Children’s buying behaviour in China: A study of their information sources

Purpose Reports an empirical study on children’s buying behaviour in China with a special focus on their information sources. Design /Methodology The key literature on consumer socialisation of children is reviewed. Primary data was collected from a sample of 155 children aged 10 to 13 using questionnaire survey. Various statistical methods such as Pearson correlation and tests were employed to analyse the data. Findings Chinese children regard TV commercials as an important information source for new product. However, they place greater level of trust in interpersonal information sources, especially in their parents who are perceived as the most credible information source with respect to their learning about new food products. Originality /Value The study has made a contribution to the extant literature on Chinese children as consumer. The findings would be valuable in assisting companies, specially those in the food industry, to have a better understanding of Chinese children’s buying behaviour

Made in China

China has a long history in commerce and marketing. For many centuries, 'Made in China' was a high quality, prestige label imported exclusively for the royals and the rich. This paper traces the history of Made in China and reports current branding practice in the world’s largest market

A study of food buying behavior among Chinese children

The paper reports a study on food buying behaviour among Chinese children aged between 10-13 years old. There are two important findings. Firstly, the growing influence of commercial environment. During the learning of consumer behaviour by Chinese children, the parental role of guidance remains prominent, and their recommendations have a decisive impact on children’s food choices. Secondly, the perceived importance of product attributes. Chinese children tend to pay more attention to nutrition, hygienic conditions and food safety, which shows that children seem to be mature early at this stage and start to behave in a more adult-like fashion when making purchase comparisons

New transformation of Wigner operator in phase space quantum mechanics for the two-mode entangled case

As a natural extension of Fan's paper (arXiv: 0903.1769vl [quant-ph]) by employing the formula of operators' Weyl ordering expansion and the bipartite entangled state representation we find new two-fold complex integration transformation about the Wigner operator (in its entangled form) in phase space quantum mechanics and its inverse transformation. In this way, some operator ordering problems can be solved and the contents of phase space quantum mechanics can be enriched.Comment: 8 pages, 0 figure

The national image of global brands

As the Chinese use characters based on ideograms, international brands have to choose a proper Chinese name for the market. This paper presents the findings from a detailed study of the Chinese names of 100 international brands along three dimensions: translation methods, cultural values and brand positioning. The main findings are: a) in choosing a new name the meaning is given more emphasis than its sound though it is still desirable to maintain phonetic links to the original; b) after linguistic issues, the three most important factors affecting renaming are: reflecting product benefits, brand positioning and cultural values. The translation gives an international brand not just a Chinese name, but also a distinctive local image; c) global brand and local image is a paradox to be addressed. In the previous studies localising an international brand is largely viewed as a passive translation process. This study has shown that renaming can be a value-added process. It provides an opportunity to re-cast the brand in the new market, creating a unique global-local image that enhances the original’s brand equity

Research on joint ventures in China: progress and prognosis

Previous published studies on international joint ventures (JVs) in China are reviewed and assessed by summarising important research patterns. A model of management of international JVs in China is developed which emphasises the central theme of cross-cultural management. Dimensions in research on international JVs in China and directions for future research are also discussed

Competitor recognition by managerial perception -- a case in the UK computer industry

This paper presents a practical alternative to the clustering technique in strategic group analysis. Using managerial perception as the input, it studies the competitor recognition in the UK computer industry. An analytical framework and the concept of competitive matrix have been developed. Two hypotheses on perceived competition have also been tested. It is argued that firms formulate their competitive strategies on the basis of perceived competition rather than on the conventionally defined industry. The competitive grouping which combines the concept of strategic groups and market segmentation, provides a useful means to conduct such analysis

Questioning Guanxi: Definition, classification and implications

Despite the growing interests among both academics and practitioners in the west, the concept of guanxi is not much questioned and there is considerable confusion about its implications for business. This paper explores the nature of guanxi by using a multiple definition approach. It defines guanxi as the process of social interactions and argues that the existence of guanxi base (special relationship) does not produce guanxi. The paper classifies guanxi into three categories: family, helper and business; and critically examines the role of guanxi in business. The paper has drawn up some important conclusions. (1) The potential benefits of guanxi are mainly tactical rather than strategic. (2) Guanxi, as a personal asset, cannot be a source of competitive advantage. (3) The guanxi between a businessperson and a government official is inherently corrupt and ethically questionable. (4) As guanxi has an impact on the wider public, it should be studied in the context of all stakeholders. (5) Guanxi’s role in business will eventually diminish as China moves towards a more open market system

The transfer of western management to China: Context, content and constraints

This paper examines the issue of transferring Western management knowhow to China, focusing on the context, content and constraints of the transfer. A model of the transfer of management knowhow is developed which contains five closely-related stages: selection, adaptation, application, evaluation and integration. Factors which influence management transfer are identified as environmental, organisational, and cultural and behavioural; while cultural constraint are discussed in detail. It concludes that China cannot depend on the West for the solutions to its problems but develop its own indigenous knowhow by blending the best of both East and West

Corporate communications in China : A preliminary study

Corporate communications on the internet has played an increasingly important role in China, given the country now has the largest number of internet users in the world. The paper reports a survey of 10 Chinese companies. A total of 20 corporate websites were examined using content analysis. Key topics relating to corporate communications were identified and discussed