Interactivity, presence, and purchase intention an empirical study in virtual collaborative shopping

INTERACTIVITY, PRESENCE, AND PURCHASE INTENTION: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY IN VIRTUAL COLLABORATIVE SHOPPING LIU XIN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SINGAPORE 2005 INTERACTIVITY, PRESENCE, AND PURCHASE INTENTION: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY IN VIRTUAL COLLABORATIVE SHOPPING LIU XIN (M.Sc, National University of Singapore) A THESIS SUBMITTED FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATION SYSTEMS NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SINGAPORE 2005 i Acknowledgements I would like to express my gratitude to my supervisor, Dr Teo Hock Hai, for his support, help, and guidance throughout the conduct of this research Without his help and directing, I could hardly complete this work I also need to acknowledge Dr Bock Gee-Woo and Dr Jiang Zhenhui for the time and efforts they devoted in attending my presentation and the constructive comments they made on my works I am also grateful to my friends Tan Chuan Hoo and Xu Heng for their encouragement and generous help I benefited a lot from discussions with them I owe many thanks to them Last, but not least, I would like to thank my family for their love, encouragement, and constant support throughout my study I dedicate this thesis to them ii Contents Page Title i Acknowledgements ii Contents iii Figures v Tables vi Summary vii Chapter Introduction 1.1 Background 1.1.1 Virtual Collaborative Shopping 1.1.2 Presence 1.1.3 Interactivity 1.2 Motivations of Research 1.3 Research Questions 1.4 Research Objective and Scope 1.5 Thesis Organization and Structure Chapter Literature Review 2.1 Virtual Collaborative Shopping 2.1.1 Meaning of Collaboration 2.1.2 Collaborative Virtual Environment 10 2.2 Presence 12 2.2.1 Presence Theories 12 2.2.2 Interactivity 16 Chapter Research Model and Hypotheses 18 3.1 Research Model 18 3.1.1 Independent Variables 19 3.1.2 Dependent Variables 20 3.1.3 Controlled Variables 22 3.2 Research Hypotheses 23 3.2.1 Interactivity 23 3.2.2 Presence 25 3.2.3 Purchase Intention 26 iii Chapter Research Methodology 27 4.1 Experimental Design 27 4.2 Independent Variables 28 4.2.1 Object Interactivity 28 4.2.2 Person Interactivity 28 4.3 Dependent Variables 29 4.3.1 Telepresence 30 4.3.2 Social Presence 30 4.3.3 Satisfaction 30 4.3.4 Purchase Intention 31 4.4 Controlled Variables 31 4.5 Experimental Details 32 4.5.1 Subjects 32 4.5.2 Design of Experiment Website 32 4.5.3 Experimental Procedures 33 Chapter Data Analyses 34 5.1 Manipulation Check and Control Check 34 5.1.1 Manipulation Check 34 5.1.2 Control Check 35 5.2 Model Testing 36 5.2.1 Measurement Model 38 5.2.2 Structural Model 40 Chapter Discussion and Implications 42 6.1 Discussion of Results 42 6.2 Implications for Practice and Research 44 Chapter Conclusion 46 7.1 Contributions 46 7.2 Limitations 46 7.3 Concluding Remarks 48 REFERENCES 49 APPENDICES 56 Appendix 1: Measurements 56 Appendix 2: Experiment Website Screen Shots 59 Appendix 3: Questionnaire 79 iv List of Figures Figure 3.1 Research Model 19 Figure 5.1 Structural Model 40 v List of Tables Table 3.1 Controlled Variables 23 Table 4.1 Experimental Design 27 Table 5.1 Manipulation Check 35 Table 5.2 Control Check 36 Table 5.3 Analysis of Variance 37 Table 5.4 Psychometric Properties of the Measurement Model 39 Table 5.5 Discriminant Validity of Constructs 40 Table 5.6 Results of Hypothesis Testing 41 vi Summary Shopping is a social activity that people enjoy doing along with friends and close ones We specify the concept of virtual collaborative shopping in this study as online shopping activity performed by two or more people together This study is one of the first attempts to study factors that influence consumer attitude and behavior in the context of virtual collaborative shopping Presence is recognized as an essential factor that distinguishes collaborative virtual environment technology The influence of presence on user’s attitudes and behavior is widely reported in the literature This research studied the effects of technological characteristics (i.e object interactivity and person interactivity) on the formation of presence, and the impact of presence on consumer satisfaction and purchase intention This study adopted a multi-dimensional conceptualization of presence, highlighting the importance of the conceptual distinction between telepresence and social presence and the necessity of the simultaneous consideration of these two types of presence An experiment involving 200 subjects was conducted to test the research model The study was a (object interactivity) × (person interactivity) factorial design Results show that object interactivity is a significant predictor of telepresence Person interactivity has positive effects on both telepresence and social presence Both telepresence and social presence positively influence satisfaction Satisfaction significantly affects purchase intention