Effects of Hallyu on Chinese Consumers: A Focus on Remote Acculturation

Abstract

Remote acculturation is a modern form of non-immigrant acculturation, which has primarily been used to investigate local people’s acculturation toward one or more foreign cultures. It has been approximately 30 years since the introduction of the first Korean TV drama Jealousy into China in 1993, and China is the birthplace of the Chinese term of Hallyu. Chinese people have experienced a long-term and far-reaching impact of Hallyu and Korean culture. Hence, this paper aims to investigate the effects of Hallyu (e.g., degree of use of Hallyu cultural contents, the Hallyu image, and Hallyu cultural familiarity) on Chinese consumers, with a focus on remote acculturation. A total of 623 Chinese consumers’ survey data were collected, and an analysis of a structural equation model (SEM) was conducted to verify the research hypotheses. The results manifest that the degree of use of Hallyu cultural contents, the Hallyu image, the Hallyu cognitive image, the Hallyu affective image and Hallyu cultural familiarity positively influence Korean cultural orientation, while the Hallyu image, the Hallyu cognitive image and the Hallyu affective image exert a negative impact on Chinese cultural orientation, but the degree of use of Hallyu cultural contents and Hallyu cultural familiarity do not significantly negatively affect Chinese cultural orientation. Moreover, Korean cultural orientation brings about a positive effect on attitudes toward Korea, while Chinese cultural orientation negatively impacts on attitudes toward Korea. Additionally, attitudes toward Korea generate a positive influence on visit intention to Korea, along with the intention to purchase Korean products. Overall, this paper enriches the research objects of remote acculturation, extends the research scope of remote acculturation and provides a new perspective for studies on Hallyu by introducing remote acculturation into the exploration of Hallyu.

1. Introduction

In today’s diversified societies, where global mass media as well as social networking are widespread, acculturation can be boosted through intercultural contact, which may be firsthand and continuous (proximal), such as immigration-based acculturation, or indirect and/or intermittent (remote) among nonimmigrants due to globalization [1]. Namely, remote acculturation denotes that indirect and/or discontinuous contact with geographically and historically separate cultures can produce acculturation under the promotion of modern globalization mechanisms [2]. Accordingly, remote acculturation is deemed to be the result of individuals’ interaction with and/or exposure to foreign cultures [3].

Additionally, China is the first country to experience the appearance of the phenomenon of Hallyu [4]. Hallyu has been diffused widely in China through mass media (TV and Internet) [5], so Hallyu enables numerous Chinese people within China to have contact with Korean culture indirectly and/or discontinuously (remotely) and generates a great impact on Chinese people’s life. Hence, the process of Chinese people’s acculturation toward Korean culture through Hallyu within China belongs to remote acculturation.

Moreover, scholars have conducted a quantity of empirical research on remote acculturation [6,7,8,9,10], proving the academic value, feasibility and practical significance of the studies on remote acculturation. The outcomes have revealed that local people’s remote acculturation toward foreign or remote culture affects their attitudes, behavior and habits [8,9]. However, so far, the explorations of remote acculturation have mainly focused on local people’s remote acculturation toward U.S. American culture; there has hardly been any investigation into remote acculturation toward Korean culture. Although the USA is the most dominant military and economic power in the world, and the influence of American culture is vast, as its cultural imprint spans the world [11], yet Hallyu is also widespread and popular worldwide, especially in China, where through mass media Hallyu has been disseminated for more than 20 years. Thus, the influence of Hallyu, along with Korean culture, on the world and Chinese people is also tremendous, and a study on remote acculturation toward Korean culture is of great significance and necessity.

In terms of the impacts of Hallyu and Korean culture on Chinese people, Hallyu has enabled Chinese people to shape positive and friendly attitudes toward Korea [12]; Hallyu cultural contents affect visit intention to Korea [13], together with intentions to purchase Korean products [14]; the Hallyu image positively influences purchase intention of Korean products [15] and Hallyu cultural familiarity also promotes visit intention to Korea [16]. Additionally, through Hallyu, Chinese people are exposed to Korean popular culture, which is conducive to Chinese people’s understanding and familiarity with Korean culture [12], and familiarity with Korean culture affects purchase intention of Korean products as well [12,17]. On the whole, Hallyu and Korean culture have a bearing on Chinese people’s attitudes and intentions, along with their behavior, so the study on the influence of Hallyu on Chinese consumers is essential.

As in China, Hallyu has spread via Hallyu cultural contents, for instance, Korean TV dramas (K-dramas for short), Korean movies (hereinafter referred to as K-movies), K-Pop and Korean variety shows (K-variety shows for short), which are widely disseminated through media [14], the degree of use of Hallyu cultural contents, incorporating K-dramas, K-movies, K-Pop together with K-variety shows, can reflect the degree of media access, which influences remote acculturation [7,9,18]. The Hallyu image, comprising the Hallyu cognitive image and the Hallyu affective image, produces a positive effect on purchase intention of Korean products [15], and Hallyu cultural familiarity enhances the intention of purchasing Korean products as well [12,19,20], such as Korean cultural products. More specifically, a better Hallyu image (i.e., the Hallyu cognitive image and the Hallyu affective image), along with more familiarity with Hallyu culture, may bring about more consumption and purchase of Korean products, encompassing Korean cultural products (e.g., K-dramas, K-movies, K-Pop, K-variety shows), through greater access to media, which exerts an influence on remote acculturation [7,9,18].

Hence, this paper is aimed at probing into the bearing of Hallyu (e.g., degree of use of Hallyu cultural contents, the Hallyu image and Hallyu cultural familiarity) on Chinese consumers with a focus on remote acculturation. To accomplish the research purpose, detailed research objectives were formulated: (1) To delve into the effects of use degree of Hallyu cultural contents, the Hallyu image and Hallyu cultural familiarity of Chinese consumers through remote acculturation, so as to grasp a profound understanding of the association between Hallyu and remote acculturation. (2) To explore the impacts of the remote acculturation of Chinese consumers on attitudes toward Korea for the sake of the comprehension of the effects of Chinese consumers’ remote acculturation toward Korean culture. (3) To analyze the influence of attitudes toward Korea that Chinese consumers hold regarding their visit intention to Korea and purchase intention of Korean products.

2. Conceptual Framework and Research Model

2.1. Hallyu Cultural Contents

Hallyu is a phenomenon of yearning for and liking Korean popular culture formed worldwide [21]. Hallyu refers to the popularity and flow of Korean popular cultural products, especially media contents, such as TV dramas and pop music, along with movies in Asian countries as well as other regions, and exported Korean popular cultural products themselves [22]. Hallyu cultural contents, which are Korean cultural products widely utilized in Asia and the global cultural market, have been considered to be an asset with cultural value [23], and Hallyu cultural contents spread Korean popular culture to other foreign countries [13]. As Hallyu cultural contents, such as K-dramas, K-movies, K-Pop and K-variety shows, have obtained great popularity and influence in China [14], this paper concentrates on K-dramas, K-movies, K-Pop and K-variety shows among diversified kinds of Hallyu cultural contents.

Besides this, Hallyu and Korean culture have gained wide dissemination in Asia and even all over the world via media channels (e.g., television, Internet and social media). In China, Hallyu is widespread by means of Hallyu cultural contents, for instance, K-dramas, K-movies and K-Pop, as well as K-variety shows, which have been diffused through media [14]. Chinese people learn about and are familiar with Korean culture and Hallyu cultural contents through traditional media and new media, as Hallyu is spreading widely by way of new media, such as online video sites [24]. In line with an investigation on the subject [18], media use and remote acculturation are closely correlated to each other, and media (e.g., TV dramas, movies, music, variety shows) can boost the occurrence of remote acculturation.

