Summary statistics of the study’s key variables.

This study examines the attributes of date palm fruits that influence consumer purchasing decisions and measures the attributes’ relative importance weights for understanding consumption patterns relative to the cultivation areas. A case study was conducted for a selected date fruit, Khalas, which is cultivated in Saudi Arabia and ranked first in the world in exported dates. Our empirical investigation is based on utilizing a proposed quantitative analysis that integrated the entropy weighting method and binary logit models. With this survey design, 486 questionnaires were collected. Analysis results revealed a ranking list of preferred attributes, with size, mellowness, price, and color being the most valued. However, this ranking list fluctuates when different cultivated types of Khalas dates are available. The results also showed that consumption patterns may change in terms of preference index and shopping location. The paper concludes with a discussion of managerial implications, limitations, and future research directions.

本研究旨在探究影响消费者购买决策的椰枣果实属性，并测算各属性的相对重要性权重，以结合种植区域解析消费模式。本研究以沙特阿拉伯种植、椰枣出口量位居全球首位的选定品种Khalas椰枣为案例开展实证分析。本次实证研究采用整合了熵权法（entropy weighting method）与二元logit模型（binary logit models）的定量分析框架。本次调研共回收有效问卷486份。分析结果显示，消费者偏好属性的排序依次为果实大小、成熟度、价格与色泽；不过，当可供选择的Khalas椰枣种植类型存在差异时，该排序会发生波动。研究还发现，消费模式在偏好指数与购物地点两方面均可能发生变化。最后，本文对管理启示、研究局限与未来研究方向展开了讨论。