The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:

www.emeraldinsight.com/1759-0833.htm

JIMA
6,1
Consumers and Halal cosmetic
products: knowledge, religiosity,
attitude and intention
148 Azmawani Abd Rahman
Halal Product Research Institute, Universiti Putra Malaysia,
Serdang, Malaysia
Ebrahim Asrarhaghighi
Putra Business School, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Malaysia, and
Suhaimi Ab Rahman
Faculty of Economics and Management, Universiti Putra Malaysia,
Serdang, Malaysia

Journal of Islamic Marketing
Vol. 6 No. 1, 2015
pp. 148-163
© Emerald Group Publishing Limited
1759-0833
DOI 10.1108/JIMA-09-2013-0068
Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to add to the body of knowledge about attitude and intention
to choose a Halal product. Despite the importance of the Halal cosmetic market for both producers and
consumers, the existing literature focusses on Halal food products, and only a limited number of studies
exist about Halal cosmetic products. This study assesses the effects of knowledge and religiosity on
attitudes towards Halal cosmetics products, as well as the effect of those attitudes on the intention to
buy the Halal cosmetic products. This study also investigates the existence of differences between
consumers’ attitudes towards Halal cosmetics and Halal food products.
Design/methodology/approach – This study used a self-administrated questionnaire with
closed-ended questions. The questionnaire was distributed using non-probability convenience
sampling. At the end of data collection period, a total of 110 usable questionnaires from Muslim
respondents over the age of 18 years old were used for further analysis. To assess the relationship
between knowledge, religiosity, attitude and intention, a structural equation modeling technique was
used. And to investigate the difference between attitude and intention for Halal cosmetic and Halal food
products, the pair sample t-test were applied.
Findings – The findings of the study show that the relationship between knowledge and attitude is
insignificant, but there is a significant positive relationship between religiosity and attitude. From the
lens of theory of reasoned action (TRA), this study indicates that there is a positive relationship between
attitude and intention to choose Halal cosmetic products. This study also found a significant difference
between consumers’ attitudes towards Halal cosmetics and attitudes towards Halal food products, as
well as consumers’ intentions to choose Halal cosmetics and intentions to choose Halal food products
among Malaysian consumers. Moreover, the results indicate that Malaysian consumers have more
positive attitudes and intentions towards Halal food products than towards Halal cosmetic products.
Research limitations/implications – Because the sample of the study is limited to consumers from
one country (Malaysia), it is suggested that the future studies choose their samples from consumers in
different countries.
Practical implications – The results of the study give implication to firms competing in the cosmetic
industry. Religiosity is one of the main factors that should be taken into account in promoting their
cosmetic products. Also, as the relationship between attitude and intention to choose Halal cosmetics is
similar to the relationship for Halal foods, marketers may try similar ways to promote both the products.
However, the attitude and intention to choose Halal cosmetics is still lower than Halal foods.
Social implications – The result of this study provides an insight for the Malaysian consumers to Consumers
realize whether knowledge and religiosity have any relationship towards consumers’ attitudes towards
Halal cosmetic products. The results also provide information to consumers that they are more likely to
and Halal
have stronger attitudes towards Halal food products than the cosmetic products. This study will be cosmetic
significant to the consumers, the importer and exporter, the producer and marketer and the researcher products
as well as the government.
Originality/value – This study is the first study which has assessed the antecedents and
consequence of consumers’ attitude towards Halal cosmetic products in one model. Moreover, this 149
research is among the first attempts to investigate the significant difference in Malaysian consumers’
attitude and intention between Halal cosmetic and food products.
Keywords Halal market, Islamic marketing, Islamic retail, The Muslim consumer,
Islamic pharmaceuticals, Cosmetics and toiletry, Malaysian
Paper type Research paper

1. Introduction
The Arabic word Halal means “permissible” or “lawful”, while its opposite, Haram,
means prohibited or unlawful (Alam and Sayuti, 2011b; Wilson and Liu, 2010). The
general understanding is that Halal products should not be contaminated with pork
or alcohol and that livestock should be slaughtered in accordance with the Islamic
Shariah law. Halal’s burgeoning popularity can be linked to religious fervour as well
as to beliefs that it is cleaner, healthier and tastier (Al-Harran and Low, 2008). The
realm of Halal is not solely focussed on foods but may extend to all consumables,
such as toiletries, pharmaceutical, cosmetics and services including finance,
investments and business. The global Muslim population is approximately 1.6
billion, which is equal to 23 per cent of the world’s population (Ireland and
Rajabzadeh, 2011; Lada et al., 2009; The Philippine Star, March 2014). The global
industry for Halal food and the Halal lifestyle is estimated to be worth $1.62 trillion
in 2012 and expected to reach $2.47 trillion by 2018 (State of the Global Islamic
Economy, 2013 Report). Cosmetics and personal care sector has emerged as one of
most prominent and fastest growing market. For instance, in 2012 alone, Muslim
consumers spent $26 billion on cosmetic consumption and this expenditure is
expected to grow to $39 billion by 2018 (State of the Global Islamic Economy, 2013
Report).
Although the market for Halal cosmetic products is large, most of these cosmetics
and other personal care products are made by non-Muslim manufacturers in
non-Muslim countries, which can lead to disputes about the Halalness of their
ingredients. As a result, the cosmetics and pharmaceutical sector has been the subject of
greater scrutiny by Muslim scholars due to the suspicion that many international
brands use enzymes extracted from pork meat or alcohol as a preservative, generating a
great deal of cynicism towards these brands among Muslim consumers seeking Halal
products (Mukhtar and Butt, 2012).
Previous researches discover a few interesting findings about the Halal products.
First, those people who use Halal products have a high level of loyalty to Halal brands
which is unlikely to be seriously impacted by the economic downturn (Yousef, 2010;
Ireland and Rajabzadeh, 2011). Second, non-Muslims also purchase Halal products due
to the perception that they are safer to use than non-Halal products (Hornby and Yucel,
2009; Alam and Sayuti, 2011b). Non-Muslim consumers perceive the Halal logo to
JIMA provide recognition and assurance regarding food products (Abdul Aziz and Chok,
6,1 2013). These studies, however, are on the Halal food products. Research has been sparse
with regards the cosmetics and personal care products.
Despite the importance of the Halal cosmetic market for both producers and
consumers, the existing literature focusses on Halal food products, and only a limited
number of studies exist about Halal cosmetic products (e.g. Ireland and Rajabzadeh,
150 2011; Mukhtar and Butt, 2012; Teng and Jusoh, 2013). Further, none of these studies has
assessed which variables can affect consumers’ attitudes towards Halal cosmetics.
Based on the theory of reasoned action (TRA), this study assesses the effects of
knowledge and religiosity on attitudes towards Halal cosmetics products, as well as the
effect of those attitudes on the intention to buy Halal cosmetic products. Also, based on
Ireland et al.’s (2011) research result about the United Arab Emirates (UAE) consumers,
this study investigated the existence of differences between consumers’ attitudes
towards Halal cosmetics and Halal food products as well as their intentions to choose
Halal cosmetic and Halal food.
Based on the results of this study, there is a negative relationship between knowledge
and attitude. However, the relationship between religiosity and attitude and the
relationship between attitude and intention are both positive. This study also found that
consumers’ attitudes and intentions towards choosing Halal food products are more
positive than their attitudes and intentions towards choosing Halal cosmetics.

