온라인 점포의 상품구매후기에 대한 소비자 지각이 온라인 쇼핑에 대한 지각과 온라인 구매의도에 미치는 영향 = The Impacts of Consumer Perceptions of Product Reviews Posted on Online Stores on Perceptions of Online Shopping and Online Purchase Intention

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

As an increasing number of US online shoppers rely on online reviews to make their purchase decisions, scholars have conducted considerable research to identify characteristics of useful and credible online reviews. However little research exists that uses attitudinal data to examine how shoppers’ perceptions of online reviews influence their online purchase decisions. A research model was developed based on previous studies that proposed the causal relationships among consumer perceptions of online product reviews, perceptions of online shopping, and the shoppers’ intention to purchase online. A total of 293 college students enrolled at a southeastern university in the United States participated in the study and the research hypotheses were examined using a structural equation model analysis. Results indicated that consumers`` perceived usefulness of online reviews enhanced their perceptions of online shopping usefulness, which in turn, increased intention to purchase products online. Further, the results showed that consumers’ skepticism toward online reviews significantly increased consumers’ perception of online shopping risk, which subsequently lowered consumers’ perceived usefulness of online shopping. In this study, consumers`` skepticism towards online reviews negatively and indirectly influenced their intention to purchase online through the mediating variables of perceived risk and usefulness of online shopping. The results of this study suggest that consumers’ perceptions of online product reviews (including both skepticism toward and perceived usefulness of online product reviews) are critical cues that affect their trust in online shopping as well as their purchase intent from the online store. Online retailers need to establish mechanisms or programs to increase consumers’ perception of review usefulness through the improved quality and credibility of review information and thus, in turn, reduce skepticism toward the reviews and enhance perceived usefulness of consumer reviews.