Personal taste and family face: Luxury consumption in Confucian and western societies

East Asia is currently the biggest market for luxury and prestige brands from the West. This article examines the cultural factors that lie behind this phenomenon and, based on distinctions between Southeast Asian and Western cultures, explores how the practice of luxury consumption differs in these cultures. As part of this examination, self-concept theory is reviewed and integrated in a cross-cultural consumption model. Conceptual linkages between existing theories of materialism and conspicuous consumption are noted. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.