Effects of Demographic Characteristics and Consumer Behavior in the selection of Retail Pharmacies and Over-the-Counter Medicine
Article Category: Original Paper
Publié en ligne: 01 mars 2022
Pages: 27 - 40
Reçu: 14 avr. 2018
Accepté: 01 juin 2018
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/afpuc-2021-0017
Mots clés
© 2021 D.P. Kevrekidis et al., published by Sciendo
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.
Aim
The study aimed to provide new insights into consumer behaviour by identifying the key demographic factors that influence the choice of pharmacy and over-the-counter (OTC) medicine.
Materials and Methods
A cross-sectional study was conducted in an urban area (Thessaloniki, Greece), surveying a convenience sample of 314 consumers with a structured questionnaire. Data analysis was conducted using the chi-square test, one-way analyses of variance (ANOVAs) and Spearman's rho correlation coefficient.
Results
Respondents with a lower educational level and retired consumers tended to make their purchases in a single pharmacy (
Conclusions
The educational level, occupation and age of consumers have a marked effect in their selection of pharmacy, and along with gender and personal income, in their choice of OTC medicine. Our findings yield implications for the management of community pharmacies.