Additionally, remote acculturation has been conceptualized as a bi-dimensional process [9,10], comprising foreign (remote) cultural orientation and native (local) cultural orientation, which were Korean cultural orientation and Chinese cultural orientation, respectively, in this paper. In accordance with the research of [9], adolescents with greater access to media and use of Internet score higher on foreign (remote) cultural orientation and lower on native (local) cultural orientation. In other words, access to media and use of Internet have a positive effect on foreign cultural orientation and a negative influence on native cultural orientation. As in China, Hallyu cultural contents, for example, K-dramas, K-movies, K-Pop and K-variety shows, have been diffused via traditional media (e.g., Television) and new media (e.g., online video sites) [5], and the degree of use of Hallyu cultural contents (e.g., K-dramas, K-movies, K-Pop and K-variety shows) can reflect the degree of media access and use of Internet. That is, higher degree of use of Hallyu cultural contents, consisting of K-dramas, K-movies, K-Pop and K-variety shows, signifies greater access to media and Internet, which have an influence on remote acculturation, leading to higher foreign (remote) cultural orientation and lower native (local) cultural orientation [9], denoting Korean cultural orientation and Chinese cultural orientation, respectively, in this study, and thereby may cause higher Korean cultural orientation and lower Chinese cultural orientation. Therefore, the following hypotheses were established to identify the relation between degree of use of Hallyu cultural contents and remote acculturation (i.e., Korean cultural orientation and Chinese cultural orientation).

Hypothesis 1 (H1).

The degree of use of Hallyu cultural contents will significantly positively affect Korean cultural orientation.

Hypothesis 2 (H2).

The degree of use of Hallyu cultural contents will significantly negatively affect Chinese cultural orientation.

2.2. Hallyu Image

Image refers to the sum of perceptions, impressions and ideas, together with beliefs that individuals hold about a destination [25]. Additionally, image is “a totality of impressions, beliefs, ideas, expectations, and feelings accumulated towards a place over time” [26] (p. 218). Image encompasses cognitive and affective components [26,27,28,29,30,31]. The cognitive component refers to the evaluations of an object’s known attributes [30], and the affective component denotes subjective feelings about the object [27]. The Hallyu image is a synthesis of impressions, ideas, beliefs, expectations and emotions that tourists harbor about Hallyu [32]. The Hallyu cognitive image indicates the cognitive extent of K-Pop, Korean dramas, food and fashion, and the Hallyu affective image represents the affective response obtained through the evaluation of the overall or specific attributes of Hallyu [15].

The Hallyu cognitive image and the Hallyu affective image constitute the Hallyu image, positively influencing purchase intention of Korean products [15], and Korean products include Hallyu cultural contents (i.e., Korean cultural products used widely in the global cultural market) [23], covering K-dramas, K-movies, K-Pop and K-variety shows, which are widespread through media in China [14]. Besides, media originating from foreign or remote culture is a potential vehicle for transporting foreign culture and allowing native people to partake in foreign cultural events remotely [7], so media can facilitate the occurrence of remote acculturation [18]. Additionally, media access affects remote acculturation; that is, greater access to media and use of Internet bring about higher scores on foreign cultural orientation and lower scores on native cultural orientation [9]. Thus, as the Hallyu cognitive image and affective image compose the Hallyu image and exert a positive impact on purchase intention of Korean products [15], a better Hallyu image (i.e., the Hallyu cognitive image and the Hallyu affective image) may result in more purchase and consumption of Korean cultural products (e.g., K-dramas, K-movies, K-Pop, K-variety shows) through media. Subsequently, greater access to media and use of Internet engender higher foreign culture orientation and lower native cultural orientation [9], which correspondingly refer to Korean cultural orientation and Chinese cultural orientation in this study, and thereupon may lead to higher Korean cultural orientation and lower Chinese cultural orientation. Accordingly, the following hypotheses were developed to ascertain the bearing of the Hallyu image (i.e., the Hallyu cognitive image and the Hallyu affective image) on remote acculturation (i.e., Korean cultural orientation and Chinese cultural orientation).

Hypothesis 3 (H3).

The Hallyu image will have a significant positive impact on Korean cultural orientation.

Hypothesis 3a (H3a).

The Hallyu cognitive image will have a significant positive impact on Korean cultural orientation.

Hypothesis 3b (H3b).

The Hallyu affective image will have a significant positive impact on Korean cultural orientation.

Hypothesis 4 (H4).

The Hallyu image will have a significant negative effect on Chinese cultural orientation.

Hypothesis 4a (H4a).

The Hallyu cognitive image will have a significant negative effect on Chinese cultural orientation.

Hypothesis 4b (H4b).

The Hallyu affective image will have a significant negative effect on Chinese cultural orientation.

2.3. Hallyu Cultural Familiarity

Familiarity is a broad concept. In marketing, familiarity is deemed as the amount of product-related information and/or product-related experience that consumers own [33,34,35]. Besides, familiarity with a product denotes a great deal of direct and/or indirect experiences of consumers with the product, which can have a bearing upon consumers’ choice decisions [36]. For tourism, familiarity indicates the respondents’ subjective evaluations of the extent of information, knowledge and experience about a place [37,38]. On the basis of the concept of familiarity, Hallyu cultural familiarity has been defined as the personal feelings formed based on experiences of Korean culture accumulated by way of assorted channels (e.g., Korean dramas, food, music, art) [20]. Consequently, Hallyu cultural familiarity can be gained through the experience of Hallyu cultural contents, comprising K-dramas, K-movies, K-Pop, etc.

In addition, Hallyu cultural familiarity can promote the intention to purchase Korean products [12,19,20], for instance, Hallyu cultural contents, which are Korean cultural products utilized extensively in the global cultural market [23], composed of K-dramas, K-movies, K-Pop and K-variety shows, which are disseminated widely in China via media [14]. Moreover, media derived from foreign culture is a potential means of spreading foreign culture and stimulating local people’s remote participation in foreign cultural activities [7]. In short, media may constitute a potential vehicle of remote acculturative processes [7]. Additionally, media access can have an impact on remote acculturation; in other words, greater access to media causes higher foreign cultural orientation and lower native cultural orientation [9]. Hence, Hallyu cultural familiarity may generate more purchasing of Korean products (e.g., K-dramas, K-movies, K-Pop, K-variety shows) through greater access to media, which affects remote acculturation (e.g., resulting in higher foreign cultural orientation and lower native cultural orientation) [9], referring to Korean cultural orientation and Chinese cultural orientation, respectively, in this paper, and thereby may lead to higher Korean cultural orientation and lower Chinese cultural orientation. In line with the above-mentioned research, the following hypotheses were proposed to determine the influence of Hallyu cultural familiarity on remote acculturation (i.e., Korean cultural orientation and Chinese cultural orientation).

Hypothesis 5 (H5).

Hallyu cultural familiarity will exert a significant positive impact on Korean cultural orientation.

Hypothesis 6 (H6).

Hallyu cultural familiarity will exert a significant negative impact on Chinese cultural orientation.

2.4. Remote Acculturation

“Acculturation comprehends those phenomena which result when groups of individuals having different cultures come into continuous first-hand contact, with subsequent changes in the original cultural patterns of either or both groups” [39] (p. 149). “Although this was not the first study of acculturation, it is the first comprehensive definition of the concept in anthropology” [40] (p. 330). In today’s diversified societies, as transnational migration, global mass media and social networking are commonplace, individuals are increasingly interacting with cultures near and far. Thereby, remote acculturation has been proposed as a modern form of non-immigrant acculturation facilitated by indirect and/or intermittent intercultural contact through new forms of globalization, for instance, information and communication technologies (e.g., Internet, cell phones, cable television), as well as multinational fast food companies [2]. Thus, remote acculturation has extended the classical definition of acculturation that requires “continuous first-hand contact” between groups or individuals of different cultures [39] (p. 149).

