Consumer Behavior During the Covid-19 Pandemic: The Importance of Collectivist Orientation

Abstract

Purpose – The COVID-19 pandemic changed people's patterns of work and consumption substantially. This paper examines how cultural orientations and personality traits relate to adjustments in consumer behavior during COVID-19. Specifically, it considers whether in-dividualism/collectivism, neuroticism, and collective self-esteem can help explain local food buying and stockpiling behavior. Design/Methodology/Approach – A total of 187 consumers participated in this research, with data collection taking place during the first COVID-19 lockdown in Croatia from March to May 2020. Findings and implications – Consumers with higher horizontal collectivism engaged in local food buying more than those with lower horizontal collectivism. Horizontal collectivism and, to a lesser extent, neuroticism predicted stockpiling behavior. Collective self-esteem moderated the relationship between horizontal collectivism and stockpiling, and between neuroticism and local food buying. Fostering a sense of collective identity and emphasizing collectivist values may be a fruitful marketing strategy as a response to marketplace disrup-tions during a crisis. Limitations – The study draws on a convenience sample of students and their household members, thereby lim-iting the generalizability of the study. Originality – This paper uncovers the ways in which so-cio-cultural and personality-related psychological constructs relate to local food buying and stockpiling behavior while also highlighting the importance of cultural orientation for explaining consumer behavior during a major crisis. © 2022, University of Zagreb, Faculty of Economics and Business Zagreb. All rights reserved.