Search results
1 – 6 of 6Beverly Kracher, Cynthia L. Corritore and Susan Wiedenbeck
Trust is a key concept in business, particularly in electronic commerce (e‐commerce). In order to understand online trust, onemust first study trust research conducted in the…
Abstract
Trust is a key concept in business, particularly in electronic commerce (e‐commerce). In order to understand online trust, one must first study trust research conducted in the offline world. The findings of such studies, dating from the 1950’s to the present, provide a foundation for online trust theory in e‐commerce. This paper provides an overview of the existing trust literature from the fields of philosophy, psychology, sociology, management, and marketing. Based on these bodies of work, online trust is briefly explored. The range of topics for future research in online trust in e‐commerce is presented.
Details
Keywords
Ibrahim Elbeltagi and Gomaa Agag
The theoretical understanding of online shopping behaviour has received much attention. Less focus has been given to online retailing ethics. Therefore, the purpose of this paper…
Abstract
Purpose
The theoretical understanding of online shopping behaviour has received much attention. Less focus has been given to online retailing ethics. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to develop and test a comprehensive model of online retailing ethics.
Design/methodology/approach
The study used a survey amongst a sample representative of universities across Egypt. In total, 310 questionnaire were collected and analysed using structure equation modelling using WarpPLS.
Findings
The results indicate that the consumer perceptions of online retailing ethics (CPORE) as a second-order construct is composed of five constructs (security, privacy, non-deception, fulfilment/reliability, and service recovery) and strongly predictive of online consumer satisfaction. Furthermore, the authors find a significant mediating effect of trust, and commitment on the relationship between CPORE and customer satisfaction. The results also show that individualism had moderate effects on the relationship between CPORE and customer satisfaction. Contrary to expectations, power distance had no significant effect.
Research limitations/implications
Despite the contributions of this study some research limitations need acknowledgment. First, this study employed a convenience sample. The authors encourage future studies to use random sampling of general consumers. The ethics literature identifies some factors which influence ethical judgments of consumers (e.g. sex, age, and education). Such research could identify how each variable, individually and cooperatively, impacts consumer ethical evaluations of online retailing. The authors did not collect data from non-internet shoppers because the focus of this study was online consumers referring to their latest purchase online. It may be an interesting extension, however, to test this conceptual model for other populations like non-online consumers.
Originality/value
This study developed and empirically tested a comprehensive model of CPORE with its multidimensional constructs and evaluated its impact on both consumer satisfaction and repurchase intention via trust and commitment.
Details
Keywords
Richard G. Brody, Gaurav Gupta and Todd White
The purpose of this paper is to examine whistleblowing behavior in the accounting community (students and professionals) in an emerging economy – India.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine whistleblowing behavior in the accounting community (students and professionals) in an emerging economy – India.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a case-based approach, data were collected from 263 accounting students and 268 accounting professionals in India.
Findings
Using multivariate and univariate analyses of variance and logistic regressions, the authors provided evidence on how accounting students and professionals behave in a whistleblowing environment. Specifically, the authors found mixed results when comparing the behavior of accounting students and professionals in a whistleblowing scenario. All subjects reflected a more collectivist attitude, although professionals were more concerned about “fixing” the identified internal control problem (a “shared” problem). Both groups expressed a firm desire to collect more evidence against the likely fraudster.
Practical implications
In this era of global offshoring of services including accounting, the current study makes significant contributions to the accounting ethics literature and the accounting profession by analyzing whistleblowing behavior from an Indian perspective – a highly underrepresented area in the accounting ethics literature. The study aims to guide companies and investors in the US and elsewhere that do business in India.
Originality/value
While the accounting literature has plenty of research on whistleblowing in the Western world, there is a dearth of literature on whistleblowing in India. This paper is among the first to document whistleblowing behavior in India, a country that prides itself on its vast availability of English-speaking and technically sound accounting professionals.
Details
Keywords
Gomaa Agag, Ahmed El-masry, Nawaf Sulaiman Alharbi and Ahmed Ahmed Almamy
The purpose of this paper is to identify the dimensions of e-retailing ethics from the consumers’ perspective and to develop a reliable and valid measurement instrument.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to identify the dimensions of e-retailing ethics from the consumers’ perspective and to develop a reliable and valid measurement instrument.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is based on a quantitative survey conducted among Egyptian consumers aged 18 and above. These were measured on a five-point Likert scale. The reliability and validity of this six-factor scale are verified using empirical data collected randomly from Egyptians’ online consumers. Structure equation modelling used to test the suggested model.
Findings
The results showed that buyer perceptions about seller ethics (BPSE) is a second order construct composed of six factors (e.g. privacy, security, reliability, non-deception, service recover, and shared value). The results also showed that the BPSE has strong predictive capability in relation to online customer satisfaction and repurchase intention.
Originality/value
This project is one of the first empirical studies that develop a reliable and valid measurement instrument of BPSE. The findings provide several important theoretical and practical implications for online retailing and academic researchers as well as making a significant contribution to the body of knowledge in the online retailing context.
Details
Keywords
Hsin Hsin Chang and Su Wen Chen
The purpose of this paper is to investige whether online environment cues (web site quality and web site brand) affect customer purchase intention towards an online retailer and…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investige whether online environment cues (web site quality and web site brand) affect customer purchase intention towards an online retailer and whether this impact is mediated by customer trust and perceived risk. The study also aimed to assess the degree of reciprocity between consumers' trust and perceived risk in the context of an online shopping environment.
Design/methodology/approach
The study proposed a research framework for testing the relationships among the constructs based on the stimulus‐organism‐response framework. In addition, this study developed a non‐recursive model. After the validation of measurement scales, empirical analyses were performed using structural equation modelling.
Findings
The findings confirm that web site quality and web site brand affect consumers' trust and perceived risk, and in turn, consumer purchase intention. Notably, this study finds that the web site brand is a more important cue than web site quality in influencing customers' purchase intention. Furthermore, the study reveals that the relationship between trust and perceived risk is reciprocal.
Research limitations/implications
This study adopted four dimensions – technical adequacy, content quality, specific content and appearance – to measure web site quality. However, there are still many competing concepts regarding the measurement of web site quality. Further studies using other dimensional measures may be needed to verify the research model.
Practical implications
Online retailers should focus their marketing strategies more on establishing the brand of the web site rather than improving the functionality of the web site.
Originality/value
This study proposed a non‐recursive model for empirically analysing the link between web site quality, web site brand, trust, perceived risk and purchase intention towards the online retailer.
Details
Keywords
Currently, many firms have established brand fan pages on various social network sites. The purpose of this paper is to extend the conventional trust theory, which involves only…
Abstract
Purpose
Currently, many firms have established brand fan pages on various social network sites. The purpose of this paper is to extend the conventional trust theory, which involves only perspective of trust.
Design/methodology/approach
This study targeted community members who have purchased tourist packages from travel agencies and have joined the official brand fan pages of the agencies for at least one year. A total of 646 valid samples were collected.
Findings
Structural equation modeling was employed to conduct path analyses, and the results show that the seven hypothetical paths proposed in this study are supported by the theoretical model, which exhibited desirable goodness-of-fit.
Practical implications
Finally, practical suggestions are offered for community managers.
Originality/value
This study was conducted by integrating the models of consumer-to-consumer and business-to-consumer interactions.
Details