Results suggest that person interactivity has a vii strong impact on social presence Further analysis reveals that social presence plays a more critical role than telepresence in influencing consumer satisfaction This study takes into account of the social aspects of human interaction with technology It enlightens the marketers with practical insights We believe that research on collaborative shopping deserves more attention This study lays useful foundation for future researchers viii Chapter Introduction 1.1 Background 1.1.1 Virtual Collaborative Shopping The popularity of Internet has brought great convenience to information and services users But so far, the use of information and services online has been a solitary experience (Puglia et al 2000) Most of the existing e-commerce websites are designed to support isolated shopping Consumers navigate around pages and perform e-commerce activities basically alone, experiencing everything on their own However, research in consumer behavior and social psychology argues that much of the consumer behavior is not solely an individual transaction, but rather is highly social and collaborative (Underhill 1999; Miller 1998) There is evidence that people enjoy shopping with friends and relatives in a social and collaborative environment (Marathe 1999; Warms et al 2000; O’Hara and Perry 2003) For example, Underhill (1999) found in his study that women shopping with a female companion shopped longer than they shopped alone He further pointed out that the amount of time shoppers spend in a store is the single most significant predictor of how much they buy Research in consumer behavior also indicates that those who shop in groups may purchase more and spend more money than when shopping alone (Sommer et al 1992) Collaborative shopping provides consumer with moral support, taste tips, companionship, expertise etc A consumer may defer purchase impulse when there is no one to seek reassurance and advice from (Sommer et al 1992) Appendix 2.4 Experimental Condition (HOI, LPI) (3) 70 Appendix 2.4 Experimental Condition (HOI, LPI) (4) 71 Appendix 2.5 Experimental Condition (LOI, HPI) (1) 72 Appendix 2.5 Experimental Condition (LOI, HPI) (2) 73 Appendix 2.5 Experimental Condition (LOI, HPI) (3) 74 Appendix 2.6 Experimental Condition (HOI, HPI) (1) 75 Appendix 2.6 Experimental Condition (HOI, HPI) (2) 76 Appendix 2.6 Experimental Condition (HOI, HPI) (3) 77 Appendix 2.6 Experimental Condition (HOI, HPI) (4) 78 Appendix 3: Questionnaire Please indicate, in the spaces provided, the degree to which each statement applies to you Indicate your choice by clicking the appropriate marker There are no right or wrong answers Some statements are similar to other statements Do not be concerned about this 1a In the scenario, I am able to interact with the product Strongly Disagree Neutral 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 1b In the scenario, the product can respond to my input Strongly Disagree Neutral 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ Strongly Agree 6⊙ 7⊙ Strongly Agree 7⊙ 1c In the scenario, I can acquire product information in an interactive way Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 2a Given this virtual collaborative shopping scenario, I can get instantaneous information from my friend Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 2b Given this virtual collaborative shopping scenario, my actions decide the kind of experiences I have with my friend Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 2c Given this virtual collaborative shopping scenario, I have a good understanding of the context my friend is in Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 2d Given this virtual collaborative shopping scenario, I can adapt to the changes of the context my friend is in Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 79 3a During the exercise, I forgot that I was in the middle of an experiment Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 3b During the exercise, my body was in the room, but my mind was inside the world created by the computer Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 3c The computer-generated world seemed to me “somewhere I visited” rather than “something I saw” Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 3d I forgot about my immediate surroundings when I was navigating through the exercise Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 3e When the computer exercise ended, I felt like I came back to the “real world” after a journey Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 4a This virtual collaborative shopping scenario is excellent for social interaction Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 4b This virtual collaborative shopping scenario is warm Strongly Disagree Neutral 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ Strongly Agree 6⊙ 7⊙ 4c This virtual collaborative shopping scenario is personal Strongly Disagree Neutral 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 4d This