CONSUMER BEHAVIORS OF MEAT WITH TRACEABILITY
IN THAILAND: THE PSYCHOLOGICAL MECHANISM

CONSUMER BEHAVIORS OF MEAT WITH TRACEABILITY
IN THAILAND: THE PSYCHOLOGICAL MECHANISM

CONSUMER BEHAVIORS OF MEAT WITH TRACEABILITY
IN THAILAND: THE PSYCHOLOGICAL MECHANISM

Since the outbreak of mad cow disease and avian flu, consumers have become more
concerned about safety issues of meat products. Therefore, meat traceability is now
used as a strategic tool to cope with this food safety crisis. In Thailand, traceability is
rarely managed as a marketing tool to persuade consumers who are meat end
users. Consequently, to explore the possibility and effectiveness of this strategic
approach, thisstudy aimsto investigate the psychological mechanism in perception of
the meat traceability system. The results from the study reveal that product class
knowledge and perceived informativeness of traceability system have negative
influence on fear for seller opportunism which, in turn, has positive influence on
perceived uncertainty of the purchase of meat with traceability system. Although
perceived informativeness of traceability also has a direct impact on perceived
uncertainty, fear for seller opportunism appears to have a mediating role in this set of
relationships. A number of research implications and future study directions are
offered at the end of this study report.

Nathamon Buaprommee, Khon kaen University, Thailand
Kawpong Polyora, Khon Kaen University, Thailand