Examining Customer Purchase Intentions for Counterfeit Products Based on a Modified Theory of Planned Behavior

Counterfeits consumption has recently attracted considerable attention. This study examines factors affecting consumer purchase intention for counterfeit products. Specially, this study takes Vietnam, a developing country where consumer behavior is being affected by rising living standard, as a research object. Based on the Theory of Planned Behavior of Ajzen with the additional factor of perceived financial control, it is hoped that an improved framework can be obtained for predicting customer intention to purchase counterfeits. The hypotheses were tested via Structural Equation Modeling technique. The results indicated that subjective norms exert the greatest impact on customer intention to purchase counterfeits, while additional factor of perceived financial control negatively affects intentions. This investigation can help marketers and policy makers understand the key influences on consumer behavior towards counterfeits and thus to create effective marketing campaigns and anti-piracy strategies.