Using materialism to explain the preference to smartphone brands - A case of Apple Iphone and Samsung Galaxy
Abstract
The rapid development of society and technology make smartphone essential to our lives. Moreover, humans also become more and more materialistic. They not only need a standard smartphone, but also a luxury one like iPhone or Galaxy S. The purpose of this research is to find out how materialism affect the intention of customers when buying these brands.
The framework of this research based on the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA). There were 380 respondents participated in the survey – half of them were iPhone users and the other half were Galaxy S users. The collected data then was processed with Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20. Descriptive statistics, Reliability test, Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA), Pearson correlation, Multiple Regression Analysis and One-way ANOVA were using. As a result, four variables have positive relationship with the Attitude toward Brand including Material Success, Material Happiness, Material Essentiality and Material Distinctiveness. The Attitude toward Brand then also positively influences customers’ Intention to Buy the product. Moreover, iPhone and Galaxy S users are put into comparison to discover the differences in their materialistic level, attitude and intention.
The research also gives some recommendation for further studies about materialism.