Self Consciousness and Clothing Purchase Criteria of Korean and United States College Women

Relationships between criteria individuals use in the purchase of clothing and the individual trait of public and private self-consciousness were examined and compared between two cultural groups (United States and Korean). Eighty-two females from one U.S. college and 92 females from two Korean colleges participated in the study by completing a questionnaire which explored the importance of criteria used in the purchase of clothing, private and public self-consciousness, and demographic characteristics. Significant relationships between the trait of public self-consciousness and the importance of fashion and attractiveness as clothing purchase criteria were found for both cultural groups. A significant interaction effect was found between self-consciousness and cultural group for the importance of brand name as a clothing purchase criterion. Individual and cultural differences in consumer decision making process are discussed