| The study objective is to compare and analyze consumers' perceptions of pure goods (PG), good-service combinations (GS), and pure services (PS) in terms of six product characteristics, product involvement, the relationship between product familiarity and perceived risk, and the importance of four evaluative criteria.;Three pretests were undertaken. The first pretest assisted in selecting the evaluative criteria used in the study. The second pretest focused on validating the product typology using two different classification methods with two independent samples. The third pretest established the reliability (internal consistency) and construct validity of the involvement scale developed for the study.;A cross-sectional sample of 436 heads of household from the New York Metropolitan Area and the surrounding suburbs was contacted in person. A total of 352 questionnaires were returned, from which 326 were usable.;MANOVA and ANOVA F-tests were performed. The LSD method was used to examine mean product differences. Five measures of association were employed to examine the product familiarity/perceived risk relationship.;It was hypothesized that subjects would perceive higher degrees of all characteristics, attach more importance to all evaluative criteria, and be more involved with both PS and GS than with PG. Differences between PS and GS were hypothesized to be insignificant. Product familiarity was hypothesized to relate inversely to perceived risk for all three product classes, but the magnitude of this relationship was hypothesized to be greater for PS and GS than for PG.;The findings indicate that PS and GS means both were significantly higher than PG means for all product characteristics, evaluative criteria, and involvement. However, GS means were found, in the most part, significantly higher than PS means. Product familiarity and perceived risk were found positively related, but the magnitude of the relationship was as expected.;In general, the study findings provide strong empirical support for several conceptual relationships proposed in the marketing literature about consumer choice among product classes. Additionally, they signal the saliency of good-service combinations as a product class that should be distinguished not only from pure goods, but also from pure services conceptually as well as strategically. |
