Study of country-of-origin image from legitimacy theory perspective: Evidence from the USA and India

This study explored country-of-origin image (Col) based on legitimacy theory. The comments and discussions about Chinese products' Cot from both Indian and American customers on public websites were collected and analyzed. The findings show that Coils essentially a kind of recognition and judgment of a product's legitimacy. Customers judge a Chinese product's pragmatic legitimacy and social legitimacy through both a performance image and institution image aspect of the Col, respectively. The findings can advance our understanding of Cot phenomena and provide guidance for international marketers in developing countries to manage country-related information more effectively. (C) 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.