Cross-disciplinary issues in international marketing: a systematic literature review on international marketing and ethical issues

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to discuss the evolution of the cross-disciplinary area of ethics and international marketing and to highlight the current and future scope of research in this area.Design/methodology/approachThe authors conducted a systematic literature review (SLR) of research papers from reputed journals which publish articles in this cross-disciplinary subject area. This paper especially investigates the perception, issues, concepts and theories used in ethics and international marketing. Scopus and Web of Science databases were primarily used to select the articles.FindingsThe paper highlights the importance of cross-disciplinary research in the areas of ethics and international marketing. The study also shows different kinds of research work published in this area between 1994 and 2020. Also, the study shows that the maximum research has been conducted in the USA and the UK. Finally, the paper also highlights the major theories that different authors have used in this interdisciplinary area.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper does not discuss other complex areas of cross-disciplinary international marketing other than ethics and international marketing. The paper omits the literature from books, stand-alone nonindexed journals, etc. Also, the paper has only used the Web of Science and Scopus databases.Practical implicationsThe study argues the importance of ethics in international marketing. The study also provides inputs to the international marketers so that they can successfully address the complex challenges in the cross-disciplinary area of ethics and international marketing. The study also helps marketers to rethink their approaches on international marketing ethics.Originality/valueThis may be one of the few studies in the cross-disciplinary area of ethics and international marketing. This paper can open avenues and influence other researchers to study the cross-disciplinary areas of marketing.

How do controversial foreign country images affect consumers?

“…After 40+ years of country‐of‐origin research, important questions remain regarding ‘how, when, and why’ country image becomes an influencing factor for (anti‐)consumption decisions (Chatterjee et al, 2021; Insch et al, 2017). Overall, the findings of this study shed light on potential mechanisms that underlie (macro) country image influences on two major cognitive and affective determinants of consumer responses to foreign products: (micro) foreign product judgements and (macro) consumer animosity (Diamantopoulos et al, 2020; Kock et al, 2019).…”

“…There is consensus that country cues affect people's consumption and anti‐consumption of foreign products (Ortega‐Egea & García‐de‐Frutos, 2021). However, country‐of‐origin effects have not been fully elucidated yet; important questions remain regarding ‘how, when, and why’ foreign country information becomes more influential (Chatterjee et al, 2021; Insch et al, 2017), particularly in relation to negative or controversial issues affecting consumer views of foreign countries and products. The latter is important in open Western economies, where emerging manufacturing countries and industries have been the subject of much public criticism regarding questionable policies and practices (Chatterjee et al, 2021; Dekhili et al, 2021; McNeill & Moore, 2015).…”

“…China and apparel are, respectively, the country‐of‐origin and product category of interest in this study. These have been controversial in Western markets, with criticism rooted in the offshoring of apparel manufacturing to China (Chatterjee et al, 2021; Morgan & Birtwistle, 2009) and the public visibility of poor working and environmental conditions in the Chinese apparel sector (Dekhili et al, 2021; McNeill & Moore, 2015). Such criticism is also present in the Spanish market, where the prominence of Chinese textile stores coupled with increased consumer attention to the origin and manufacturing conditions of products, has turned China into a controversial origin country of apparel (Ortega‐Egea & García‐de‐Frutos, 2021).…”

Adoption of Ubiquitous CRM for Operational Sustainability of the Firms: Moderating Role of Technology Turbulence

“…It has been observed that by improving the absorptive capacity and dynamic capability, a firm can improve its operational performance [26,27]. Operational performance is referred to as the net outcome of a firm's overall processes and practices, including production cycle time, reliability, as well as inventory turnover, which involves measure of market share and satisfaction level of the customers [28][29][30].…”

Investigating the employee’s customer orientation behaviour: a comparison of the circumstances before and after the pandemic from policy perspective

“…It is theoretically and practically important to contrast the consequences of jay customers and abusive supervision on service workers burnout and customer orientation before and during the pandemic (Sheshadri, 2020; Rana et al , 2021). Determining if the negative impacts of workplace interpersonal stressors are exacerbated during COVID-19 can help to our understanding of workplace interpersonal stressors by positing the unprecedented pandemic as a boundary condition for such stressors from a theoretical perspective (Rana and Sheshadri, 2021; Sakka et al , 2021a). It also has ramifications for service companies attempting to address the pressures that FSEs face at work.…”