Although remote acculturation is modern, it belongs to acculturation essentially. As a result, many aspects of theories and methods of traditional acculturation are applicable to remote acculturation [18]. Accordingly, foreign (remote) cultural orientation denotes the preferred extent of engagement with the foreign people and culture, while native (local) cultural orientation represents the preferred degree of contact with local people and preservation of the native (local) culture, in the light of the definitions of host cultural orientation as well as heritage cultural orientation [41]. Therefore, higher foreign (remote) cultural orientation signifies better acculturation to a foreign culture, whereas higher native (local) cultural orientation implies more maintenance of the native (local) culture, so higher Korean cultural orientation represents better acculturation toward Korean culture, while higher Chinese cultural orientation indicates more preservation of Chinese culture in this paper.

Furthermore, a number of studies have revealed that the better Chinese students are acculturated toward Korean culture, the more favorable and positive attitudes they harbor toward Korea. The research carried out as part of the study [42] delved into the association between Chinese students’ attitudes toward Korea and their acculturation toward Korean culture, and the results have manifested that Chinese students’ acculturation toward Korean culture is positively related to attitudes toward Korea. In addition, the study [43] has explored the bearing that acculturation (to Korean culture) has upon attitudes toward Korea, and the findings have demonstrated that acculturation to Korean culture of Chinese students is positively associated with their attitudes toward Korea. More Specifically, acculturation to Korean culture has a significant positive impact on attitudes toward Korea. In accordance with the outcomes of [44], the better Chinese students are acculturated toward Korean culture, the more positive attitudes toward Korea they form. Specifically, acculturation toward Korean culture exerts a positive effect on attitudes toward Korea. Accordingly, higher Korean cultural orientation indicates better acculturation toward Korean culture, which can engender more positive attitudes toward Korea based on the research results of [42,43,44], while higher Chinese cultural orientation represents more maintenance of Chinese culture. Hence, Chinese people who have higher Chinese cultural orientation may show higher ethnic cultural pride [45], along with more preservation of Chinese culture, and thereby exhibit less favorable attitudes toward foreign countries, including Korea. Consequently, the following hypotheses were put forward to identify the correlation between remote acculturation (i.e., Korean cultural orientation together with Chinese cultural orientation) and attitudes toward Korea.

Hypothesis 7 (H7).

Korean cultural orientation will significantly positively influence attitude toward Korea.

Hypothesis 8 (H8).

Chinese cultural orientation will significantly negatively influence attitude toward Korea.

2.5. Hallyu Effects

2.5.1. Attitudes toward Korea

Attitudes mean the evaluative reactions to a certain referent or object, which are inferred from individual’s opinions and beliefs about the referent [46]. In line with [47], expressing attitudes encompasses coming to a decision on liking or disliking, or favoring or disfavoring a specified object, issue or person. Attitudes toward a country indicate favorable or unfavorable or positive or negative emotions that an individual harbors toward a particular country [48]. Besides, attitudes toward a country reflect individuals’ evaluations of a country as meeting or frustrating their basic needs [49,50]. Therefore, positive attitudes toward a country mirror the subjective evaluations as good for a country, and are accompanied by feelings of love, comfort and pride, whereas negative attitudes toward a country reflect the evaluations as unsatisfactory for a certain country, and are accompanied by feelings of discomfort and shame [51,52,53]. Thus, attitudes toward Korea represent individuals’ evaluations or feelings of favorable or unfavorable, good or bad, positive or negative and liking or disliking towards South Korea in this paper.

2.5.2. Visit Intention to Korea

In the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) model, intention is often recognized as an important predictor of actual future behavior [54], and behavioral intention results from three variables: attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control [55]. Consequently, behavioral intention is associated with attitudes and behavior. In both academia and tourism, visit intention is a vital research topic. Visit intention denotes the probability of tourism behavior in response to one’s intention or planned behavior to visit a tourist destination [56], and visit intention to Korea means the likelihood and plan of potential tourists to visit South Korea in the study.

Multiple scholars have investigated the relations between attitudes toward Korea and visit intention to Korea [48,57,58,59]. The research conducted as part of [48] has explored the effect of attitudes toward Korea upon the intention to visit Korea, and the outcomes have reported that attitudes toward Korea have a positive bearing upon visit intention to Korea. In accordance with the findings of [57], there is a significant positive influence of emotional attitudes toward Korea, namely liking and thinking about Korea positively, on the intention to visit Korea. In other words, emotional attitudes can boost visit intention to Korea. The study [59] has also probed into the association between attitudes toward a country and the intention to visit the country among Tanzanian college students, and the results have revealed that attitudes toward a country can positively affect visit intention to the country. More specifically, attitudes toward the country of Korea have a positive influence on visit intention to Korea. Therefore, on the basis of the aforementioned research, the following hypothesis was put forward to find out the association between attitudes toward Korea and visit intention to Korea.

Hypothesis 9 (H9).

Attitudes toward Korea will produce a significant positive impact on visit intention to Korea.

2.5.3. Purchase Intention of Korean Products

Purchase intention denotes the likelihood that consumers will be willing or plan to purchase a specific product and/or service in the future [60]. Purchase intention is deemed as a behavioral tendency to purchase a certain product [61]. Besides this, purchase intention is a crucial factor in anticipating future purchase activities [62], and purchase intention is the foundation of consumers’ purchase behavior [63]. Hence, purchase intention of Korean products indicates the degree to which consumers will buy Korean products in the future.

Scholars have delved into the effects of attitudes toward a country on purchase intention of the country’s products [64,65,66]. The research carried out as part of [64] probed into the correlation between the attitudes of Portuguese respondents toward Brazil and the respondents’ purchase intention of Brazilian cultural products, and the findings have manifested that attitudes toward Brazil of respondents from Portugal have a significant direct and positive impact on the intention of purchasing Brazilian cultural products. Thus, attitudes toward a country produce a positive influence on purchase intention of the country’s products. The study [65] has investigated the bearing of attitudes toward Korea upon the intention of purchasing Korean products, and in the light of the research outcome, attitudes toward Korea significantly positively affect the purchase intention of Korean products. Furthermore, in accordance with [66], Chinese consumers’ favorable feelings toward Korea bring about a positive impact on the purchase intention of Korean products. As a consequence, the following hypothesis was developed to ascertain the relationship between attitudes toward Korea and purchase intention of Korean products.

Hypothesis 10 (H10).

Attitudes toward Korea will generate a significant positive effect on purchase intention of Korean products.

2.6. Research Model

In line with the theoretical discussions and research hypotheses, the research model for the interrelationships among variables was established, which is shown in Figure 1.

3. Materials and Methods

3.1. Data Collection and Sample Characteristics

The targeted respondents in the research are Chinese consumers who have used Hallyu cultural contents. An online questionnaire survey on Chinese consumers was implemented via WENJUANXING, a Chinese professional online questionnaire survey platform, for approximately two months. A total of 623 questionnaires were collected, and 535 questionnaires were adopted for final analysis, as 88 had to be discarded because of insincere responses, missing values and no experience of utilizing Hallyu cultural contents, yielding a response rate of 85.9 percent.

The frequency analysis results of the survey respondents’ demographic characteristics are illustrated in

Table 1. Demographic characteristics of respondents.

