Discussion, research framework and hypotheses development

On the basis of direct comparison between consumer perception of e-commerce in two cultures – native culture (i.e. Polish culture and/or cultural context) and non- native culture (i.e. British culture and/or cultural context) – it is clear that overall, participants seem to realise the advantages deriving from e-commerce and thus appear to have positive attitudes towards it, perceiving it to be useful in either culture. At the same time, however, they also realise the disadvantages deriving from e-commerce, which result in a lack of e-commerce trust. That lack of trust is perceived to be directly related to culture, and is described as a ‘national feature’ or ‘national characteristic’.

It is believed that this lack of e-commerce trust in the native culture is difficult to change, despite the fact that interviewees admit that they are already familiar with e- commerce platforms in Polish culture and/or cultural contexts. They clearly state that in their native culture, ‘there is no trust’, but they believe that e-commerce trust exists in the non-native culture. They admit that while moving from one culture and/or the cultural context to another, they also change their views regarding e-commerce trust. They clearly state, ‘we (Polish) trust more here (in non-native culture)’.

From the data analysis it was discovered that in addition to factors revealed during the quantitative investigation and confirmed during the qualitative study (perceived ease of use, perceived behavioural control and intrinsic motivation), e- commerce trust, particularly institution-based trust, is yet another factor affecting consumer e-commerce acceptance. Moreover, it was revealed that interviewees’ perception of those four factors changes once they change culture and/ or cultural context they are subject to.

In order to fully explore the reason for such change in consumer attitudes, participants were asked about possible factors facilitating it. The qualitative data analysis identified the following factors facilitating this change: sales service reliability, delivery fulfilment, and availability and security of payment options, which are discussed below.

Interviewees confirmed that their decision to accept e-commerce is subject to the perceived reliability of sales service, especially in terms of a refund and/or return policy. Interviewees claim that they trust e-vendors in their non-native culture and thus they shop online, as they have the ability to return and/or receive a refund for products, which they see as important in the case of any problem with an order placed on the

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virtual platform. This, however, is not the case in their native culture: participants claim that this is problematic or even impossible in Polish culture and/or cultural contexts.

The presence or absence of clear return and/or refund policies also affects the perception of how easy it is to use e-commerce systems, as well as the perception of control and intrinsic motivation. Interviewees clearly stated and respected return and/or refund policies in the non-native culture create the perception that online shopping is ‘normal’ once they realised they do not have to deal with negative consequences of online shopping, such as the product not meeting expectations but being non-returnable. This, however, is not the case in their native culture, where return and refund policies are not respected.

Similarly, interviewees seem to value delivery service in their non-native culture, while seeming to question its reliability in their native culture. The unreliability of delivery service in their native culture not only negatively influences consumers’ e- commerce trust perception but also seems to affect their ease of use perception and the extent to which they believe they have control when using e-commerce. Further, delivery service reliability also affects satisfaction derived from online shopping.

Finally, participants revealed that their trust in e-commerce is influenced by the availability and security of payment systems. When comparing payment systems between non-native and native culture, interviewees listed a number of obstacles in the payment system in their native culture, affecting their level of trust in e-commerce. Interviewees revealed that in their native culture they are afraid to be ‘victims of a scam’. They are also afraid to reveal personal data and credit card details. Payment security, however, is not an issue in their non-native culture, where they rely on third- party guarantee. As a result, interviewees confirm that in the non-native culture they feel that their payment is safe and secure; they say: ‘I feel safer here (in non-native culture) while paying online’.

Interviewees revealed the gap between payment option availability in the two cultures. They claim that the payment options available in the non-native culture encourage them to shop online, while the opposite is true in their native culture. It is not as easy to pay by credit card in their native culture, interviewees reported, as it is in the non-native culture. Participants confessed that in order to pay for an order placed on an e-commerce platform in their native culture, they have to use a ‘code sent by text’ or a ‘code from the scratch card’ to verify their transactions, or, alternatively, they can pay by postal order or bank transfer. Some interviewees believe that this process aims to

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serve as additional payment protection, but instead of building trust, results in greater distrust. This is confirmed by one informant who stated ‘on the basis of it you can see that we do not trust in Poland’. Furthermore, it is likely that these obstacles in the payment system in interviewees’ native culture also affects consumer control perception, which in turn has a negative effect on the overall pleasure derived from online shopping.

Interestingly, in addition to observed differences in terms of factors facilitating changes in consumers’ attitudes towards e-commerce, interviewees clearly stated that they do not perceive online shopping to be an alternative to traditional shopping in their native culture, but they believe that it is ‘normal’ or ‘common’ in their non-native culture; thus, they appear more likely to shop online in the non-native culture than in their native culture. On the basis of the qualitative research findings, the research framework presented in Figure 17 was developed.

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H1a H1b

H2a H2b

H3a H3b

H4a H5a H6a H7a H5b H4b

H2a _H2a H6b H7b H10a H13a H16a H19a H10b H13b H16b H19b H8a H11a H14a H17a H9a H12a H16a H18a H8b H11b H14b H17b H9b H12b H16b H18b Figure 17. Research framework (broken lines indicate moderating effect of SS, DF, POA and PS)

Sales Service

Reliability Fulfilment Delivery

Payment Options Availability Payment Security Perceived Usefulness Perceived Ease of Use Perceived Behavioural Control Attitudes Toward Behaviour Subjective Norms Intention to USE TAM MM MM TPB Structural Assurance Situational Normality Native culture Perceived Usefulness Perceived Ease of Use Perceived Behavioural Control Attitudes Toward Behaviour Subjective Norms Intention to USE MM TAM TPB Structural Assurance Situational Normality Delivery Fulfilment Sales Service Reliability Payment Options Availability Payment Security Non-native culture Trust Trust Intrinsic

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In summary, this qualitative study reveals that the effect of the acculturation process on consumers’ acceptance of e-commerce is directly related to the following factors: perceived ease of use, perceived behavioural control, intrinsic motivation, structural assurance and the extent to which consumers believe e-commerce platforms are a natural shopping environment. Furthermore, the analysed data reveal that a change in consumer attitudes is facilitated by positive perceptions of sales service reliability, in particular refund and/or return policies, reliability of delivery, perceptions of security and the availability of payment systems.

In order to verify the impact of the revealed factors on consumer’s e-commerce acceptance the research framework presented in Figure 17 will be statistically tested in Chapter 6, the final phase of this transformative sequential research project.

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