Factors affecting the intention to buy organic food of Vietnamese urban consumers

to the view of considering behaviour in consuming organic food as an ethical behaviour [bringing benefits to society, environment] some researchers used the General Theory of Marketing Ethics by Hunt and Vittel to be the main basis to research. For example: the research by Honkanen et al., 2006; Dean et al., 2008; Pino et al., 2012; Michaelidou and Hassan, 2008; Arvola et al., 2008 (Honkanen et al., 2006; Dean et al., 2008; Pino et al., 2012; Michaelidou and Hassan, 2008; Arvola et al., 2008) 2.1.3. Overall of factors affecting intention to buy organic food of consumers 2.1.3.1. Important concepts Organic food Based on previous research, according to the author “Organic food is environmentally friendly food that is produced, processed and packaged with non- GM methods and materials, without using toxic chemicals, such as: plant protection drugs, herbicides, growth stimulators, fertilizers and antibiotics ...” This will be the concept that the author uses in this thesis. Intention to buy organic food Intention to conduct a behaviour is considered a set of motivational factors affecting a behaviour, intention is an indication of how much an individual tries, is willing to try to plan and execute the behaviour. (Ajzen, 1991). Therefore, intention to buy organic food is a collection of motivational factors driving consumers to buy 7 organic food, it demonstrates the efforts of individuals in buying organic food. Attitude towards behaviour in buying organic food Attitude towards a buying behaviour is defined by Fishbein and Ajzen as positive or negative emotions of the individual about performing a particular behaviour (Nguyen Thi Tuyet Mai et al., 2016). Therefore, consumer’s attitude towards behaviour in buying organic food is defined as positive or negative emotions of consumers towards behaviour in buying organic food. 2.1.3.2. Factors affecting attitude, intention to buy organic food of consumers and hypotheses Factors affecting the intention to buy organic food and hypotheses Attitude towards behaviour in buying organic food Intention to buy organic food depends mostly on attitude towards behaviour in buying organic food (Nuttavuthisit and Thøgersen, 2017). The research by Vassallo et al. [2015] also has similar comments when confirm that, attitude towards behaviour in buying organic food is the strongest factor affecting their intention to buy [standardized β = .44, p < 0.05] (Vassallo et al., 2015), results of some research in Viet Nam are also similar when confirm that people with positive attitude towards behaviour in buying green [a feature of organic food] will be highly likely to arise intention to use these products (Nguyen Thi Tuyet Mai et al., 2016; Nguyen Thi Tuyet Mai et al., 2017; Pham Thi Lan Hương, 2014). From above review of some research and arguments, the author proposed research hypothesis as follows: H1: Attitude towards behaviour in buying organic food has positive effect intention to buy organic food of Vietnamese urban consumers. Subjective norm Consumers buying organic food also feel the social pressure to their consuming decisions (Nuttavuthisit and Thøgersen, 2017). Some research in developing countries, including Viet Nam also noted the impact of subjective norm to intention to buy green products (Nguyen Thi Tuyet Mai et al., 2017; Nguyen Vũ Hùng et al., 2016; Pham Thi Lan Hương, 2014). From above review of some research and arguments, the author proposed research hypothesis as follows: H2: Subjective norm has positive effect intention to buy organic food of Vietnamese urban consumers. Perception of behaviour control 8 Some research in Viet Nam, about impact of perceived behavioural control to intention to buy green products, has given results of strong impact of this factor. The research by Nguyen Thi Tuyet Mai et al. [2018] showed that, this factor strongly affects and is second, only after attitude, to intention to buy organic food (Nguyen Thi Tuyet Mai et al., 2018). From above review of some research and arguments, the author proposed research hypothesis as follows: H3: Perceived behavioural control has negative effect intention to buy organic food of Vietnamese urban consumers. Perception of price of organic food A lot of research in developed countries confirms that the high price of organic food is one of the challenges preventing consumers to buy organic food (Magnusson et al., 2001). However, some research confirm that although consumers still feels organic food is more expensive than regular food, but this seems to be not affect behaviour in buying organic food of consumers (Sobhanifard, 2018; Nuttavuthisit and Thøgersen, 2017). Therefore, to clarify the role of perception of