2. Literature review and hypotheses

2.1 Theory of reasoned action
Basically, behaviour can be defined as an action, attitude or manner that an individual
engages in or possesses. The TRA is an appropriate means to explain the varieties of
behaviour. TRA was developed to better understand the relationships among attitudes,
intentions and behaviour (Fishbein, 1967). Based on TRA (Ajzen and Fishbein, 1980;
Fishbein and Ajzen, 1975), behavioural intention is posited as an immediate antecedent
of behaviour and is the result of a combination of attitudes towards behaviour, defined
as “a person’s general feeling of favourableness or unfavourableness for that behaviour”
(Ajzen and Fishbein, 1980). The first determinant can be called an attitude towards
behaviour where the personal factors are the individual’s positive or negative evaluation
of performing the behaviour. The second determinant is called a subjective norm,
defined as a person’s “perception that most people who are important to him think he
should or should not perform the behaviour in question”; as a result of subjective norms,
a person’s behaviour is influenced by social pressure (Ajzen and Fishbein, 1980). Thus,
the TRA not only measures the individual’s attitude towards an object but also accounts
for the role of reference groups in forming and reinforcing such attitudes (Lada et al.,
2009). Many studies have been conducted using the TRA to predict consumers’ buying
behaviour. According to Arshia and Mohsin (2012), the TRA is the most relevant
theoretical model in the context of Halal products. For instance, Amin (2013) and Amin
et al. (2013) have extended the used TRA within the context of Halal service through the
examination of customer preference towards Islamic credit cards.

2.2 Knowledge and attitude towards Halal cosmetic products

According to the previous studies (e.g. Bang et al., 2000; Shepherd and Towler, 1992)
knowledge has an influence on intention through attitude; hence, increasing
knowledge will be likely to influence intention. Generally, knowledge refers to the Consumers
facts, feelings or experiences known by a person or a group of people; it can also be and Halal
defined as awareness, consciousness or familiarity gained by experience or learning.
To be specific, knowledge means the expertise and skills acquired by a person or a
cosmetic
group of people through theoretical or practical understanding of a subject (Che products
Ahmat et al., 2011; Sinclair, 2010). Past research regarding knowledge has proven
that knowledge concerning organic foods has a positive influence on attitudes 151
towards those foods (e.g. Aertsens et al., 2011; Gracia, 2007; Stobbelaar et al., 2007).
However, only a few studies (Abdul Aziz and Chok, 2013; Hamdan et al., 2013) have
investigated the effect of knowledge on attitudes towards Halal food. Hamdan
et al.’s (2013) findings show that there is a weak relationship between knowledge of
Halal foods and purchasing decision. In contrast, Abdul Aziz and Chok (2013) find
that knowledge about Halal food positively relates to purchase intentions for
non-Muslim consumers. Although much has been learned regarding the influence of
knowledge on food, an understanding of whether knowledge influences attitudes
towards Halal cosmetics remains sparse. As such, it is hypothesised that:
H1. There is a positive relationship between knowledge and attitude towards Halal
cosmetic products.

2.3 Religiosity and attitude towards Halal cosmetic products

Religion refers to one’s beliefs about the absolute definitiveness and inherent truth
qualities of a religion’s teachings and scriptures (Moschis and Ong, 2011). It is a
fundamental variable that determines people’s behaviour (Alam et al., 2011a;
Berger, 1961; Mukhtar and Butt, 2012; Schneider et al., 2011) and can influence
consumers’ attitudes and behaviour (Delener, 1990, 1994; Mullen et al., 2000;
Pettinger et al., 2004; Wilkes et al., 1986). Religiosity is defined as the extent to which
an individual is committed to his religion and to which that religion is reflected in
the individual’s attitudes and behaviour (Johnson et al., 2001). In other words,
religiosity is the degree to which one is religious (De Run et al., 2010; O’Connell,
1975). Religion plays one of the most influential roles in shaping food choice in many
societies (Dindyal and Dindyal, 2003; Musaiger, 1993); its impact on food
consumption depends on the religion itself and on the extent to which individuals
interpret and follow its teachings (Bonne et al., 2008; Lada et al., 2009).
Past consumer behaviour researchers have found that there is a significant
relationship between a consumer’s religious affiliation and a number of
consumption-related variables (Mullen et al., 2000; Swimberghe et al., 2009). Although
religion has been a significant force in the lives of many individuals, its exact role in
consumer food choice is unclear (Bonne et al., 2008; Delener, 1990). Of the few studies
that have investigated food decision-making within a religious context, the most notable
ones are studies about Halal meat consumption in France and Belgium (Bonne et al.,
2007). However, these two studies focussed on food products and assessed the
relationship between attitude and intention to choose Halal meat. There is a lack of
studies investigating the relationship between religiosity and attitudes towards
cosmetic products. Since consumers have become more concerned with the Halal status
of the products they consume, this study tests the relationship between religiosity and
attitude towards Halal cosmetic products. Therefore, it is hypothesized that:
JIMA H2. There is a positive relationship between religiosity and attitude towards Halal
6,1 cosmetic products.
Also, according to the TRA, consumers’ attitudes have a positive impact on their
intentions to buy a product (Madden et al., 1992). Among the studies that have assessed
this relationship for Halal products are that of Lada et al. (2009), who found that there is
152 a positive relationship between attitude and intention to choose Halal products, and
Bonne et al. (2007, 2008), who found that there is a positive relationship between attitude
and intention to choose Halal meat. Focussing on Halal cosmetics, this study
hypothesizes that:
H3. There is a positive relationship between attitude towards Halal cosmetic
products and intention to buy Halal cosmetic products.
Based on the above discussion and the three mentioned hypotheses, a model is proposed
that considers the effects of knowledge and religiosity on attitude, as well as the
influence of consumers’ attitudes on intention to choose Halal products (see Figure 1).