Variables	Items	Frequency	Percent
Gender	Male	207	38.7
	Female	328	61.3
Age	Under 20 years old	60	11.2
	20–29 years old	308	57.6
	30–39 years old	144	26.9
	40–49 years old	20	3.7
	50 years old and above	3	0.6
Educational Background	Below high school graduation	17	3.2
	High school graduation	103	19.3
	Junior college graduation	135	25.2
	College graduation	205	38.3
	Postgraduate school graduation or higher	75	14.0
Occupation	Student	165	30.8
	Housewife	9	1.7
	Office worker	205	38.3
	Civil servant	35	6.5
	Professional (e.g., teacher, lawyer, doctor)	81	15.1
	Individual business	16	3.0
	Other	24	4.5
Monthly Income	Below 3000¥	170	31.8
	3000¥–below 6000¥	125	23.4
	6000¥–below 10,000¥	130	24.3
	10,000¥–below 15,000¥	81	15.1
	15,000¥ and above	29	5.4

. Considering gender, 38.7% are male and 61.3% are female. As far as age is concerned, 11.2% are under 20 years old, 57.6% are 20–29 years old, 26.9% are 30–39 years old, 3.7% are 40–49 years old and 0.6% are in their 50s or older. In terms of educational background, 3.2% are below high school graduation, 19.3% have graduated from high school, 25.2% have graduated from junior college, 38.3% have obtained university degrees and 14.0% have attained master’s degrees or higher degrees. Regarding occupation, 30.8% are students, 1.7% are housewives, 38.3% work as office workers, 6.5% work as civil servants, 15.1% are professionals (e.g., teachers, lawyers, and doctors), 3.0% own their individual business and 4.5% harbor other occupations. Considering monthly income, 79.5% earn less than 10,000 CNY, and 20.5% earn 10,000 CNY or more.

3.2. Measurements

In this paper, measurement items for the degree of use of Hallyu cultural contents, the Hallyu image, Hallyu cultural familiarity, remote acculturation, attitudes toward Korea, visit intention to Korea and purchase intention of Korean products were developed on the basis of extant literature.

In terms of the degree of use of Hallyu cultural contents, this was assessed via 4 items, which were built on the study [67].

As for the Hallyu image, it comprised the Hallyu cognitive image along with the Hallyu affective image. A total of 8 items for the measurement of the Hallyu image, incorporating 4 items for the Hallyu cognitive image, and 4 items for the Hallyu affective image, were adapted from the research of [68].

Considering Hallyu cultural familiarity, three measurement items were modeled after the study [69], covering “Regarding Hallyu culture, I am familiar”, “Regarding Hallyu culture, I am experienced” and “Regarding Hallyu culture, I am knowledgeable”.

Remote acculturation was measured by means of eight items, which were originated from the previous research of [10]. Four items were utilized to assess Korean cultural orientation, and four measurement items were employed to measure Chinese cultural orientation.

Four measurement items for attitudes toward Korea were adapted from the research of [70], incorporating “I am favorable toward Korea”, “I feel good toward Korea”, “I am positive toward Korea” and “I think Korea is likeable”.

Moreover, the paper adopted three items to measure visit intention to Korea, which were built on previous research [71].

The three measurement items for purchase intention of Korean products were modeled after the research of [72], consisting of “I find purchasing Korean products to be worthwhile”, “I will frequently purchase Korean products in the future” and “I will strongly recommend others to purchase Korean products”.

All the items were assessed via seven-point Likert scales, with 1 indicating strongly disagree and 7 denoting strongly agree. A piloting test was conducted on 120 Chinese consumers to verify semantic equivalence of the translation of scales from English to Chinese.

3.3. Data Analysis

Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) as well as reliability analysis was implemented on all the variables through SPSS to check factor structures along with reliability of the measurement model. The eigenvalues, communalities and factor loadings were utilized to verify the validity of the factors [73], and the reliability of the factors was tested by means of Cronbach’s alpha.

Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted through Amos to verify the construct validity. Various measurement indices have been proposed for the evaluation of goodness-of-fit [74]. In the research, the normalized χ² (χ²/df or CMIN/DF), Comparative Fit Index (CFI), Tucker Lewis Index (TLI), Incremental Fit Index (IFI), Normed Fit Index (NFI) and Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA) were adopted. After identifying the fit of the model, convergent validity and discriminant validity were checked for assessment of the measurement model’s construct validity. In terms of the assessment of convergent validity, it is essential to calculate composite reliability together with average variance extracted (AVE) for each construct [75]. Discriminant validity checks whether a construct is different and distinct from other constructs [76]. The criterion for discriminant validity is to compare the square root of the AVE of a construct with the correlation coefficients between the construct and other constructs [75]. Furthermore, structural equation analysis was implemented via Amos by utilizing the maximum likelihood estimation method for the verification of the hypotheses.

4. Results

4.1. Measurement Model

Before performing EFA, the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) test and Bartlett’s test of sphericity were used to check whether the sample data were suitable for conducting EFA. The KMO test result was 0.931 (see

Table 2. KMO and Bartlett’s test of sphericity results.

KMO	Bartlett’s Test of Sphericity
	Approximate Chi-Square	Degree of Freedom (df)
0.931	10,263.489	528

), which exceeded 0.50, the recommended acceptable level [73,77], demonstrating that the sample data was suitable for EFA. In addition, the significant probability verified by Bartlett’s test of sphericity was statistically significant (p < 0.001), showing the suitability of original variables for EFA as well [73].

The results of EFA (see

Table 3. EFA and reliability analysis results.

Factors	Items	Mean	S.D.	Factor Loading	Commu Nality	Eigen Value	% of Variance	Cronbach’s α
Use Degree of Hallyu Cultural Contents (HCC)	I watch Korean dramas frequently. (KD)	4.89	1.734	0.724	0.634	2.841	8.608	0.810
	I watch Korean movies frequently. (KM)	4.54	1.476	0.723	0.619
	I watch or listen to K-Pop frequently. (KP)	4.48	1.699	0.767	0.672
	I watch K-variety shows frequently. (KV)	3.97	1.513	0.737	0.651
Hallyu Cognitive Image (CI)	Hallyu is extremely friendly in my perception. (CI1)	4.83	1.574	0.755	0.709	2.678	8.116	0.855
	Hallyu is extremely accessible in my perception. (CI2)	5.14	1.549	0.597	0.696
	Hallyu is extremely lively in my perception. (CI3)	4.94	1.513	0.749	0.731
	Hallyu is extremely interesting in my perception. (CI4)	4.86	1.461	0.766	0.747
Hallyu Affective Image (AI)	Hallyu is arousing based on my feelings. (AI1)	4.83	1.685	0.782	0.711	2.947	8.930	0.847
	Hallyu is pleasant based on my feelings. (AI2)	4.66	1.550	0.780	0.701
	Hallyu is exciting based on my feelings. (AI3)	4.65	1.621	0.775	0.695
	Hallyu is relaxing based on my feelings. (AI4)	4.85	1.681	0.798	0.692
Hallyu Cultural Familiarity (HCF)	Regarding Hallyu culture, I am familiar. (HF1)	4.76	1.808	0.902	0.873	2.629	7.968	0.919
	Regarding Hallyu culture, I am experienced. (HF2)	5.09	1.852	0.879	0.845
	Regarding Hallyu culture, I am knowledgeable. (HF3)	4.88	1.820	0.900	0.866
Korean Cultural Orientation (KCO)	I like watching Korean dramas. (KO1)	4.86	1.492	0.681	0.692	2.732	8.278	0.845
	I like watching Korean movies. (KO2)	4.54	1.375	0.706	0.662
	I like watching Korean TV programs. (KO3)	4.53	1.445	0.713	0.681
	I enjoy eating Korean food. (KO4)	4.85	1.489	0.718	0.714
Chinese Cultural Orientation (CCO)	I like watching Chinese TV dramas. (CO1)	2.69	1.517	−0.794	0.739	2.971	9.003	0.860
	I like watching Chinese movies. (CO2)	2.70	1.510	−0.781	0.707
	I like watching Chinese TV programs. (CO3)	2.54	1.441	−0.748	0.703
	I enjoy eating Chinese food. (CO4)	2.47	1.490	−0.818	0.737
Attitudes toward Korea (ATK)	I am favorable toward Korea. (AT1)	5.09	1.368	0.769	0.753	2.821	8.549	0.868
	I feel good toward Korea. (AT2)	5.14	1.406	0.709	0.747
	I am positive toward Korea. (AT3)	4.86	1.342	0.769	0.729
	I think Korea is likeable. (AT4)	4.75	1.330	0.692	0.690
Visit Intention to Korea (VITK)	I intend to visit Korea in the future. (VI1)	5.26	1.505	0.735	0.804	2.207	6.689	0.872
	It is likely that I will visit Korea in the future. (VI2)	4.94	1.407	0.752	0.767
	I plan to visit Korea in the future. (VI3)	5.27	1.554	0.772	0.846
Purchase Intention of Korean Products (PIKP)	I find purchasing Korean products to be worthwhile. (PI1)	4.77	1.426	0.757	0.745	2.350	7.120	0.860
	I will frequently purchase Korean products in the future. (PI2)	4.87	1.577	0.757	0.816
	I will strongly recommend others to purchase Korean products. (PI3)	4.47	1.561	0.811	0.804
All Factors							73.260	0.896

