The aim of this research was to examine the perception of car tire brands and thus the group of car tire brands among Croatian drivers by using the Q-methodology. Q-methodology is still considered an avant-garde approach in social sciences, but broadly used when researching prevailing opinion regarding important matters. The research determined there are 45 car tire brands and 7 brand groups present in Croatia. As expected, the leading car tire brands have a significantly more positive perception among Croatian drivers, when considering the average of the brand group results however, they score more poorly. Given that the range of sub-brands covers the entire spectrum of car tires in different price and quality classes, the perception of brands should be clearly separated from the driver’s payment options. Croatian drivers have access to a wide selection of different brands and sub-brands of car tires, with only a part of it familiar to them.
Cilj ovog istraživanja bio je ispitati percepciju brandova automobilskih guma te time i grupa brandova automobilskih guma kod hrvatskih vozača upotrebom Q-metodologije. Q-metodologija se i dalje smatra avangardnim istraživačkim alatom u društvenim znanostima ali nalazi široku primjenu kod utvrđivanja prevladavajućeg mišljenja kod važnih pitanja. Istraživanjem je utvrđeno 45 brandova automobilskih guma i 7 grupa brandova prisutnih u Hrvatskoj. Vodeći brandovi automobilskih guma očekivano imaju značajno pozitivnu percepciju kod hrvatskih vozača, no u prosjeku rezultata za grupe brandova ostvaruju slabije rezultate. S obzirom da se asortiman podbrandova odnosi na cijeli spektar automobilskih guma po različitim cjenovnim i kvalitativnim razredima, percepciju brandova treba jasno razdvojiti od platežnih mogućnosti vozača. Hrvatskim vozačima je dostupan širok izbor različitih brandova i podbrandova automobilskih guma od kojih im je tek jedan dio poznat.