Consumer attitudes towards counterfeit product in Terengganu, Malaysia

Counterfeiting is a prevalent phenomenon in the global market and has become a significant concern worldwide. This problem affects many industries and poses a significant threat to consumers' health and safety, damaging businesses' reputations and harming the economy. Despite efforts to combat the problem, the growth of counterfeit trade is still rampant. The purpose of this study is to examine consumer attitudes towards counterfeit product. This research focuses on counterfeit fashion and accessories, which topped the counterfeited product ranking worldwide. Guided by the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA), the objective of this research was to investigate the significance of the relationship between religiosity, ethical concern, novelty seeking, purchase intention, and the mediating effects of attitude towards counterfeit products. This study involved 250 respondents from the state of Terengganu, Malaysia, and was analyzed using SPSS 25 and PROCESS. A total of 10 hypotheses were developed, and two were not supported. The results showed that ethical concern has a significant negative relationship with purchase intention, and novelty seeking has a significant positive relationship with purchase intention. Besides, ethical concern has a significant negative relationship with attitude towards counterfeit products, and novelty seeking has a significant positive relationship with attitude towards counterfeit products. However, the religiosity relationship with purchase intention and attitudes towards counterfeit products are rejected as they show a significant positive relationship. Attitude toward counterfeit products was found to be significant as a predictor of purchase intention and as a mediator between all the independent variables on intention to purchase counterfeit products. The study answered all the research questions and fulfilled its objectives, thus supporting the idea of TRA on consumer purchase intention towards counterfeit products.