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Journal of Global Marketing

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The Impacts of Brand Personality and Congruity on

Purchase Intention: Evidence From the Chinese
Mainland's Automobile Market
a

Xuehua Wang , Zhilin Yang & Ning Rong Liu

Faculty of Management and Administration , Macau University of Science and

Technology , Avenida Wai Long, Taipa, Macau
b

Department of Marketing , City University of Hong Kong , Kowloon, Hong Kong

School of Professional and Continuing Education , The University of Hong Kong , Hong
Kong
Published online: 10 Jun 2009.

To cite this article: Xuehua Wang , Zhilin Yang & Ning Rong Liu (2009) The Impacts of Brand Personality and Congruity on
Purchase Intention: Evidence From the Chinese Mainland's Automobile Market, Journal of Global Marketing, 22:3, 199-215,
DOI: 10.1080/08911760902845023
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/08911760902845023

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Journal of Global Marketing, 22:199215, 2009

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Copyright

ISSN: 0891-1762 print / 1528-6975 online
DOI: 10.1080/08911760902845023

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The Impacts of Brand Personality and Congruity on

Purchase Intention: Evidence From the Chinese Mainlands
Automobile Market
Xuehua Wang
Zhilin Yang
Ning Rong Liu

ABSTRACT. This study focuses on comparison of the importance of product-brand personality and importance of company-brand personality characteristics as well as on investigation of product-/companybrand congruity and self-image congruence on purchase intention, within the context of Chinese
Mainlands automobile industry. Results reveal that product-brand personality is more significant in
affecting purchase intention than company-brand personality. Furthermore, it is found that congruity
between product-brand personality and company-brand personality acts as a moderating variable between product-/company-brand personality and purchase intention. Of equal importance, it is found
that self-image congruence with product-/company-brand personality positively affects purchase intention, at a statistically significant level, and plays a moderating role between product-/company-brand
personality and purchase intention. Implications for research, as well as for business practices, are
discussed.
KEYWORDS. Product-brand personality, company-brand personality, self-image congruence, China

INTRODUCTION
Consumers purchase products/brands not
only on the basis of their functions or quality,
but do so, more importantly, because of the symbolic meanings contained in products/brands
(Veryzer, 1995). Brands offer different values
to consumers; these values basically include

functional (i.e., the problem-solving capability

of a brand), experiential (i.e., benefits related
to sensory enjoyment or cognitive arousal), and
symbolic brand benefits (i.e., the signal effects
shown to others via the brand) (Keller, 1993).
In addressing the symbolic benefits, many articles have concentrated on personality-related
concepts, such as brand personality (e.g., Biel,

The authors gratefully acknowledge a grant from the Research Grant Council of Hong Kong SAR (Project
No. 9041182, CityU 1454/06H) and a grant from City University of Hong Kong (CityU SRG Project No.
7002182) for financial support.
Xuehua Wang is Assistant Professor, Faculty of Management and Administration, Macau University of
Science and Technology, Avenida Wai Long, Taipa, Macau. Zhilin Yang is Associate Professor, Department
of Marketing, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong. Ning Rong Liu is Assistant Professor,
School of Professional and Continuing Education, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
Address correspondence to Xuehua Wang, Assistant Professor, Faculty of Management and Administration, Macau University of Science and Technology, Avenida Wai Long, Taipa, Macau. E-mail:
mkxwang@gmail.com
199

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JOURNAL OF GLOBAL MARKETING

1993), and self-image congruence (e.g., Sirgy

et al., 2000) to investigate this phenomenon. The
present study also falls within this stream of
research.
In particular, this study aims to offer five
potential contributions to the current branding literature by addressing corresponding gaps.
First, we aim to address the question as to
which trait, whether product-brand personality
or company-brand personality, is more significant than the other in influencing consumers
purchase intention; second, it is desirable to investigate whether congruity between productand company-brand personality would influence
consumers decision making; third, this study
also examines the self-image congruity issues in
consumers brand purchasing behavior; fourth,
we intend to develop company- and productbrand personality scales, specifically in the
Mainland Chinas automobile industry; and fifth,
this study was conducted in the Chinese Mainland, a major emerging economy; therefore,
with successful replications, our findings may
be generalizable to other emerging countries or
areas.
An important notion in the context of brand
differentiation, which is currently receiving increasing attention in the marketing domain, is
brand personality (Aaker, 1997). It describes
the phenomenon that a brand is often associated with human personality traits. A favorable
brand personality can increase consumer preference and usage (Sirgy, 1982), foster feelings
of comfort and confidence in the minds of consumers (Biel, 1993), enhance levels of loyalty
and trust (Fournier, 1998), and can provide a basis for brand differentiation among the myriad
brands in the market, hence potentially influencing consumers brand purchase intention (Keller,
1993, 2003).
Prior brand personality literature suggests
that the more congruent the product-brand personality is with the human characteristics of
an individuals self-concept, the more positive
his/her attitudes toward the product will be
(Sirgy, 1982). Similarly, company brands also
have their particular personalities, which contribute to overall company images. For instance,
when talking about Citroen, consumers would
be more likely to relate this auto manufacturer to

