The behaviour of consumers on the Internet is increasingly a focus of
marketing research. In particular, consumers’ behaviour in online shopping,
from adoption motivation to post-usage behaviour, has become a major focus
of research in the field of marketing, especially within consumer behaviour. Yet
it has been acknowledged that while aspects such as adoption and usage
motivation are now better understood, there are many questions that remain
unanswered, and this warrants continued research effort.
In line with the above, this research addresses an issue in online consumer
behaviour that is currently under researched and which relates to the role that
the consumer’s regulatory focus trait plays in their manifested behaviour in
online shopping. The research argues that it is important to understand the
role of regulatory focus in online shopping because this psychological trait has
been shown to affect other aspects of human behaviour such as in response to
advertising, dieting and sports.
Drawing upon research from consumer behaviour and the wider fields of
marketing and psychology, this research proposes a number of hypotheses
relating the consumer’s regulatory focus to her perception of online shopping,
motivation for online shopping, and actual usage behaviour in a structural
manner. The resulting structural equation model is then tested using empirical
data obtained from 306 Internet shoppers in the United Kingdom.
The results of the research confirm that regulatory focus has an influence on
consumer behaviour in online shopping by affecting their perception,
motivation and usage of online shopping. The research makes a unique
contribution by demonstrating that regulatory focus is a valid and robust
predictor of online shopping behaviour and behavioural outcomes, a
conclusion which is relevant to both marketing research and marketing
practice. Finally, the research identifies and recommends areas for future
studies