Title: Cultural influences on internet motivations and communication syles: a comparison of Korean and US consumers

Authors: Carrie La Ferle, Hee-Jung Kim

Addresses: Department of Advertising, PR and Retailing, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA. ' Department of Advertising, PR and Retailing, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA

Abstract: A study was undertaken to assess how culture might impact online behaviour and communication preferences. Specifically, motivations for going online and visual versus verbal processing preferences were assessed across the US and Korean respondents. Other general relevant variables were also measured such as access to computers, time spent online and online purchase behaviours. Results indicate that access to computers and the internet are high for both consumer groups and very similar. The same can be said for time spent online. However, the US citizens are more likely to be motivated to shop online and look for information online than Korean consumers. In contrast, Korean consumers are more motivated than the US consumers to head online to fulfil social goals such as making friends, meeting people and participating in newsgroups. With respect to communication style preferences, US citizens are found to have stronger preferences for verbal styles in comparison to the Korean respondents. Implications for advertisers and researchers are discussed.

Keywords: cultural influences; internet usage; e-commerce; electronic commerce; motivation; communication styles; cross-national comparison; culture; USA; United States; Korea; consumer behaviour; online behaviour; online information; online advertising; internet advertising; web advertising; e-advertising; electronic advertising.

DOI: 10.1504/IJIMA.2006.010296

International Journal of Internet Marketing and Advertising, 2006 Vol.3 No.2, pp.142 - 157

Published online: 13 Jul 2006 *

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