2.4 Attitude and intention towards Halal cosmetics and Halal food products
A survey on consumers in the UAE and Saudi Arabia found that consumers generally
consider Halal status in terms of meat (Ireland and Rajabzadeh, 2011). Although Ireland
and Rajabzadeh (2011) found that some consumers in the UAE are also concerned about
the Halalness of other products, such as toiletries, the results of another study on the
UAE consumers (Rajagopal et al., 2011) show that most consumers never look for Halal
certification when buying cosmetic products, likely because they associate Halal with
internal consumption only. As the results were inconsistent between these two studies
on samples from the UAE, this study investigated whether there is a significant
difference in Malaysian consumers’ attitudes towards Halal cosmetic products and
towards Halal food products, as well as their intention to buy Halal cosmetic products
and Halal food products. Therefore, it is hypothesized that:
H4. There is a significant difference between attitudes towards Halal cosmetic
products and attitudes towards Halal food products.
H5. There is a significant difference between intention to buy Halal cosmetic
products and intention to buy Halal food products.

Figure 1. Knowledge
Proposed model for
attitudes and
Attitude Intention
intentions towards
Halal cosmetics,
based on the TRA
model by Ajzen and Religiosity
Fishbein (1975)
3. Methods Consumers
3.1 Sample and data and Halal
The Malaysian Government has paid paramount attention to the development of Halal
products, and the country has attempted to become a global Halal hub (Alam and Sayuti,
cosmetic
2011b; Fischer, 2008). Moreover, Malaysia has approved standards for Halal cosmetic products
products (Ireland and Rajabzadeh, 2011); therefore, Malaysia was selected as the
country in which this study was conducted. This study used a self-administrated 153
questionnaire with closed-ended questions. The questionnaire was distributed using
non-probability convenience sampling. This method is a viable alternative due to the
constraints of time, speed, costs and convenience to obtain a sufficient number of
respondents. Convenience sampling has been widely used as a sampling technique,
especially in the area of marketing research and consumer behaviour (see Alam and
Sayuti, 2011b; Bonne et al., 2007; Mukhtar and Butt, 2012; Lada et al., 2009; Hamdan
et al., 2013; Aertsens et al., 2011). Although convenience sampling was used, the
breakdown of most of the demographic characteristics of the respondents was
representative of the real population of Malaysia. At the end of data collection period, a
total of 110 usable questionnaires from Muslim respondents over the age of 18 years old
were used for further analysis. Table I shows the descriptive statistics of respondents.

3.2 Measures
Measure on knowledge, which were adapted from Golnaz et al., (2010), consisted of five
5-point Likert items aimed at showing whether respondents have enough information
pertaining to Halal matters (Cronbach’s alpha ⫽ 0.76). Measures on religiosity, adapted
from three different studies (Alam et al., 2011b; Rehman and Shabbir, 2010; Salman and
Siddiqui, 2011), also comprised five 5-point Likert scales ranging from 1 (strongly
disagree) to 5 (strongly agree), asking respondents about their commitment towards
their religion (Cronbach’s alpha ⫽ 0.81). Measures on attitudes towards Halal cosmetic
products and Halal food products were adapted from three studies (Aziz et al., 2010;
Lada et al., 2009; Salman and Siddiqui, 2011). These constructs were also measured on
five 5-point Likert scales (1 ⫽ strongly disagree to 5 ⫽ strongly agree). The Cronbach’s
alphas were 0.88 and 0.70 for attitude towards Halal cosmetics products and attitude
towards Halal food products, respectively. Finally, five 5-point Likert scales were used
to measure on consumers’ intention. The Cronbach’s alpha was 0.88 for consumers’
intention to buy Halal cosmetics products and 0.86 for consumers’ intention to buy Halal
food products. As Table II shows, all the measures were reliable, as the Cronbach’s
alphas exceed 0.70 (Nunnally, 1978).

