulsive
factor was somewhat more reliable for the factory
worker sample (a ¼ 0:770) than for the student sample
(a ¼ 0:694). The Pearson Product Moments correlation
did not indicate that there was a significant correlation
between age and the confusion and impulsive buying
brought on by information flow.
The final factor identified for the Korean sample is
that of the Price-Value construct. The separation of the
sample groups did not produce significant reliability in
the construct for each group. The cronbach alphas for
factory workers and the students were 0.203 and 0.229
respectively.
7. Discussion
Marketers and retailers are concerned with whether
results from cross-cultural research can be used to
develop strategic plans for the establishment of busi-
nesses in foreign countries. Researchers indicate that the
usability of research findings, may stem from methodo-
logical issues (Adler, 1983; Sekaran, 1983; Cheng, 1989;
Nasif et al., 1991; Samiee and Jeong, 1994; Parames-
waran and Yaprak, 1987; Cavusgil and Das, 1997).
Because of these problems, researchers suggest that a
specific methodology that facilitates the production of
reliable information be used (Churchill, 1979; Davis
et al., 1981; Peters, 1979; Parameswaran and Yaprak,
1987). Most researchers develop instruments that
 ARTICLE IN PRESS
V.P. Wickliffe / Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services 11 (2004) 9–17
measure concepts domestically, and then use the same
instrument to measure phenomena in other countries.
This study sought to determine if using an emic/etic style
of measuring decision-making styles should be used. The
emic style of instrument development is supportive of
developing instruments that are culturally specific. The
etic style is supportive of universal measures that are
culture free. First, this study sought to determine if
the decision-making styles previously established were
functionally equivalent. The second factor was measure-
ment equivalence, which was used to determine if the
instrument previously tested could be used to measure
the decision-making styles of both Korea and American
consumers. If the decision-making styles exist compar-
ably in both countries, then perhaps an etic style of
instrument development could be used to measure the
concepts. However, if they do not, then an emic style
would seem more feasible.
All of the studies basically compared the number of
factors identified, item loadings, and the profiles of
consumer samples used, and then compared their
findings to others. Churchill (1979) and Peters (1979)
suggest that reliability and validity of an instrument
could be measured using factor analysis and alpha
coefficients. Principal component factor analysis with
varimax rotation was used to examine the functional
equivalence of the consumer characteristics cross-
culturally. First, the decision-making styles identified
in this study do not completely support previous
established constructs. The initial study by Sproles and
Kendall (1986) identified eight decision-making styles.
This study only identified three constructs for the
American sample, and three for the Korean sample,
but with varying constructs and items from the original
constructs.
The functional equivalence of the Brand Conscious
Consumer decision-making style is somewhat supported.
The construct is identified in both countries but with
some variations. A comparative of the Brand Conscious
and the Perfectionistic factors show that some crossing
over of items exist, depending on the samples used. The
original Brand Conscious factor identified by Sproles
and Kendall (1986) characterizes consumers in this
group as those that search and buy the most expensive,
well-known national brands. They were also character-
ized as placing importance on nice stores, where brand
names and higher priced items are found. The Brand
Conscious consumers (American sample) identified in
this study seemed to be characterized as such, except
they indicated that higher prices suggest better
quality. The American sample was also found to
concerned with being fashionable, ‘‘I keep my wardrobe
up-to-date with the latest fashions’’, and ‘‘I usually
buy the newest styles’’. The Korean sample was
found to enjoy shopping, and buying something new
and exciting. They also prefer the most expensive brands
15
and attempt to make the very best choice when
shopping.
Another similar consumer decision-making style
identified between the two groups was the Confused,
Impulsive construct. It describes consumers who may
become confused by information overload, and may
further impulsively make purchases they may regret.
This decision-making style is not consistent with any of
the original (Sproles and Kendall, 1986) or revised
(Hafstrom et al., 1992) decision-making styles. It is a
combination of the Impulsive and Confused by Over-
choice constructs. This factor is similar to Fan and Xiao
(1998) factor identified as Information Utilization. These
researchers suggest that consumers that score high on
this scale may not know what to do with information
given to them, and are overwhelmed by too many
choices of products and stores available to them. Fan
and Xiao (1998) also suggest that consumers that score
low on this scale can take advantage of the available
information and make better choices. The two items
that did not load in their factor were, ‘‘I am impulsive
when shopping’’, and ‘‘I should plan my shopping
more carefully than I do’’. ‘‘Sometimes it is hard to
choose which stores to shop’’, loaded on the Confused
Impulsive factor for the American sample.
