이 연구는 소비자의 아이덴티티(ID)가 환경적 단서에 의해 무의식적으로 점화되어 브랜드평가에 동화적으로 영 향을 미치는 경우에 ID의 진단성정보와 소비자의 자아해석이 점화된 ID와 상호작용하여 브랜드평가에 영향을 미치는가를 식별하고, 또 소비자의 자아해석이 상호작용하는 근거로 정보처리과정에서 통합모드와 분리모드를 탐색하였다. 국제브랜드로 아사히 맥주, 지역브랜드는 하이트 맥주를 실증브랜드로 선정하였다. 지역브랜드와 국 제브랜드를 대비시켜 브랜드평가를 하게 한 실증연구에서, 2(국제적 ID의 점화, 지역적 ID의 점화) x 2(진단, 비진단) x 2(통합모드, 분리모드)의 집단 간 설계를 하고, 자아해석 성향을 측정하는 척도는 모든 설문에 포함시켰다. 총 8가지 유형의 설문지가 작성되었다. 분석방법은 분산분석과 회귀분석을 이용하여 다음과 같은 분석결과를 얻었다. 소비자에게 ID가 점화된 조건에서 자아의 이용이 비진단적 정보보다 진단적이라는 정보가 주어지 면, 점화된 ID에 더욱 동화되어 브랜드를 더 좋게 평가하였다. 그리고 자아해석 성향이 진단성 정보의 상호작용 효과를 조절하는 것으로 분석되었다. 즉, 의존적 자아해석 성향의 소비자가 독립적 자아해석 성향의 소비자보다 진단성 정보의 상호작용 효과를 더 크게 보여주었다. 그런데 ID의 비진단적 정보는 독립적 자아해석 성향의 소 비자에게 브랜드 평가에 부정적 대조효과를 보였지만, 통계적으로 유의적인 차이는 없었다. 소비자의 의존적 자아해석 성향은 무의식적인 ID점화조건에서 정보를 처리함에 있어서 점화된 ID로의 통합모드에 긍정적인 영향을 주고, 소비자의 독립적 자아해석 성향은 점화된 ID로의 분리모드에 긍정적인 영향을 주었다. 마케팅 관리자가 소비자에게 자사의 브랜드를 소구할때, 소비자의 자아해석 성향이 의존적이면, 자아의 진단 성 정보를 제공해야 한다. 그러나 독립적 자아해석 성향의 소비자에게 자아정보의 제공에서 진단정보를 제공하면, 대조효과의 발생가능성이 있기 때문에 신중해야 한다.
We reviewed existing researches to find the assimilation effects of primed consumption goal or identity on accessing memory information and activating product category, habits or dispositions. The existing studies have not sufficiently examined the issues of whether evaluation effects of primed identity on brand can be moderated between the event that identity might prove to serve as diagnostic information for brand evaluation and the event that identity might not prove so. There is also some vacuum in the past studies regarding what kind of influence the propensity of independent versus interdependent self-construal as a personal characteristic variable might has on the effects of the diagnostic and non-diagnostic information of identity. This paper is thus focused on the theoretic research into diagnostic information about identity and propensity of self-construal that may exercise effects on integration and differentiation modes of unconscious identity cognition as well as on local versus global brand evaluation under the conditions in which either local or global identities are unconsciously primed. Based on reviewing the theoretic researches, it is presumed that the assimilation effect of either primed global or local identity could be moderated by diagnostic information of identity and propensity of self-construal in the local versus global brand evaluation. It is also presumed that diagnostic information of identity and consumers` propensity of self-construal might influence on the impacts of primed identity on integration or differentiation modes. For an empirical study, Asahi Beer was selected as an global brand whereas Hite Beer was selected as a local counterpart. Experiments were performed by means of between-subjects design with 2 (primed by global and local identities) x 2 (diagnostic and non-diagnostic information) x 2 (integration and differentiation modes) set forth as factors, backed up with a total of 8 types of questionnaires involving questioning propensity of independent/dependent self-construals. Four hundred students who were enrolled in marketing class were recruited as subjects for this study and were divided into 8 groups, and to each of these groups, 50 questionnaires were distributed respectively. From all subjects, responses were returned without fail, but among them, one reply which was found to lack sincerity was excluded from the empirical analysis. ANOVA, Regression analysis, and SPSS 18.0 statistic program were employed for analysis. The results of the analysis could be summed up as follows: First, those consumers who were informed that use of identity was diagnostic under the primed conditions turned out to evaluate primed identity-consistent brand more favorably than the consumers who were informed that use of identity was non-diagnostic. That is, the local brand Hite was higher rated than the global brand Asahi from the local versus global brand evaluation in which local identity was primed when the information that use of identity was diagnostic was suggested than when the information that use of identity was non-diagnostic was suggested. And, the global brand Asahi was evaluated as better than the local brand Hite in case where information that use of identity was diagnostic was provided under the terms in which global identity was primed, compared to the case in which information that use of identity was non-diagnostic was provided. Second, during the information process of identity primed unconsciously, the extent of integration mode toward primed identity was found to change depending on the consumers` propensity of self-construal. Consumers` tendency of independent self-construal turned out to exert negative impact upon integration mode of primed identity in the information process of self identity primed unconsciously, while their tendency of interdependent self-construal affected integration mode positively. Third, the extent of differentiation mode became different in the information process of identity primed unconsciously depending on the consumers` propensity of self-construal. Consumers` propensity of independent self-construal was found to exercise positive effect on the differentiation mode of primed identity in the information process of identity primed unconsciously, whereas their tendency of interdependent self-construal had negative influence upon the differentiation mode. Fourth, in the local versus global brand evaluation, interaction effects of primed identity and diagnostic information of identity were moderated by the propensity of self-constural. In other words, significantly greater extent of assimilation effect with which diagnostic information of identity had positive influence upon brand evaluation in both cases of global and local primed identities was found in the consumers who had propensity of interdependent self-construal than in those who owned propensity of independent self-construal. The extent of interactive assimilation effects of primed global(local) identity and diagnosticity of identity information on global(local) band evaluation was shown to become greater to the consumers with propensity of interdependent self-construal than those with propensity of independent self-construal when consumers performed the local versus global brand evaluation. This study resulted in recognizing the assimilation effect that primed local and global identities had on local versus global brand evaluation, thanks to a search for existing studies on the assimilation effect of unconsciously primed identity when evaluating products or brands. In this study, efforts were given to researching diagnostic and non-diagnostic identity information exerting moderating impacts on the assimilation effect of primed identity on the brand evaluation. Theoretic review and empirical analysis were also conducted here to find the interaction effects of propensity toward independent as well as interdependent self-construals on the moderating effects of the diagnostic information. The present study is thus expected to make contributions to theoretic progress by identifying the interaction effects of diagnostic and non-diagnostic identity information and self-construals on local versus global brand evaluation. Besides, it is ensured that this paper could be used for practical terms in view of marketing management, since it is requested to catch out appealing points for consumers when marketing managers desire to draw attention from them in the midst of critical competition among local and global brands by identifying if their brands are global or local and by surveying the functions of diagnostic or non-diagnostic information of identity. It is also solicited to determine if consumers` propensity for self-construal is independent or interdependent and to become able to know appropriateness of diagnostic or non-diagnostic identity information to each self-construal to appeal the consumers. It is thus necessary to promote marketing for brands by furnishing diagnostic information of identity to consumers with propensity of interdependent self-construal, on the other hand, furnishing non-diagnostic information of identity to consumers with propensity of independent self-construal when consumers` identity is primed by environmental cues.