price to consumers’ intention to buy organic food, the author proposed research hypothesis as follows: H4: Perception of price of organic food prevents the intention to buy organic food of Vietnamese urban consumers. Trust in brand and certification of organic food Consumers often have expectations of organic food consumption results through their level of trust in certifications of sellers thereby affecting their attitude towards behaviour in buying organic food (Nuttavuthisit and Thøgersen, 2017) certification is a word which is always mentioned by consumers when talking about organic food (Hilverda et al., 2016). From above review of some research and arguments, the author proposed research hypothesis as follows: H5: Trust in brand and certification has positive effect intention to buy organic food of Vietnamese urban consumers. Factors affecting the attitude towards behaviour in buying organic food and hypotheses Health consciousness Consumers often aware that good organic food is better for health than other normal food products, can help them prevent cancer (Nuttavuthisit and Thøgersen, 2017), therefore health is one of the main motivations that urges consumers to buy organic food (Magnusson et al., 2001; Hsu et al., 2016; Garcia-Yi, 2015; Hill and Lynchehaun, 2002). Health consciousness of organic food has positive effect to 9 attitude of consumers with behaviour in buying organic food, in other words, the more people are more concerned about health, the more positive attitude they have towards behaviour in buying organic food (Nuttavuthisit and Thøgersen, 2017). Therefore, the author proposed research hypothesis as follows: H6: Health consciousness urges Vietnamese urban consumers to have positive attitude towards behaviour in buying organic food. Perception of modern self and traditional self Perception of traditional self is defined as the extent to which an individual feel that he is consistent with standards, values and beliefs of Confucianism, popular before the transition began. In contrast, perception of modern self is defined as the extent to which an individual feels that he is consistent with standards, values and beliefs imported from developed countries after the transition (Nguyen Thi Tuyet Mai et al., 2009). People with perception of modern self tend to consume organic food products driven by personalized motives (Nguyen Thi Tuyet Mai et al., 2009), such as: products are good for health, environmentally friendly, high quality. And people with perception of traditional self are often people with a more collective tendency in life (Nguyen Thi Tuyet Mai et al., 2009), organic food consumption tends to stem from such causes: for the environment and animal welfare (Doorn and Verhoef, 2015; Schultz, 2001). From above review of some research and arguments, the author proposed a pair of hypothesis as follows: H7a: Perception of modern self affects attitude towards behaviour in buying organic food of Vietnamese urban consumers. H7b: Perception of traditional self affects attitude towards behaviour in buying organic food of Vietnamese urban consumers. Environment consciousness Environment consciousness often play an important role in deciding with attitude towards behaviour in buying organic food of consumers (Schifferstein and Ophuist, 1998; Doorn and Verhoef, 2015; Honkanen et al., 2006; Magnusson et al., 2001), is always mentioned by consumers when talking of organic food (Hilverda et al., 2016). Therefore, the author proposed research hypothesis as follows: H8: The more people are more concerned about environment, the more positive attitude they have towards behaviour in buying organic food. Other factors such as: gender, education level, age, income level 10 Demographic factors are always confirmed by researchers to affect intention and buying behaviour of consumers, therefore in the research model the author will put these factors in to play the role of control variables. 2.3. Research model Figure 2-3: Research model Source: from the author’s overview From the overview of previous research around the world as well as in Viet Nam. Based on Theory of Planned Behaviour TPB, a theoretical foundation is applied in many research about consumers’ behaviour and in food product sector (Nguyen Thi Tuyet Mai et al., 2017). The author builds the research model as above [Figure 2-3] Perception of modern self, traditional self Environment al concern Health consciousne ss Attitude towards behaviour in buying organic food Subjective norm Perceived behavioural control Intention to buy organic food Perception of price Trust in brand and certification Control variables: - Age - Education level - Gender - Family income 11 CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHOD 3.1. Overall research design 3.1.1. Research method Research method is used suitable for each research period, including qualitative research with the support of Nvivo 10 software and quantitative research uses survey tool by questionnaire, in analysis the author uses structural equation model [SEM] to analyse with the support of software - SPSS23 and AMOS20. 