Does Culture affect Consumer Behaviour, when shopping On-Line?

Abstract. On-line retailers have to decide whether to standardize or adapt their marketing strategy to the foreign consumer markets. The objective of this article is not only to locate differences in on-line shopping behavior between English, Italian, and Chinese consumers, but also to explain these differences, through cultural dimensions. A discriminant analysis was conducted on English, Italian and Chinese consumers, based on eighteen behavioral variables, to illustrate the effect that a change of culture would have on a consumer’s on-line shopping behavior. The behavioral variables were classified in a descending lexicographic order of their discriminating power, between these cultures. After running the discriminant analysis, a factorial analysis of the eighteen behavioral describers was also run, to organize the latter into a smaller number of factors that are mutually exclusive, and very exhaustive. Factorial analysis identified five distinct factors that point out differences between the three countries, underlining that on-line retailers cannot duplicate abroad their home marketing strategy, because the needs e-shoppers wish to fulfill diverge between these markets

Does Word-Of-Mouth’s Effect on Products/Brands Differ Between Countries? A Comparative Study of England and Russia

The aim of this paper is to investigate the effect that Word-Of-Mouth (WOM) could have on consumers in different countries, with respect to brand-choice, brand-image, product-category choice, the quantity purchased of a product/brand, and with respect to the likelihood of sharing a product/brand experience depending on a consumer’s level of satisfaction with a specific product-category or brand (Satisfied, Dissatisfied, or Delighted). The hypotheses to be investigated were generated from the literature, and then used to define the variables that were later integrated in a Discriminant-Analysis, to help differentiate between the effects that WOM could have on the product/brand-related decisions stated above, in different countries.The effect of WOM on products categories and brands differs from one country to another on several facets, as illustrated here through the case of England and Russia. The findings of this paper advise marketers on whether to standardize their reliance on WOM to support their brands in different countries, or adapt its extent and manner to each specific country. Ability to predict consumers’ country of origin, merely by analysing their answers to survey questions, and therefore foresee the differentiated effect of WOM on products and brands in each country

Dynamics of the relative nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations in a reservoir situated in a semi-arid zone (Sahela, Morocco)

International audienceFluctuations in total nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations and in the N/P ratio (i.e. in terms of mass) were measured at the entry and exit of the Sahela Reservoir (Morocco) throughout an annual cycle. Particulate N and P concentrations in sedimenting particles in the reservoir itself were also measured. The results obtained showed that the spring floods were a major source of N and P inputs, this being especially pronounced for phosphorus that was present mainly in particulate form. In all the compartments of the reservoir analysed, the N/P ratios were high (means between 81 and 314), especially in summer (the only season when the reservoir was emptied) when the supply of P was apparently limited by the drought. However, the values of this ratio in the sedimenting particles remained lower (mean = 21), at levels characteristic of natural communities. This implies that the reservoir's biological communities preferentially store phosphorus, no doubt to maximise their activity in an environment where a large proportion of this element is not bioavailable. Furthermore, it appeared that the quantity of particulate N and P sequestrated by the sediments and the total quantities of N and P leaving the reservoir were greater than the inputs of these nutrients, underlining the importance of lateral and internal nutrient supplies. One spot measurement, made in a single month, showed that nutrient release activity from the sediments was in fact quite considerable

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Modélisation stochastique de la sédimentation d'un réservoir dans un bassin versant semi-aride

Sedimentation in large reservoirs is a major concern in semi-arid regions characterized by severe seasonal water scarcity. As a contribution to improved sediment management, this study analyses the real case of the reservoir of Sidi Yacoub in the north of Algeria. First, a dynamic model of the reservoir was set up and used to estimate past water and sediment inflows (period 1990-2010) based on data recorded by the dam operator and measurements at a gauging station located downstream of the reservoir. Second, in a stochastic framework using the statistical characteristics of inflow and outflow discharges, a projection of future sedimentation was performed until 2030, assuming stationarity of the statistical distributions. Third, the model was used to investigate the influence of possible climate change and to quantify the positive effects of soil conservation measures upstream