The Effect of Consumer Learning on Intention to Use Mobile Payments

Abstract

With the fast development of mobile applications and mobile internet, we arrive at the mobile commerce era. Mobile payments, a promising form of electronic payments, will become an important channel for conducting transactions especially with regard to mobile commerce. As the popularity of mobile devices increases, mobile payments have become one of the critical drivers for mobile commerce success. It is necessary to examine how to encourage mobile payments adoption and continuous usage. The series of essays in this dissertation strive to address these issues. Essay 1 explores consumers’ trust building in the consumer learning process and its effect on consumers’ behavioral intention toward mobile payments. Results verify the vital role of consumer learning in building trust and encouraging consumers to engage in mobile payments. This essay also explores which characteristics differentiate users and non-users and differentiate American and Chinese consumers. The research is the foundation of an understanding of the effect of culture on mobile payments acceptance, and deepens our understanding of how consumer learning can be used to help consumers build trust and encourage them to accept mobile payments. Essay 2 explores how consumers’ learning outcomes affect their mobile payments acceptance decision. This essay views self-efficacy, attitude, and perceived knowledge as outcomes of consumer learning. Results indicate that consumer learning has a positive relationship with learning outcomes, which then enhance consumers’ behavioral intention toward mobile payments. When we statistically compared our results across users and non-users and across American and Chinese consumers, the similarities and differences in the cognitive processes involved for adoption and post adoption became apparent. Essay 3 explores the effect of technology usage habits and price discount on consumers’ intention to continue using mobile payments. Results indicate that consumers’ online shopping habit, mobile service usage habit, and cell phone usage habit each have a positive relationship with their mobile payment usage habit and thereafter enhance their intention to continue using mobile payments. This essay also found mixed effect of price discount on the relationship between mobile payment usage habit and its three predictors. Taken together, these three essays systematically explore factors affecting consumers’ acceptance of mobile payments and also discuss the effect of culture on their cognitive processes involved for adoption and post adoption of mobile payments. Results extend our understanding of factors affecting consumers’ adoption and post-adoption of mobile payments. Implications for research and practice provide suggestions for better understanding of mobile payment acceptance and applying the results to managerial contexts.