The influence of an online auction’s product price and e‐retailer reputation on consumers’ perception, attitude, and behavioral intention

Abstract

Online auctions combine the conventional auction model with information technology. However, information asymmetry within such auctions causes risks and uncertainties that influence consumer purchase intentions. In this study, a 2 (product price: high vs. low) × 2 (e-retailer reputation: high vs. low) experimental design was used to understand whether the product price and e-retailer reputation will influence consumers' perceived risk, attitude toward the website and purchase intention. The results of this study indicate that perceived risk negatively influences consumer attitude toward the website and online purchase intention, while consumer attitude toward the website positively influences purchase intention. Moreover, involvement moderates the influence of product price and e-retailer reputation only on social risk but does not have a significant effect on consumer attitude toward the website. This study contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of online auction users' behavior. Finally, the managerial implications, limitations and future research directions are also provided.

Examining Consumers’ Attitudes toward Gmarket Online Shopping

“…Attitude refers to an individual evaluation of the psychological state that captures attributes such as pleasant-unpleasant, harmful-beneficial, and good-bad [36,37]. It also refers to the degree of a customer's positive feelings about participating in online shopping [28,38]. A customer with a more positive attitude is more likely to make an online purchase [38].…”

“…Behavior results from intention, which results from attitude [40,41]. Several researchers have investigated how attitude affects behavioral intention or actual behavior [21,28,36,40,42]. Naspetti et al [40] (p. 3) modified the technology acceptance model (TAM) in order to examine the relationship between attitude and dairy farmers' intention to adopt sustainable production strategies.…”

“…Naspetti et al [40] (p. 3) modified the technology acceptance model (TAM) in order to examine the relationship between attitude and dairy farmers' intention to adopt sustainable production strategies. Wu et al [28] investigated on how consumers' attitude toward the website affects purchase intentions. Their results found a positive relationship.…”

“…Attitudes can be toward objects or toward behavior [28,40,43]. The object in our case is online shopping.…”

Selected Issues in Experimental Economics

“…The critical role of reputation is well understood and investigated from different perspectives. Additionally, perceived risk negatively influences consumer attitude toward the website and online purchase intention, while consumer attitude toward the website positively influences purchase intention (Wann-Yih Wu et al 2011). Buyers usually depend on online reputation systems to check the seller's reputation, because such systems can record and report a seller's reputation according to other buyers' feedback (Finch 2007).…”