4. Results and discussion

The results of standardized confirmatory factor analysis are reported in Table II, and
the descriptive statistics and correlation matrix are presented in Table III. All factor
loadings were significant at p ⫽ 0.001, except for knowledge 2, which has a p value of
0.003. According to Hitt et al. (1996) and Ford et al. (1986), factor loading at 0.40 and
above are routinely used in social science. As Table II shows, all factor loadings are
above 0.40, with a minimum of 0.45.
The first three hypotheses were tested using the structural equation modeling
technique. To evaluate the proposed model (see Figure 1), chi-square (␹2), Tucker–Lewis
index (TLI), comparative fit index (CFI), root mean square error of approximation
JIMA Characteristics (%)
6,1
Gender
Male 38.2
Female 61.8
Age
154 18-24 42.7
25-31 20.9
32-38 18.2
39-45 6.4
46-50 5.5
⬎ 50 6.4
Education level
SPM and Below 5.5
STPM/Diploma 17.3
Degree/Master 73.6
PhD 3.6
Formal Islamic education level
Primary school 23.6
Secondary school 44.5
University 30.9
Others 0.9
Monthly income
⬍ RM1,000 60.0
RM1,000-RM3,000 19.1
RM3,001-RM6,000 10.0
RM6,001-RM9,000 4.5
RM9,001-RM12,000 5.5
Table I. RM12,001 and above 0.9
Descriptive statistics
of respondents Note: n ⫽ 110; SPM ⫽ Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia; STPM ⫽ SIjil Tinggi Pelajaran Malaysia

(RMSEA) and standardized root mean square residual (SRMR) were used. The results of
a goodness-of-fit test for the proposed model are as follows: ␹2 ⫽ 285.832; df ⫽ 158;
p ⫽ 0.000; TLI ⫽ 0.879; CFI ⫽ 0.899; RMSEA ⫽ 0.086; SRMR ⫽ 0.0731. The p-value for
␹2 is smaller than 0.05, which indicates that the model is not correctly specified (Hopkins
and Hopkins, 1997). However, according to Wheaton et al. (1977), when the value of ␹2 is
less than five times of degrees of freedom, it indicates that the model is correctly
specified. Moreover, based on Carmines and Zeller’s (1979) suggestion, when the ratio of
␹2 to degrees of freedom is less than 3.0, a model has a good fit. Therefore, although the
p value for ␹2 is less than 0.05, the value of ␹2 is less than five times of degrees of freedom
and the value of relative ␹2 (the ratio) is less than 3.0. According to several scholars
(Byrne, 2001; Hu and Bentler, 1999; Hulland et al., 1996), values of above 0.90 for TLI and
CFI are considered representative of a well-fitting model. The TLI and CFI for our model
were close to 0.90. Finally, RMSEA is less than 0.10 (Browne and Cudeck, 1989; Byrne,
2001; Kelloway, 1998) and SRMR is less than 0.080 (Schreiber et al., 2006), which indicate
Construct Items Loading CR
Consumers
and Halal
Knowledge 1. I understand Islamic laws of Halal and Haram for food and 0.493 6.82 cosmetic
drink
2. I feel that I have sufficient knowledge of which foods and 0.903 4.75 products
drinks are forbidden by Islam
3. I have enough knowledge to differentiate between 0.684 5.24
permissible and forbidden stuffs
155
4. I know about the current issues regarding ingredients such as 0.508 5.97
E471
5. I know the difference between Halal certification for products 0.450 7.28
and Halal certification for premises
␹2(3) ⫽ 2.733, p ⫽ 0.435, TLI ⫽ 1, CFI ⫽ 1, RMSEA ⫽ 0
Cronbach’s alpha ⫽ 0.76
Religiosity 1. I happily and willingly pay my zakat on time 0.480 7.52
2. I enjoy spending time with others of my religious affiliation 0.724 5.57
3. I often participate in religious talk at mosque 0.739 5.21
4. I often read religious books and magazines 0.726 5.44
5. I often watch religious programmes on TV 0.612 6.32
␹2(2) ⫽ 0.462, p ⫽ 0.792, TLI ⫽ 1, CFI ⫽ 1, RMSEA ⫽ 0
Cronbach’s alpha ⫽ 0.81
Attitudes 1. I like to choose Halal cosmetic products 0.844 4.28
(Halal cosmetics) 2. I always look for the Halal label when I buy cosmetic 0.780 6.54
products
3. Halal cosmetic products are important 0.823 5.18
4. Using Halal cosmetic products is my own choice 0.623 7.79
5. Most people who are important to me use Halal cosmetic 0.870 4.07
products
␹2(5) ⫽ 9.242, p ⫽ 0.100, TLI ⫽ 0.972, CFI ⫽ 0.986, RMSEA ⫽ 0.088
Cronbach’s alpha ⫽ 0.88
Intentions 1. I am willing to pay more for cosmetic products with an 0.749 6.15
(Halal cosmetics) authentic Halal logo
2. I am willing to wait longer to buy cosmetic products with an 0.802 5.73
authentic Halal logo
3. I am willing to shop around to buy cosmetic products with an 0.959 4.22
authentic Halal logo
4. I am willing to travel long distances to buy cosmetic products 0.735 6.53
with an authentic Halal logo
5. I intend to purchase Halal cosmetic products in the future 0.566 7.42
␹ (2) ⫽ 2.053, p ⫽ 0.358, TLI ⫽ 0.999, CFI ⫽ 1, RMSEA ⫽ 0.016
2

Cronbach’s alpha ⫽ 0.88

Attitudes 1. I like to choose Halal food products 0.808 5.27
(Halal food) 2. I always look for the Halal label when I buy food products 0.467 8.51
3. Halal food products are important 0.674 6.68 Table II.
4. Using Halal food products is my own choice 0.486 7.75 Standardized
5. Most people who are important to me use Halal food products 0.629 7.10 confirmatory factor
(continued) loadings
JIMA Construct Items Loading CR
6,1
␹2(5) ⫽ 8.574, p ⫽ 0.127, TLI ⫽ 0.969, CFI ⫽ 0.99, RMSEA ⫽ 0.081
Cronbach’s alpha ⫽ 0.70
Intentions 1. I am willing to pay more for food products with an authentic 0.812 4.44
(Halal food) Halal logo
156 2. I am willing to wait longer to buy food products with an 0.948 4.21
authentic Halal logo
3. I am willing to shop around to buy food products with an 0.850 5.32
authentic Halal logo
4. I am willing to travel long distance to buy food products with 0.737 6.11
an authentic Halal logo
5. I intent to purchase Halal food products in the future 0.519 8.34
␹2(4) ⫽ 2.488, p ⫽ 0.647, TLI ⫽ 1, CFI ⫽ 1, RMSEA ⫽ 0
Cronbach’s alpha ⫽ 0.86