3.1.2. Research sample With qualitative research: sampling method is the target sample. The author conducts in-depth interview with 11 urban consumers, mainly living and working in Ha Noi, these objects are different in: age, gender, income, education level. With quantitative research: sampling method is convenient sample, number of samples collected in pilot quantitative research includes 145 consumers, living in Ha Noi. In the period of official quantitative research, number of samples collected is 336 consumers living in Ha Noi and Ho Chi Minh City. 3.2. Qualitative research results 3.2.1. Factors affecting behaviour in buying organic food Qualitative research results showed that the proposed factors in the overview part affect behaviour in buying organic food, including: Perception of traditional self or modern self; perception of price; health consciousness; trust in brand and certification; environmental concern; and a new factor is “relativism”. 3.2.2. Develop new concepts and scales In the process of qualitative research, the author identified a factor affect intention to buy organic food of Vietnamese urban consumers, temporarily named relativism. Relativism can be understood as the denial of a sure choice for the products that are considered to be more dominant. In the field of organic food, relativism can be understood as the denial of a sure choice for organic food products, not absolute, must choose organic food. This is a concept derived from the concept of “relativism” in some research about moral, defined as “the level an individual rejects universal moral rules” (Henle et al., 2005; Forsyth, 1980). Therefore, when an individual rejects universal moral rules applying for everyone, inside them will have relativism, the high and low level of relativism depends on how much they refuse to apply these rules, the higher the level of rejection, the greater the relativism. Extrapolating out, in behaviour in buying organic good, people with high relativism will refuse general conclusions that organic food is better, consuming organic food is 12 good for the environment, good for health, consuming organic food is smart, or consuming organic food will be supported by friends and family, consuming organic food is good, is virtuous This factor can be generalized on four main dimensions: the idea of clean or dirty is only relative; consumption habits have never been affected, adversely affected by non-organic products; the consequences of consuming non-organic foods are not clear because there are many reasons leading to illness, not just food; and and finally the synthesis of the above factors leading to consumers do not pay attention to whether it is organic food or not? Therefore, relativism factor is developed based on the concept of relativism in the field of psychology, however, old scales by Forsyth developed in 1980 is not suitable to be used for organic food sector so the author developed new scales based on key aspects analysed above, including: Table 3-3: Relativism scale No. Factor Encoded Content Author 1 Relativism in consuming organic food Rel1 Clean or dirty [food] is only relative The author self- developed based on qualitative research Rel2 From the past until now, people still eat food [may be not organic] and they are all good Rel3 There are many reasons leading to illness, not just food Rel4 When buying food I often do not pay attention to whether it is organic food or not Source: from qualitative research of the author 13 3.2.8. Adjusted research model and hypothesis after qualitative research. 3.2.8.1. Adjusted research model Figure 3-3: Research model in adjustment plan Source: consolidation from overview and qualitative research of the author 3.2.8.2. Adjusted research hypotheses Compared to old hypotheses, the author proposed after overview research in chapter 2, the author proposed 1 more new hypothesis based on new findings on relativism in consuming organic food of Vietnamese urban consumers. The author named this hypothesis H9, and stated as follows: H9: the more relative consumers are in buying organic food, the lower their intention to buy organic food. 3.3. Quantitative research 3.3.1. Quantitative research periods Quantitative research is conducted in two periods which are pilot quantitative research and official quantitative research. 