Factors affecting mobile phone repurchase behavior of American and Turkish university students

Abstract

The positive impact of mobile phones on individuals’ lives has been increasing day by day. When people firstly met with mobile phones, the most advantageous feature of these devices was being able to communicate with anyone, anytime, anywhere. However, as technology evolved and people’s needs changed, mobile phone producers started to introduce models with additional features converting the mobile phone into a hand-held computer by which its users can surf the Internet, send picture messages, listen to music and pursue other extra activities. Though there are cultural, psychological, emotional, and demographic differences between people and thus, every individual has some hesitations and motivations before purchasing a product. In this respect, since mobile phone penetration worldwide reached almost ninety percent, this study aims to examine the reasons behind mobile phone repurchase behavior – purchase of a new mobile phone. Descriptive data was collected both manually and online from 177 respondents who were asked to fill out a questionnaire seeking out the factors affecting mobile phone repurchase behavior. The questionnaire was applied to 58 US students and 119 Turkish students. The data was analyzed by using descriptive, ANOVA, and t-test analyses. Moreover, exploratory data was obtained via in-depth interviews held with mobile phone operators and users in Turkey. Findings of the study illustrate that the US and Turkish consumers differed in their innovativeness and involvement level, features, entertainment, and price-consciousness dimensions. Furthermore, while the US mobile phone users in the sample, who seek ways for entertainment and who are more involved in mobile phones, are more likely to purchase a new mobile phone in the near future; Turkish mobile phone users accompany their peers only in entertainment dimension. Additionally, Turkish students that value fashion and are interested in features are more likely to purchase a new mobile phone in the near future. Consequently, the US and Turkish students have some common values and motivators that lead to purchasing a new mobile phone whilst some influencing factors are dissimilar.