Sahney 2013

Journal of Asia Business Studies
Conceptualizing consumer “trust” in online buying behaviour: an empirical inquiry and model development in Indian
context
Sangeeta Sahney Koustab Ghosh Archana Shrivastava
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Sangeeta Sahney Koustab Ghosh Archana Shrivastava, (2013),"Conceptualizing consumer “trust” in online buying behaviour: an empirical
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Sangeeta Sahney, Koustab Ghosh, Archana Shrivastava, (2013),"“Buyer's motivation” for online buying: an empirical case of railway e-
ticketing in Indian context", Journal of Asia Business Studies, Vol. 8 Iss 1 pp. 43-64 http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JABS-07-2011-0036
Matthew Tingchi Liu, James L. Brock, Gui Cheng Shi, Rongwei Chu, Ting-Hsiang Tseng, (2013),"Perceived benefits, perceived risk, and
trust: Influences on consumers' group buying behaviour", Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics, Vol. 25 Iss 2 pp. 225-248 http://
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Conceptualizing consumer ‘‘trust’’ in online
buying behaviour: an empirical inquiry and
model development in Indian context
Sangeeta Sahney, Koustab Ghosh and Archana Shrivastava
Sangeeta Sahney is based Abstract

at the Vinod Gupta School Purpose – India has a large internet savvy population that is not only accessing the internet but also
of Management, Indian buying online. With a revolution in the very basics of transaction from a physical store format to a
Institute of Technology, non-store one, the retail industry has begun to understand the indispensability of the internet as a
Kharagpur, India. medium of transaction. However, the rate of diffusion and adoption of the new phenomenon amongst
Koustab Ghosh is based at consumers is still relatively low. Trust on online transactions is one of the key barriers to vendors
the Calcutta Business succeeding in online transactions. A lack of trust discourages consumers from participating in online
School, Kolkata, India. buying. With the internet advancing new opportunities, it is important to understand the factors that
Archana Shrivastava is generate trust of Indian consumers in the online buying system. The purpose of this paper is to explore
based at the NYSS Institute the determinants of trust in online buying behavior of consumers. This paper is a theoretical attempt at
of Management and conceptualizing ‘‘trust’’ as a construct, in the context of online buying and testing it empirically. The
objective of the study is to explore the critical online trust-creating factors that influence the online
Research, Maharashtra,
buying decision of people, and to establish their causal impact, if any, through developing an
India.
integrated model.
Design/methodology/approach – The study, descriptive, diagnostic, and causal in nature, was
conducted in the context of online buying of railway tickets in India. In the first phase, a pilot survey was
conducted on a sample of 100 users of the online railway reservation. After having tested the survey
instrument for validity and reliability, the second phase of the study was conducted on a sample of 327
users of online railway reservation facilities. A series of multiple regressions analyses was conducted to
determine the causal impacts of critical consumer trust parameters on online reservation of railway
tickets by users in the Indian context. The analysis of demographics based on gender and age groups
was also made to capture the cross-comparisons of critical online trust-related attributes.
Findings – The factor analysis had grouped the items into four constructs with a total of 11 items. The
item total correlations to each construct were found significant. All the critical online trust based
constructs were found to have a significant impact on the intention of buyers of booking/purchasing
railway tickets online in India. The analyses of demographics established that all the critical consumer
trust-based attributes to online buying intention have no significant differences for gender, whereas for
age groups some of the attributes were found significant and others were not.
Research limitations/implications – The process of online trust formation among the potential buyers
depends on a host of factors. This present study has only explored a select number of constructs and
remains a major limitation. Notwithstanding this limitation, there are significant theoretical implications for
critical online trust constructs of consumers on online buying behavior in the Indian context.
Originality/value – By examining the various dimensions explored and established in this study, the
concerned authority can develop a better understanding of consumer needs and expectations.
Academicians and researchers can use this study for assessing consumer trust towards online
reservation of railway tickets in the Indian context, and identifying such attributes that would lead to the
generation of online consumer trust towards online reservation of railway tickets. It provides insight into
the impact of trust in online buying and the relationship between trust and buying behaviour. The policy
decision makers of railway authority may also use the findings of this study as a resource, while
constructing, managing, and evaluating their marketing strategies in the Indian context.
Received 30 July 2011
Revised 30 April 2012 Keywords Consumer behaviour, Internet, Trust, Buying behaviour, India, Online buying
11 December 2012
Accepted 6 March 2013 Paper type Research paper
PAGE 278 j JOURNAL OF ASIA BUSINESS STUDIES j VOL. 7 NO. 3 2013, pp. 278-298, Q Emerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 1558-7894 DOI 10.1108/JABS-Jul-2011-0038
Introduction
The rapid growth of the internet over the past two decades, as a platform for buyer-seller
interaction, constituting a well-practiced dyad, is indicative of the degree of acceptance of
an online transaction. With the emergence of e-commerce there has been a considerable
increase in online transactions. Online shopping could be defined as the concept of buying
and selling of goods over the internet. From the perspective of the seller, it is the attempt on
the seller’s part to attract and persuade the prospect to conduct the purchase
decision-making process, and ensure satisfaction and loyalty. From the perspective of the
buyer, online purchase behavior is the degree to which consumers access, browse, shop
and transact and repeat the behavior. With a change in the consumers’ mindset of purchase
made from a physical store to online buying, the industry has witnessed the ever-increasing
volumes of online transactions. Bakos (1991), describes an e-market as ‘‘... an
inter-organizational information system that allows the participating buyers and sellers to
exchange information about prices and product offerings’’. Meuter et al. (2000) have defined
e-retailing in terms of the internet market as ‘‘a virtual realm where products and services
exist as digital information and can be delivered through information-based channels’’.
Jones et al. (2000) said ‘‘ . . . carrying out of retailing activities with customers that leads to an
exchange of value, where the parties interact electronically, using network or
telecommunications technologies’’. We may define online-retailing as use of an electronic
via media through which the customer and the marketer may enter into a transaction for sale
and purchase, so as to benefit both the parties in the long run. The rapid usage rate of
buyers transacting online has been due to advances in technology, to consumer
characteristics (both demographic as well as psychographic) and to situational influences.
While the customers of today, driven by functional and hedonic motives, like to search the
internet and search products and services, they often find themselves with a sense of
discomfort, apprehension and skepticism when it comes down to the actual physical and
monetary exchange. The basic underlying issue here is the lack of trust, especially with
regard to financial and personal information. Trust is a feeling of mutual acceptance between
two parties; it develops out of continuous physical interaction and leads to long-term
acceptance and commitment. So the important issue that needs to be addressed is ‘‘trust’’
among the seller-buyer, the lack of which often acts as an impediment in the trial and
adoption of the virtual market concept (Lee and Turban, 2001; Monsuwe’ et al., 2004). As has
been remarked by Ang and Lee (2000), ‘‘if the web site does not lead the consumer to
believe that the merchant is trustworthy, no purchase decision will result’’. It is also widely
agreed that if online trust can be understood, developed and maintained by the marketer, it
would act as a precursor to online buying and the number of online buyers would increase
considerably (Wang and Emurian, 2005). Goodwin (1996), rightly remarks that trust ‘‘is the
grease that keeps the wheels turning’’. Online buying and selling necessitate customer trust
(Lee and Turban, 2001; McCole and Palmer, 2001). This highlights the importance of
building consumer trust and maintaining relationships. Online trust is an important
determinant for the success of online transactions (McKnight and Chervany, 2001;
Balasubramanian et al., 2003; Koufaris and Hampton-Sosa, 2004). The lack of trust in online
security and policy, reliability of a company and web site technology play major roles in
consumers’ buying intentions. With the lack of physical interactivity between the buyer and
the seller in this new system, it is imperative that organizations today re-orient themselves
towards creation and adoption of newer approaches for building and maintaining trust and
managing relationships for online transactions.
Online retailers need to understand the basic issues that would help develop trust among
buyers in the online buying process. This paper is an attempt to conceptualize ‘‘trust’’, as a
concept against the backdrop of ‘‘online buying’’. The paper starts with the concept of trust,
then goes on to explain the concept against the background of online buying. Thereafter, the
determinants of online trust have been conceptualized and explained.
The paper elaborates on the factors that create trust in consumers, leading them to buy
online; thereafter a conceptual framework and model are presented, with a detailed account
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VOL. 7 NO. 3 2013 JOURNAL OF ASIA BUSINESS STUDIES PAGE 279
of determinants of consumer trust to buying online. Thereafter, the results of an empirical
study have been presented.
The objective of the study is to explore the critical trust factors that influence people’s online
buying decision and to establish their causal impact, if any, through developing an
integrated model. The empirical study has been conducted with the objective of tapping the
consumers’ trust factors that affect their online buying intention, with the ultimate objective of
identifying those factors and design characteristics that can help to develop online trust in
consumers towards online purchasing.
Theoretical conceptualization of trust

