How wise are online procrastinators? A scale development

Abstract

Purpose

Online purchases might be delayed. In some cases, this postponement could be a privileged, an adequate, or an efficient strategy. Online consumer procrastination is the voluntary and rational delay of a planned online purchase. The purpose of this research is to develop a measure of this behavior.

Design/methodology/approach

The Churchill's paradigm adapted by Roehrich was adopted. A total of 77 items were generated from 27 interviews. This set of items was reduced to 23 after dropping out redundant or not representative items. In a pilot study, factor analysis on the 23‐item scale yielded a two‐factor structure scale of five items with a reliability ranging from 0.715 to 0.809. The Online Consumer Procrastination Scale (OCPS) was statistically confirmed and validated, in a subsequent investigation.

Findings

Findings revealed a reliable and valid five‐item scale. Its dimensions are online deal‐proneness and online rationality.

Research limitations/implications

This research allows a better conceptualization of the online consumer procrastination. Future research should assess the OCPS validity across different product categories.

Practical implications

OCPS will make easier the recognition of e‐shoppers who delay the achievement of online purchase intentions.

Originality/value

OCPS is the first scale measuring the reasonable delay in an online purchase context.

Citation

Negra, A. and Nabil Mzoughi, M. (2012), "How wise are online procrastinators? A scale development", Internet Research, Vol. 22 No. 4, pp. 426-442. https://doi.org/10.1108/10662241211250971