Notes: All factor loadings are significant at p ⫽ 0.001 (except knowledge 2, which has a p value of
Table II. 0.003); Average variance extracted are all above 0.5

Construct Mean SD 1 2 3 4 5

1. Knowledge 3.70 0.580 –

2. Religiosity 3.84 0.597 0.364** –
3. Attitudes (Halal cosmetics) 4.29 0.707 0.033 0.467** –
4. Attitudes (Halal food) 4.77 0.336 0.239* 0.231* 0.261** –
Table III. 5. Intentions (Halal cosmetics) 4.10 0.674 0.036 0.308** 0.653** 0.148 –
Descriptive statistics 6. Intentions (Halal food) 4.63 0.481 0.214* 0.199* 0.072 0.547** 0.348**
and correlation
matrix Notes: n ⫽ 110; ** p ⬍ 0.01; * p ⬍ 0.05

the model has a good fit. Based on the overall results of goodness-of-fit tests, it can be
concluded that the proposed model has a good fit (see Figure 2).
For the first hypothesis, this study finds an insignificant (p ⬍ 0.05) relationship
between knowledge and attitude; interestingly, the direction of this relationship is
opposite to that which has been hypothesized. This signifies that the knowledge
consumers possess pertaining to Halal matters has no influence on their attitudes

Figure 2.
The model and its Knowledge
−0.22
standardized
coefficients
Atudes Intenons
(␹2 ⫽ 285.832; df ⫽
158; p ⫽ 0.000; 0.72
TLI ⫽ 0.879; CFI ⫽
0.62
0.899; RMSEA ⫽ Religiosity
0.086; SRMR⫽
0.0731)
towards Halal cosmetic products. These findings are inconsistent with previous Consumers
studies about the relationship between knowledge and attitude. Past research and Halal
regarding knowledge found that knowledge concerning organic foods has a positive
influence on attitude towards organic foods (e.g. Aertsens et al., 2011; Gracia, 2007;
cosmetic
Stobbelaar et al., 2007). Meanwhile, Abdul Aziz and Chok (2013) have found a products
positive relationship between knowledge and intention, and Hamdan et al. (2013)
found a weak relationship between knowledge and attitude. Based on the results of these 157
previous studies, it can be concluded that consumers’ knowledge of Halal-related matters is
not significantly related to their attitudes towards Halal cosmetics. As previous studies were
conducted on Halal food, it can also be concluded that knowledge of Halal-related matters
affects attitudes towards Halal food but not towards Halal cosmetics. Comparing the
Cronbach’s alphas for knowledge in Hamdan et al. (2013), (0.711) versus the present study
(0.76) shows that our measure of knowledge has higher reliability. However, it is not possible
to add Abdul Aziz and Chok’s (2013) study to this comparison, as the sample of their study
was selected from non-Muslim consumers. To make our results more comparable to those of
Abdul Aziz and Chok (2013) and Hamdan et al. (2013), the authors tested the existence of the
relationship between knowledge and intention to buy Halal products, but no significant
relationship was found between them. The second hypothesis was supported (p ⬍ 0.001), as
a positive relationship was found between religiosity and attitude. This finding is similar to
the results of Bonne et al. (2007, 2008) studies, who found that religiosity has a positive
influence on intention to buy Halal meat.
The third hypothesis, which states that there is a positive relationship between
attitude towards Halal cosmetic products and intention to buy Halal cosmetic products,
was supported (p ⬍ 0.001). The result shows further support for the TRA and indicates
that the relationship between consumers’ attitudes and intentions regarding Halal
cosmetic products are similar to the findings of previous studies on consumers’ attitudes
towards Halal food products.
To test H4 and H5, paired-sample t-test were applied (see Tables IV and V). The
results supported the hypotheses, showing that there are significant differences
(t ⫽ ⫺7.232, p ⫽ 0.000) between consumers’ attitudes towards Halal cosmetic products

Variables Mean SD

Attitude__cosmetic 4.29 0.707

Attitude__food 4.77 0.336
Intention_cosmetic 4.10 0.674
Intention_food 4.63 0.481 Table IV.
Paired samples
Note: n ⫽ 110 statistics

Pairs t Significance (2-tailed)

Attitude_cosmetic – Attitude__food ⫺7.232 0.000

Intention_cosmetic – Intention_food ⫺8.293 0.000
Table V.
Note: n ⫽ 110 Paired samples test
JIMA and attitudes towards Halal food products, as well as between consumers’ intention to
6,1 buy Halal cosmetics and intention to buy Halal foods (t ⫽ ⫺8.293, p ⫽ 0.000). Moreover,
comparing the mean scores reveals that Malaysian consumers have more positive
attitudes and intentions towards Halal food products than towards cosmetic products.
This result is consistent with the findings of Rajagopal et al. (2011).