Approaches towards building of trust, is a growing research area, widely undertaken across
the world. ‘‘Trust’’ as a concept has been extensively studied and well researched across
numerous disciplines and fields (Wang and Emurian, 2005). It has been studied with ‘‘. . .
both institutional phenomena (system trust) and personal and interpersonal forms of trust
(dispositional trust, trusting beliefs, trusting intentions and trust-related behaviors . . . ’’
(Grabner-Kräuter and Kaluscha, 2003). The issue, having been a subject of interpretations
across wide disciplines, is abstract, slippery and lacks a universally accepted definition due
to disciplinary orientations used by researchers (Zucker, 1986; Shapiro, 1987; Sultan et al.,
2002). The concept has been dealt from varying concepts, the earliest works being in the
area of psychology (Deutsch, 1958; Zand, 1972) and sociology (Luhmann, 1979). However,
trust as a concept in the field of marketing emerged later, with works related to interpersonal
relationships between buyers and sellers as well as relationship marketing (Dwyer et al.,
1987; Moorman et al., 1992, 1993; Morgan and Hunt, 1994).
Trust has been defined as ‘‘confidence in or reliance on some quality or attribute of a person
or thing, or the truth of a statement’’ (Oxford English Dictionary). It is ‘‘a belief or confidence
in the honesty, integrity and reliability of trustee’’. It has also been defined in terms of
‘‘interdependence between two or more parties’’ (Lewicki et al., 1998); ‘‘willingness to
accept vulnerability, but with an expectation or confidence that one can rely on the other
party’’ (Lewicki et al., 1998, Moorman et al., 1993); ‘‘willingness to rely on an exchange
partner in whom the buyer has confidence’’ (Moorman et al., 1992, Morgan and Hunt, 1994).
It is ‘‘... the willingness of a party to be vulnerable to the actions of another party based on the
expectation that the other will perform a particular action important to the trustor, irrespective
of the ability to monitor or control that other party’’ (Mayer et al., 1995); ‘‘... a device to reduce
complexity, a shortcut to avoid complex decision processes when facing decisions that
carry risk’’ (Reigelsberger et al., 2003). It is ‘‘a person’s willingness to be dependent on
another party in the belief that the party will not intentionally disappoint them’’ (Deutsch,
1958); ‘‘a party’s expectation that another desires coordination, will fulfill its obligations, and
will pull its weight in the relationship’’ (Dwyer and Oh, 1987).
A multi-faceted belief that incorporates cognitive, emotional and behavioral dimensions
(Lewis and Weigert, 1985; McAllister, 1995), the content has been defined with varying
perspectives and interpretations, depending on the context and background of the study.
Trust includes as its contents, both trusting beliefs and trusting intentions (Moorman et al.,
1992; Whitener et al., 1998; Doney and Cannon, 1997). Specific to the field of marketing, it
has been widely applied in the context of physical store formats and it is now widely
researched and discussed in the non-store formats. While research on trust in online buying
is underway, such attempts are under-researched, especially in the Indian context.
Trust in online buying