) state that the eigenvalues of the 9 extracted factors ranged from 2.207 to 2.971, which were over 1, fulfilling the requirements of the eigenvalue-greater-than-one rule (Kaiser criterion or K1) [78]. Besides this, the range of communalities of the original variables ranged from 0.619 to 0.873, which exceeded 0.50, the recommended acceptable level in [77]. Furthermore, factor loadings ranged from 0.597 to 0.902. The factor loadings of all the items surpassed 0.50, which could be considered practically significant [73], indicating that all the items should be retained. Moreover, variance explanation power of all extracted factors was as high as 73.260%, forereaching the minimum requirement of 50% [77], denoting that the information loss amount of original variables was not much, and the effect of EFA was ideal.

To verify the reliability of the variables, reliability analysis was conducted via SPSS. Cronbach’s alpha values (see Table 3) for the factors ranged from 0.810 to 0.919, which lay well above the recommended threshold of 0.70 [77], manifesting high reliability of the measurements.

Regarding the assessment of convergent validity, the values of composite reliability (see

Table 4. Convergent validity tests.

Latent Variables	Items	Std. Estimate	Composite Reliability	AVE
HCC	KD	0.715	0.812	0.519
	KM	0.702
	KP	0.734
	KV	0.730
CI	CI1	0.739	0.854	0.595
	CI2	0.803
	CI3	0.766
	CI4	0.776
AI	AI1	0.781	0.848	0.582
	AI2	0.773
	AI3	0.768
	AI4	0.729
HCF	HF1	0.903	0.919	0.792
	HF2	0.871
	HF3	0.895
KCO	KO1	0.790	0.845	0.577
	KO2	0.727
	KO3	0.743
	KO4	0.778
CCO	CO1	0.800	0.860	0.605
	CO2	0.771
	CO3	0.773
	CO4	0.767
AT K	AT1	0.762	0.868	0.621
	AT2	0.847
	AT3	0.765
	AT4	0.776
VITK	VI1	0.861	0.875	0.701
	VI2	0.759
	VI3	0.886
PIKP	PI1	0.754	0.861	0.675
	PI2	0.894
	PI3	0.811

) ranged from 0.812 to 0.919, exceeding the threshold of 0.70 [75]. Besides this, the values of AVE were between 0.519 and 0.792, surpassing the reference value of 0.50 [75]. Thus, the convergent validity was proved. Discriminant validity was assessed on the basis of the Fornell–Larcker criterion; the minimum square root of AVE (see

Table 5. Discriminant validity analysis.

Latent Variable	HCC	CI	AI	HCF	KCO	CCO	ATK	VITK	PIKP
HCC	0.720
CI	0.479	0.771
AI	0.367	0.539	0.763
HCF	0.424	0.251	0.225	0.890
KCO	0.636	0.699	0.412	0.345	0.760
CCO	−0.282	−0.477	−0.341	−0.212	−0.574	0.778
ATK	0.523	0.609	0.489	0.344	0.589	−0.502	0.788
VITK	0.504	0.650	0.494	0.297	0.625	−0.455	0.680	0.837
PIKP	0.557	0.567	0.409	0.292	0.609	−0.454	0.604	0.592	0.822

) was 0.720, which outstripped the maximum correlation coefficient between latent variables of 0.699, demonstrating the discriminant validity.

Additionally, the measurement model in the research showed a satisfying level of goodness of fit (see

Table 6. Fitting test.

Model Fit Indices	Evaluation Index (Acceptable Level)	Values of the Model
CMIN/DF	<3.0	1.632
CFI	>0.90	0.971
IFI	>0.90	0.971
TLI	>0.90	0.967
NFI	>0.90	0.929
RMESA	≤0.08	0.034

), as CMIN/DF was found to be 1.632, below the recommended threshold of 3.0 (<3.0) [79]. CFI, TLI, IFI as well as NFI were 0.971, 0.971, 0.967 and 0.929 respectively, surpassing the threshold of 0.90 (>0.90) [74], and RMSEA was found to be 0.034, which met the requirement as well (≤0.08) [80].

4.2. Structural Model

4.2.1. Entire Variables’ Model

Structural equation model was set up for entire variables to verify H1 to H10 via AMOS. On assessing the goodness-of-fit indices of the model (see

Table 7. Fitting tests (entire variables’ model).

Model Fit Indices	Evaluation Index (Acceptable Level)	Values of the Model
CMIN/DF	<3.0	2.781
CFI	>0.90	0.931
IFI	>0.90	0.931
TLI	>0.90	0.922
NFI	>0.90	0.896
RMESA	≤0.08	0.058

), NFI was found to be 0.896, marginally below the threshold of 0.90 (>0.90) [74], while CFI, IFI and TLI were 0.931, 0.931 and 0.922 respectively, outstripping the acceptable level of 0.90 (>0.90) [74], CMIN/DF was 2.781, which was lower than the threshold of 3.0 (<3.0) [79], and RMSEA was 0.058, which was below the reference value (≤0.08) [80], indicating an adequate fit of the model.

Moreover, the results (see

Table 8. Structural equation model results (entire variables’ model).

Hypothesis	Paths	Std. Estimate	C.R.	p	Conclusion
H1	HCC→KCO	0.426	8.962	***	Supported
H2	HCC→CCO	−0.050	−1.074	0.283	Rejected
H3	HI→KCO	0.744	11.197	***	Supported
H4	HI→CCO	−0.596	−10.017	***	Supported
H5	HCF→KCO	0.113	2.986	0.003	Supported
H6	HCF→CCO	−0.082	−1.893	0.058	Rejected
H7	KCO→ATK	0.570	9.778	***	Supported
H8	CCO→ATK	−0.223	−4.541	***	Supported
H9	ATK→VITK	0.719	13.682	***	Supported
H10	ATK→PIKP	0.651	11.726	***	Supported

Note: *** p < 0.001.

