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This study aims to examine the mechanisms underlying social media commerce by investigating the interplay between platforms, people and information. Drawing upon trust transfer theory, the research model proposes that the platform’s information provision enhances the credibility of the information source, leading to increased information usefulness, adoption and sharing, ultimately influencing purchase intention.

The research design used in this study was a quantitative approach using a cross-sectional survey method. The study developed a research model based on trust transfer theory and hypothesized relationships between the platform’s information provision, information source credibility, information-related responses and purchase intention. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the collected data and test the research hypotheses.

The findings supported most of the hypotheses and provided valuable insights into the role of information credibility in shaping consumers’ purchase intentions. Specifically, the study revealed that the platform’s information provision enhances the credibility of the information source, leading to increased information usefulness, adoption and sharing. Furthermore, information usefulness and adoption mediate the relationship between information source credibility and purchase intention.

The limitations of this research include the use of convenience sampling, which may not represent the broader population, and the cross-sectional design, which does not provide an in-depth understanding of the adoption process. The reliance on self-reported data and the limited scope of investigation with only six constructs are additional limitations. Future studies should consider national random sampling, longitudinal designs, multiple data sources and explore negative effects and other potential mediating variables. Despite these limitations, this research contributes to the understanding of social media commerce mechanisms and provides valuable insights for practitioners in the field.

The findings of this study provide valuable insights for platform providers and marketers in the social media commerce environment. First, the study emphasizes the importance of effective messaging in improving information credibility. Platform providers should focus on delivering accurate and trustworthy information to enhance consumers’ perceptions of product quality and increase purchase intentions. Second, marketers can leverage the information-related factors identified in this study, such as information usefulness and adoption, to optimize their marketing efforts. By understanding how consumers perceive and interact with information on social media platforms, marketers can tailor their strategies to effectively engage and influence potential customers. Overall, these practical implications can enhance success in the competitive social media commerce landscape.

The social implications of this study are significant for social media commerce practitioners. The findings highlight the importance of effective messaging and information provision on social media platforms in improving information credibility, thereby enhancing purchase intention. By understanding the mechanisms that drive consumer behavior in the context of social media commerce, platform providers and marketers can optimize their marketing efforts. This includes focusing on delivering trustworthy and useful information, fostering information adoption and sharing among users and ultimately increasing the likelihood of successful transactions. These insights provide valuable guidance for practitioners to navigate the competitive landscape of social media commerce and enhance their chances of success.

The originality of this research lies in its application of trust transfer theory to investigate the mechanisms driving social media commerce. By examining the interplay between platform, people and information, the study specifically focuses on the role of the platform’s information provision in enhancing information credibility and its impact on information-related responses and purchase intentions. This study extends the understanding of the trust transfer mechanism between customers and sellers/brands in customer-to-customer social commerce by emphasizing the importance of effective messaging and information credibility in shaping consumer behavior. The empirical findings contribute to the understanding of information trust transfer and provide a unique perspective on the underlying mechanisms that drive social media commerce.

Retailers have recently leveraged store-loyal customers’ store attachment to maintain customer relationships and motivate patronage intentions. However, the COVID-19 outbreak has driven customer migration from offline to mobile channels. Mobile retail applications (APPs) have been used by numerous retailers to reach their customers. Nonetheless, it has yet to be determined (1) whether store attachment can facilitate (or impede) the adoption of mobile retail APPs and (2) whether store-loyal customers will continue visiting offline stores in the post-pandemic era. To address these questions, we propose a theoretical account using integrated theories on trust transfer and store attachment.

We conducted multi-stage, longitudinal field surveys in two cities of mainland China: Beijing and Guangzhou. From two rounds of data collection, 237 and 103 responses were obtained in March 2022. Hypotheses were tested by partial least squares – structural equation modelling (PLS–SEM).

Results showed that customer trust in an offline retailer can be transferred to the retailer’s mobile APP at the pre-adoption stage, facilitating APP adoption. Notably, store-loyal customers who exhibited a strong attachment to the physical store of a retailer were more inclined to transfer their trust to the mobile APP of the retailer. This occurrence leads to an increased adoption rate, enhanced post-adoption satisfaction and increased inclination to continue (rather than discontinue) usage.