The Korean sample was also characterized as being
Price-Value conscious. This construct has been estab-
lished in previous studies for other sample types, but
with variations in the items loading in this factor. The
original construct identified by Sproles and Kendall
(1986) indicated that consumers in this category look for
lower prices, and consider the best value for their
money. In this study, only one item from the original
factor loaded on this construct. The others included, ‘‘I
consider price first’’, and ‘‘I usually compare three
brands before shopping’’. These items still did not
produce a reliability significant enough to be considered
as a viable measure of the consumer characterization in
Korea, and was not identified as an American decision-
making style.
The items suggest that Korean consumers usually
compare brands before shopping, and consider lower
price products as their choice. This is in contrast to the
literature which indicates that Korean consumer’s
equate price with quality, in that the higher the price
the better the quality/prestige. When compared to
previous studies, item variations existed with varying
samples. Again, item loadings varied by samples used.
Measurement equivalence was used in this study to
examine the reliability of the constructs cross-culturally.
Hair et al. (1995) suggests that an alpha of 0.70 is a
sufficient alpha for determining reliability. The research-
er also suggests that lower alphas may be used in
exploratory studies. With reference to the Brand
constructs, both samples had alpha coefficients above
0.80, suggesting that the items in the constructs could be
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16 V.P. Wickliffe / Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services 11 (2004) 9–17
reliable measures for brand conscious consumers in both
cultures. In previous studies, the Brand Conscious,
Perfectionistic, Novelty-Fashion, and Recreational Con-
scious constructs averaged 0.68 to 0.73 in cronbach
alpha co-efficient. In this study, only the Brand
Conscious and the Perfectionist constructs were identi-
fied as being similar to previous findings, and having
significant reliabilities as measures.
The Price Conscious construct previously established
using student samples has not in the past produced
significant reliabilities across various cultures. Previous
studies produced reliability co-efficients ranging from
0.48 to 0.59. Although the items were not all the same,
the Price-Value factor identified for the Korean con-
sumers was still not found to be a reliable measure.
Cronbach alphas for the overall sample were 0.421, and
for the student and factory worker samples was 0.229
and 0.203 respectfully. The items were examined using
the student and factory workers samples separately. The
reliability for this factor was still not significant for
either of the Korean samples. This suggests that perhaps
the items need further review as a measure of the Price-
Value construct cross-culturally. Although the construct
was identified for the Korean consumers, it was not a
main characterization of the American consumer
sample.
The newly identified construct, entitled, Confused,
Impulsive had an alpha of 0.718 for the American
consumer group and 0.622 for the Korean consumer
group. Although this factor was found to be a reliable
measure for the samples used, it was not identified in
previous studies. Separating the samples of students and
factory workers still produced significant reliabilities for
both groups within the American and Korean samples.
However, the construct seems to be more reliable for the
American students, and the Korean factory workers.
8. Conclusions
Both Churchill (1979) and Peters (1979) suggest that
good reliability and validity of an instrument is
important to the generalizability of findings. This study
found that the Consumer Styles Inventory as previously
established is not a reliable and valid measure of
consumer decision-making styles in the United States
or Korea. The reliability of findings in both cultures
suggest that researchers cannot generalize that a
particular phenomena exist in both cultures. Variations
could suggest that perhaps the decision-making styles
are characterized differently in each culture. Variations
were found as to the formulation of the decision-making
styles, items loading, and reliabilities of the constructs.
In making these comparisons, we find that samples used
were comparable to the original study, but none seem to
venture to test other samples (e.g. age groups, incomes,
psychographic factors). Splitting the sample groups
showed that some variations do exist in the reliability
of the constructs for the groups (older/younger). This
indicates that, perhaps other factors should be con-
sidered as being influential to the development of
decision-making styles within and across cultures.
Future research should test other samples to determine
if the decision-making styles exist intra-culturally and
inter-culturally.
This leads to the consideration of the type of
instrument that should be developed to measure
decision-making styles. Previous researchers make
a supportive case for the use of emic and/or etic
style instrument development for cross-cultural
research (Green and White, 1976; Van Raaij, 1978;
Cavusgil and Das, 1997). The results of this study
implies that perhaps an emic (culturally specific)
instrument should be established that would capture
the actual decision-making styles of each culture. Future
research should therefore focus on determining whether
cultural differences exist, how these differences influence
consumer decision-making, and then develop instru-
ments that accurately measure consumer behavior
issues.
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