virtual collaborative shopping scenario is sensitive Strongly Disagree Neutral 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ Strongly Agree 6⊙ 7⊙ 4e This virtual collaborative shopping scenario is sociable Strongly Disagree Neutral 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ Strongly Agree 6⊙ 7⊙ Strongly Agree 7⊙ 80 Given this virtual collaborative shopping scenario, how would you rate your level of satisfaction? Dissatisfied Satisfied 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ Displeased 1⊙ Unfavorable 1⊙ Unpleasant 1⊙ 2⊙ 2⊙ 2⊙ I NOT like it at all 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ Pleased 7⊙ 6⊙ Favorable 7⊙ Pleasant 7⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ I like it very much 6⊙ 7⊙ Given this virtual collaborative shopping scenario, how would you rate your probability of purchasing the product? Unlikely Likely 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ Improbable 1⊙ Impossible 1⊙ Uncertain 1⊙ Gender Education Age 2⊙ 2⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 3⊙ 3⊙ ⊙Male ⊙Undergraduate ⊙below 18 4⊙ 4⊙ 4⊙ ⊙Female ⊙ Postgraduate ⊙18-25 5⊙ 5⊙ 5⊙ ⊙Others ⊙25-35 6⊙ Probable 7⊙ 6⊙ Possible 7⊙ 6⊙ Certain 7⊙ ⊙above 35 81 Please indicate, in the spaces provided, the degree to which each statement applies to you Indicate your choice by clicking the appropriate marker There are no right or wrong answers Some statements are similar to other statements Do not be concerned about this 1a I am proficient in using computers in general Strongly Disagree Neutral 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 1b I am proficient in surfing online Strongly Disagree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ Neutral 4⊙ 2a I am familiar with online shopping Strongly Disagree Neutral 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ Strongly Agree 6⊙ 7⊙ 5⊙ Strongly Agree 6⊙ 7⊙ 5⊙ Strongly Agree 6⊙ 7⊙ 2b I have purchased products for times in online shops 0⊙ 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ More than ⊙ 3a Compared to average person, I am very familiar with digital cameras Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 3b Compared to average person, I am very knowledgeable about digital cameras Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 3c I need to collect a large amount of additional information before I purchase a digital camera Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 82 Online synchronous communication tools such as Instant Messengers allow users to communicate in real time with others Popular messaging tools include ICQ, AOL Instant Messenger, MSN Messenger, and Yahoo! Messenger etc How would you rate your knowledge and experience with such online synchronous communication tools? 4a I know a lot about instant messengers Strongly Disagree Neutral 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 4b I have a lot of experience using instant messengers Strongly Disagree Neutral 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ Strongly Agree 6⊙ 7⊙ 6⊙ Strongly Agree 7⊙ Co-browsing tools allow easy sharing of Web-based information Internet users can navigate the web and synchronize the browsers of other users For example, through the use of NetMeeting 3, participants can view and take control of the other’s browser How would you rate your knowledge and experience with such co-browsing tools? 5a I know a lot about co-browsing tools Strongly Disagree Neutral 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 5b I have a lot of experience using co-browsing tools Strongly Disagree Neutral 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ Strongly Agree 6⊙ 7⊙ 6⊙ Strongly Agree 7⊙ 6a I rarely purchase the latest fashions until I am sure my friends approve of them Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 6⊙ 7⊙ 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6b It is important that others like the products and brands I buy Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 6c When buying products, I generally purchase those brands that I think others will approve of Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 83 6d If other people can see me using a product, I often purchase the brand they expect me to buy Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 6e I like to know what brands and products make good impressions on others Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 6f I achieve a sense of belonging by purchasing the same products and brands that others purchase Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 6g If I want to be like someone, I often try to buy the same brands that they buy Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 6h I often identify with other people by purchasing the same products and brands they purchase Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 7a This virtual collaborative scenario enables me to interact with the product Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 7b This virtual collaborative shopping scenario enables me to view what my friend is browsing Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 7c I have active control over what my friend is browsing in this virtual collaborative shopping scenario Strongly Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree 1⊙ 2⊙ 3⊙ 4⊙ 5⊙ 6⊙ 7⊙ 84 [...]