Convergent and discriminant validity of the perceived risk scale in business-to-business context using the multitrait-multimethod approach

Consumer marketing literature is abundant with research on perceived risk. However, little research has investigated the perceived risk measure in business-to-business, specially regarding its various measurement methodologies employed with respect to their validity. A basic goal of marketing as a science is to provide theoretical explanations for buying-selling behaviour. Whoever seeks such explanations normally borrows and develops constructs and theoretical propositions that cannot be promptly generalized. Thus, this research is primarily concerned with testing and discussing two perceived risk measurement scales across two buying situations (business-to-business) using different types of validation techniques. It tests some assumptions and tenets in models of perceived risk by submitting these measures to a convergent and discriminant validation using the multitraitmultimethod approach. The total of firms from two industrial sectors (pharmaceutical and clothing) in the largest States of the Brazilian Federation were consulted. The results indicate that both scales and their variations are valid to assess risk perception. The certainty/seriousness approach proved to be slightly better than the riskiness approach.