Development of online trust is based on the positive expectation of the potential online
buyers that the online marketer will not act opportunistically through online dealings. It
implies familiarity and risk; this is impacted by knowledge and familiarity about the online
seller. Online trust is a belief that the online seller can be trusted. It is a feeling of confidence
and security towards the online transactions.
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PAGE 280 JOURNAL OF ASIA BUSINESS STUDIES VOL. 7 NO. 3 2013
Koller (1988) defines trust as a function of degree of risk inherent in a situation. Trust, in the
marketing context, can be defined as ‘‘a willingness to rely on an exchange partner in whom
one has confidence’’ (Moorman et al., 1993). Mink et al. (1993) proposes three types of trust:
‘‘contract trust, self-disclosure trust and physical trust’’; the first implying that people will do
what they say they are going to do; the second implying that there would be willing and
reciprocal sharing of relevant information; and third, meaning that people care about their
physical and psychological well being.
According to Gefen (2002a, b), trust is the resultant outcome of the ‘‘specific beliefs of
integrity, ability, and benevolence’’; in the context of e-commerce, ‘‘integrity’’ was holding on
to stated rules and promises; ‘‘ability’’ was the capacity to provide quality products and
services; ‘‘benevolence’’ was compassion and kindness towards customers without a
materialistic gain in mind. Credibility, competence and benevolence, as two parameters
have also been proposed by other researchers (Ganesan, 1994; Doney and Cannon, 1997;
Singh and Sirdeshmukh, 2000), ‘‘credibility’’ implying the buyer’s belief in the seller, his
product, service and expertise; and ‘‘benevolence’’ implying the buyer’s belief in the
goodwill and positive intention of the seller (Ganesan, 1994). While there are varying
connotations to the very concept, there is agreement among marketing researchers on two
very essential components that it entails: credibility and benevolence (Anderson and Narus,
1990; Doney and Cannon, 1997; Ganesan, 1994).
Trust may also be defined in terms of three characteristics: reliability; predictability; and
fairness, all of which play an important role in improving competitiveness and providing
flexibility, especially in the electronic context (Agarwal and Shankar, 2003). ‘‘Trust’’, may be
defined in terms of ‘‘confidentiality, honesty and integrity, as well as high ethical standards’’
(Coulter and Coulter, 2002) or even as ‘‘security, privacy and reliability’’ (Camp, 2001).
Trust, as a concept has been variedly studied in the context of marketing; it has been spoken
of in respect of distribution channels, namely, the manufacturer-retailer-buyer exchange,
leading to transactions, satisfaction, long-term relationships, commitment and loyalty
(Dwyer et al., 1987; Anderson and Narus, 1990; Moorman et al., 1992, 1993; Ganesan, 1994;
Morgan and Hunt, 1994; Doney and Cannon, 1997; Reichheld and Schefter, 2000; Ba, 2001;
Håkansson et al., 2004; Arnott, 2007; Mukherjee and Nath, 2007). It has also been studied in
the electronic context (Ba et al., 1999; Brynjolfsson and Smith, 2000; Egger, 2000; Jones
et al., 2000; de Ruyter et al., 2001; Kolsaker and Payne, 2002; Gefen et al., 2003; Gefen and
Straub, 2004; Srinivasan, 2004) and in terms of transaction, information content, product,
technology and institution (Srinivasan, 2004).
Trust forms an important issue in online transactions, as it acts as a driver or as a barrier in
the trial and adoption new technologies (Fukuyama, 1995; Egger, 2000; McCole and Palmer,
2001) and thus the importance of trust in the online context is noteworthy (Urban et al., 2000);
it helps retain customers (Järvenpää and Tractinsky, 1999; Gefen and Straub, 2004) and
develop long-term relationships (Reichheld and Schefter, 2000; Gefen et al., 2003). It helps
reduce the levels of risk associated with purchase transaction processes, be it trial or
adoption (Pavlou, 2003; Koufaris and Hampton-Sosa, 2004). The lack of trust acts as a
barrier in the success of the online medium and is likely to discourage online consumers
from participating in online buying (Chen and Barnes, 2007).
A high degree of trust stimulates and meets consumers’ high expectations of satisfying
transactions and reduces uncertainty and perceived risks in online buying (McKnight and
Chervany, 2001; Pavlou, 2003; Koufaris and Hampton-Sosa, 2004). The higher the degree of
consumers’ trust, the higher the degree of buying intentions of consumers, and the easier it
is for companies to attract, retain and maintain long-term relationships with them (Järvenpää
and Tractinsky, 1999; Gefen and Straub, 2004).
Determinants of online trust and conceptual model

Online retailers must exhibit trustworthiness through high degrees of integrity and sincerity,
as well as attempting to reduce uncertainty. Researchers in online trust have attempted to
study the phenomenon as it pertains to the online buying context. Chen and Barnes (2007)
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have studied the concept in terms of perceived technology, perceived risk, company
competency, and trust propensity, with perceived usefulness, perceived security, perceived
privacy, perceived good reputation, and willingness to customize as important antecedents
to online initial trust. Perceived security and privacy are key determinants affecting
consumers’ online initial trust in a company (Cheskin Research, 1999; Hoffman et al., 1999;
Yousafzai and Pallister, 2005; Chen and Barnes, 2007). Yoon (2002) proposes the means
behind online trust in terms of three distinct dimensions: technical-based; uncertainty of
transactions and security; and competency-based. Also, prior experiences of online
shopping and familiarity with online transactions is an important factor affecting trust and
purchase intentions (Doney and Cannon, 1997; Eastlick and Lotz, 1999; Gefen, 2000; Shim
et al., 2001).
Trust is a prerequisite in online buying; the phenomenon encompasses trust in the company
image, web site content and the very process of online buying. It includes within its ambit,
safety of personal information, misuse of private consumer data, transaction privacy and
security, and hacking, fraud, and scams. Trust is ‘‘. . . an attitude of confident expectation in
an online situation of risk that one’s vulnerabilities will not be exploited’’ (Corritore et al.,
2003). The physical distance across borders, the lack of personal contact between the
seller/product and the buyer, the anonymity of the internet and a break from the traditional
store format are factors that lead to discomfort among consumers. The online buyer faces
more risks than a physical face-to-face transaction (Reigelsberger et al., 2003). The feeling
is aggravated with presence of risk and information imbalances. Lack of proper information
about the product or service is a major contributing factor towards feelings of suspicion and
mistrust thereby endangering the adoption of electronic markets and the very process of
online buying (Järvenpää and Tractinsky, 1999; Egger, 2000; Järvenpää et al., 2000;
Reigelsberger et al., 2003). The following are the contributory factors to the formation of
consumer trust for online buying transactions.
Prospective buyer
B Dispositional trust. Dispositional trust is a tendency among people to have faith in others
and develop trusting relationships (Gefen, 2000; McKnight et al., 2002a, b; Ridings et al.,
2002). This implies that people like to trust others and believe that reliable and better
outcomes will result in dealings with them.
B Online experience. Prior online experiences, consumers’ familiarity with online buying
and resultant satisfaction develop consumers’ trust (Yoon, 2002; Chen and Barnes,
2007). Prior online experiences reduce the level of risk and offer a framework for future
expectations (Gefen, 2000).
B Consumer demographics. Demographics factors such as age, income, gender,
education and occupation influence online buying behavior. The older generation,
being less innovative and more risk averse, are comparatively less comfortable in trial and
adoption of online buying. Similarly, they have less trust in online buying systems.
Similarly, those living in rural areas are disadvantaged compared to their counterparts in
urban areas; because of inadequate infrastructure, they have less access to the internet,
technology and higher education. Educational level is an indicator of technology
orientation and willingness to participate in new technologies, which should result in more
familiarity and experience with the internet, and an enhanced willingness to make online
purchases (Miyazaki and Fernandez, 2001).
B Reference group influence. Social influence and peer rating have an effect on
prospective consumers’ attitude and behavior (Ba and Pavlou, 2002). Prospective buyers
trust those consumers who are similar to them. Online trust can also be developed
through endorsing satisfied consumers.
Company competency
B Reputation. Reputation of the company invokes trust in consumers (Resnick and
Zeckhauser, 2001). It reduces the demand for credibility or integrity credentials (Hoffman
et al., 1999; Lee, 2002; Madu and Madu, 2002; McKnight et al., 2002a, b; Kim et al.,
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2003). A good reputation reduces the transaction risk involved in online buying
(Constantinides, 2004). Factors that build the reputation of the company are credibility of
brands and consistency of pre purchase and post purchase services.
B Willingness to customize. The company’s willingness to customize has a positive
relationship with consumers’ online trust and loyalty (Chen and Barnes, 2007) and further
motivates consumers to buy online (Koufaris and Hampton-Sosa, 2004).
B Size. It is believed that the larger a company, the more capable it is and better at fulfilling
demands (Järvenpää et al., 2000; Chen and Barnes, 2007) and increasing their online
trust (Koufaris and Hampton-Sosa, 2004).
Web site competency