) reveal that HCC has a significant positive bearing on KCO, HI engenders a significant positive effect on KCO and a significant negative effect on CCO, HCF generates a significant positive impact on KCO, KCO brings about a significant positive influence on ATK, CCO produces a significant negative effect on ATK and there is a significant positive impact of ATK on VITK and PIKP. Besides, HCC does not affect CCO significantly, and HCF does not have a significant influence on CCO. Therefore, the results support H1, H3, H4, H5, H7, H8, H9 and H10.

4.2.2. Sub-Factors’ Model

The structural equation model was established for sub-factors so as to verify H1 to H10 by means of AMOS. On examining the goodness-of-fit indices of the model (see

Table 9. Fitting tests (sub-factors’ model).

Model Fit Indices	Evaluation Index (Acceptable Level)	Values of the Model
CMIN/DF	<3.0	2.746
CFI	>0.90	0.915
IFI	>0.90	0.916
TLI	>0.90	0.908
NFI	>0.90	0.874
RMESA	≤0.08	0.057

), although NFI was 0.874, which was marginally below 0.90, the recommended threshold (>0.90) [74], CFI, IFI and TLI were 0.915, 0.916 and 0.908, respectively, exceeding the acceptable level of 0.90 (>0.90) [74], CMIN/DF was 2.746, below the threshold of 3.0 (<3.0) [79] and RMSEA was 0.057, which was lower than the reference value (≤0.08) [80], demonstrating an adequate fit of the model.

Furthermore, the results (see

Table 10. Structural equation model results (sub-factors’ model).

Hypothesis	Paths	Std. Estimate	C.R.	p	Conclusion
H1	HCC→KCO	0.447	9.090	***	Supported
H2	HCC→CCO	−0.086	−1.787	0.074	Rejected
H3a	CI→KCO	0.606	11.627	***	Supported
H3b	AI→KCO	0.084	2.087	0.037	Supported
H4a	CI→CCO	−0.426	−8.288	***	Supported
H4b	AI→CCO	−0.137	−2.889	0.004	Supported
H5	HCF→KCO	0.121	3.118	0.002	Supported
H6	HCF→CCO	−0.085	−1.895	0.058	Rejected
H7	KCO→ATK	0.553	9.955	***	Supported
H8	CCO→ATK	−0.262	−5.656	***	Supported
H9	ATK→VITK	0.710	13.313	***	Supported
H10	ATK→PIKP	0.642	11.433	***	Supported

Note: *** p < 0.001.

) manifest that HCC generates a significant positive impact on KCO; CI and AI have a significant positive influence on KCO and a significant negative bearing on CCO; HCF brings about a significant positive effect on KCO; KCO produces a significant positive impact on ATK; CCO has a significant negative influence on ATK and there is a significant positive effect of ATK on VITK and PIKP. Nevertheless, HCC does not have a significant bearing on CCO, and HCF does not engender a significant impact on CCO. Hence, the results support H1, H3a, H3b, H4a, H4b, H5, H7, H8, H9 and H10.

5. Conclusions and Discussion

This study probed into the bearings of Hallyu on Chinese consumers, with a focus on remote acculturation. According to the empirical analysis results, the degree of use of Hallyu cultural contents, the Hallyu image, the Hallyu cognitive image, the Hallyu affective image and Hallyu cultural familiarity positively impact on Korean cultural orientation, while the Hallyu image, the Hallyu cognitive image and the Hallyu affective image engender a negative effect on Chinese cultural orientation; however, the degree of use of Hallyu cultural contents and Hallyu cultural familiarity do not have a significantly negative bearing on Chinese cultural orientation. Furthermore, Korean cultural orientation produces a positive influence on attitudes toward Korea, and Chinese cultural orientation negatively touches on attitudes toward Korea. In addition, attitudes toward Korea bring about a positive effect upon visit intention to Korea as well as purchase intention of Korean products.

First, H1 has been accepted, as the study results demonstrate that the degree of use of Hallyu cultural contents significantly positively affects Korean cultural orientation, which is in alignment with the findings of several previous studies [7,9,18]. For example, the study [7] has indicated that media might constitute a potential vehicle for remote acculturative processes, and Jamaican adolescents consuming more American TV shows and less local TV shows have significantly higher possibilities of being Americanized Jamaicans. Besides this, media access positively impacts on Mexican adolescents’ U.S. American cultural orientation [9]. In other words, media access can have a positive bearing upon remote acculturation toward foreign culture. Moreover, media (contents), for instance, TV dramas, movies, music and variety shows, facilitate the occurrence of remote acculturation [18]. Furthermore, Hallyu cultural contents, e.g., K-dramas, K-movies, K-Pop and K-variety shows, have been diffused via media in China [14], and are closely associated with media access. Since media access can be conductive to initiating remote acculturation toward foreign culture [7,9,18], Hallyu cultural contents via media therefore play a positive role in prompting remote acculturation to Korean culture. Additionally, Hypothesis 2 is statistically insignificant. The reason for this may be that the resistance to Korean programs, artists and other industries launched by the Chinese public since the announcement of the deployment of THAAD in South Korea on 8 July 2016 [81] has caused Chinese people to decrease their consumption of Hallyu cultural contents, and less exposure to Hallyu cultural contents and Korean culture may be the reason why the degree of use of Hallyu cultural contents engenders an insignificant negative impact on Chinese cultural orientation.

Second, the research findings indicate that the Hallyu image, the Hallyu cognitive image and the Hallyu affective image have a significant positive influence on Korean cultural orientation and a negative impact on Chinese cultural orientation, so H3, H3a, H3b, H4, H4a and H4b have been supported. The Hallyu cognitive image and the Hallyu affective image produce a positive effect upon purchase intention of Korean products [15], and purchase intention has been demonstrated to positively influence purchasing behavior [82], so Chinese consumers with a more positive and/or favorable Hallyu image in their minds might purchase more Korean cultural products, e.g., K-dramas, K-movies, K-Pop and K-variety shows, which have been disseminated via media [5]. Additionally, media that originates from foreign or remote culture is a potential means to allow native people to partake in foreign cultural events remotely [7], and media access can boost remote acculturation [7,9,18], resulting in higher remote cultural orientation and lower native (local) cultural orientation [9], which are Korean cultural orientation and Chinese cultural orientation, correspondingly. Thus, a better Hallyu image (i.e., Hallyu cognitive image and Hallyu affective image) can lead to more consumption of Korean cultural products, such as K-dramas, K-movies, K-Pop and K-variety shows via media, which can advance the formation of higher remote cultural orientation and lower native cultural orientation [9], making Chinese consumers expose themselves to Korean culture, remotely acculturate to Korean culture and thereupon shape higher Korean cultural orientation and lower Chinese cultural orientation.

Third, the research outcomes manifest that Hallyu cultural familiarity exerts a significant positive effect on Korean cultural orientation, so H5 has been adopted. To begin with, Hallyu cultural familiarity can enhance purchase intention of Korean products [12,19,20], and purchase intention has been verified to positively affect purchase behavior [82], so Chinese consumers with higher Hallyu cultural familiarity might purchase more Korean products, including Korean cultural products, such as K-dramas, K-movies, K-Pop and K-variety shows, as well as Korean food. Additionally, media from a foreign culture is a potential way to disseminate foreign culture and spur local people’s remote participation in foreign cultural activities [7], so media can stimulate remote acculturation [18]. Additionally, media access and TV programs originating from remote culture can contribute to remote cultural orientation [7,9,18]. To be more specific, greater access to media and TV programs can cause higher remote cultural orientation. Thus, higher Hallyu cultural familiarity may generate more purchasing of Korean cultural products, e.g., K-dramas, K-movies, K-Pop and K-variety shows, causing Chinese consumers to expose themselves to Korean culture more through media and obtain higher possibilities of acculturating toward Korean culture, thereby resulting in higher Korean cultural orientation. Furthermore, as more consumption of food from a remote or foreign country can be conducive to the facilitation of remote acculturation to foreign culture [6,7], higher Hallyu cultural familiarity may prompt more consumption and purchase of Korean products, such as Korean food, which is likely to be a vehicle for remote acculturation toward Korean culture in line with [6,7], thereby engendering higher Korean cultural orientation.

