How Social Interaction Affects Purchase Intention in Social Commerce: A Cultural Perspective

Xicheng Yin, Hongwei Wang, Qiangwei Xia and Qican Gu
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Xicheng Yin: School of Economics and Management, Tongji University, Shanghai 200092, China
Hongwei Wang: School of Economics and Management, Tongji University, Shanghai 200092, China
Qiangwei Xia: School of Economics and Management, Tongji University, Shanghai 200092, China
Qican Gu: School of Economics and Management, Tongji University, Shanghai 200092, China

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 8, 1-18

Abstract: In the context of social commerce, the influence of culture on consumers’ behavior and attitude is more significant. This paper empirically analyzes the influence of social interaction (perceived risk, trust, and intimacy) on consumers’ purchase intention in social commerce, and the antecedent effect of cultural dimensions (uncertainty avoidance and individualism/collectivism) on social interaction is also explored. Data were collected in China and France from consumers who had prior online shopping experience on social commerce websites. The results show that the impact of perceived risk on subsequent purchase intention in social commerce will be transferred by trust and intimacy to a certain extent. The intimacy between users contributes to trust-building, and both of their positive impacts on purchase intention would show distinct effects in different cultures. Besides, cultural dimensions are proved to have a significant effect on users’ social interaction. Although high uncertainty avoidance brings perceived risk, it can promote subsequent trust-building. These findings help provide managerial insights for social commerce community to establish effective trust mechanism in a multicultural context.

Keywords: social commerce; purchase intension; cultural dimension; social interaction (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (11)

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