such human characteristics as confidence, prestige, and attractiveness. In line with prior literature on brand personality (Biel, 1993; McCracken, 1986; Sirgy, 1982; Sirgy et al., 2000),
it is suggested that company-brand personality
can also impact consumers purchase intention.
Hence, the more important that a companys
brand personality characteristics are to an individual, the higher the purchase intention tends to
be.
Some firms extend their company brands
to individual products. For instance, in China,
Mengniu (a company brand in the milk industry) is extensively used in its different product
lines. There are also other firms that prefer to
use a new name for their products and/or at the
same time associate their products with company brands. For example, Coca Cola creates a
number of new brands for their products in the
China market, such as Fanta, and its company
brand also appears in product packages. This
study focuses on those companies who not only
utilize new brands for their products, but also
associate their products with company brands;
this practice has been widely used in the China
market.
However, few studies have answered the question as to which trait, whether product-brand personality or company-brand personality, is more
significant in influencing consumers purchase
intention. (e.g., Barich & Philip, 1991; Gregory,
1997). This is important in providing insights for
research as well as for practice. To address relatively scarce coverage of this concept in prior
literature, this study aims to empirically compare the importance of product-brand personality with the importance of company-brand personality on purchase intention, specifically in the
Chinese Mainlands automobile industry. Furthermore, the influence of congruity between
company-brand personality and product-brand
personality on purchase intention is also empirically tested.
Another important concept in the same
research stream regarding personality-related
aspects of brands is self-image congruence.
Consumer behavior literature has pointed out
that self-image congruence with product/brand
image can influence product/brand preference, brand choice, customer satisfaction, and

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Wang, Yang, and Liu

purchase intention (Sirgy et al., 1997).

Kressmann et al. (2006) further find that selfimage congruity can motivate consumers to process product-/brand-related information, resulting in higher product/brand involvement. However, only a handful of studies have focused on
self-image congruity with a brands personality characteristics (e.g., Govers & Schoormans,
2005; Murphy et al., 2007), which is significant
in providing insights into consumer purchase behavior. Hence, this study also aims to investigate
whether or not consumers emphasize self-image
congruity with company- or product-brand
personality when purchasing, particularly in
Chinese Mainlands auto industry.

CONCEPTUAL BACKGROUND AND

HYPOTHESES
The primary conceptual framework featured
in this study is presented in Figure 1, pertaining

201

to company-brand personality, product-brand

personality, importance of company-brand
personality, importance of product-brand personality, self-image congruity with companybrand personality, and self-image congruity with
product-brand personality as independent variables, product knowledge as a control variable,
congruity of company-/product-brand personality and self-image congruity with company- or
product-brand personality as moderating variables, and purchase intention towards the brand
as the dependent variable.

Brand Personality
Brand personality refers to the human characteristics associated with a specific brand (Aaker,
1997; Govers & Schoormans, 2005). Varying
the emphasis somewhat, Sweeney and Brandon
(2006, p. 645) regard brand personality from
the perspective of an interpersonal relationship
with the brand. They believe that brand personality is the set of human personality traits that

FIGURE 1. Conceptual Model

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JOURNAL OF GLOBAL MARKETING

correspond to the interpersonal domain of human personality and are relevant to describing
the brand as a relationship partner.
In general, the role of brand personality in
marketing is typically regarded as an important
promotional tool appealing to targeted audiences
for development of an overall image (Gwinner
& Eaton, 1999). To illustrate this concept, Pepsi,
for instance, may be portrayed with a fashionable, energetic, and modern young man; whereas
Coca-Cola could be personified with a gentle
and conservative man. This may be partly due
to advertisers strategies to personify brands,
so that when consumers think about a particular brand, human personality traits would
come to mind, thus providing a basis for brand
differentiation.
Furthermore, Keller (1993) points out that
brand personality possesses symbolic values
rather than utilitarian functions. By imbuing
brands with human personalities and through
purchasing and/or using the brands, consumers
can achieve higher self-esteem (Belk et al., 1982;
McCracken, 1986). Sources that contribute to
the formation of brand personality can be classified into two categories: direct and indirect
sources (Aaker, 1997). The direct sources include the set of human characteristics associated
with a typical brand user, company employees,
the CEO of the company, and brand endorsers.
The indirect sources consist of all the decisions
made by company managers, such as decisions
related to the product, its price, distribution, and
promotion.
Recent research findings indicate that a strong
and positive brand personality can result in favorable product evaluations (e.g., Wang & Yang,
2008). Demonstrating this notion, Freling and
Forbes (2005) find that, when respondents are
exposed to a brands positive personalities, they
tend to have a greater proportion of congruent brand associations, greater unique brand associations, and a greater proportion of strong
brand associations. Fennis, Pruyn, and Maasland
(2005) observe that brand personality dimensions could affect consumers self-perceptions
with respect to agreeableness, extroversion, conscientiousness, and intellect. Aaker (1991) also
points out that a distinctively positive brand personality could be highly indicative of more favorable brand equity than when only product

information is given. Thus, we hypothesize

that:
H1: The more favorable the perceived brand
personalities, the more likely is the purchase intention of a brand.