Fourth, this study has rejected H6, as it has been revealed that Hallyu cultural familiarity does not produce a significant negative influence on Chinese cultural orientation. Although Hallyu cultural familiarity can advance purchase intention of Korean products [12,19,20], it is possible that Hallyu cultural familiarity does not boost the purchase of Korean products sufficiently enough to bring about a significant bearing on Chinese cultural orientation. Besides, in accordance with the studies [2,7], Americanized Jamaican youths have been remotely culturally integrated instead of abandoning their own native culture to be assimilated into American culture. The research conducted as part of the study [6] also reported that South African emerging adults can be remotely acculturated to American culture rather than shacking off their own culture. These are examples of remote integration, which denotes retaining the local culture(s) and adopting one or more remote (foreign) cultures [18]. Thus, acculturation to one or more remote (foreign) cultures does not necessarily signify that it will definitely negatively touch on acculturation to the local culture(s). Hence, although Hallyu cultural familiarity positively impacts on Korean cultural orientation, it does not necessarily mean that Hallyu cultural familiarity will certainly generate a negative influence on Chinese cultural orientation.

Fifth, H7 has been accepted, because it has been proved that Korean cultural orientation has a significant positive bearing on attitudes toward Korea. In this paper, Korean cultural orientation represents non-immigrant Chinese people’s acculturation to Korean culture. In addition, remote acculturation is a modern form of non-immigrant acculturation [3], which indicates that remote acculturation essentially belongs to acculturation. A number of previous studies [42,43,44] have investigated the relations between acculturation to Korean culture and attitudes toward Korea, and provided evidence to support the verification results of H7. For example, the exploration of [42] has proved that Chinese students’ acculturation to Korean culture is positively associated with their attitudes towards Korea. Moreover, the research of [43] has delved into the effect of acculturation (toward Korea) on attitudes toward Korea, and the findings have denoted that acculturation toward Korean culture exerts a positive impact on attitudes toward Korea, which upholds the validation result of H9. Furthermore, according to the study of [44], the better Chinese students are acculturated to Korean culture, the more positive attitudes they have toward Korea, which also provides support for the verification result of H9. Therefore, Korean cultural orientation indicating acculturation to Korean culture, which is positively correlated to attitudes toward Korea in the light of [42,43,44], brings about a positive influence on attitudes toward Korea.

Sixth, it has been found out that Chinese cultural orientation has a significant negative impact on attitudes toward Korea, so H8 has been adopted. In this study, Chinese cultural orientation denotes non-immigrant Chinese people’s acculturation to their own native Chinese culture. Individuals with higher orientation to their own native culture(s) might exhibit higher ethnic cultural pride [45], and pride means a general affinity and endorsement of ethnic and/or majority cultures [83,84]. Therefore, in this paper, Chinese people with higher Chinese cultural orientation might exhibit higher pride in Chinese culture and harbor an affinity and endorsement of Chinese culture. As a result, Chinese people with higher Chinese cultural orientation tend to show more pride and positive attitudes toward Chinese culture and China rather than other foreign countries such as Korea. Furthermore, remote separation strategy denotes retaining the local culture(s) and rejecting remote culture(s) [18] (e.g., [7]). Accordingly, those Chinese people who adopt the strategy of remote separation are likely to retain Chinese culture and reject Korean culture, tending to display negative attitudes toward Korea. Consequently, the higher Chinese cultural orientation Chinese consumers form, the more negative attitudes they have towards Korea.

Seventh, the research has supported H9, as it has been demonstrated that attitudes toward Korea generate a positive bearing on the intention to visit Korea. This outcome is in line with prior studies [48,57,59]. For instance, the findings of [48] have indicated that attitudes toward Korea significantly positively affect visit intention to Korea, and the investigation of [57] has stated that emotional attitudes toward Korea engender a positive influence on the intention to visit Korea. Moreover, emotional attitudes toward Korea can enhance the intention of visiting Korea, so the outcomes of [48,57] back up the verification result of H9. Besides, the empirical study [59] has delved into the relation between attitudes toward a country and the intention to visit that country, and the analysis results have manifested that attitudes toward a country exert a positive impact on visit intention to the country. To be more concrete, attitudes toward the country of Korea bring about a positive effect upon visit intention to Korea, which is in support of the validation result of H9 as well. Hence, the more positive attitudes toward Korea Chinese consumers harbor, the more willing to visit Korea they are. In other words, the formation of favorable attitudes towards Korea is conducive to advancing positive intention to visit Korea.

Eighth, the verification result of H10, namely that attitudes toward Korea significantly positively touch on purchase intention of Korean products, is consistent with previous studies [65,66]. In accordance with the research carried out as part of the study [65], attitudes toward Korea positively affect the intention to purchase Korean products, which supports the validation result of H10. In addition, the study [66] has investigated the relationship between attitudes toward Korea and the intention to purchase Korean products, and the outcome has reported that Chinese consumers’ favorable feelings towards Korea have a significant positive effect on their intention of purchasing Korean products, which is a clear endorsement of the verification result of H10 as well. In addition, the findings of [64] have also revealed that attitudes toward a country have a positive bearing on purchase intention of the country’s products. Therefore, positive attitudes toward Korea lead to a strong willingness to purchase Korean products. That is, the more favorable attitudes toward Korea Chinese consumers hold, the stronger purchase intention of Korean products they own.

5.1. Theoretical Implications

The paper provides a number of academic implications. First, the introduction of remote acculturation into the exploration of Hallyu expands the research perspective and scope of Hallyu. Although numerous studies have focused on the effects of Hallyu (e.g., Hallyu cultural contents) on visit intention [13,85], purchase intention [86,87], the country image [57,87] and so on, yet there have hardly been any studies that have introduced remote acculturation into the research on Hallyu. Thus, this paper introduces remote acculturation into the investigation of Hallyu, furnishing a new perspective for research on Hallyu.

Furthermore, this investigation probes into Chinese consumers’ remote acculturation toward Korean culture, enlarging the research scope of remote acculturation. So far, most extant studies on remote acculturation have focused on the local people’s remote acculturation toward U.S. American culture [2,7,9,10,88]. However, there has hardly been any exploration of remote acculturation to Korean culture. Although the U.S.A. is the most dominant military and economic power in the world, and the influence of U.S. American culture is enormous [11], Hallyu is spreading in Asia, North America, South America, Europe and Africa [89], and has gained increasing influence and popularity worldwide, especially in China, in which Hallyu has been disseminated via mass media for over 20 years, so the influence of Hallyu and Korean culture on Chinese people and even the world is extensive and enormous as well. Hence, the research on Chinese people’s remote acculturation to Korean culture is significant and essential, not only broadening remote acculturation’s application scope, but also enriching the research objects of remote acculturation.

Besides this, in this paper, remote acculturation is conceptualized as a bi-dimensional process [9], encompassing Korean cultural orientation as well as Chinese cultural orientation. A measure of remote acculturation has been developed and verified on the basis of previous research [9,10]. There are eight measurement items to assess remote acculturation, comprising four measurement items for Korean cultural orientation along with four measurement items for Chinese cultural orientation. Validity and reliability of the measurement items for remote acculturation have been tested and proved in this study, so the verification of the items for remote acculturation can contribute to quantitative research on remote acculturation toward Korean culture, providing a reference for the development of rating scales for remote acculturation toward Korean culture.

