To read this content please select one of the options below:

Profiling Kuwaiti female apparel consumers: Self-identity, social interactions, and prestige consumption

Mohamed M. Mostafa (Gulf University for Science and Technology, West Mishref, Kuwait)

International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy

ISSN: 0144-333X

Article publication date: 16 October 2018

Issue publication date: 22 February 2019

626

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine female fashion consumer profiles in Kuwait. Drawing on symbolic interactionist, fashion adoption theory, the trickle-down theory, the collective selection theory and the mass-market theory, this study examines the influence of self-identity, social interactions and prestige consumption on Kuwait female apparel consumers.

Design/methodology/approach

The study applies self-organizing maps (SOM), discriminant and multiple correspondence analyses to analyze the influence of self-identity, social interaction and prestige consumption on Kuwaiti female apparel consumers.

Findings

Results unveiled three distinct clusters: liberals, traditionalists and conservatives. Liberals include students, singles with a low income, less than KD 500. They are younger and wear neither Abaya nor Hijab. Traditionalists include employees, mixed between married and divorced females. They have moderate income between KD 500–1,500, two age groups between 25–30 and 31–35 years. Finally, conservatives include older females of age 36–45 years. They are housewives with a high-income of more than KD 1,500, and wear both Abaya and Hijab. Findings seem to confirm that the younger generations of females in Kuwait are by far living a different life than their mothers and grandmothers. Findings also show that culture, especially religion and traditions, is still exercising an enduring influence on Kuwaiti females purchasing behavior.

Originality/value

This study extends the existing literature dealing with female apparel consumption by applying cluster analysis to an Arab country, which makes it possible to generalize results to other Arab nations. Second, the author uses SOM along with traditional clustering methods to check the robustness of findings.

Keywords

Citation

Mostafa, M.M. (2019), "Profiling Kuwaiti female apparel consumers: Self-identity, social interactions, and prestige consumption", International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, Vol. 39 No. 1/2, pp. 98-117. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSSP-06-2018-0109

Publisher

:

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2018, Emerald Publishing Limited

Related articles