Investigation into the Factors Affecting the Attitudes of Consumers towards the Consumption of Herbal Medicines in Nigeria

Abstract

This paper investigates into the factors affecting the attitude of consumer towards herbal medicines in Nigeria. Emphasized was on consumer attitude towards herbal medicine in relations to marketing variables. The study was carried out with a sample size of 400 respondents in the three major cities in the Southern Nigeria; comprises Aba, Port Harcourt, and Ibadan. Data were sourced through structured questionnaire; convenience sampling method was employed to administer the questionnaire to the consumers of herbal medicine in the study areas. Responses from the questionnaire were ranked with the aid of 5 point likert scale. The study was generally a descriptive research and our method of analysis followed an electric approached, qualitative data from primary source were transformed to quantitative data with the use of likert scale, tabulations, plain descriptive frequency table, simple percentage and average mean score and simple regression were employed to analysis the data. The finding revealed that all the marketing variables, namely; product, price, promotion and place strategy were all statistically significant in affecting attitude of consumer towards herbal medicines. The average mean score of all the variables 3.7, 4.40, 3.62 and 3.73 respective > 3.0 criterions mean value. Particularly, price strategy has highest mean score of 4.40 > 3.0 criterion mean value. This implies that price strategy had significant impact on consumer attitude towards herbal medicine. The null hypothesis formulated in this study, stated that product, price, promotion and place strategy do not affect consumer attitude towards herbal medicine in Nigeria. The decision follow a simple rule, that is, null hypothesis (H_O) will be rejected if t-calculated is greater than t-statistic at 0.05 percent significant level and alternative hypothesis (H₁) will be accepted, if otherwise, accept the null hypothesis (H_O) and reject alternative hypothesis (H₁). Thus, from the foregoing results, null hypothesis will be rejecting, and alternative hypothesis will be accepted. That is, product, price, promotion and place strategy affect attitude of consumer toward herbal medicines in Nigeria. Based, on our finding, the study recommended that policy framework that will enhance improvements of marketing variables should be sustained.

Keywords: herbal medicine, customer attitude, health care