Importance of Brand Personality

to Consumers
Brands can be classified into company brands
and product brands. As is the case with product brands, company brands can also be associated with human characteristics and are regarded as a subset contributing to the overall
image of the company. Thus, it could be inferred
that consumers may rate purchase intention high
for company brands whose personality characteristics are more favorable than those of others. Thus, importance of brand personality may
be classified as importance of company-brand
personality and importance of product-brand
personality.
Regarding the problem focused on which
type of importance may exert more significant
influence on purchase intention, few studies
have provided insights (e.g., Kralingen, 1999).
Brand personality has been extensively studied in the last decade; most of these studies
center on product brands. For instance, Fennis, Pruyn, and Maasland (2005) observe that a
products brand personality could affect ratings
on consumer agreeableness, self-perceptions of
hedonism, and sophistication. Czellar (2003)
proposes four key processes in forming brand
extension attitudes, one of them being the perception of fit or similarity between the extension
brands and the parent brands.
Company brands can be differentiated in consumers minds by means of establishing various
valuable brand associations, including values
and images, company credibility, and common product attributes (Barich & Philip, 1991;
Gregory, 1997). Company-brand personality is
a key component of company image and depends on the perceptions, values, and actions of
all company employees. Indeed, company-brand
personality reflects an indirect force in affecting consumer behavior, compared with productbrand personality (Keller & Richey, 2006).
The hierarchy of the effects model suggests

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Wang, Yang, and Liu

that a company brand provides an overall judgment preceding a product brand that offers an
evaluation immediately before a specific purchase situation (Keller, 2003). Hence, productbrand personality may represent a direct force
exerted on consumers decision-making, while
company-brand personality might be an indirect
influence, and thus might be less significant. As
pointed out by Hsieh, Pan, and Setiono (2004),
company image works as inferential information
affecting consumers decision-making. Therefore, we hypothesize:
H2: Importance of product-brand personality
is likely to be more significant in affecting purchase intention than importance of
company-brand personality.
Keller and Richey (2006) observe that
company-brand personality can reflect company
credibility, programs and values, as well as common attributes or benefits contained in products, the associations of which are much wider
than those of product-brand personality. That is,
company-brand personality possesses a level superior to that of product-brand personality, and
at the same time product-brand personality can
be reflected in perceptions of company-brand
personality (Keller, 2003). It is proposed that if
consumers perceive products favorably, then the
company image would also be positive, as a result of the strong unit link (Heider, 1958). Manrai
et al. (1997) find that when consumers believe
a product is truly green, their perception toward
the companys environmental image would also
be environmentally friendly. On the other hand,
when a new product is offered to consumers,
about which they have limited knowledge, they
would almost certainly use company-brand personality characteristics as a cue to quality and
purchase intention (Dodds, Monroe, & Grewal,
1991).
High congruity occurs when company-brand
personality matches product-brand personality,
and vice versa (Hsieh, Pan, & Setiono, 2004).
Under a scenario of high congruity, company-/
product-brand personality associations may
have a high degree of relevance to each other
(Ahluwalia & Gurhan-Canli, 2000). Consequently, it is likely that consumers make use
of this highly specific associative information

203

for evaluation of each other regarding purchase

intention and may transfer certain associations
to each other (Herr, Kardes, & Kim, 1991).
Conversely, when faced with company-/productbrand personality that is judged to be mismatched or less related, it is less likely that consumers will utilize company- or product-brand
personality information to judge each other in
terms of purchase intention (Taylor & Bearden,
2002).
Thus, a consequence of such a difference between congruity and incongruity may be that
company-/product-brand personality would exert a larger positive effect on purchase intention
of congruent match-ups than incongruent matchups. That is, under a high congruity scenario, company-/product-brand personality may
exert a stronger positive influence on consumers purchase intention. On the other hand,
when low congruity occurs, the link between
company/product-brand personality and consumers purchase intention may be weak,
indicating the moderating effect of congruity between company-brand personality and productbrand personality.
Congruity of company-/product-brand personality may thus be hypothesized as a moderating, rather than an independent variable in this
study. We first aim to compare the importance
of product-brand personality characteristics with
company-brand personality characteristics on
purchase intention; subsequently, we investigate the moderating effects of their congruity
on purchase intention. This congruity variable
represents a difference between company- and
product-brand personality; therefore, it may
be more reasonable to treat it as a moderating variable rather than as an independent
variable.
Hence, we hypothesize that:
H3: Congruity between company-brand personality and product-brand personality
tends to act as a moderating variable in
the relationship between company-brand
personality and purchase intention of the
brand.
H4: Congruity between company-brand personality and product-brand personality
tends to act as a moderating variable in
the relationship between product-brand

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personality and purchase intention of the

brand.

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Self-Image Congruity1
Self-congruity theory suggests that the congruence between consumers self-concept and
the product/brand-user image can partially affect consumer behavior (Sirgy et al., 1997). Sirgy
(1982) further differentiates four self-congruity
types based on four types of self-concept, i.e.,
actual, ideal, social, and ideal social congruity.
Actual congruity is defined as the congruence
between how consumers actually see themselves
in terms of a set of attributes and how they
think a typical user of a specific brand should
be, regarding the same set of attributes. As to
the other three congruity types, the attributes of
a typical brand user are compared to how consumers would like to be (ideal congruity), how
they think significant others consider them (social congruity), and how they want to be seen by
significant others (ideal social congruity). When
brand-user image matches an individuals self
image, high self-congruity occurs (Sirgy et al.,
1997). In contrast, low-self congruity refers to a
situation in which s/he believes the comparison
between brand-user image and self-image does
not match.
Brand value consists of functional and symbolic dimensions. According to Grubb and
Grathwohl (1967), self-image is of value to a
consumer, and thus, behavior is motivated to
protect and enhance it; therefore, the purchase
and display of products/brands act as symbols to
the individual as well as his or her close others.
Thus, the symbolic aspect of a brand, such as
brand personality, is considered more important
to self than the brands functional side. In China,
auto purchase, which is highly appreciated by
Chinese consumers (Zhou & Belk, 2004) indicates that the buyer possesses more wealth and
even higher social status than a nonpurchaser.
Hence, the symbolic dimension of a brand outweighs the importance of functional elements in

