RELIABILITY AND VALIDITY OF THE TURKISH VERSION OF SHORT FORM CONSUMER NEED FOR UNIQUENESS SCALE

Abstract

Individuals have the desire to differentiate themselves, at least to some extent, from those in their immediate surroundings. This need to stand out from others is often satisfied through the adoption of unique hobbies or by consuming distinct products etc. The concept of Consumer need for uniqueness in marketing literature is concerned with the latter form of differentiation, specifically the motivation to consume products that set the individual apart from their peers. In the literature, the concept is measured through scales of varying lengths and types. It is important to examine the validity and reliability of this scales across different cultures, as cultural differences are likely to impact the underlying structure of the concept. In consideration of the benefits of shorter scales, we sought to adapt the short version of the consumer need for uniqueness scale (CNFU-s), developed by Ruvio et al. (2008), to the Turkish context, and to assess its validity and reliability. To that end, we tested the factor structure (via confirmatory factor analysis), construct validity (through relationships with other constructs), and reliability (internal consistency) of the Turkish CNFU-s. Additionally, to examine the relationship between the CNFU-s and other constructs, we investigated the relationship between market mavenism and status consumption, which according to the literature, were expected to have a positive correlation with the CNFU-s (N = 742). The results of the study showed that the factor structure of the Turkish CNFU-s was compatible with the long-original version and the values of fit indices were within acceptable levels. The internal consistency of the CNFU-s was calculated as .89, indicating that the reliability of the scale was at a satisfactory level. As expected, the CNFU-s was positively associated with market mavenism (r = 0.17) and status consumption (r = 0.23). In conclusion, the Turkish version of the CNFU-s is a measurement tool with evidence to support its psychometric properties and can be utilized in future research studies with Turkish samples.