KOREASCHOLAR

This paper investigates the impact of the scarcity information (Lynn, 1991) of a brand in its originating market on the pre- and post-taste evaluations of an imported food brand. We expect a positive effect of scarcity information on food brand evaluations, mainly based on naïve economic theory and the ‘scarce product is good’ heuristic. Four experimental studies confirmed this expectation. Study 1 shows that pre-taste evaluations and price judgment are higher when a new food brand is scarce (vs. when it is not) in its originating foreign market. Study 2 finds that both pre- and post-taste evaluations are higher in the scarce (vs. non-scarce) information condition. Study 3 supports the effect of the scarcity effect (vs. the popularity effect) and supports the mediating role of perceived scarcity. Study 4 replicated study 3 using a different sample and target food. Finally, a single-paper meta-analysis confirmed the strong effect of scarcity information on the evaluation of a food product. This research has several theoretical and practical implications. First, it can extend our understanding of how a nonfood- related characteristic determines food evaluation and preference (Wansink, 2004). Second, we separate the impact of scarcity information from popularity information on food evaluations. Finally, we extend the role of scarcity information to taste evaluation and suggest that the type of information can differentially influence pre- and post-taste evaluations.

• Jungkeun Kim(Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand)
• Euejung Hwang(University of Otago, New Zealand)
• Jae-Eun Kim(University of Auckland, New Zealand)
• Yuri Seo(University of Auckland, New Zealand)