1
We owe this idea, in large part, to one of the
anonymous reviewers.

affecting auto product purchase intention in the

Chinese mainland.
Moreover, marketing literature offers evidence for the effect of self-image congruence
on brand choice, preference, and loyalty (e.g.,
Ericksen & Sirgy, 1992; Sirgy, 1985; Sirgy
et al., 2000; Sirgy & Johar, 1999). Some studies have investigated the congruence between
store image and self-image on product perception and purchase intention (e.g., Bloemer
& Oderkerken-Schroder, 2002; DAstous &
Gargouri, 2001). However, substantive evidence
is lacking regarding self-image congruence with
product-brand personality. A considerable number of prior studies have suggested that selfimage congruence results in better product
evaluation, greater satisfaction, and even higher
purchase intention (e.g., Ericksen & Sirgy,
1992; Sirgy, 1985; Sirgy et al., 2000; Sirgy &
Johar, 1999). Hence, consistent with prior research on the positive impact of self-image congruence on purchase intention, we hypothesize
that:
H5: The higher the perceived degree of
self-image and company-brand personality
congruity, the more likely is the purchase
intention toward the brand.
H6: The higher the perceived degree of selfimage and product-brand personality congruity, the more likely is the purchase intention toward the brand.
When the company-/product-brand personality is judged to be conceptually matched to
self-image, consumers are more likely to use
information and perceptions about company/product-brand personality in subsequent purchase decision making (Taylor & Bearden,
2002). In contrast, if consumers perceive that
company-/product-brand personality is mismatched to their self-image, they may be
less likely to make use of company-/productbrand personality information in their decision making. Thus, company-/product-brand
personality tends to exert a larger positive effect on purchase intention of self-image congruity than does self-image incongruity. That
is, in a context of high self-image congruity,
company-/product-brand personality may exert

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a stronger influence on purchase intention;

while, when low congruity occurs, this influence
tends to be minimal. Therefore, we hypothesize
that:
H7: Self-image congruity with companybrand personality tends to act as a moderating variable in the relationship between
company-brand personality and the purchase intention toward the brand.
H8: Self-image congruity with product-brand
personality tends to act as a moderating variable in the relationship between
product-brand personality and the purchase intention toward the brand.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Two types of brand personality measures can
be found in existing literature: general scales
(i.e., those borrowed directly from personality psychology without validation for brands)
and brand-specific measures. Only a few studies have specifically developed measures for
brand personality, including Aaker (1997). She
develops a five-dimensional scale, including
sincerity (inclusive of down-to-earth, honest,
wholesome, and cheerful), excitement (daring,
spirited, imaginative, and up-to-date), competence (reliable, intelligent, and successful), sophistication (upper class and charming) and
ruggedness (outdoorsy and tough). However,
brand personality components may vary across
different industries and across different countries or areas. For instance, the components of
brand personality in catering services may differ
from those in the automotive industry. RojasMendez, Erenchun-Podlech, and Silva-Olave
(2004)s study, which investigates the Ford brand
personality in Chile, finds that the component
of ruggedness in Aaker (1997)s scale does
not result in acceptable reliability and validity.
Hence, a uniform instrument might threaten a
tests reliability and validity. Therefore, it is desirable to examine and validate dimensions of
brand personality for different industries and in
different countries before application.
We chose the Chinese Mainland automobile
industry as our research setting for two reasons.

205

First, since inception of the open-door policy in China, many famous foreign automobile
companies, such as Volkswagen and General
Motors, have come to China to establish joint
ventures (hereafter JVs) with local Chinese automobile companies. Foreign-branded cars now
occupy almost 70% of the domestic automobile
market, which, with many other local-branded
cars, could furnish an ideal setting to study
brand perceptions. Second, in view of the impressively consistent growth patterns of Chinas
economy, Chinese demand for automobiles has
been growing at the astounding annual rate of
over 20% (www.gasgoo.com, Oct. 21, 2008).
In fact, China is expected to become the third
largest automobile market in the world, with a
projected 6% global automobile market share in
2010, account being taken of the potentially adverse impact of the current financial crisis. Further, in 2020, assuming the crisis has abated, automobile demand in China is anticipated to reach
20.74 million units (www.chinadaily.com.cn,
Oct. 21, 2008). Given the scale of Chinas
tremendous growth in the automobile market, it is desirable and important to delve insightfully into the primary factors influencing Chinese consumers automobile purchase
behavior.

Data Collection and Sample

The survey was conducted in four major
Chinese Mainland cities, i.e., Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Chengdu. These four cities
enjoy a higher income per capita and a better
standard of living than other cities in the Chinese Mainland; therefore, there are more potential automobile buyers and owners in these locations, providing a more solid statistical foundation. Survey brands included two sets, i.e.,
company brands (including FAW Volkswagen,
Shanghai General Motors, Guangzhou Honda,
Tianjin Toyota, Dongfeng Nissan, FAW Mazda,
BHMC, Dongfeng Citroen, Changan Ford,
Shanghai Volkswagen, and Dongfeng Peugeot,
which constitute the major auto company brands
in China) and corresponding product brands (including Passat, Bora, Santana 3000, Excelle,
Vios, Bluebird, Sunny, Sonata, Elantra, Familiar,
Corolla, Mazada 6, Elysee, Accord, and Peugeot

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307). A well-trained interviewer was required

to ask each respondent, in person, all questions
contained in the questionnaire, and, on completion of this task, each respondent received 100
RMB as nominal compensation.
The sample respondents were recruited by a
large research agency in China. A total of 800
questionnaires were distributed in this study. Finally, 477 usable cases with a response rate of
59.6% were collected. There were 225 female
(47.2%) and 252 male respondents (52.8%).
The respondents ages were mainly above 30
years old (69.8%). Most of them had junior
college diplomas or higher (66.0%). Their careers primarily fell into two categories: business and research. Most respondents had a personal monthly income of more than 5,000 RMB
(45.8%) and a monthly household income of
more than 8,000 RMB (53.4%).

