Study On Influence Of Self-congruence On The Purchase Intentions Of Symbolic Cobranded Products

With the rapid development of technology,consumers are not satisfied with the functional value of products,and they begin to pursuit the value of products,consumers pay more attention to the expression of identity when they purchase and use of product.Be a win-win behavior in the commercial contention,co-branding is being adopted widely and accepted generally.So,the research on purchase intentions of co-branding has aroused great attention of scholars,what's more,from the perspective of consumer psychology to study purchase intentions of co-branding has always been the hot spot of the academic research.Self-concept theory originated in psychology,and introduced into the consumer behavior,then formation of self-congruence theory in the 1960 s,which can explain and analysis of psychological process of the relationship between consumer and brand.Prior research focuses on ingredient co-branding and suggests that attitude toward both the primary and the secondary brands and congruence between the brands are important drivers of cobranded products' success.This research start with the consumers' self-consistency(including the actual self-congruence,ideal self-congruence)with the secondary brand,need for uniqueness and attitude toward the secondary brand,joined the product involvement as moderating variable,reveals their influence of the purchase intentions of symbolic cobranded products.The results show that: First of all,because symbolic SBs are usually brands that few consumers likely have experienced directly,such as prestigious brands or events,attitude toward the SB,even if positive,might be weak.Secondly,even if consumers have never or rarely used the secondary brand,self-congruity with the SB still represents a significant driver of purchase behavior.Consumers express themselves with products,which are usually used in public.Since symbolic SBs have symbolic additional attributes,symbolic cobranded products can meet the demand of their ideal self.The ideal self is the standard of actual self,in other words,the ideal self is the dynamic factor of real self.Therefore,the ideal self has a more significant influence on the purchase intentions of symbolic cobranded products.Thirdly,this study also demonstrates that need for uniqueness is important for understanding symbolic cobranding efficiency,probably because symbolic cobranded products are relatively rare,produced in limited quantities and sold for short periods of time.Need for uniqueness and the desire to possess unique products is an individual-level trait that drives many consumption decisions.Finally,product category involvement enhances the impact of self-congruity(including the actual self-congruence,ideal self-congruence) on purchase intent.