The effects of online decision aids, product knowledge, extrinsic and intrinsic cues, and purchase involvement on consumer Internet shopping behavior

The Internet has proven to be a valuable communication medium and a global marketplace. Consumers' growing interest with the Internet has made online shopping the focus of attention in recent years. Despite a significant increase in the amount of information and product selections consumers are exposed to, the Internet has made the information search easier by offering unique tools (e.g., online decision aids) that are not available in traditional shopping environments. The use of such tools may change consumers' search, processing, and use of product related information. More empirical research is needed to understand what, if any, changes occur in consumer decision making and shopping behavior in the online shopping environment. The primary objective of this research is to investigate the effects online shopping may have on consumers' preferences and perceptions in purchasing products. The first study investigates the effects of online decision aids and product knowledge on consumers' use of extrinsic/intrinsic cues in product evaluation and product choice decisions. The second study investigates effects of online decision aids and purchase-involvement on consumers' information search efforts and satisfaction with the shopping experience. To validate the proposed relationships, first, a set of hypotheses was developed grounded on the existing consumer behavior theories and the current Internet literature. Then, two experimental studies were conducted using simulated online shopping sites. The results suggest that online decision aids influence the effects extrinsic and intrinsic cues have on consumers' purchase decisions (e.g., quality judgment, and/or product choice). Results also show that consumers' satisfaction with the purchase experience increases when online decision aids are available in the shopping environment. Additional research findings indicate that consumers who are highly involved with purchases (i.e., enduring purchase involvement) might have exhibit different shopping behavior (e.g., with respect to the time taken for shopping, and the number of alternatives considered prior to the purchase) from those that are less involved with purchases. This finding suggest that purchase-involvement, as an enduring individual difference variable, deserves much greater attention than it has received in the past.