Measurement Development and Validation

Initially, we held six focus groups, each lasting about 55 minutes, with six respondents
in each group to qualitatively document consumers perception of the major automobile
companies as well as their corresponding brands
in China. Two focus groups were conducted
in Beijing and Shanghai respectively, one in
Guangzhou, and another in Chengdu. Beijing
and Shanghai, to a certain extent, are highly advanced and more complicated than Guangzhou
and Chengdu in terms of economy and politics, thus we believe consumers in Beijing and
Shanghai may display larger variations in terms
of automotive perceptions. Consequently, we
conducted two focus groups in each of these
two cities. To increase generalizability, we also
conducted one focus group in Guangzhou and
Chengdu, respectively. We believe results from
these six groups are sufficiently representative to qualitatively describe consumers perceptions of automobiles. Group members were
recruited by a research agency. They all possessed respectable jobs such as university teachers, lawyers, and physicians with a monthly
income of, or higher than, 5,000 RMB. During each of the focus group sessions, respondents were first asked whether they currently
owned a car or would buy a car in the near

future; and, then, they were asked, if they wanted

to buy another car, what brand would it be
and why they selected that brand. In their discussion, we found that certain brand personality characteristics, such as status, fashion, and
prestige, were frequently mentioned by respondents. Two bilingual assistants translated all
available written materials into English. One
author corrected and verified these translations.
Then, each author conducted independent readings on, and analyses of, consumer perception
of the major auto brands in China and the
main factors influencing consumers purchase
intention. These separate analyses were then
categorized through further discussion. Some
items in Aaker (1997)s scale appear, such as
leader, technical, corporate, and down-to-earth;
others that we identified, not on her scale, included modern, formal, humanized, practical,
exquisite, sporty, proud, optimistic, and selfaffirmative.
For company-brand personality, the qualitative analysis identified 15 dimensions, which
were sorted into three groups: (1) quality-related
facets (inclusive of leader, technical, down-toearth, upper class, modern, formal, humanized);
(2) performance-related facets (reliable, secure,
practical, friendly, trustworthy, honest); and (3)
design-related facets (attractive and intelligent).
For product-brand personality, the qualitative
analysis identified 20 dimensions, which were
narrowed down to two operative factors: (1)
a design-related factor (attractive, intelligent,
leader, technical, down-to-earth, exquisite, considerate, friendly, upper class, sporty, modern,
formal, proud, optimistic, humanized); and (2)
a performance-related factor (reliable, secure,
practical, self-affirmative, trustworthy).
The final pool of measurement items was determined by using the results achieved from the
focus groups and, at the same time, by soliciting
suggestions from experts in this field. Subsequently, we conducted a survey in the four previously selected Chinese cities. Data from this
survey was then subjected to confirmatory factor
analysis (CFA) in order to check the reliability
and validity of each construct. Some insignificant items were excluded from the final dataset.
Hence, the pool of measurement items was ultimately determined.

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Reliability and Validity of Company-Brand

Personality
The reliability of each factor was tested by
using its Cronbachs Alpha, which produced
readings of .95, .94, and .91, respectively, all
greater than .7, as Nunnally and Bernstein (1994)
propose. The t-values of all indicator loadings
were larger than the critical value (2.78) at the
p < .01 level, suggesting that each indicator was
highly relevant and acceptable. The CFA allows
for a validity assessment of the measures used.
The fit indices in Table 1 ( 2 /df = 2.54, p =
.000, goodness-of-fit index [GFI] = .85, confirmatory fit index [CFI] = .96, normed fit index
[NFI] = .93, root mean square error of approximation [RMSEA] = .095) suggest a good fit
of the measurement model. Therefore, evidence
of trait validity is provided for the dependent
measures (Anderson & Gerbing, 1988).

Reliability and Validity of Product-Brand

Personality
The reliability of each factor in product-brand
personality was tested by using Cronbachs Alpha, which resulted in .91 and .96, respectively, both greater than .7. Consistent with the
prior methodology used for validity checks on
company-brand personality, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was utilized. The fit indices
( 2 /df = 1.95, p = .000, GFI = .88, CFI = .97,
NFI = .95, RMSEA = .05) suggest a good fit of
the measurement model.
Thus, the final questionnaire consisted of two
parts; one part was focused on four sets of
measures: company-brand personality, productbrand personality, self-image congruence, purchase intention and a control variable of product knowledge; whereas, the other part was
to collect demographic information such as
age, gender, income level, etc. Company-brand
personality and product-brand personality were
measured by using the two scales developed previously. The importance to consumers of each
dimension in the two brand personality scales
was measured by using a 7-point semantic differential scale to respond to the sentence please
circle one of the numbers below to describe
the importance of each item to you for brand