158 5. Conclusion
According to a Global Futures and Foresights Study, 70 per cent of the world’s
population in 2050 (which will have increased from 7 billion people today to 9 billion
people) will be born in Muslim countries (The Philippine Star, March 2014). This
provides a huge market for Halal products, and the subject of assessing the
relationship between consumers’ attitudes towards and intention to choose Halal
products has thus attracted many researchers’ attention. However, previous studies
have focussed on Halal food products, while other Halal products that are on the rise
and offer huge potential, such as cosmetic products, have been under-researched.
The few limited studies on Halal cosmetics have not assessed the influence of
possible antecedents (such as knowledge pertaining to Halal matters and religiosity)
on consumers’ attitudes towards Halal cosmetic products. By focussing on this
issue, this study investigates the impacts of knowledge and religiosity on
consumers’ attitudes towards Halal cosmetic products.
The results show that the relationship between knowledge and attitude is
insignificant, but that there is a significant positive relationship between religiosity and
attitude. Based on the results of previous studies that have found positive relationships
between knowledge and attitudes towards Halal food product, the present results
signify that consumers are paying more attention to Halal food products than to Halal
cosmetic products. These results are consistent with the findings of Hamdan et al. (2013),
who found only weak relationships between knowledge and attitudes, but inconsistent
with those of Abdul Aziz and Chok (2013), who found moderate relationships. Both
studies, however, were done on food products, not on cosmetic products. Unlike views
on Halal food, which tend to be similar across Muslim countries, attitudes towards
cosmetics vary widely. Despite having no Halal certification, some cosmetic and toiletry
companies that boast of natural ingredients in their marketing efforts have been
successful in attracting Muslim consumers, as such ingredients are in line with Muslim
values (Patton, 2009). This result may provide some explanation of why foods account
for the majority of the sales of Halal products compared to cosmetics. Halal cosmetics
and personal care products make up less than 1 per cent of the total share of Halal
products (Organic Monitor (2012). However, awareness of Halal products has now
started to spread to the areas of toiletries and cosmetics.
By using the TRA, this study assessed the relationship between consumers’ attitudes
and intentions to choose Halal cosmetic products. The findings indicate that there is a
positive relationship between these variables. Finally, this study found a significant
difference between consumers’ attitudes towards Halal cosmetics and attitudes towards
Halal food products as well as consumers’ intentions to choose Halal cosmetics and
intentions to choose Halal food products among Malaysian consumers. Moreover, the
results indicate that Malaysian consumers have more positive attitudes and intentions
towards Halal food products than towards Halal cosmetic products.
 This study offers some practical implications. First, as there is a positive relationship Consumers
between religiosity and attitude, firms should advertise their Halal cosmetic products in and Halal
a way that shows people with a high level of religiosity using Halal cosmetic products.
Second, as the relationship between attitude and intention to choose Halal cosmetics is
cosmetic
similar to the relationship for Halal foods, marketers may use similar means to promote products
these two Halal products. However, they should be aware that the consumers’ attitudes
and intentions to choose Halal foods are higher than the same for Halal cosmetics. 159
Although this research has generated new understanding and appears to be useful to
the practitioners, two main limitations of the study must be considered. First, findings
cannot be generalized to the broader community based on this study alone. This is due
to the relatively small sample size and with majority of the respondent fall within the
low-income level. Second, data from this study do not allow the researchers to test
the hypotheses on more than two different Halal products or on more than one nation.
The differences in cultural values as proposed by the theory of Product-Country Image
could significantly influence Muslim consumers’ acceptance of imported Halal food
products from different countries. As such, future research should investigate the
relationship between knowledge, religiosity, attitude and intention towards different
Halal products imported from different countries. This can help us to achieve a holistic
view of the relationship between these variables and give insights to the industry
players. The result of such a study can help academicians and practitioners to achieve a
better understanding of the factors that have effects on consumers’ attitudes and can
assist in testing the generalizability of the TRA in a more comprehensive way.

