Shopping orientations, purchase criteria, and consumption patterns as an outcome of the acculturation process among female Korean-American consumers

The rapid growth of the Asian population segment in the U.S., the lack of quantifiable research data related to shopping behavior of Korean-Americans, the growth of women in the U.S. labor force, and the premise of possible relationships between consumers' acculturation and shopping behavior all provide justification for the current study. The overall purpose of this investigation was to extend the research in the area of consumer acculturation among Asian-Americans by examining employed female Korean-Americans with regard to apparel shopping orientations, handbag purchase criteria, and handbag consumption patterns. The primary problem addressed in this study was to identify and describe the following profile elements among employed female Korean-American consumers age 18 and older residing in the U.S; (a) personal characteristics, (b) acculturation levels, (c) apparel shopping orientations, and (d) handbag purchase criteria and consumption patterns. A secondary problem was to assess the extent of functional relationships between the employed female Korean-American consumers' acculturation levels and (a) personal characteristics, (b) apparel shopping orientations, and (c) handbag purchase criteria and consumption patterns. A final problem was to investigate the congruence between (a) personal characteristics, (b) apparel shopping orientations, and (c) handbag purchase criteria and consumption patterns of the employed female Korean-American acculturation groups and employed female Anglo-American consumers age 18 and older.