B Privacy and security. Privacy and security are major issues that concern online buyers, as
the buyers’ personal financial data can be accessed and misused by third party (Chen
and Barnes, 2007). In fact, this is one of the most important deterrents in the trial and
adoption of the online buying system. Security and privacy elements are key drivers of
online trust (Hoffman et al., 1999). Assurance of data privacy and security in online buying
develop trust in the consumer. Companies can improve online trust by disclosing
third-party certifications; Palmer et al. (2000) found that privacy statements and trusted
third party utilization reduces consumer’s concerns and promotes trust.

B Web site design. A web site with good graphic design in terms of structure and content,
as well as easy and quick navigation, attracts potential buyers; navigation is an important
aspect of web site design (Sultan et al., 2002). It is directly related to the flow construct,
which is important for understanding consumer behavior on the internet (Hoffman and
Novak, 1996). Web site design that is intuitive and easy to click on to get to desired
locations (Palmer et al., 2000) can also enhance trust and ensure that consumers stick
with the online site for buying products and services. Display of brand promoting
information through the company logo, comprehensive and up-to-date product and
service information, display of third-party seals and certifications, also play a role in
invoking trust in buyers. Information and communication media and platforms through
instant messaging, chat lines etc. (Wang and Emurian, 2005), also develop trust in
buyers. Consumers’ perceptions of web sites significantly influence their trust in web sites
and drive them to make transactions.
B Reliability. Reliability of a web site is measured in terms of credibility and consistency of
service leading to customer loyalty. The information content regarding the product and
service, the exchange process and transactions, as well as policies of the company as
exhibited on the web page regarding returning of the product, guarantees, and
warranties, ensure the consumers that they are dealing with a reliable vendor. Seal of
approval by third party also increases reliability quotient of a web site. If a web site is
perceived as reliable, it instills trust in consumers thereby motivating them to transact.
B Ease of use, hedonic pleasure and perceived usefulness. The technological acceptance
model (TAM) by Davis (1989) is based on three variables: ease of use; perceived
usefulness; and hedonic pleasure (Venkatesh and Davis, 2000; van der Heijden et al.,
2003). These factors positively affect online trust and purchase intentions of consumers
considerably. The easier the technology is to use, the more likely the consumer is to trust
the organization behind it (Corritore et al., 2003). Perceived usefulness is a belief that a
particular system would enhance job performance and benevolence toward a web site;
perceived ease-of-use is a belief that a particular system would be free from effort (van
der Heijden et al., 2003); hedonic pleasure is regarded as the fun and enjoyment factor
motivating a consumer’s desire to transact online (Childers et al., 2001;van der Heijden
et al., 2003).
B Legal and regulatory compliance. The web site’s adherence to legal and regulatory
norms, through acceptance and commitment of government regulation regarding misuse
of personal and financial information, also lead to consumers’ trust in the web site.
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Process attributes
B Transaction security, data safety and privacy. Developing trust in the technology or in the
online buying process would mitigate the fears of technological, financial and
performance risks. The web site owners must make clear promises at their sites and
take measures to prevent misuses of data, be it personal or financial. Such issues also get
related to legal and governmental regulations; these have been explained above.
B Prompt transaction. Quick online transactions are possible with increased internet
connectivity and adequate bandwidth. The online buying process involves financial
transactions and uncertainties. The quicker the process, the lesser the associated risks.
Prompt transactions reduce uncertainties and increase trust, thereby encouraging many
people to make online transactions.
Research in trust delineates components such as: confidence in ability and intention (Deutsch,
1960); familiarity, confidence and trust (Luhmann, 1979); customer’s propensity to trust,
customer confidence in the web site, and the customer’s trust in internet technology features
(Morgan and Hunt, 1994; Mukherjee and Nath, 2003); confidentiality, honesty and integrity, as
well as high ethical standards (Coulter and Coulter, 2002). Constantinides (2004) highlights the
psychological factors in online trust, in the form of transaction security, customer data abuse,
customer data safety, uncertainty reducing elements and guarantees/return policies.
Based on the review of literature, a conceptual model was developed comprising four
decisive factors, namely, attributes of prospective buyers, company competency, web site
competency and attributes of processes (i.e. the system of online buying); all of these
contributing towards development of trust in consumers (see Figure 1).
With specific reference to work done by McKnight et al. (1998), Sultan et al. (2002), Zhang
and Zhang (2005), Chen and Barnes (2007), another model was also developed and later
Figure 1 Process of consumers’ online trust
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empirically tested in the subsequent section of this study. This model comprises four
decisive factors: transaction security; consumer data privacy and safety; credible and
guaranteed return policies; and the perceived image of the web site, that contribute towards
development of trust in consumers for generating online buying intention (see Figure 2).
Empirical study
Objective
The objectives of the study may be summarized as follows:
B To establish the impact of transaction security-based trust factors on online purchase
intention.
B To establish the impact of consumer data privacy and safety based-trust factors on online
purchase intention.
B To establish the impact of credible/guaranteed return policies-based trust factors on
online purchase intention
B To establish the impact of perceived image of the web site-based trust factors on online
purchase intention.
Methodology
The study undertaken is descriptive, diagnostic, and causal in nature. It is aimed at
identifying the critical trust parameters of users/buyers in online booking of railway tickets in
India through using the registered railway web site of Indian Railway Catering and Tourism
Corporation (www.irctc.com). The pre-test used a convenience sample of 100 individual
respondents from India, who earlier had used the railway web site to reserve their tickets for
long-distance tours and travels. The questionnaire for the pilot test was designed,
distributed and collected back by the researchers themselves through administering them
to individual respondents. The items drawn from previously tested scales that were modified
for this study were validated by factor loadings on their respective constructs.
The statistical method used in the pilot study scales was principal component factor
analysis. The sample size recommended for this statistical method is at least 50 responses.
The guideline used was a factor loading of 0.5 or above (Hair et al., 1995). The
recommended guidelines for principal component factor analysis are at least 50 responses,
Figure 2 Conceptual model: determinants of consumers’ online trust for the buying
intention
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and a ratio of five responses for every variable in each scale being measured (Hair et al.,
1995). This sample size met both the criteria. Table I illustrates the results of the pre-test in
detail.
Reliability concerns the extent to which a measurement of a phenomenon provides stable
and consistent result. In assessing measurement reliability, Fornell and Larcker (1981) stress
the importance of the reliability of each measure (individual item), and the internal
consistency or composite reliability of each construct (Cronbach, 1951). The reliability score
and factorial loading of each item were found to be well above the acceptable criterion of
0.50 (see Table I). The results of the pilot study established the reliability of a total of 11 items,
which were grouped under four factors/components: Security of online transaction; Data
privacy and safety; Guarantee return policies; and Perceived image of web site. The
reliability score and factorial loading of each item were found to be well above the
acceptable criterion of 0.50 (see Table I).
All the original items in the scale were tested valid and reliable and hence retained in the
scale to be used for the final study. The designed questionnaire for the final study comprised
two parts; the first part comprised questions on basic demographic information about the
user (age group, gender, income level, educational qualification, regional location,
frequency of online ticket booking, etc.); the second part measured the users’ relative
preferences and experiences that are critical to generate user trust to induce them to reserve
the railway tickets online in India.
Research hypotheses
Based on the review of literature, the proposed conceptual model (see Figure 2), and the
objectives of the study mentioned in the first part of this paper, the following hypotheses
were developed. A series of multiple regressions was conducted to test each of the
hypotheses in the subsequent section of this study.
H1. Security of online transactions creates trust to reserve railway tickets online in India.
H2. Consumer/user data privacy and safety develop trust to reserve railway tickets
online in India.
H3. Guarantee return policies create trust to reserve railway tickets online in India.
H4. Perceived image of the company/web site develops trust to reserve railway tickets
online in India.
Data collection
The final questionnaire that was developed to capture quantitative data was administered to
a cross-section of respondents. The sample was heterogeneous consisting of a total number
Table I Analysis of factorial validity and construct reliability based on pilot study
S. No. Constructs Descriptors Factor loadings (l) Composite reliability (a)
1 Security of online transaction (SOT) T11 0.757 0.7301

