Chen Shih-Wei, Lee Ku-Yuan, Hsieh Chi-Ming
Department of Otolaryngology, Tungs' Taichung MetroHarbor Hospital, Taichung 43503, Taiwan.
Ph.D. Program in Translational Medicine, Department of Life Sciences, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung 40227, Taiwan.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Nov 4;18(21):11574. doi: 10.3390/ijerph182111574.
The development of the biotech industry is in full swing, and consumers have begun to value biotech brands. Since biotech products often focus on the future or special benefits, consumers inevitably bear certain risks when purchasing biotech products, and their trust in the biotech brand will have an important impact on their purchase intention. Previous studies have lacked a targeted understanding of consumer trust in biotech brands and a discussion of cultural viewpoints. This study introduced the concept of personal connections in Chinese relationalism and trust strategies in Chinese society to address this gap. In-depth interviews and focus group discussions were conducted in collaboration with Company X, a listed Taiwanese cord blood company, to extract the key factors influencing consumer trust and purchase intention of biotech brands. After constructing the structure model, the study was validated using a structural equation model through investigation and survey. The findings indicated that consumer trust in biotech brands was constructed by a combination of kinship trust transfer and emergent trust transfer within the consumer relationship network, as well as institutional trust and professional trust outside the relationship network and that a significant positive correlation existed between consumer trust in biotech brands and purchase intention. The acquaintances within the consumer relationship network include not only relatives and friends but also health care workers and netizens that consumers come into contact with. In addition, kinship trust transfer and emergent trust transfer within the consumer relationship network have a greater impact on trust in biotech brands than the institutional trust and professional trust outside the relationship network. The findings of this study deepen the understanding of consumer trust in biotech brands across cultures, and suggest that future marketing communication should be expanded to include key players within the consumer relationship network.
生物技术产业发展如火如荼，消费者开始重视生物技术品牌。由于生物技术产品往往着眼于未来或具有特殊益处，消费者在购买生物技术产品时不可避免地会承担一定风险，而他们对生物技术品牌的信任将对其购买意愿产生重要影响。以往的研究缺乏对消费者对生物技术品牌信任的针对性理解以及对文化观点的探讨。本研究引入中国关系主义中的个人联系概念和中国社会中的信任策略来填补这一空白。与一家台湾上市脐带血公司X公司合作进行了深入访谈和焦点小组讨论，以提取影响消费者对生物技术品牌信任和购买意愿的关键因素。构建结构模型后，通过调查和问卷使用结构方程模型对该研究进行了验证。研究结果表明，消费者对生物技术品牌的信任是由消费者关系网络内的亲属信任转移和突发信任转移，以及关系网络外的制度信任和专业信任共同构建的，并且消费者对生物技术品牌的信任与购买意愿之间存在显著正相关。消费者关系网络中的熟人不仅包括亲戚和朋友，还包括消费者接触到的医护人员和网民。此外，消费者关系网络内的亲属信任转移和突发信任转移对生物技术品牌信任的影响大于关系网络外 的制度信任和专业信任。本研究结果加深了对跨文化背景下消费者对生物技术品牌信任的理解，并建议未来的营销传播应扩大到包括消费者关系网络中的关键参与者。
