Language and Consumer Memory：The impact of Linguis.pdf

Language and Consumer Memory: The Impact of Linguistic Differences between Chinese and English 3ERND H. SCHMITT /IGANG PAN MADER T. TAVASSOLI* Languages of the Asia-Pacific region, such as Chinese, are based on ideographic writing systems which are radically different from the alphabetic systems used in Westem languages, such as English. We propose that structural differences between Chinese and English affect mental representations which, in turn , influence consumer memory of verbal infomiation . Specifically, unaided brand recall should be differentially affected in Chinese and English when it is spoken compared with when it is written . Furthermore, recognition should be differentially affected in Chinese and English when brand names are learned auditorily compared with when they are learned visually. Results of a cross-cultural experiment conducted in China and in the United States confirm predictions for unaided brand recall and partially confirm predictions for recognition. [n this age of globalization, understanding the simi- ward a consumer society (Business Week 1993; Inter- larities and differences in the behavior of consumers national Herald Tribune 1994). At the same time