Moreover, the research findings support the significant positive bearing of Korean cultural orientation on attitudes toward Korea, which is consistent with the outcomes of previous studies on the relations between proximal acculturation toward Korean culture and attitudes toward Korea [42,43,44], which have manifested that proximal acculturation toward Korean culture of Chinese students who study abroad in Korea has a significant positive impact on their attitudes toward Korea. Thus, the results of this paper and previous research [42,43,44] provide evidence that remote acculturation and proximal acculturation toward Korean culture can exert the same influence on attitudes toward Korea. To be more specific, both remote acculturation toward Korean culture and proximal acculturation toward Korean culture generate a significant positive effect on attitudes toward Korea. Accordingly, not only many aspects of traditional proximal acculturation theories along with methods are applicable to remote acculturation [18], but also the impacts of traditional proximal acculturation can be consistent with those of remote acculturation.

Additionally, the findings have demonstrated the significant positive influence of attitudes toward Korea on the intention to visit Korea. Chinese consumers with more favorable attitudes toward Korea tend to harbor more positive visit intentions regarding Korea. This result is in line with those of previous studies [48,57,59], which have revealed that attitudes toward Korea exert a significant positive effect on visit intention to Korea. Therefore, this paper supplements the literature on the positive impacts of attitudes toward Korea on visit intention to Korea. Last but not least, this paper proves the significant positive bearing of attitudes toward Korea on purchase intention of Korean products, which is the same as the outcomes of previous studies [65,66]. Hence, the findings of this study offer empirical support for the hypothesis that attitudes toward Korea engender a significant positive effect on purchase intention of Korean products.

5.2. Managerial Implications

This study also furnishes several managerial implications. To start with, Hallyu has gained love from Chinese people since the appearance of Hallyu within China and has created good social and economic benefits for Korea [5]. In terms of tourism, Korea has become a well-known tourist destination worldwide [59]. Particularly for its near neighbors, such as China and Japan, Korea has turned into a popular overseas tourist destination [90,91]. In accordance with the official statistics contained in [92], from 2013 to 2020, the number of Chinese tourists visiting Korea has far exceeded that of Japan and the USA. Thus, Chinese tourists have made great contributions to the Korean tourism industry. Nevertheless, the total number of foreign tourists visiting Korea in 2020 decreased by 85.61% to about 2.5 million, and the number of Chinese tourists in 2020 dropped by 88.60% to 684 thousand [92] due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, so when the COVID-19 pandemic is under control, or after it has ended, it is vital to attract foreign tourists, especially Chinese tourists, to visit Korea for the sake of facilitating the development of the Korean tourism industry. Because visit intention plays a crucial role in bringing about actual tourism activities [93], and in order to boost the number of Chinese tourists visiting Korea, it is of importance to prompt Chinese tourists and potential tourists’ positive visit intentions to Korea, as the study results reveal that attitudes toward Korea positively bear on visit intention to Korea, that is, favorable attitudes toward Korea contribute to shaping positive visit intention to Korea, and thereby produce the actual visiting behavior.

Furthermore, under the influence of Hallyu, Chinese consumers favor Korean cultural products, e.g., K-dramas, K-Pop and K-movies, derivatives of Hallyu and Korean ordinary products [94]. For example, in 2016, Descendants of the Sun not only won high ratings within China, but also triggered purchase behavior for Korean products. More specifically, a large number of Chinese audiences shopped online to buy “Song Hye-gyo’s bag”, “Song Hye-gyo’s clothes”, “Song Hye-gyo’s cosmetics”, etc. [14]. Nowadays, with rapid economic development and a large population, China has turned into an important market all over the world [14], so Chinese consumers’ purchasing power should not be underestimated. Besides this, purchase intention has been confirmed to have a positive bearing on purchase behavior [82], so it is essential to facilitate Chinese consumers’ purchase intention to boost their purchase behavior. As the research findings have demonstrated that attitudes toward Korea positively influence purchase intention of Korean products, in order to cause Chinese consumers to form positive purchase intention and purchasing behavior for Korean products, it is important for Chinese consumers to shape favorable attitudes toward Korea. This research result may also apply to Chinese consumers under the circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic, as at present online shopping is convenient, fast, popular and is not greatly adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

In accordance with the study outcomes, Hallyu impacts on Chinese people’s remote acculturation toward Korean culture via the degree of use of Hallyu cultural contents, the Hallyu image and Hallyu cultural familiarity. In order to cause Chinese people in China to acculturate toward Korean culture remotely, it is essential to increase their engagement with Hallyu cultural contents, e.g., K-dramas, K-movies, K-Pop and K-variety shows, prompting them to form favorable Hallyu images in their minds and raising their familiarity with Hallyu culture. In addition, Korean cultural orientation can be conducive to shaping favorable attitudes toward Korea, thereby enhancing visit intention to Korea together with purchase intention of Korean products.

Therefore, effective measures and actions ought to be taken so as to advance Chinese people’s Korean cultural orientation, favorable attitudes toward Korea, visit intention to Korea and purchase intention of Korean products. For instance, cooperation with Chinese online video platforms should be enhanced in order to raise the exposure opportunities of Hallyu cultural contents, e.g., K-dramas, K-movies, K-Pop and K-variety shows, thereby increasing the chances for Chinese people to engage with Hallyu cultural contents. Besides, news about the most popular Korean artists or K-dramas on Sina Weibo (i.e., the representative Chinese microblogging website) ought to be updated in a timely fashion so that Chinese people can obtain the latest news about Hallyu promptly. Moreover, it is worthwhile to hold Korean movie exhibitions with Chinese enterprises or organizations within China for the sake of prompting Chinese people’s understanding of Korean movies and Korean culture. Additionally, organizers of Korean movie festivals should invite more Chinese popular and influential directors, actors and actresses to attend Korean movie festivals; the news about the popular and influential directors, actors and actresses participating in Korean movie festivals will attract great attention from Chinese people. Therefore, Korean movie festivals together with K-movies will leave a deep impression on Chinese people.

5.3. Limitations and Future Research

Although this study offers a number of implications, there are still several limitations. First, in the paper, the types of Hallyu cultural contents are confined to media contents, for example, K-dramas, K-movies, K-Pop and K-variety shows, as they have been influential and popular in China [14], and closely related to media. Nevertheless, Hallyu cultural contents encompass a wide range of cultural areas, e.g., dramas, movies, music, sports, fashion, beauty, food and so on. Thus, it is of great significance to introduce Korean fashion, food and other types of cultural contents into future research on Hallyu cultural contents. Next, remote acculturation is conceptualized as a bidimensional process (i.e., Korean cultural orientation and Chinese cultural orientation) in the research. However, remote acculturation can be a multi-dimensional process, and people can be remotely acculturated to multiple cultures simultaneously (e.g., [3,95]). Moreover, a number of scholars have examined local people’s remote acculturation to U.S. American culture [2,7,9,10,88,96], since the U.S. is influential economically, militarily and in terms of its media all over the world. Hence, it is essential to conduct future research on Chinese people’s remote acculturation to American culture and Korean culture. Last but not least, up to the present, most of the extant studies on remote acculturation have utilized items or questions originating from the Acculturation Rating Scale for Mexican Americans-II [97]. Therefore, in order to promote the in-depth investigation of remote acculturation, it is both meaningful and of academic value to develop and test Remote Acculturation Rating Scales.