The motivations of Chinese students consuming luxuries

The purpose of this study is to investigate when Chinese traditional values are taken into consideration: to what extent do purchase motivations influence luxury purchase of Chinese students? There were 142 students participated in this research and they gave their valuable feedback in completing this study. The study focuses on motivations. Social-oriented and personal-oriented motivations are measured by five-point Likert scales. The research scope encompasses motivations of luxury consumption and Chinese traditional values as motivators. The results show that there are differences in the status motivation between domestic and overseas groups; and there are no differences in the uniqueness motivation, the conformity motivation, the hedonic motivation, and the quality motivation between the domestic and overseas groups. Three regression models reveal that for the Chinese domestic group, social-oriented motivations are more influential, while for the overseas group, personal-oriented motivations are more prominent. Contrary to traditional marketing perception of Chinese consumers, the status motivation fails to be a significant motivator in the overall model, while the hedonic motivation unexpectedly turns out to be significant. These results reflect the changes over time in younger generations in China society.