... essential to virtual collaborative shopping This literature is drawn from several disciplines including marketing, sociology, communications and information systems 2.1 Virtual Collaborative Shopping Virtual collaborative shopping can be defined as online shopping activities conducted by two or more people together As the technology improves, consumers are demanding for more collaboration online In the recent... attitudes and behavior (Kim and Biocca 1997) Telepresence is reported to result in enhanced memory and persuasion (Klein 2002), and exploratory consumer behavior (Jeandrain 2001b) According to Hoffman and Novak (1996a), telepresence facilitates a state of flow, resulting in positive affect and autotelic experience Telepresence is proposed to induce positive feelings like arousal, affect and enjoyment... other participants plays a critical important role in collaborative virtual environments (Ijsselsteijn and Riva 2003) Telepresence and social presence are distinct feelings that can be perceived in the same application Therefore, it is important to distinguish between them and investigate their antecedents and consequences respectively Extant studies on presence mainly focus on telepresence In our research... on an important aspect of interactivity Hoffman and Novak (1996a) further identify two levels of interactivity: machine interactivity and person interactivity Machine interactivity refers to the extent to which users can participate in modifying 16 the form and content of a mediated environment in real time Person interactivity refers to interactivity between people that occurs through a medium In virtual. .. factor in formulating the purchase intention (Devaraj et al 2001) As satisfaction reflects subjective evaluation of products or services, there is a strong positive relationship between satisfaction and purchase intention (Bienstock and DeMoranville 1994; Cronin and Taylor 1992) Therefore, we hypothesize that: H6: Satisfaction is positively related with purchase intention in virtual collaborative shopping. . .In e-commerce context, research in consumer attitude and behavior also advocates technologies and services that facilitate social interaction and enhance the social experience of online shopping activities (O’Hara and Perra 2003) Considering the consequential impact of supporting social interaction, e-commerce marketers and system designers are beginning to address the social needs of online consumers... (Holderness 1998) 1.1.3 Interactivity Although to a certain extent, telepresence and social presence can be meaningfully distinguished, they are closely correlated Interactivity is an important common determinant telepresence and social presence share (Ijsselsteijn and Riva 2003) 3 In prior research, interactivity has received considerable attention from multiple disciplines Hoffman and Novak (1996a) identify... presence is proposed to be an essential factor distinguishing collaborative virtual environment (CVE) technology (Psotka 1995) It has long been recognized as an important factor in explaining user behavior and performance in virtual environments (Khalifa and Shen 2004) However, prior research in virtual collaborative shopping is largely technology-driven and there is little knowledge about how website... (Ha and James 1998) consisting of object interactivity and person interactivity in our research context, it is important to distinguish the two levels of interactivity and investigate their effects on telepresence and social presence respectively Prior research examining the impact of interactivity on presence tends to opt for a holistic perspective 1.3 Research Questions In this study, virtual collaborative. .. discusses the significance of the results and examines implications for practice and research highlighted by these findings Chapter 7 concludes this thesis Contributions and limitations of this study are discussed 8 Chapter 2 Literature Review This chapter gives a review of research relevant to virtual collaborative shopping and presence literature The review is important in our understanding of the factors .. .INTERACTIVITY, PRESENCE, AND PURCHASE INTENTION: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY IN VIRTUAL COLLABORATIVE SHOPPING LIU XIN (M.Sc, National University of Singapore) A THESIS SUBMITTED... satisfaction and purchase intention (Bienstock and DeMoranville 1994; Cronin and Taylor 1992) Therefore, we hypothesize that: H6: Satisfaction is positively related with purchase intention in virtual collaborative. .. statistical analyses findings and evaluates the research model and hypotheses It discusses the significance of the results and examines implications for practice and research highlighted by these findings