Abstract
Purpose - This study examines how perceived benefits and costs of traditional market support affect relationship quality and support for a marketeer. In addition, it investigates whether support for traditional market aid programs leads to support for the government. The author developed a structural model comprising several variables, in which perceived benefits and costs comprising economic, social, and environmental costs were proposed, to affect the relationship quality (satisfaction and trust) of traditional market aid programs and the government. Consequently, marketeers satisfied and trusted by traditional market aid programs and the government would support the traditional market aid program, resulting in higher support for the government. The model proposed that customer satisfaction would improve customer loyalty and business performance. Thus, the relationship quality (satisfaction and trust) of the traditional market aid program and government was proposed as a core mediating variable between perceived benefits and costs and support. Research design, data, and methodology - To analyze the proposed model, this study investigates the scenario with a traditional marketeer. Data were collected from 331 respondents, and analyzed with SPSS/PC 18.0 and AMOS 18.0. To test the unidimensionality and nomological validity of the measures of each construct, we employed a scale refinement procedure. The result of the reliability test with Cronbach's and confirmatory factor analysis warranted unidimensionality of the measures for each construct. In addition, nomological validity of the measures was warranted from the result of correlation analysis. Results - First, perceived benefit affects the relationship quality of traditional market aid programs and government. Second, perceived costs affect the satisfaction of traditional market aid programs and government. Third, the relationship quality of a traditional market aid program affects the support of a traditional market aid program, and the relationship quality of government affects the support of government. Finally, the support of traditional market aid program affects support of government. The results confirm the findings of previous studies that local development positively influences support, based on the social exchange theory. Conclusions - The theoretical and managerial contributions of this study are as follows. First, it is the first such study, and defines mediating variables, analyzing relationship quality (satisfaction and trust) between perceived benefits and costs and support for the traditional market industry. Further, it investigates the structural relationships between them with the AMOS program. Second, while most previous studies investigating the relationship between similar variables and those of the present study analyzed how perceived benefits and costs influenced support, this study identified the transfer relationship between the support for traditional market programs and support for the government. This study confirms that support for traditional market aid program increases support for the government. Therefore, government policy makers for traditional market aid programs should explain to marketeers the benefits and costs of traditional market development in terms of economic, social, and environmental factors. At the end, limitations, further research directions, and implications are suggested.