Abstract
Success in electronic commerce relies greatly on customer trust. While other studies have examined various factors affecting online customer trust, few have investigated the joint effects of perceived risk and website reputation on purchase intention using online trust as a mediator. The current study attempts to fill this gap. 300 online shoppers participated via web-based questionnaires using a quota sampling technique. Based on confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), our measurements were found to be valid and reliable. Using structural equation modeling (SEM), we confirmed significant direct effects of perceived risk and website reputation on customer purchase intentions. Furthermore, both factors had significant indirect effects on purchase intention through online trust. In addition to extending theoretical insight into online trust as a mediator for the effects of perceived risk and website reputation on purchase intention, web-based vendors may adopt the findings to adjust their online stores to raise customer trust and ultimately increase the possibility of online purchases.
Highlights
Online trust has played a critical role in electronic commerce (Kim and Lennon, 2013; Kim, et al, 2003)
Online trust was found to have direct effect on visitors’ purchase intention and to act as a mediator passing the effect of perceived risk or perceived website reputation trough the intention (Galeziewska, 2014; Chang and Chen, 2008; Ling, et al, 2011; Zhu, et al, 2011)
Online trust is a mediator through which effects of the perceived risk and the website reputation pass onto the purchase intention
Summary
Online trust has played a critical role in electronic commerce (Kim and Lennon, 2013; Kim, et al, 2003). Vendors must ensure that their websites are equipped with all of the contents that contribute to the high amount of visitors’ trust such that they would like to place an order instantly. Previous research has ascertained the connection among antecedent factors and the online trust (Kim and Lennon, 2013; Urban, et al, 2009; Yoon, 2002), the results are not conclusive. It is interesting to examine the extent to which the visitors’ perceived risk affects their purchase intention directly or through their trusting beliefs. Does perceived risk effect trust, website reputation could draw online customers to trust a webbased store (Einwiller, 2003; Yao, Li, 2008). The increasing number of services has offered sellers more choices of hosting online stores. To examine direct effects of perceived risk and website reputation on purchase intention
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