207

evaluation with the anchors being not at all important and extremely important. Self-image
congruence was measured by adapting Sirgy
et al. (1997)s 7-point scale with a Cronbachs
coefficient alpha of .89, which has been extensively used in prior research (e.g., OCass &
Grace, 2008). Respondents were asked to use
each of the company/product brands as a frame
of reference in responding to the self-image congruence scale items, which include the brand
image is consistent with my self-image, the
brand image reflects who I am, people similar
to me use such a brand, other users are very
much like me and this brand image is a mirror image of me. The CFA fit indices for selfimage congruence ( 2 /df = 1.82, p = .000, GFI
= .87, CFI = .95, NFI = .96, RMSEA = .05)
suggest a good fit of the measurement model. A
7-point Likert item with 1 meaning absolutely
impossible and 7 absolutely possible was employed to measure purchase intention (Dodds
et al., 1991).
Product knowledge refers to consumer memories and/or understanding related to the product (Brucks, 1985). As pointed out by Petty and
Cacioppo (1981), when a consumer is highly involved in purchasing a product, s/he would be inclined to engage in a detailed information search
about product pros and cons, which can positively affect his/her decision making as well as
purchase intention (Rao & Sieben, 1992). Since
product knowledge has been identified as a potential factor influencing purchase intention, we
included it as a control variable. Product knowledge was measured by using a 7-point semantic differential scale to respond to the sentence
please circle one of the numbers below to describe your familiarity with cars with the anchors being not at all familiar and extremely
familiar (Brucks, 1985).

ANALYSIS AND RESULTS

Congruity is the opposite of difference. Thus,
we used difference measures to reflect congruity in this study. That is, the congruity
was computed from the difference between
the composite average of company-brand personality ratings and the composite average of

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product-brand personality ratings. Therefore,

difference between importance of product-brand
personality and importance of companybrand personality was computed by subtracting company-brand personality ratings from
product-brand personality characteristics ratings. Regression analysis was then employed
to compare the extent of significance of the
two types of importance on purchase intention, after controlling for gender, age, education
level, personal/household monthly income, career/industry, and product knowledge. Gender,
education, and industry were dummied in the regression analysis. The averages of scale items of
each construct were used as inputs in the regression analysis.
To test the assumption of linearity, we plotted
the observed versus predicted values and found
that most of the points were symmetrically distributed around a diagonal line, thus meeting the
linearity assumption. Results also revealed that
all the VIFs (Variance Inflation Factor) of the IVs
were between 3 and 5, lower than the standard
of 10 in practice (e.g., Marsh et al., 2004), thus
indicating that the assumption of noncollinearity was met. We then plotted the fractiles of error distribution versus the fractiles of a normal
distribution having the same mean and variance
and found that the points fell close to the diagonal line, indicating that the distribution was
normal.
Data analysis results show that only product knowledge is statistically significant at the
p < .05 level. The reason that other control variables (age, gender, income, and career/industry)
were not significant may be that these variables
were not as important as other independent variables (e.g., product-brand personality) in affecting purchase intention toward the brand.
It was hypothesized in H1 that brand personality tends to be positively related to purchase
intention. According to Table 1, regression results showed that only product-brand personality exerted significant positive influence on purchase intention. Company-brand personality did
not generate significant results, although its direction is positive in influencing purchase intention. Thus, H1 is partially supported.
H2 predicted that the importance of productbrand personality is likely to be more significant

in affecting purchase intention than is importance of company-brand personality. As shown

by models 4 and 5 in Table 1, regression results revealed that importance of product-brand
personality characteristics produced a more
significant positive standardized coefficient on
purchase intention (.29) at the p < .05 level,
than did the importance of company-brand personality (.14), indicating that, to consumers, the
importance of product-brand personality could
exert more significant positive influence on purchase intention than could the importance of
company-brand personality; thus, H2 is supported.
H3 and H4 hypothesized that congruity between company-brand personality and productbrand personality would act as moderating
variables in the relationship between company/product-brand personality and purchase intention. According to models 8 and 9 in Table 1, the
interaction effects between company-/productbrand personality and purchase intention are
both statistically significant at the p < .05 level.
Therefore, H3 and H4 are both supported. The
interaction effects are also presented in Figures 2
and 3. Based on the two figures, the direction of
the relationships is not moderated by congruity,
but the effects are more pronounced for respondents with high congruity than for those with
low congruity.
H5 and H6 predicted that the perceived degree of self-image congruence with company-/
product-brand personality would be positively
associated with purchase intention toward the
brand. Based on models 6 and 7 in Table 1,
self-image congruence produced significant positive standardized coefficients on purchase intention for company-brand personality (.31) and for
product-brand personality (.33), both of which
are significant at the p < .05 level. Hence, H5
and H6 are supported.
H7 and H8 hypothesized that self-image congruity with company-/product-brand personality would moderate the relationship between
company-/product-brand personality and purchase intention. According to models 10 and
11, the interaction effects between company-/
product-brand personality and purchase intention are statistically significant at the p < .05
level. Therefore, H7 and H8 are both supported.

