Idiocentrism Versus Allocentrism and Ethical Evaluations on Illegal Downloading Intention Between the United States and South Korea

This study examined the effects of the personality dimension of idiocentrism and allocentrism, individual experiences, and ethical evaluations on illegal downloading intention. Using data from surveys of college students in the United States and South Korea (N = 881 and 467), the study uncovered that South Korean students are more likely to download illegal content than the U.S. counterpart. The study found the personal trait of self-reliance affected illegal downloading intention for the U.S. students, as expected, while that of interdependence affected the intention for South Korean students. Of more interest is that self-reliance, which is likely to be prominent in individualistic societies, played an important role in explaining illegal downloading intention among the students of South Korea where collectivistic culture has traditionally been predominant. Further, the role of individual experience and ethical evaluations played differently in accounting for illegal downloading intention among the U.S. and South Korean students.