THEME ARTICLES: BRANDING IN ASIA Regional and country ethnocentrism: broadening ASEAN origin perspectives

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to report an application of the CETSCALE measuring consumer ethnocentrism for high-value consumer goods in the emerging markets of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The study examines how regional markings can be thought of as variants of national markings and then goes on to establish a regio-centric scale, thereby taking up calls for ethnocentrism studies to be conducted across multiple countries that actively trade with one another. Design/methodology/approach - This research is based on an empirical investigation of consumer ethnocentrism (CE) that includes simultaneous manipulation of country-of-assembly and region-based country-of-components. The study surveys a sample of 720 car owners equally divided between the three largest automotive markets of ASEAN: Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia. Findings - Statistical analysis of this study's empirical results confirms that for the three-country sample of 720 respondents, this newly derived regional ethnocentrism construct is as relevant as the classic country-based construct. The research concludes that regional use of campaigns with a (potentially collaborative) Made-in-ASEAN theme may reach the target group of regio-centric consumers. Originality/value - The study is original in providing a new perspective on the ethnocentrism debate by adding and testing for a regional dimension reflecting realities in the marketplace for a major product category. The study is also one of the few to focus upon the ASEAN region rather than the more commonly studied regions such as Europe or North America.