Abstract
Increasing global migration has transformed many societies into multicultural environments and created new opportunities for intercultural exchange and market expansion. Although diaspora communities are increasingly recognised for their role in international business and cross-cultural interaction, existing research has largely examined them as target markets rather than as actors who may influence mainstream consumers in host societies. At the same time, acculturation research has traditionally focused on the cultural adaptation of minority groups, paying limited attention to the reciprocal dynamics between minority and majority members. Furthermore, little research has explored how material consumption, particularly culturally mixed food products, may shape intercultural perceptions and acculturation processes.
Addressing these gaps, this thesis investigates culturally mixed products as a form of soft cultural power that may facilitate intercultural exchange between diaspora and local majority-group consumers. Drawing on Social Identity Theory and literature on cultural mixing and acculturation, the study examines how exposure to culturally mixed products influences consumers’ perceptions of outgroup cultures, their responses to cultural integration, and their acculturation orientations. Empirical data were collected through a quantitative experiment conducted on CloudResearch with Vietnamese diaspora and White American consumers in the United States. Using a 2 (Brand) × 2 (Product) × 2 (Consumer) between-subjects factorial design across three replications (N = 407), participants evaluated mock press releases announcing a new product launch in the U.S. market. The findings show that consumers exhibit dual responses toward culturally mixed products. A "home-culture foreign-culture" mixing strategy generated higher perceived creativity, stronger cultural enrichment, and more favourable product evaluations than the reverse strategy, while "foreign-culture home-culture" combinations produced slightly higher perceptions of intrusion and cultural threat. Diaspora consumers preferred home-culture monocultural products, reflecting the salience of cultural identity, whereas local majority-group consumers responded positively to foreign monocultural offerings, suggesting openness to cultural novelty. The results further indicate that favourable evaluations of culturally mixed products are associated with greater cultural respect and stronger integrative acculturation orientations.
This research advances cultural mixing and acculturation literature by demonstrating the robustness of dual responses across minority and majority consumers, highlighting the importance of monocultural baselines, and introducing cultural respect and acculturation orientation as outcomes of culturally mixed consumption. By conceptualizing culturally mixed products as potential material acculturation agents, the study extends acculturation theory beyond interpersonal contact to include symbolic consumption experiences. The findings also provide practical insights for brands seeking to enter multicultural markets by leveraging respectful cultural integration and diaspora communities as potential bridgeheads for broader market acceptance.