The Epic of Korean Wave: Purchase Intention Towards Korean Products Among Generation Y

The South Korean entertainment industry started to influence the entertainment world in the end of the 20th century. The impact of this ever-growing popularity of South Korean entertainment is significant and visible in many aspects, which include the purchase of Korean products and services among consumers. Due mainly to this global phenomenon, there are huge economic effects in South Korea. This research aims to study Malaysia’s Generation Y attitude towards South Korean entertainment and their purchase intention of Korean products. More specifically, this study examines the roles of psychological factors and social factors in this relationship. There were 200 usable questionnaires were collected in 2018 and the analysis shows that attitude towards Korean media and Korean celebrities affect consumers’ purchase intention. On the contrary, social influence was found to be insignificant in affecting purchase intention. This study gives an insight to the marketers on how they can plan the celebrities’ endorsement strategies to communicate and persuade the Generation Y in Malaysia