3.3.2. Scales Scales after being developed, adjusted was put into the questionnaire, the set of scales is shown in Table 3-5 Table 3-4: Scales used in the research No. Scale Encoded Content Author 1 Attitude towards behaviour in buying organic Att1 Buying organic food is a right choice. Adjusted from the scales of Ajzen Att2 Buying organic food is necessary. Att3* In my opinion, buying organic food is not really a smart choice. Perception of modern self, traditional self Environme ntal concern Health consciou sness Attitude towards behaviour in buying organic food Subjective norm Perceived behavioural control Intention to buy organic food Perception of price Trust in brand and certification Relativism Control variables: Age, Education level, Gender, Family income 14 No. Scale Encoded Content Author food [1991]; Armitage & Conner [1999]; Nguyen Thi Tuyet Mai et al.,2018 2 Subjective norm Sn1 My family uses organic food. Sn2 My friends and colleagues think I should eat organic food. Sn3 Those who are important to me think that eating organic food will bring good health. Sn4 I have intention to eat organic food because the society thinks it's a good choice. 3 Perceived behavioural control PBC1 I believe that I have sufficient resources and capabilities to buy organic food. PBC2 Buying organic food is under my control. PBC3* When I want to buy, it is also not easy to buy organic food. 4 Intention to buy organic food Int1 Next time at the market, I will most likely buy organic vegetables and/or fruits. Int2 Next time at the market, I will most likely buy organic meat. Int3 Anytime possible, I often have intention to buy organic food. 5 Perception of modern self Ms1 I like people who dress modern and trendy. Developed and translated to Vietnamese by Nguyen Thi Tuyet Mai et al. [2009], Nguyen Thi Tuyet Mai et al. [2018] Ms2 In my opinion, it is important to know how to enjoy life. Ms3 I like modern lifestyles. Ms4 I like to try new products/services. Ms5 I see the changes making life more interesting 6 Perception of traditional self Ts1 I always try to live frugally. Ts2 I feel cautious when buying and using new products. Ts3 I feel like it when enjoying traditional 15 No. Scale Encoded Content Author forms of culture and arts Ts4 In my opinion it is necessary to pay attention to the evaluation of those around you about yourself. Ts5 In my opinion, it is very important to follow and uphold traditional norms in social relationships. 7 Environmental concern Ev1 I pay attention to the decrease of environmental quality in Viet Nam. Developed by Schultz et al., [2004], translated to Vietnamese by Pham Thi Lan Huong [2014] Ev2 The environment in Vietnam is my top concern. Ev3 I am very concerned about Vietnam's environmental protection. Ev4 I always think about how to improve the quality of Vietnamese environment. 8 Health consciousness He1 I am concerned about my health. Adjusted from Jayanti and Burns [1998] He2 I am very conscious of my health. He3 I am wary of changes in my health. He4 I often understand my health status. He5 I am responsible for my health status. He6 I know about my health status at different times of the day. 9 Perception of price Pri1 Organic food has high price Adjusted from Lee and Yun [2014] Pri2 Organic food is more expensive that normal food 10 Relativism Rel1 Clean or dirty [food] is only relative The author developed from qualitative research Rel2 From the past until now, people still eat food [may be not organic] and they are all good Rel3 There are many reasons leading to illness, not just food Rel4 When buying food I often do not pay attention to whether it is organic food or not 11 Trust in brand Tru1 The features stated in organic food Adjusted 16 No. Scale Encoded Content Author and certification labels is reliable from Atkinson and Rosenthal [2014] Tru2 The features stated in organic food labels is strictly produced and censored Tru3 The features stated in organic food labels comply with the law Tru4 The features stated in organic food labels is true. Source: consolidation of the author 3.3.3. Descriptive statistics of research sample Of all samples with 336 consumers in Vietnamese rural areas, there are 213 females, accounting for 63,4%, 123 males, accounting for 36,6%. The survey subjects have age level from 17 to 76 years old, age level from 35 years old and below accounting for 61,16%. Number of people of working age with income from 18 to 60 years old accounting for up to 97%, in which the number of people with a stable income i.e. after graduating from university to 60 years old accounting for 60,4%. Education level from college / university graduate or higher accounting for up to 58.9%. The income of households in the sample is quite high, the income is above the average accounting for 75.9%, there are 2 groups of from 15 to less than 20 million and from 20 