209

3.52
9.222
.21
.09
.19
.00

(.28)1

(.30)1

(.32)1

(.33)1

2.11
6.962
.12
.01
.10
.00

(.26)1

(.26)1

(.30)1

(.30)1

(.29)1

(.31)1

2.87
6.412
.11
.11
.10
.00

(.25)1

(.29)1

(.29)1

(.27)1

(.26)1

(.28)1

(.29)1

3.17
11.542
.27
.06
.25
.00

6.32
14.122
.33
.06
.33
.00

8.77
17.182
.40
.07
.43
.00

8.90
19.202
.44
.04
.43
.00

(.10)1

8.12
21.972
.50
.06
.49
.00

(.25)1

(.11)1

7.50
23.652
.54
.04
.53
.00

(.28)1

(.25)1

(.10)1

(.31)1

(.08)1

10.14
26.772
.56
.02
.55
.00

(.29)1

(.29)1

(.23)1

(.09)1

(.30)1

(.08)1

(.27)1
11.10
29.302
.58
.02
.57
.00

(.28)1

(.28)1

(.25)1

(.22)1

(.09)1

(.30)1

(.07)1

(.12)1

(.32)1

(.09)1

(.12)1

(.31)1

(.07)1

(.14)1

(.33)1

(.09)1

(.36)1

Model 11

(.36)1

Model 10

(.37)1

(.08)1

Model 9

(.07)1

Model 8

(.07)1

Model 7

(.09)1

Model 6

Model 5

Model 4

Model 3

Model 2

Model 1

Note. a represents that the variable was dummied before data analysis; b is personal monthly income; c is household monthly income; d is product knowledge; eis company-brand


personality; f is product-brand personality; e is importance of company-brand personality; f is importance of product-brand personality; g is self-image congruence; h is congruity
of company-/product-brand personality; 1 is the standardized regression coefficient.
*p < .05.

SIC with
CBPg
SIC with
PBPg
Congruityh
CBP
Congruity
PBP
SIC with
CBPCBP
SIC with
PBPPBP
Constant
F
R2
R2 change
Adj. R2
p value

IPBPf

ICBPe

PBPf

Agea
Gendera
Educationa
Industrya
PMIb
HMIc
PKd
CBPe

IVs

TABLE 1. Hierarchical Regression Analysis Results (DV: Purchase Intention)

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FIGURE 2. Company-Brand Personality by Congruity of Company-/Product-Brand Personality

Interaction on Purchase Intention

The interaction effects of self-image congruity

are presented in Figures 4 and 5. According to
these two figures, the direction of the relationships is not moderated by congruity, but the effects are more pronounced for respondents with
high self-image congruity than for those with
low self-image congruity.

DISCUSSION
The principal focus of this study was to
compare the importance of product- with
company-brand personality, their congruity,
and self-image congruence on purchase intention, specifically in the Chinese Mainlands

FIGURE 3. Product-Brand Personality by Congruity of Company-/Product-Brand Personality

Interaction on Purchase Intention

Wang, Yang, and Liu

211

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FIGURE 4. Company-Brand Personality by Self-Image Congruity Interaction on Purchase Intention

automobile industry. Results indicate that

product-brand personality is more significant in affecting purchase intention than is
company-brand personality. Congruity between
product-brand personality and company-brand
personality acts as a moderating variable between product/company-brand personality and
purchase intention. In addition, self-image

congruence with product-/company-brand personality is found to positively affect purchase

intention, at a statistically significant level,
and plays a moderating role between product/company-brand personality and purchase
intention.
It is surprising that the importance of
company-brand personality does not affect

FIGURE 5. Product-Brand Personality by Self-Image Congruity Interaction on Purchase Intention

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consumers purchase intention. The reason may

be that, although consumers do consider company brands when buying a car, they rely more
heavily on product brands, reflecting the overriding value of consumer pragmatism in todays
China, as determined by our focus group results.
JV companies need to note that it is no longer
sufficient to attract consumers merely with their
foreign partners global image in the automobile industry. Indeed, a foreign manufacturers
global image is not necessarily as significant as
might have been assumed in current-day China.
By way of contrast, product brands are increasingly valued in terms of design and performance.
As described by one of the respondents:
I first look at the functions and quality of
the specific car type instead of the company information. Because many of the
auto companies in China now are joint ventures and, at the same time, the local auto
companies are more and more competitive,
the differences between them are not significant to me. Of course, I also emphasize
company images, but I do not rely only on
the auto companies global images to make
a decision.
Our study also revealed that the more important and positive the product-brand personality
is, the higher the purchase intention tends to be.
When a brands personality is perceived to be
strong and positive, which is important for product evaluations, consumers tend to remember the
brands more easily and typically demonstrate
higher purchase intention toward the branded
products (Sirgy, 1982). A strong and positive
product-brand personality could help consumers
to differentiate among the multitudinous products on the market (Biel, 1993; Keller, 2003),
and enable companies to occupy a more competitive market position.
It is also found that congruity between
company-brand personality and product-brand
personality exerts a significant positive moderating effect between company-/product-brand
personality and purchase intention, although
their direct effect on purchase intention is not
statistically significant. As elaborated by one
of our respondents: I dont care whether the