T12 0.914
2 Data privacy and safety (DPS) T21 0.849 0.6869
T22 0.914
T23 0.702
T24 0.820
3 Guarantee return policies (GRP) T31 0.521 0.7139
T32 0.619
4 Perceived image of web site (PIW) T41 0.552 0.8237
T42 0.608
T43 0.590
Note: Acceptable factor loadings and reliabilities (guidelines used l . 0:5 and reliability . 0:5 respectively
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of 327 respondents and represented educated middle- and upper-class people, who were
registered in the Indian railway web site (IRCTC) to reserve their travel tickets online at
various points of time. The sampling method comprised the convenience sampling
technique, within which we went for stratified random sampling. Stratified random sampling
technique was adopted to circulate the final questionnaires among the target respondents
based on gender and various age groups. Originally, 600 questionnaires were circulated,
out of which 327 were found to be complete and valid in all respects for data analysis.
Analysis of data
The factor analysis conducted on the dataset obtained from the pilot study had grouped
the items into four components/constructs with 11 items (see Table I). The mean scores
for various constructs ranged between 3.2049 and 3.3068, with ‘‘Data privacy and safety’’
having the least score and ‘‘Perceived image of web site’’ having the highest score. This
clearly indicates that in India, the online data privacy and safety factors of online railway
ticket booking in terms of sharing personal and confidential information, disclosing the
credit/debit card number, care taken by the web site to stop leakage of confidential data,
are still not favorable enough to induce people to go for online reservation of railway
tickets. While these are the factors that need improvement, consumers’ trust in online
booking transaction of long-distance railway tickets in the Indian context is favorably
exposed towards the image or reputation of the railway web site for online reservation
(see Table II).
Linear relationships were established among the various constructs using correlation
analysis, so as to measure the strength and direction of linear relationship between them.
Each construct was correlated with its individual measuring items to establish the linear
relation between them. Also, the various constructs were correlated with each other to
establish the strength of association between them (see Tables III– VII).
Hypotheses testing
H1. Security of online transactions creates trust to reserve railway tickets online in India.
Table II Descriptive statistics for trust related constructs on online buying behavior
S. No. Constructs Number of items Mean Std. deviation N
1 Security of online transaction (SOT) 2 3.2202 0.9027 327

2 Data privacy and safety (DPS) 4 3.2049 0.6862 327
3 Guarantee return policies (GRP) 2 3.2446 0.8380 327
4 Perceived image of web site (PIW) 3 3.3068 0.9212 327
Table III Correlation analysis of trust related constructs on online buying behavior
Security of online Data privacy and Guarantee return Perceived image of
Constructs transaction (SOT) safety (DPS) policies (GRP) product (PIM)
Security of online
transaction (SOT) 1.00
Data privacy and safety
(DPS) 0.664* 1.00
Guarantee return policies
(GRP) 0.648* 0.614* 1.00
Perceived image of web
site (PIW) 0.696* 0.676* 0.651* 1.00
Note: * Correlation is significant at 0.01 level (two-tailed)
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Table IV Model summary for trust related to security of online transaction on buying behavior
Items measuring security of online transaction
(SOT) Item total correlation Standardized coefficients (Beta) t Sig.
Constant 0.000 1.000

I can see the letter ‘‘S’’ in the ‘‘http’’ of the URL
before entering financial information. (SOT1) 0.887** 0.565 11.025 0.000
Transaction for payment is secured. (SOT2) 0.886** 0.562 18.116 0.000
Notes: Model 1: R ¼ 0:813; R Square ¼ 0:781; F ¼ 217:033; Sig ¼ 0:000; Predictors: (Constant), SOT1, SOT2; Dependent variable:
Buyers’ intention of online reservation
Table V Model summary for trust related to data privacy and safety on online buying behavior
Items measuring data privacy and safety (DPS) Item total correlation Standardized coefficients (Beta) t Sig.

