Purpose: This study aims to investigate the impact of consumer animosity (CA) in the context of international marketing, with a specific focus on Iranian consumers’ attitudes toward American products. Given the longstanding political and military tensions between Iran and the United States, this research examines whether national-level animosity translates into individual-level negative purchasing behavior. Furthermore, the study explores the moderating roles of brand image, product importance, and product necessity in mitigating or intensifying the CA–PI relationship—addressing a critical gap in the literature regarding boundary conditions of animosity effects in emerging and politically sensitive markets.
Design/Methodology/Approach: Using a descriptive-survey research design, data were collected from a convenience sample of 393 students at Payame Noor University across Iran. A standardized questionnaire was employed to measure the core constructs: consumer animosity (operationalized through economic and war-related dimensions), purchase intention (PI), brand image, and product necessity/importance. The measurement scales were adapted from well-established instruments in international marketing literature, including the animosity scale by Klein et al. (1998) and the brand image scale by Yoo and Donthu (2001). Data were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) via SmartPLS software, chosen for its robustness in handling complex models with hierarchical constructs, non-normal data, and relatively small sample sizes. The reflective measurement model was assessed for reliability (composite reliability ≥ 0.7), convergent validity (Average Variance Extracted ≥ 0.5), and discriminant validity (Fornell & Larcker, 1981). Hypotheses were tested using bootstrapping with 500 resamples to obtain t-values and p-values. For the second-order construct of consumer animosity, the repeated indicator approach (Lohmöller, 1989) was applied.
Findings: The findings reveal that consumer animosity exerts a significant negative effect on purchase intention (β = –0.37, p < 0.001), confirming that negative sentiments toward the U.S. directly reduce Iranian consumers’ willingness to buy American products. This aligns with the animosity model and validates its applicability in the Iranian socio-political context. More importantly, brand image was found to significantly moderate this relationship (β = 0.21, p < 0.001), indicating that strong, positive brand perceptions can buffer the adverse impact of animosity. This suggests that global brands with high equity and consistent quality may transcend political hostilities. In contrast, product importance and necessity did not demonstrate a significant moderating effect (β = –0.02, p > 0.05), implying that even essential products are not immune to animosity-driven avoidance—a finding consistent with Bahaee and Pisani’s (2009) earlier work in Iran.
Discussion and Conclusion: In the discussion and conclusion, the results are contextualized within recent global trends. Despite relatively low baseline animosity levels among the student sample, the study demonstrates that political tensions still permeate consumer behavior, albeit partially. The moderating role of brand image underscores the strategic value of brand-building in hostile markets: global brands that emphasize universal values, quality consistency, and emotional resonance can insulate themselves from geopolitical volatility. This finding resonates with recent research by Swaidan and Al Khatib (2023), who identified “perceived brand globalness” as a shield against animosity. However, the non-significant role of product necessity highlights the dominance of emotional and identity-driven factors over utilitarian considerations in animosity contexts. The study is not without limitations: the sample’s demographic homogeneity (university students) may limit generalizability, and the model does not account for situational triggers such as social media campaigns or recent political events that may amplify animosity dynamically.
In sum, this research contributes theoretically by extending the animosity framework to an understudied market and empirically by validating the protective role of brand image. Practically, it offers actionable insights for international brand managers: in politically tense environments, investing in strong, consistent brand imagery can serve as a powerful counterweight to national animosities. Future studies should explore animosity in digital contexts (e.g., social media boycotts), diversify samples across age and income groups, and incorporate additional moderators such as consumer cosmopolitanism or national identity strength.