to less than 27 million [corresponding to the average income of General Statistics Office of Vietnam] accounting for up to 53.9%. CHAPTER 4: RESEARCH RESULTS 4.1. Reality attitude and intention to buy organic food of Vietnamese urban consumers Table 4-1: Descriptive statistics of observed variables in the scales of attitude towards behavior and intention to buy organic food Att1 Att2 Att3 Int1 Int2 Int3 N Valid 336 336 336 336 336 336 Missing 0 0 0 0 0 0 Mean 5.125 5.122 3.851 4.813 4.414 4.369 Mode 6 6 4 4 4 4 Std. Deviation 1.3458 1.3908 1.5651 1.6071 1.6148 1.5799 Skewness -0.495 -0.561 0.009 -0.395 -0.225 -0.103 17 Std. Error of Skewness 0.133 0.133 0.133 0.133 0.133 0.133 Kurtosis 0.097 0.044 -0.538 -0.514 -0.611 -0.601 Std. Error of Kurtosis 0.265 0.265 0.265 0.265 0.265 0.265 Minimum 1 1 1 1 1 1 Maximum 7 7 7 7 7 7 Source: from the author’s investigative data Table 4-2: Descriptive statistics of observed variables in the scales of intention to buy organic food Int1 Int2 Int3 N Valid 336 336 336 Missing 0 0 0 Mean 4.813 4.414 4.369 Mode 4 4 4 Std. Deviation 1.6071 1.6148 1.5799 Skewness -0.395 -0.225 -0.103 Std. Error of Skewness 0.133 0.133 0.133 Kurtosis -0.514 -0.611 -0.601 Std. Error of Kurtosis 0.265 0.265 0.265 Minimum 1 1 1 Maximum 7 7 7 Source: from the author’s investigative data 4.2. Value of convergence and differentiation Table 4-4 KMO and Bartlett’s Test testing results Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of Sampling Adequacy. .801 Bartlett's Test of Sphericity Approx. Chi-Square 3588.067 Df 300 Sig. .000 Source: analysis results from the author’s investigative data 18 Table 4-5: Rotated Factor Matrix Factor 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Ev1 .714 Ev2 .894 Ev3 .701 Ev4 .738 He1 .626 He2 .772 He3 .657 He4 .715 He5 .816 He6 .731 Ms1 .712 Ms2 .661 Ms3 .898 Ts3 .529 Ts4 .521 Ts5 .768 Rel1 .506 Rel2 .779 Rel4 -.237 .526 Pr1 .784 Pr2 .859 Tr1 .728 Tr2 .812 Tr3 .825 Tr4 .785 Source: analysis results from the author’s investigative data 4.3. Model and hypothesis testing results Table 4-12: Suitability indicator of the model Indicator Value Chi-square/df 2.057 CFI 0.901 GFI 0.847 TLI 0.885 RMSEA 0.056 19 Pclose 0.016 Source: analysis results from the author’s investigative data 4.3.2. Model and hypothesis testing results Table 4-13: Research model testing results Impact Group 1 Dependent variables Independent variables β, γ P-value R2 of attitude 0.706 Att <--- He -0.106 0.31 Att <--- Ms 0.315 *** Att <--- Ts 0.935 *** Att <--- Ev -0.175 0.106 R2 of intention to buy 0.737 Int <--- att 0.191 0.015 Int <--- sn 0.284 0.001 Int <--- pbc 0.453 *** Int <--- Pri 0.139 0.011 Int <--- Tr -0.035 0.509 Int <--- Rel -0.188 *** Int <--- Tuoi -0.054 0.247 Int <--- Hoc_van 0.011 0.819 Int <--- TN_Gdinh 0.097 0.051 Int <--- Gioi 0.017 0.689 Source: analysis results from the author’s investigative data 20 Figure 4-1: Structural equation model ns ns ns ns ns ns ns .315*** .935*** R2 = .706 R2 = .737 .191* .284** * .453*** .139* -.188*** 21 CHAPTER 5: DISCUSSION OF RESEARCH RESULTS 5.1. Summary of research results Table 5.1: Conclusion of hypotheses No. Encoded Conclusion No. Encoded Conclusion 1 H1 Accepted 6 H6 Rejected 2 H2 Accepted 7 H7a Accepted 3 H3 Accepted 8 H7b Accepted 4 H4 Rejected 9 H8 Rejected 5 H5 Rejected 10 H9 Accepted Source: analysis results from the author’s investigative data 5.2. Discussion of results and some proposals, recommendations 5.2.1. Discussion of research results 5.2.1.1. About factors affecting attitude towards behaviour in buying organic food With R2 = 0.706, it means that up to 70.6% of the change in attitude towards behaviour in buying organic food of Vietnamese urban consumers is explained by the model. First: Environmental concern does not affect attitude. This result is not in favour with the research by authors, such as: Schifferstein and Ophuist [1998]; Doorn and Verhoef [2015]; Honkanen et al. [2006]; Magnusson et al. [2001]. However, this results are relatively consistent with qualitative research results, when people joining in-depth interview confirm that, environmental concern has little effect to their behaviour in buying organic food. Second: Health consciousness does not affect attitude. This result is not in favour with qualitative research and the research by other authors, such as: Nuttavuthisit and Thøgersen.,2017; Magnusson et al., 2001; Hsu et al., 2016; Garcia- Yi, 2015; Hill and Lynchehaun, 2002. At the same time, research results is in favor with research by: Pino et al., 2012; Doorn and Verhoef, 2015. This is likely due to the research sample, as stated in the descriptive statistics part, is a relatively young average age sample, so the health effects are probably not their primary concern. Third: Perception o