I do not hesitate to enter my private information.
(DPS1) 0.743** 0.405 8.112 0.000
I am worried about giving out my credit card
number. (DPS2) 0.462** 0.397 21.993 0.000
This site provides guarantees for not publishing

of consumer’s address and contact no. (DPS3) 0.787** 0.350 15.337 0.000
This site keeps privacy for personal data. (DPS4) 0.667** 0.360 17.568 0.000
Notes: Model 1: R ¼ 0:551; R Square ¼ 0:520; F ¼ 92:060; Sig: ¼ 0:000; Predictors: (Constant), DPS1, DPS2, DPS3, DPS4; Dependent
variable: Buyers’ intention of online reservation
Table VI Model summary for trust related to guarantee return policies on online buying behavior
Items measuring guarantee return policies (GRP) Item total correlation Standardized coefficients (Beta) t Sig.

This site guarantee bonded transaction. (GRP1) 0.880** 0.562 10.112 0.000
This site provides guaranteed return policies.
(GRP2) 0.884** 0.572 3.989 0.000
Notes: Model 1: R ¼ 0:498; R Square ¼ 0:434; F ¼ 47:167; Sig: ¼ 0:000; Predictors: (Constant), GRP1, GRP2; Dependent variable:
Table VII Model summary for trust related to perceived image of web site on online buying behavior
Items measuring perceived image of web site
(PIW) Item total correlation Standardized coefficients (Beta) t Sig.

This web site (IRCTC.COM) has good reputation.
(PIW1) 0.878** 0.390 5.067 0.000
This web site is trustworthy and honest (PIW2) 0.895** 0.397 0.212 0.860
This web site does not use unsuitable methods to
collect my personal data. (PIW3) 0.804** 0.375 7.113 0.000
Notes: Model 1: R ¼ 0:451; R Square ¼ 0:401; F ¼ 21:345; Sig: ¼ 0:000; Predictors: (Constant), PIW1, PIW2, PIW3; Dependent variable:
Regression analysis was performed with the trust based on online transaction security as the
dependent variable, and assurance given by the web site for transaction security, and the
actual security of transaction for payment as independent variables. On entering the
variables in a single block, it was found that 78.1 percent of the variance in trust based on
online transaction security is explained by all the other constructs (R 2 ¼ 0:781, F
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value ¼ 217:033, p , 0:01). Both the dimensions offered significant contributions with their
respective t values and the associated level of significance (see Table IV).
The hypothesis was accepted. Security of online transactions is felt important by the people
in India who intend to book railway tickets online, and is significant to create consumer trust
for online transaction or reservation of long-distance railway tickets. Hence, the various
factors related to security of online transactions have to be managed/maintained properly
and improved in the desired direction to earn or create consumer trust. This would induce
more people into buying railway tickets online in India.
H2. Consumer/user data privacy and safety develop trust to reserve railway tickets
online in India.
Regression analysis was performed with the user data privacy and safety as the dependent
variable, and individual comfort to disclose private information, sharing credit/debit card
number, protection given by the web site to personal information, and maintaining privacy of
personal data as independent variables. On entering the variables in a single block, it was
found that 52 percent of the variance in trust based on online transaction security is
explained by all the other constructs (R 2 ¼ 0:520, F value ¼ 92:060, p , 0:01). All the four
dimensions offered significant contributions with their respective t values and the associated
level of significance (see Table V).
The hypothesis was accepted. Consumer/user data privacy and safety factors significantly
develop trust for online transaction of people in India who intend to book railway tickets
online. Hence, the various factors related to consumer data privacy and safety have to be
managed with full integrity and confidentiality to induce more people in India into buying
railway tickets online, by earning their trust in the online reservation system.
H3. Guarantee return policies create trust to reserve railway tickets online in India.
Regression analysis was performed with the guarantee return policies as the dependent
variable, and guarantee of bonded transaction, and guarantee of return policies as
independent variables. On entering the variables in a single block, it was found that 43.4
percent of the variance in trust based on online transaction security is explained by all the
other constructs (R 2 ¼ 0:434, F value ¼ 47:167, p , 0:01). Both the dimensions offered
significant contributions with their respective t values and the associated level of
significance (see Table VI).
The hypothesis was accepted. Expectations of people in India based on guarantee return
policies, who intend to book railway tickets online, is significant to develop trust for online
transaction. Hence, the factors mentioned above have to be managed properly and
improved in the desired direction to induce more people into buying railway tickets online in
India.
H4. Perceived image of the company/web site develops trust to reserve railway tickets
online in India.
Regression analysis was performed with perceived image of the company/web site as the
dependent variable, and reputation of the web site, trustworthiness of the web site, and
mode of data extraction by the web site as independent variables. On entering the variables
in a single block, it was found that 40.1 percent of the variance in trust based on online
transaction security is explained by all the other constructs (R 2 ¼ 0:401, F value ¼ 21:345,
p , 0:01). All the three dimensions offered significant contributions with their respective t
values and the associated level of significance (see Table VII).
The hypothesis was accepted. Perceived image of the web site/company by the people in
India, who intend to book railway tickets online, is significant to develop trust for online
transaction. Hence, the factors mentioned above have to be managed and maintained
properly to earn consumer/user trust in the online reservation system that would induce more
people into buying railway tickets online in India.
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Analysis of demographics
Based on the analysis of background information of the survey respondents, the samples
were further classified on the basis of gender and age groups. Then suitable statistical
techniques were applied to capture the cross-sectional comparisons of buyers’/users’
trust-creating attributes imperative to online buying intention of railway tickets in the Indian
context.
Analysis based on gender

