Can trust and social benefit really help? Empirical examination of purchase intentions for wearable devices

Abstract

This paper empirically examines the effects of critical determinants such as universal access, satisfaction, reputation, and familiarity on purchase intentions for wearable devices through a paradigm of trust and social benefit. Data was collected from an online survey. The formal questionnaire consisted of two sections. The first section measured respondent perceptions of each construct in the research model. The second section interpreted the basic personal data of respondents. The study results indicate that both trust and social benefit can positively influence purchase intention for wearable devices. Universal access and familiarity fail to influence trust directly but can influence purchase intention by way of social benefit, as expected. The research extends existing purchase intention literature for wearable devices by identifying the importance of universal access, context-awareness, reputation, and familiarity, and by probing the relationship of trust, social benefit, and purchase intention. The results suggest prescriptive strategies for sellers of wearable devices.