Dataset for Exploring Cultural Influences on National Alcoholic Beverage Purchases

This study aimed to achieve two key objectives. The initial objective was to construct a full latent SEM for examining the cultural influences on consumer purchasing habits of rakija, a culturally-endorsed alcoholic beverage in Serbia. The second objective was to qualitatively assess the model's suitability for analyzing alcoholic beverages that are culturally specific and nationally recognized, rather than universally applicable. Data for this study were collected online using a survey method. The research sample was randomly selected to ensure a representative group of participants. The survey was conducted anonymously, and participation was voluntary. The sample size consisted of 393 (n=393) rakija consumers. The main finding of this study is that culture significantly influences consumer behavior and their purchasing habits regarding a national drink. Culture does not only exert its influence directly on consumers, but also through mediators such as attitudes toward rakija and purchasing factors. Moreover, the results of the multigroup analysis confirmed that the group of rakija drinkers, who prefer this culturally and nationally endorsed beverage, differs statistically from the group of rakija drinkers who still prefer beer. The final SEM model demonstrates broader applicability and can be utilized to examine the purchasing tendencies of alcoholic beverages from various nations, as long as they possess cultural significance and heritage.
Keywords: SEM; culture; consumer behavior; purchasing intentions; rakija.