Consumers purchase well-made products irrespective of a country's reputation, says a study.
The study questioned the assumption that positive feelings toward a country should lead consumers to like all products from that country, while negative feelings should lead to the opposite.
"Positive feelings about a country do not always translate into more favourable opinions of its products," said study co-author Pragya Mathur from City University' Baruch College, New York, in the US.
A positive opinion of a country may actually make consumers think more about whether or not the country is known to be good at making a product.
"On the other hand, negative feelings toward a country make consumers think only about a product's features and less about the country of origin," Mathur added.
In one study, consumers read about a fictional travel website where a traveller described either a positive or negative experience while travelling through a country.
Participants then read about a new digital camera that is manufactured in that country.
When consumers had negative feelings toward the country, they thought only about the product information and not about the country of origin.
However, when consumers had positive feelings toward the country, they also considered whether the country was well known for making digital cameras.
The study appeared in the Journal of Consumer Research.
