"Consumer Animosity, Host Dominance, and International Joint Venture: A Cross-Country Investigation".

This study investigates the effect of host dominance-the visibility of the local firm's ownership and brand in an international joint venture (IJV) on consumer attitudes and purchase intentions toward the IJV in an animosity context. Two experiments were conducted in two host countries with varying animosity levels toward the home country of a foreign entrant. Experiment 1 examined consumer attitudes toward the IJV and purchase intentions toward products launched through two IJV ownership modes (majority IJV and minority IJV). Experiment 2 further examined consumer attitudes and purchase intentions toward an equal- equity IJV subsidiary adopting a co-brand with different brand orders (Foreign-Local [F-L]) and Local-Foreign [L-F]). Results show that in a high-animosity host country, consumers favor an IJV ownership mode and with a brand having higher host dominance. In a low-animosity host country, the IJV ownership mode and brand order have no effect. The results highlight the mediating role of attitudes toward the IJV in determining the purchase intentions of IJV products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]