Out of a total number of 327 respondents covered in the survey, 234 were male and 93 were
female members. The analysis of descriptive and dispersions were calculated in addition to
independent t-test to examine gender-wise differences of trust-based attributes on online
buying intention, if any (see Table VIII). The results of independent t-tests showed that for all
the critical online trust parameters of buyers/users, namely, Security of online transaction,
Data privacy and safety, Guarantee return policies, and Perceived image of web site there
were no significant differences among male and female respondents. Therefore, it can be
inferred that so far as these critical online trust-creating attributes are concerned, in the
context of online reservation of railway tickets in India, they stand equally important and are
given due importance by both male and female buyers of long-distance railway tickets. The
univocal importance of buyers’ trust-related attributes accordingly has to be considered,
because it implies that all these trust-based attributes related to online buying intention are
of generic significance, irrespective of gender (see Table VIII).
Analysis based on age group

The total number of 327 respondents was classified under five different categories: 15-20
age group, 20-30 age group, 30-40 age group, 40-50 age group, 50-60 age group, and
60þ age group. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was applied to find out age group wise
differences on critical trust-creating attributes of online buying intention (see Table IX).
The results of ANOVA analyses showed that for two of the online trust creating factors
there were significant differences, whereas for the rest, the differences were not found
significant.
For online trust creation based on the construct of ‘‘Security of online transaction’’, no
significant difference was found among the various age groups with F ð4; 322Þ ¼ 2:714,
p . 0:001. Whereas for the construct ‘‘Data privacy and safety’’, a significant difference was
found among the various age groups with F ð4; 322Þ ¼ 5:844, p , 0:001. For the construct
‘‘Guarantee return policies’’, no significant difference was found among the various age
groups with F ð4; 322Þ ¼ 2:681, p . 0:001. Whereas for the construct ‘‘Perceived image of
web site’’, a significant difference was found among the various age groups with
F ð4; 322Þ ¼ 3:895, p , 0:001. These mixed findings about various online trust-creating
factors for different age groups of consumers/buyers can be attributed to the fact that the
above trust-related factors have different implications for various age groups of
Table VIII Comparative analysis of consumers’ trust factors based on gender

Constructs Gender Mean SD F Sig. ( p) t value Sig. (two-tailed)
Security of online transaction (SOT) Male 3.1944 0.9052 0.271 0.603 0.820 0.413
Female 3.2849 0.8981
Data privacy and safety (DPS) Male 3.1955 0.6952 0.053 0.818 0.399 0.690
Female 3.2285 0.6662
Guarantee return policies (GRP) Male 3.2158 0.8871 4.280 0.039 1.093 0.276
Female 3.3172 0.6985
Perceived image of web site (PIW) Male 3.2735 0.9317 0.563 0.453 1.057 0.292
Female 3.3907 0.8936
Notes: * p , 0:05; ** p , 0:01
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Table IX Comparative analysis of consumers’ trust factors based on age group
Constructs Occupation df Mean square F Sig.
Security of online transaction (SOT) Between groups 4 2.166 2.714 0.030