References
Abdul Aziz, Y. and Chok, N.V. (2013), “The role of Halal awareness, Halal certification, and
marketing components in determining Halal purchase intention among non-Muslims in
Malaysia: a structural equation modeling approach”, Journal of International Food and
Agribusiness Marketing, Vol. 25 No. 1, pp. 1-23.
Aertsens, J., Mondelaers, K., Verbeke, W., Buysse, J. and Van Huylenbroeck, G. (2011), “The
influence of subjective and objective knowledge on attitude, motivations and consumption
of organic food”, British Food Journal, Vol. 113 No. 11, pp. 1353-1378.
Ajzen, I. and Fishbein, M. (1980), Understanding Attitudes and Predicting Social Behavior,
Prentice-Hall, NJ.
Alam, S.S., Mohd, R. and Hisham, B. (2011a), “Is religiosity an important determinant on Muslim
consumer behaviour in Malaysia?”, Journal of Islamic Marketing, Vol. 2 No. 1, pp. 83-96.
Alam, S.S. and Sayuti, N.M. (2011b), “Applying the theory of planned behavior (TPB) in halal food
purchasing”, International Journal of Commerce and Management, Vol. 21 No. 1, pp. 8-20.
Al-Harran, S. and Low, P. (2008), “Marketing of halal products: the way forward”, Halal Journal,
available at: www.halaljournal.com
Amin, H. (2013), “Factors influencing Malaysian bank customers to choose Islamic credit cards:
empirical evidence from the TRA model”, Journal of Islamic Marketing, Vol. 4 No. 3,
pp. 245-263.
Amin, H., Abdul-Rahman, A. and Abdul-Razak, D. (2013), “An integrative approach for
understanding Islamic home financing adoption in Malaysia”, International Journal of
Bank Marketing, Vol. 31 No. 7, pp. 544-5733.
Arshia, M. and Mohsin, M. (2012), “Intention to choose halal products: the role of religiosity”,
Journal of Islamic Marketing, Vol. 3 No. 2, pp. 1-11.
JIMA Aziz, A., Amin, M. and Isa, Z. (2010), “The perception to choose halal cosmetics products: an
empirical study for Malaysian consumers”, available at: http://icbme.yasar.edu.tr/
6,1 previous_conferences/2010/e-proceeding/Azmi_AbdAziz.pdf
Bang, H.K., Ellinger, A.E., Hadjimarcou, J. and Traichal, P.A. (2000), “Consumer concern,
knowledge, belief, and attitude toward renewable energy: an application of the reasoned
action theory”, Psychology and Marketing, Vol. 17 No. 6, pp. 449-468.
160 Berger, P.L. (1961), The Noise of Solemn Assemblies: Christian Commitment and the Religious
Establishment in America, Doubleday, New York, NY.
Bonne, K., Vermeir, I., Bergeaud-Blackler, F. and Verbeke, W. (2007), “Determinants of Halal meat
consumption in France”, British Food Journal, Vol. 109 No. 5, pp. 367-386.
Bonne, K., Vermeir, I. and Verbeke, W. (2008), “Impact of religion on halal meat consumption
decision making in Belgium”, Journal of International Food and Agribusiness Marketing,
Vol. 21 No. 1, pp. 5-26.
Browne, M.W. and Cudeck, R. (1989), “Single sample cross-validation indices for covariance
structures”, Multivariate Behavioral Research, Vol. 24 No. 4, pp. 445-455.
Byrne, B.M. (2001), Structural Equation Modeling with AMOS: Basic Concepts, Applications, and
Programming, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Mahwah, NJ.
Carmines, E.G. and Zeller, R.A. (1979), Reliability and Validity Assessment, SAGE Publications,
Incorporated, Thousand Oaks, CA, Vol. 17.
Che Ahmat, N., Mohd Radzi, S., Zahari, M.S.M., Muhammad, R., Abdul Aziz, A. and Ahmad, N.A.
(2011), “The effect of factors influencing the perception of price fairness towards customer
response behaviors”, Journal of Global Management, Vol. 2 No. 1, p. 22.
De Run, E.C., Butt, M.M., Fam, K.-S. and Jong, H.Y. (2010), “Attitudes towards offensive
advertising: Malaysian Muslims’ views”, Journal of Islamic Marketing, Vol. 1 No. 1,
pp. 25-36.
Delener, N. (1990), “The effects of religious factors on perceived risk in durable goods purchase
decisions”, Journal of Consumer Marketing, Vol. 7 No. 3, pp. 27-38.
Delener, N. (1994), “Religious contrasts in consumer decision behaviour patterns: their dimensions
and marketing implications”, European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 28 No. 5, pp. 36-53.
Dindyal, S. and Dindyal, S. (2003), “How personal factors, including culture and ethnicity, affect
the choices and selection of food we make”, Internet Journal of Third World Medicine, Vol. 1
No. 2, pp. 27-33.
Fischer, J. (2008), “Religion, science and markets”, EMBO Reports, Vol. 9 No. 9, pp. 828-831.
Fishbein, M.A. (1967), Attitude and the Prediction of Behavior, In Fishbein, M. (Ed.), Readings in
attitude theory and measurement, New York: Wiley. pp. 477-492.
Fishbein, M. and Ajzen, I. (1975), Belief, Attitude, Intention, and Behavior: an Introduction to
Theory and Research, Addison-Wesley Pub., Co, Boston, MA.
Ford, J.K., MacCallum, R.C. and Tait, M. (1986), “The application of exploratory factor analysis in
applied psychology: a critical review and analysis”, Personnel Psychology, Vol. 39 No. 2,
pp. 291-314.
Golnaz, R., Zainalabidin, M., Mad Nasir, S. and Eddie Chiew, F. (2010), “Non-Muslims awareness
of Halal principles and related food products in Malaysia”, International Food Research
Journal, Vol. 17, pp. 667-674.
Gracia, A. (2007), “Organic food product purchase behaviour: a pilot study for urban consumers in
the South of Italy”, Spanish Journal of Agricultural Research, Vol. 5 No. 4, pp. 439-451.
Hamdan, H., Issa, Z.M., Abu, N. and Jusoff, K. (2013), “Purchasing decisions among Muslim Consumers
Consumers of processed halal food products”, Journal of Food Products Marketing, Vol. 19
No. 1, pp. 54-61.
and Halal
Hitt, M.A., Hoskisson, R.E., Johnson, R.A. and Moesel, D.D. (1996), “The market for corporate
cosmetic
control and firm innovation”, Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 39 No. 5, products
pp. 1084-1119.
Hopkins, W.E. and Hopkins, S.A. (1997), “Strategic planning financial performance relationships 161
in banks: a causal examination”, Strategic Management Journal, Vol. 18 No. 8, pp. 635-652.
Hornby, C. and Yucel, S. (2009), “Halal food going mainstream in Europe: Nestle”, available at:
www.reuters.com/article/2009/11/17/idINIndia-44025720091117 (accessed 15 February
2011).
Hu, L.T. and Bentler, P.M. (1999), “Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis:
conventional criteria versus new alternatives”, Structural Equation Modeling: A
Multidisciplinary Journal, Vol. 6 No. 1, pp. 1-55.
Hulland, J., Chow, Y.H. and Lam, S. (1996), “Use of causal models in marketing research: a review”,
International Journal of Research in Marketing, Vol. 13 No. 2, pp. 181-197.
Ireland, J. and Rajabzadeh, S.A. (2011), “UAE consumer concerns about halal products”, Journal of
Islamic Marketing, Vol. 2 No. 3, pp. 274-283.
Johnson, B.R., Jang, S.J., Larson, D.B. and De Li, S. (2001), “Does adolescent religious commitment
matter? A reexamination of the effects of religiosity on delinquency”, Journal of Research in
Crime and Delinquency, Vol. 38 No. 1, pp. 22-44.
Kelloway, E.K. (1998), Using LISREL for Structural Equation Modeling: A Researcher’s Guide,