product brand personalities fit in with the company brand personalities, unless I find the
company-/product-brand personalities are attractive to me, thus showing the reason that
the direct effect of congruity between companybrand personality and product-brand personality is seldom significant in influencing purchase intention. Specifically, in the presence of
high company-/product-brand personality congruity, company-/product-brand personality exerts a stronger influence on purchase intention;
while in a low congruity context, the influence
would tend to be weaker.
In line with prior research, self-image congruity with company-/product-brand personality is found to significantly positively affect
purchase intention (e.g., Chebat et al., 2006;
Sirgy, 1985). The higher the congruence of selfimage with company-/product-brand personalities, the greater is the purchase intention. The
marketing literature addressing this issue also
provides similar evidence on the effects of selfimage congruence on brand preference, loyalty,
and satisfaction (e.g., Ericksen & Sirgy, 1992;
Sirgy, 1985; Sirgy et al., 2000; Sirgy & Johar,
1999). For instance, Chebat, Sirgy, and St-James
(2006) recently suggested that shopping mall
managers should customize the malls image
to match the self-image of the target audience.
Self-image congruity with company-/productbrand personality is also found to positively
moderate the relationship between company-/
product-brand personality and purchase intention. Under a scenario of high self-image congruence with company-/product-brand personality, company-/product-brand personality would
have a stronger impact on purchase intention;
while, when low congruity occurs, this impact is
likely to be small.
In addition, we developed company- and
product-brand personality scales, specifically in
the Chinese Mainlands automobile industry.
Brand personality components may vary across
different industries and across different countries
or areas. For instance, Sung and Tinkham (2005)
observe that brand personality structures in the
United States and Korea possess both common
and culture-specific factors. In the Korean brand
personality construct, two culture-specific factors, i.e., passive likeableness and ascendancy

Wang, Yang, and Liu

related to Confucian values, emerge while in the

U.S. brand personality construct, white collar
and androgyny are specified as culture-specific,
reflecting cultural values related to occupational
status and gender roles. Importantly, in light
of the foregoing findings, this study develops
two brand personality scales in the Chinese
Mainlands automobile industry, both of which
achieve acceptable reliability and validity.

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Managerial Implications
Our results also generate useful applications for companies. First, a strong and positive product-brand personality can exert significant influence on consumer purchase intention.
Thus, designing a competitive branding strategy and effectively communicating strong brand
personalities through ads and/or websites could
enhance consumers purchase intention. One effective measure is to establish chat rooms or
Web-pages to introduce and promote products
by providing consumers with a virtual discussion
forum, since many potential consumers turn to
the internet for relevant information about specific products. This could familiarize consumers
with the companys product brands, which, in
turn, might enhance their purchase intention.
Furthermore, it is important for companies
to emphasize the importance of product-brand
personality characteristics by means of targeting
the appropriate consumer segments. Improper
positioning could result in a significant decrease
in purchase intention, as shown by our results.
In addition, since brand personality is part of
the brands overall image, it is also important
to build strong, favorable, and unique brand images. One way is to use appropriate advertising
endorsers to establish desirable brand associations. For instance, if a product is targeted at an
upper-class consumer segment, using a foreign
celebrity endorser (typically from a developed
country) could produce better results than employing a local noncelebrity endorser in emerging economies such as Chinese Mainland (Zhou
& Belk, 2004).
At the same time, strong company brands can
also be helpful in increasing product brands
images via a variety of strategies, for example, through prominent logo displays on product

213

packaging. Such company-brand endorsement

strategies have often been utilized to add
strength, favorability and uniqueness of product brands. One point deserving attention is that
companies need to be extremely prudent in managing product brands, because failure will harm
company brand images, and may also tarnish the
images of remaining products under the same
company brand.
Importantly, it is essential for managers to realize the importance of self-image congruence
on purchase intention. They should pay close
attention to the meaning of product brand elements aimed at specific target markets through
effective advertising. Specifically, in the Chinese
Mainlands auto market, the desired elements of
a car brand should contain those brand associations that Chinese consumers feel a car brand
should possess, such as prestige, patriotism, or
fashion. In this regard, studies in different local
China markets appear necessary to offer helpful
guidance.
To further illustrate the strategic implications
of our research findings, we present a small case
in practice. Haier is one of the major homeappliances manufacturers in the Chinese Mainland. Haier, as a strong company brand across
the world, can improve its sub-brands equity by
adding strength, favorability and uniqueness. It
also creates new names for its products, such as
Little Prince for one of its refrigerator models. Consumers buy Little Prince not only because it is a Haier product, but also because it
has desirable functions and high performance.
Moreover, young consumers prefer to buy
Little Prince because its image is considered
as modern and fashionable, which especially appeals to the image of young couples, showing the
significance of self-image congruence in affecting consumers purchase behavior.

LIMITATIONS AND FUTURE

RESEARCH
Limitations of this study as well as directions for future research need to be noted. We
did not include product involvement as a control
variable, which has been identified as a potential factor that influences consumers purchase

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decisions. Since the research setting of this study

is the automobile industry and auto purchase
in itself is a high-involvement situation, we
assume consumers are highly involved in the
decision-making process. However, there might
exist different degrees of product involvement,
which could result in different attitudes in influencing purchase behavior. Some respondents
may be highly involved in and hold favorable
attitudes toward the car brand in use, which
may bias the sample. Therefore, future research
should further investigate the effect of product
involvement and exclude the bias sample effect.
It is also possible that respondents might have
felt reluctant to evaluate the full range of brand
and company stimuli, which may have negatively affected our survey quality. In addition,
although using averages in regression analysis
is acceptable (e.g., Taylor & Bearden, 2002),
use of such an approach might have resulted in
loss of some analytical detail.
We did not include pricing data or word-ofmouth dynamics in our study. Price is an important factor when consumers purchase valuables.
Moreover, word-of-mouth may also exert influence in the buying process. For instance, an individuals decision could be influenced by his or
her friends who already own that product. Therefore, price and word-of-mouth effects should be
examined in future research.
Furthermore, we recognize that there are several largely unexplored factors influencing consumer purchase intention, such as personality
characteristics, social contexts, and peer pressure. Future research should also include additional relevant variables to provide a more comprehensive picture of consumer behavior in this
regard.
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