Issues and new directions in global consumer psychology

Although there is growing interest in cultural differences in consumer behavior, focused and systematic consumer research on the topic is still in its infancy. The conceptual and methodological issues that are central to conducting cross-cultural research, including selecting or blending emic and etic research approaches, achieving measurement equivalence, expanding the cultural constructs and geographical regions under investigation, and understanding mediating processes, are addressed. In the process, the progress that has been made in addressing these issues in consumer psychology is reviewed and a number of priorities for future research in this important domain are suggested.