Within groups 322 0.798
Total 326
Data privacy and safety (DPS) Between groups 4 2.598 5.844 0.000
Total 326
Guarantee return policies (GRP) Between groups 4 1.844 2.681 0.032
Total 326
Perceived image of web site (PIW) Between groups 4 3.192 3.895 0.000
Total 326
Notes: * p , 0:05; ** p , 0:01
people/buyers, who reserve long distance railway tickets online in India. People belonging to
the lower age brackets are more used to online transactions, and like any other online utility
services also prefer to reserve long- distance railway tickets online. Because of their greater
familiarity and comfortability, they are easily convinced to share their personal data and the
modus operandi of online reservation through the railway web site in an Indian context. On
the other hand, buyers belonging to the higher age brackets may not possess adequate
faith in the basics of online transactions, and hence, like any other online service (e.g. online
banking, online payment of insurance premium/telephone or electricity bills) might not be so
inclined to buy railway tickets online in India. Again some of them, who might seek the
service of travel agents to reserve tickets online, express doubts and anxiety about sharing
confidential information/code with such agents in the process of online reservation. So
keeping in mind all such distinct possibilities, the concerned Indian railway authority can opt
for segmented analysis when deciding the customer relationship strategies to earn or
generate trust for buyers in various age groups, in order to induce them to buy long- distance
railway tickets online, in the Indian context.
For the trust factors ‘‘Security of online transaction’’ and ‘‘Guarantee return policies’’, there
were no significant differences found among the various age groups. These findings can be
attributed to the fact that these are the factors important enough for all types of buyers
belonging to various age groups, who reserve/intend to reserve railway tickets online in
India. Hence, all such factors have to be considered with due importance while deciding the
marketing, promotion, and customer relationship strategies by the Indian railway, to induce
more people to buy long-distance railway tickets online (see Table IX).
Research implications
The growing interest in the internet as a buying medium has attracted the attention of both
academic researchers and practising managers. The basic focus of this study has been to
conceptualize, develop, and determine the critical components of consumer trust for the
success of an online railway reservation system, from the users’ perspective. The study
identifies and examines, and empirically establishes the critical trust-based attributes that
induce the potential users to reserve railway tickets through an online reservation system,
from both theoretical and practical perspectives. The online reservation system of Indian
Railways has certain design elements that have to match the users’ trust orientations and
demographics. These elements lead to purchase intentions followed by actual purchase of
railway tickets through the online reservation system. The implications blend together the
knowledge of behavioral sciences and customer relationship management, thus generating
academic, as well as practical orientations.
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Academic/theoretical implications
The application of technology-based online buying services has grown rapidly in recent
years, but an understanding of what it takes to attract, retain, and satisfy customers in such
contexts remains limited. Online buying is an area where research pertaining to critical
success factors is lacking and fragmented. The phenomenal growth of online purchase
volume and its diffusion among the masses raise interesting issues in academic research.
Although the number of individuals buying products and services online continues to
increase in India, the critical success factors of online buying intention emphasize the need
for an analysis from the customers’ or users’ perspective. Based on the analysis of data, the
study established the impact of key trust factors on online buying intention of railway tickets
for users across various demographic parameters in the Indian context. Marketing
academicians/researchers may use the study to assess the trust-creating factors of
consumers/users that drive them to online reservation of railway tickets for long-distance
tours or travels in India and to identify those user-based trust-creating factors that would
lead to easy adoption of an online railway tickets reservation system.
Business/managerial implications
Recent trends in the current buying mode of railway tickets for long-distance tours or travels
show a shift, from the traditional booking pattern through the railway reservation counters, to
an increased use of an online reservation system. In such a scenario, the railway authority
would have to devise strategies that are based on sound consumer behavioral research and
knowledge of customer convenience management. With increasing competition from the
low-cost airlines, the Indian railway authority needs to cope with the user expectations of
online reservation and re-evaluate the facility of their reservation strategies. The factors
presented in this study will give the policy level decision-making authority of Indian railways
a better understanding of their existing, as well as the potential, customers’/users’ orientation
towards trust that induce them to opt for online buying of railway tickets. A customer-oriented
and user-friendly system based on these critical components can facilitate a quicker
diffusion of the online railway reservation system by attracting new customers/buyers, and
encouraging repeat online reservations by the existing users. This would lead to an increase
in the revenue generation of Indian railways on account of volume of passengers traveled
through. The implication of this study is that the concerned railway authority may use the
findings while constructing, managing, and evaluating their online reservation web site and
evaluating the online reservation norms/strategies (especially in India), so as to compete
and gain market leadership over its other competitive counterparts (air/road/water transport
operators). Understanding and managing the buyers’ trust orientations towards the intention
of online purchase needs to be worked out carefully and consciously.
Conclusion
The application of technology-based online retail services has grown rapidly in recent years,
but an understanding of how to attract, retain and satisfy customers in such contexts
remains limited. While the customers of today, driven by functional and hedonic motives, like
to search the internet and search products and services, the process seldom leads to a
culmination in transaction and exchange. Understanding and managing the dynamics of
consumer behavior becomes crucial and this lays the need for an analysis in terms of
behavioral issues (Morgan and Hunt, 1994; Mukherjee and Nath, 2003; Coulter and Coulter,
2002; Constantinides, 2004).
Although the number of individuals buying products and services online continues to
increase in India, managing the dynamics of this behavior has often been a research
question. What leads a buyer to shop online is a matter that has evoked a lot of interest,
although the findings from research are loose, fragmented and disintegrated. Online
transactions are characterized by anonymity, lack of physical interaction, lack of control, a
great deal of uncertainty and potential opportunism (Pavlou, 2003; Koufaris and
Hampton-Sosa, 2004; Chen and Barnes, 2007). A feeling of trust helps assure that one
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party will not take advantage of the vulnerability of the other during or after the transaction.
Online trust plays a key role in creating satisfied and expected outcomes in online
transactions (Yousafzai and Pallister, 2005; Chen and Barnes, 2007). This paper is an
attempt to conceptualize ‘‘trust’’ as a concept against the backdrop of ‘‘online buying’’.
Online retailers need to understand the basic issues that would help generate trust of the
buyers to buy online. With a behavioral orientation, online marketers can form strategies that
would lead to the potential customers having faith in the online buying system (Kolsaker and
Payne, 2002; Gefen et al., 2003; Gefen and Straub, 2004; Srinivasan, 2004).
The study appears to be highly relevant and is indicative by nature in the context of people’s
ongoing preference to reserve railway tickets through online in India. In the present lifestyle,
all educated, well informed, and techno savvy consumers want to save time and adopt
smarter ways to buy products or avail services. The same is true for online booking of railway
tickets for long-distance tours and travels. The Ministry of Railway, Government of India, also
has made proactive moves to capture a large chunk of techno savvy customers, who prefer
online reservation to over-the-counter booking, by providing a well-developed online
reservation service facility. As creation of online trust of individuals influences the online
purchase transaction to a large extent, this particular study has made an attempt to explore
the impact of various consumers’/buyers’ trust-related constructs on online purchase
intention of individuals.
Although the process of trust formation for online transactions depends on a number of
psycho-cognitive factors of an individual, this present study has captured and explored only
a few web and online process-based factors relevant for online buying transactions. This
remains a major limitation of this study. Despite this fact, based on the analysis of data, this
study reached a logical conclusion that the online trust factors based on Security of online
transaction, Data privacy and safety, Guarantee return policies, and Perceived image of web
site have a significant influence on people’s intention to reserve railway tickets for
long-distance tours and travels online in India. This will help the authorities concerned to
suitably upgrade and maintain the desired facilities in online reservation of railway tickets by
considering the online trust creation factors of the users in India. This study can be extended
by using the elaborate framework of online trust creation components and hence develop a
comprehensive model in the Indian context.
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About the authors
Dr Sangeeta Sahney is an Associate Professor in the Vinod Gupta School of Management,
Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, India. Her areas of specialization are Consumer
Behavior, Services Marketing, Quality Management and Organization Behavior. She has
also served on Indian Secondment as a short-term deputation to the School of Management,
Asian Institute of Technology, Bangkok. Dr Sangeeta Sahney is the corresponding author
and can be contacted at: [email protected] or [email protected]
Dr Koustab Ghosh is an Assistant Professor in the Calcutta Business School, Kolkata, West
Bengal, India. His areas of specialization are Organization Behavior and Human Resource
Management.
Archana Shrivastava is a Lecturer in the NYSS Institute of Management and Research,
Nagpur. Her areas of specialization are Marketing, Information Technology and Systems.
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Journal of Asia Business Studies

Business Studies, Vol. 7 Iss 3 pp. 214-230 http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JABS-02-2013-0006

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Sangeeta Sahney is based Abstract

Theoretical conceptualization of trust

Trust in online buying

Determinants of online trust and conceptual model

Web site competency

third party utilization reduces consumer’s concerns and promotes trust.

Figure 1 Process of consumers’ online trust

the railway tickets online in India.

1 Security of online transaction (SOT) T11 0.757 0.7301

1 Security of online transaction (SOT) 2 3.2202 0.9027 327

Note: * Correlation is significant at 0.01 level (two-tailed)

Constant 0.000 1.000

Constant 0.000 1.000

This site provides guarantees for not publishing

Constant 0.000 1.000

Constant 0.000 1.000

Analysis based on gender

Analysis based on age group

Table VIII Comparative analysis of consumers’ trust factors based on gender

Notes: * p , 0:05; ** p , 0:01

Security of online transaction (SOT) Between groups 4 2.166 2.714 0.030

Notes: * p , 0:05; ** p , 0:01

Brynjolfsson, E. and Smith, M. (2000), ‘‘Frictionless commerce? A comparison of internet and

Ganesan, S. (1994), ‘‘Determinants of long-term orientation in buyer-seller relationships’’, Journal of

Koller, M. (1988), ‘‘Risk as a determinant of trust’’, Basic-and-Applied-Social- Psychology, Vol. 9 No. 4,

Kolsaker, A. and Payne, C. (2002), ‘‘Engendering trust in e-commerce: a study of gender-based

Luhmann, N. (1979), Trust and Power, Wiley, Chichester.

Management Review, Vol. 23 No. 3, pp. 513-530.

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