This study is the first to investigate the changes in store-loyal customers' shopping behaviour in the mobile retail era and in the post-COVID-19 pandemic recovery. Our findings elucidate the role of physical store attachment in the trust-transfer mechanism. Furthermore, store attachment may not prevent customers’ channel migration behaviour. Retailers may have to re-consider how to manage channel cannibalisation issues in the post-pandemic recovery.

The purpose of this study is to explore the comparative effects of mainstream celebrities and social media influencers on consumer advocacy and relationship intentions. The study also examines the direct and serial mediation effects on those relationships.

The survey questionnaire was used to collect data from 718 respondents throughout Malaysia, with convenience and snowball sampling techniques employed. The data were analyzed based on the structural equation modeling (SEM) approach through the AMOS version 24. The PROCESS MACRO v-4.20 was applied to evaluate mediating effects in the model.

The results reveal that celebrity endorsers' involvement in social media significantly influences the uses of social media, which also impacts the attitudes and, subsequently, consumer relationship and advocacy intentions. The study found that mainstream celebrities and social media influencers effectively promote brands, and it discovered insignificant differences in their effects on the analyzed relationships.

This study has been conducted on consumers in Malaysia; it may have different effects on consumers in other countries.

Brand managers and policymakers may benefit from following the study's guidelines for making consumer relationship and advocacy intentions by celebrity endorsers and uses of social media.

The brand community can benefit from tightening their social bondage by sharing and managing crucial information from celebrities and using social media.

The study explores the effects of mainstream celebrities on consumer relationship and advocacy intentions using social media networks and managing consumer attitudes.

Trust plays a crucial role in overcoming uncertainty and reducing risks. Uncovering the trust mechanism in the sharing economy may enable sharing platforms to design more effective marketing strategies. However, existing studies have inconsistent conclusions on the trust mechanism in the sharing economy. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the antecedents and consequences of different dimensions of trust (trust in platform and trust in peers) in the sharing economy.

First, we conducted a meta-analysis of 57 related articles. We tested 13 antecedents of trust in platform (e.g. economic benefits, enjoyment, and information quality) and eight antecedents of trust in peers (e.g. offline service quality and providers’ reputation), as well as their consequences. Then, we conducted subgroup analyses to test the moderating effects of economic development level (Developed vs Developing), gender (Female-dominant vs Male-dominant), platform type (Accommodation vs Transportation), role type (Obtainers vs Providers), and uncertainty avoidance (Strong vs Weak).

The results confirm that all antecedents and consequences significantly affect trust in platform or peers to varying degrees. Moreover, trust in platform greatly enhances trust in peers. Besides, the results of the moderating effect analyses demonstrate the variability of antecedents and consequences of trust under different subgroups.

This paper provides a clear and holistic view of the trust mechanism in the sharing economy from an object-based trust perspective. The findings may offer insights into trust-building in the sharing economy.

Entrepreneurs and individual sellers heavily leverage their social ties embedded in social media, expressive or instrumental, to penetrate the market and achieve business success. However, the extant social commerce literature offers limited understanding on how different forms of buyer−seller social ties embedded in social media affect buyers' purchase behaviors. The study draws on the theoretical lens of social ties and proposes an integrative theoretical framework to understand the direct and indirect influences of expressive and instrumental ties (ExTSM and InTSM) between buyers and sellers on buyers' purchase intention (PI) in social commerce.

The authors first validated the measures of ExTSM and InTSM with survey data from 166 Weibo commerce buyers. They then tested their theoretical framework and hypotheses with survey data from 246 buyer−seller dyads in WeChat commerce.

With a buyer-centric view, (1) ExTSM and InTSM, respectively, had a direct negative and a positive influence on PI; (2) both trust and perceived product value displayed inconsistent mediation effects on the negative relationship between ExTSM and PI; and (3) only perceived product value mediated the positive influence of InTSM on PI. From sellers' viewpoint, (1) their ExTSM and InTSM with buyers were mixed up, and (2) the mingled social ties negatively impacted buyers' purchase intention.

The findings of the study advance the theoretical understanding of social commerce and offer practical guidance for small and medium-sized enterprises to effectively utilize social media for business purposes.

This study embarks on a comprehensive investigation into the intricate relationship between consumer trust in e-commerce platforms and the adoption of Green Supply Chain Management (GSCM). It delves into a multifaceted analysis of how these dynamics influence the landscape of online shopping, with a specific focus on four critical dimensions: the efficiency of online purchasing processes, the fulfillment of product delivery commitments, the convenience associated with e-platform utilization, and the safeguarding of consumers' personal information.