SAGE Publications, Incorporated, Thousand Oaks, CA.
Lada, S., Tanakinjal, G.H. and Amin, H. (2009), “Predicting intention to choose halal products
using theory of reasoned action”, International Journal of Islamic and Middle Eastern
Finance and Management, Vol. 2 No. 1, pp. 66-76.
Madden, T.J., Ellen, P.S. and Ajzen, I. (1992), “A comparison of the theory of planned behavior and
the theory of reasoned action”, Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, Vol. 18 No. 1,
pp. 3-9.
Moschis, G.P. and Ong, F.S. (2011), “Religiosity and consumer behavior of older adults: a
study of subcultural influences in Malaysia”, Journal of Consumer Behaviour, Vol. 10
No. 1, pp. 8-17.
Mukhtar, A. and Butt, M.M. (2012), “Intention to choose Halal products: the role of religiosity”,
Journal of Islamic Marketing, Vol. 3 No. 2, pp. 108-120.
Mullen, K., Williams, R. and Hunt (2000), “Irish descent, religion and food consumption in the west
of Scotland”, Appetite, Vol. 34 No. 1, pp. 47-54.
Musaiger, A.O. (1993), “Socio-cultural and economic factors affecting food consumption patterns
in the Arab countries”, The Journal of the Royal Society for the Promotion of Health, Vol. 113
No. 2, pp. 68-74.
Nunnally, J.C. (1978), Psychometric Theory (2 ed.), McGraw-Hill Education, New York, NY.
O’Connell, B.J. (1975), “Dimensions of religiosity among Catholics”, Review of Religious Research,
Vol. 16 No. 3, pp. 198-207.
Organic Monitor (2012), “Halal cosmetics gain popularity in Asia. Organic Monitor”, available at:
www.premiumbeautynews.com/en/halal-cosmetics-gain-popularity-in,4723 (retrieved 15
Feb 2011).
JIMA Patton, D. (2009), “Could halal cosmetics be developing into a new global C and T niche market?”,
available at: www.cosmeticsbusiness.com/story.asp?storyCode⫽3706 (accessed 26 May
6,1 2013).
Pettinger, C., Holdsworth, M. and Gerber, M. (2004), “Psycho-social influences on food choice in
Southern France and Central England”, Appetite, Vol. 42 No. 3, pp. 307-316.
Rajagopal, S., Ramanan, S., Visvanathan, R. and Satapathy, S. (2011), “Halal certification:
162 implication for marketers in UAE”, Journal of Islamic Marketing, Vol. 2 No. 2, pp. 138-153.
Rehman, A.-U. and Shabbir, M.S. (2010), “The relationship between religiosity and new product
adoption”, Journal of Islamic Marketing, Vol. 1 No. 1, pp. 63-69.
Salman, F. and Siddiqui, K. (2011), “An exploratory study for measuring consumers awareness
and perc eptions towards halal food in Pakistan”, Interdisciplinary Journal of Contemporary
Research in Business, Vol. 3 No. 2, p. 639.
Schneider, H., Krieger, J. and Bayraktar, A. (2011), “The impact of intrinsic religiosity on
consumers’ ethical beliefs: does it depend on the type of religion? A comparison of Christian
and Moslem consumers in Germany and Turkey”, Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 102 No. 2,
pp. 319-332.
Schreiber, J.B., Nora, A., Stage, F.K., Barlow, E.A. and King, J. (2006), “Reporting structural
equation modeling and confirmatory factor analysis results: a review”, The Journal of
Educational Research, Vol. 99 No. 6, pp. 323-338.
Shepherd, R. and Towler, G. (1992), “Nutrition knowledge, attitudes and fat intake: application of
the theory of reasoned action”, Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics, Vol. 5 No. 6,
pp. 387-397.
Sinclair, J.M. (2010), Collins English Dictionary and Thesaurus, 2nd ed., HarperCollins, Great
Britain.
State of the Global Islamic Economy 2013 Report (2013), Available at: www.globalislamiceconomy.
com/events/global-islamic-economy-summit-2013/custom-135-e0be952045e349bd9be8a8ac150
c4f3e.aspx (accessed 2 September 2014).
Stobbelaar, D.J., Casimir, G., Borghuis, J., Marks, I., Meijer, L. and Zebeda, S. (2007), “Adolescents’
attitudes towards organic food: a survey of 15 to 16 year old school children”, International
Journal of Consumer Studies, Vol. 31 No. 4, pp. 349-356.
Swimberghe, K., Sharma, D. and Flurry, L. (2009), “An exploratory investigation of the consumer
religious commitment and its influence on store loyalty and consumer complaint
intentions”, Journal of Consumer Marketing, Vol. 26 No. 5, pp. 340-347.
Teng, P.K. and Jusoh, W.J.W. (2013), “Investigating students awareness and usage intention
towards halal labelled cosmetics and personal care products in Malaysia”, presented at the
International Conference on Business and Economic Research, Indonesia, 4-5 March,
Bandung, Indonesia, available at: www.internationalconference.com.my/proceeding/4
thicber_proceeding/030_147_4thICBER2013_Proceeding_p0367.pdf
The philippine Star (2014), Available at: www.philstar.com/business/2014/03/14/1300813/
demand-grows-halal-food-industry-evolves (accessed 15 April 2014, from).
Wheaton, B., Muthen, B., Alwin, D. and Summers, G. (1977), “Assessing reliability and stability in
panel Economics”, in Heise, D. (Ed.), Sociological Methodology, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco,
CA.
Wilkes, R.E., Burnett, J.J. and Howell, R.D. (1986), “On the meaning and measurement of religiosity
in consumer research”, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Vol. 14 No. 1,
pp. 47-56.
Wilson, J.A.J. and Liu, J. (2010), “Shaping the Halal into a brand?”, Journal of Islamic Marketing, Consumers
Vol. 1 No. 2, pp. 107-123.
and Halal
Yousef, D.K. (2010), “Halal food numbers look tasty”, Gulf News, 8 September.
cosmetic
Further reading products
Di Foggia, G., Ferrari, S., Lazzarotti, V. and Pizzurno, E. (2007), “Innovation Process for halal
product development: an empirical analysis of Italian firms”, Management Research and 163
Practice, Vol. 3 No. 1, pp. 27-47.

About the authors

Azmawani Abd Rahman is an Associate professor and Deputy Dean for Research and Graduate
Studies at Faculty of Economics and Management, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM). Her research
interests are in the areas of advanced manufacturing technology management, Halal product and
Tourism supply chain management and Organizational culture. Azmawani Abd Rahman is the
corresponding author and can be contacted at: azar@upm.edu.my
Ebrahim Asrarhaghighi was born in Tehran, Iran. He is currently pursuing his PhD at Putra
Business School, Universiti Putra Malaysia. His current research interest includes marketing,
global strategy and economic development.
Suhaimi Ab Rahman is a Senior Lecturer at Faculty of Economics and Management and an
affiliate member of Halal Institute, Universiti Putra Malaysia. His research focussed on the right
of guarantor in a secured transaction. His current research interests include the Halal product
laws, policy and management.

For instructions on how to order reprints of this article, please visit our website:
www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com/licensing/reprints.htm
Or contact us for further details: permissions@emeraldinsight.com
Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without
permission.