Analysis of International Students’ Consumption Behavior：Evidence from EMU/TRNC

This study investigates the international students’ purchasing behavior in Eastern Mediterranean University (EMU), applying Chan’s (2005), the consumer behavior model. Consumer behavior is the study of when, why, how, and where people do or do not buy a product. It has sociological, psychological and economic dimensions and elements. It attempts to understand the consumer decision-making process, both individually and in groups (Jayaraj, 2017). Consumer behavior research is based on consumer buying behavior, with consumers playing the role of users, payers and buyers (Jayaraj, 2017). This study employed the constructs of demographic characteristics including age, gender, educational level, monthly income, length of residency in TRNC and nationality. This study also aimed to understand the international students’ consumer behavior in relation to promotion, product, price, quality, environmental characteristics, logistics, as well as, considering the online shopping behavior. For the purpose of this research, a survey questionnaire was administered to about 201 international students. The survey instrument contained demographic information and 31 measurement items. For the purpose of data analysis, SPSS (version 20.0.0) was utilized. The study revealed that international students’ consumer behavior is influenced by environmental characteristics, promotion, product, price, quality, logistics and access to online shopping. Study also revealed that different age groups are responding to the influencers differently. The gender differences, as the study showed, demonstrated different behavior in shopping decisions. The implications and limitations has also been discussed. Keywords: consumer behavior, international students, shopping decisions, environmental characteristics, promotion, product, price, quality, online shopping, logistics.