An Application of the Personification Approach in the Country Image Study

The effects resulting from the information about the products and services’ country of origin are directly affected by the image buyers have towards the country. This paper aims to verify which country image dimensions can be observed in a study about China’s image, through the application of the multidimensional scale developed by Nebenzahl, Jaffe and Usunier (2003). A sample of Brazilian executives was used in a descriptive and quantitative research, with data collected by survey. By means of the exploratory factor analysis, three country image dimensions were extracted, named as “Underdog”, “Quality and Satisfaction Seeker” and “Economic Value Seeker”, being consistent with the original work of Nebenzahl, Jaffe and Usunier (2003). Moreover, it was verified that the image respondents have of Chinese electronic household products is negative, both for respondents that are familiar with the country and for respondents less knowledgeable about China.