Examining Mainstream Consumers' Reactions toward Ethnic-Targeting Services

The populations in many countries are becoming increasingly ethnically diverse. As a result, many businesses have begun to provide services specifically targeting ethnic consumers. Though previous research has studied ethnic consumers' reactions toward these ethnic-targeting services, little research examines mainstream consumers' reactions to these marketing efforts. In my dissertation, through seven studies, I investigate how mainstream consumers react toward ethnic-targeting services. I predict and find that, 1) mainstream consumers prefer services simultaneously targeting multiple ethnic groups over services exclusively targeting a single ethnic group; 2) among services targeting different single ethnic groups, consumers living in ethnically heterogeneous areas react toward them indifferently, whereas mainstream consumers in ethnically homogeneous areas favor one over another; 3) consumers react indifferently toward services containing subtle or salient ethnic cultural factors; 4) mainstream consumers in different countries show different reaction patterns; 5) cosmopolitanism (COS), consumer ethnocentrism (CE), and national identity strength (NI) predict mainstream consumers' reactions toward ethnic-targeting services; 6) ethnic consumers react more favorably toward services targeting their ethnic groups, but their ethnic identity strength does not affect their reactions; and 7) mainstream consumers high on COS are more tolerant when they are personally negatively affected by ethnic-targeting services.