This research employs sophisticated Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) techniques, facilitated by SPSS and SmartPLS software, to meticulously analyze the amassed data and subject the formulated hypotheses to rigorous testing. The empirical foundation of this study draws from a sample of 377 randomly selected online shoppers, providing a robust basis for its insights.

At its core, this research is squarely focused on unraveling the dynamics of consumer trust within e-commerce platforms and highlighting the pivotal role played by GSCM in making online shopping more ecologically responsible and sustainable. Of paramount importance is the novel dimension introduced by this study the integration of trust in e-commerce platforms, GSCM practices, and the multifarious dimensions of online shopping all within a unified conceptual framework. Trust on e-commerce platforms leads to GSCM. GSCM determines online shopping satisfaction, i.e. efficiency, fulfillment, convenience, and privacy. Finally, GSCM mediates between trust on e-commerce platforms and online shopping satisfaction.

This holistic approach represents a ground-breaking contribution to the existing body of literature. It presents a fresh perspective on the intricate interactions that define the contemporary e-commerce landscape.

This initial research integrates trust in e-commerce platforms, GSCM, and online shopping in a single framework through UTAUT2.

The purpose of this study is to understand the psychological mechanism that affects consumer trust by focusing on the formation and influence process of psychological contracts, and taking this opportunity, explore the influence paths of food quality, food safety and service quality on consumer trust in the online food market, and provide theoretical suggestions for building trust in food businesses' consumers.

This study is based on an empirical investigation and uses partial least square structural equation modeling for analysis. Survey data were collected online from 359 APP users of online food transaction platforms in China.

Food quality, food safety and service quality influence consumer trust through the mediating effects of relational and transactional psychological contracts. However, the differences between these influencing paths are obvious and shift with changes in the marketing channels.

This study contributes to the body of consumer trust research by exploring online food transactions as an emerging trend in China. Some optimization strategies for food quality, food safety and service quality are provided for enterprises involved in online food transactions.

This is a pioneering study revealing psychological contracts as a missing but significant mediator between consumer trust and its antecedents.

Companies are increasingly designing pro-environmental games to motivate users to implement pro-environmental behaviors (PEBs). However, how different types of virtual interactions affect PEBs in pro-environmental games is not clear. Thus, the authors propose that two types of virtual interaction, interactions with game objects and interactions with other users, can induce platform intimacy and love for nature and that platform intimacy has a direct effect on love for nature. Simultaneously, the authors examine the moderating effect of network externality on the relationship between the two types of virtual interaction and platform intimacy.

The authors, respectively, employed data from 92 students and 574 Chinese mobile users to empirically investigate the research framework.

The findings indicate that participants in interactions with game objects and interactions with other users reported stronger feelings regarding platform intimacy and love for nature, which, in turn, positively influences PEBs. Consumers with stronger perceptions of network externalities were more likely to be affected by the initiation effect of the interaction with game objects.

The authors introduce the notion of love for nature to the pro-environmental behaviors field and discuss the priming effect of two types of interactions on platform intimacy and love for nature. In addition, the authors focus on the important effect of network externality on users' emotions.

This study aims to investigate the influence of environmental factors on individual personality traits associated with mobile paymens (MP) adoption using the technological personal environment (TPE) theory as a framework for the proposed theoretical model.

A total of 736 feedback from respondents was used to validate the proposed model using structural equation modeling. The model comprises Trust and Self-efficacy to explain MP adoption from a personal trait perspective. Meanwhile, environmental aspects are represented by social influence, vendor regulations and network externalities.

The result indicates that self-efficacy has the most significant direct effect on user intention to use MP, followed in decreasing order of significance by social influence, trust, vendor regulations and network externalities. Furthermore, social influence is the most contributing aspect from the environmental area that influences user intention directly and indirectly through trust and self-efficacy as mediators. Meanwhile, the moderating effect analysis also found that gender moderates the effect of user self-efficacy on MP adoption.

This study fills the gap by comparing trust and self-efficacy and exploring how those factors are developed and affected by the environmental aspect of MP usage. It was discovered that self-efficacy was the most influential construct influencing the adoption of MP. Social influence was identified as the primary environmental factor that directly impacts user intention regarding MP usage. Furthermore, gender was shown as a moderator, as males place a higher value on self-efficacy as a factor affecting their intention to embrace MP in comparison to females.