THE REVIEW OF THE PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTORS THAT

AFFECTS ONLINE CUSTOMERS

Abstract
Analyses the psychological factors affecting the online consumers behaviour and examines how e-marketers
can influence the result of the buying process of a customer by the marketers. For an example the Web
experience, Web experience like the attractive website of Nike. Where the layout is neat and you can customize
your own shoes on the website. Besides, Click-and-mortar firms giving a significant Web experience to
influence their customers perceptions, attitudes, and drive to make them addicted to online purchase. In this
essay, I will explain what are the psychological factors that affecting the online customers buying behaviour.

Keywords: Psychological factors, Online Customers, Online Customers Buying Behaviour.

1. Introduction
In the past few decades, the Internet has developed to a huge market for people to purchase goods
and services. Especially in the modern era we are living now, the Internet has become an important
medium that providing a wide variety of products with 24 hour availability and wide area of
coverage. Since then, E-commerce has become an irreplaceable marketing place for business
transaction. Studying online shopping behaviour of consumers has become one of the important
research topics in e-commerce during the past decade (Chen, 2009).

2. Cultural Influences
Culture is mean a shared set of values which influence societal perceptions, attitudes, preferences,
and responses (Culture. (n.d.). Refer to Hofstede, culture model (normally typified by country) are
break down into five dimensions, including power distance, individualism-collectivism,
masculinity femininity, uncertainty avoidance, and long-term orientation (Hofstede, 1984;
Hofstede, 1991). But among the five models, only individualism-collectivism and masculinity-
femininity have been tried to predict online consumer behaviour.
Collectivism-individualism refers to the amount of which members of a culture tend to have an
interdependent versus independent construal of the self [Hofstede 1984]. Western and eastern
cultures vary drastically in this dimension, which make the online shopping behaviour a big
different (Chau et al. 2002; Huang 2003; O'Keefe et al. 2000; Park and Jun 2003; Park et al. 2004).
For individualistic culture (e.g., U.S. and Australia), the ties among individuals are loose. People
are likely to use the Internet more on personal purposes for instance information searching and e-
commerce (Chau et al. 2002; O'Keefe et al. 2000; Park and Jun 2003). In a collectivistic culture
(e.g., China, Singapore, and Mexico) on the other hands, people are integrated into strong and
cohesive groups. They mainly use the Internet for social network, such as downloading software,
sending or receiving e-mails, and doing their work-related research (Wee and Ramachandra, 2000).
Hence, the difference individualism-collectivism dimension can make a very different shopping
orientation. Entertainment shopping however, orientations drives the online buying intention of
collectivistic consumers (Park, 2002); while assortment and convenience seeking are vital
construct for individualistic consumers (Joines et al. 2003). The individualism-collectivism
dimension as well influences the perceived risk of online shopping. Although collectivists usually
perceive higher risk associated with online shopping than individualists (Park and Jun 2003; Park
et al. 2004), they do not consider risk as a significant decision factor. In addition, a collectivistic
culture protects people throughout their lives. Therefore, collectivists do not need to bear all the
consequences of risk and thus tend to be less risk-averse (Weber and Hsee, 1998).
Masculinity refers to the size of the distinction of societal gender roles (Hofstede, 1984). In
masculinity culture, social gender roles are obviously distinct. Quite the opposite, social gender
roles overlie in a feminine culture. In a country like Britain where the society with more
masculinity, tends to have a greater gender divide, largely male shoppers, than a less masculine
society country like Taiwan (Shiu and Dawson, 2002). Stafford et al. compared the online
shopping behaviour of consumers in the U.S., Turkey, and Finland. The masculinity scores,
according to Hofstedes [1984] index, were high for the US, low for Turkey, and Finland had the
lowest of the three countries. The results show that consumers from less masculine societies like
Finland are less involved in online shopping than those from more masculine societies like Turkey,
which is consistent with the findings of gender pattern in online shopping.





However, no large difference was discovered between the customers in Turkey and the U.S.,
telling that there are other factors in addition to masculinity that may account for the difference in
online shopping behaviour between consumers from different countries. For instance, the
consumer trust, quality of online shopping websites, and positive affect towards the online
shopping websites are the main factors that can affect purchase intentions of consumers form
different countries (Lynch et al. 2001).

3. Online Marketers Persuasive Tools (Web Experience)
The virtual customers decision making process can be influence by the online marketers by
engaging traditional, physical marketing tools but mostly by creating and delivering the proper
online experience, the Web experience consist of: information, cues, emotions, stimuli, online
functionality, and products/services, in others words a complex mix of elements beyond the
traditional 4Ps in marketing mix. The prime medium of delivering the Web experience is the
company Web site, the interfacing platform between the firm and its online clients (Constantinides,
2002). This subtitle focuses on identifying and classifying the Web experience fundamentals: the
marketing tools and the control of the e-marketer that can influence or shape the online consumers
behaviour during the virtual interaction. The Web experience is in this sense a new, additional input in
the traditional buying behaviour frameworks found in marketing textbooks (Kotler, 2003).

4. Attitude
During the mid-1970s, the study of consumers attitudes has been connected with consumer
purchasing behaviour research. According to the model of attitude change and behaviour (e.g.,
Fishbein and Ajzen, 1975), consumers attitudes are affected by intention. When this intention is
applied to online shopping behaviour, the research can test the result of the purchase transaction.
Attitude is a multidimensional construct. One such of the dimension is the acceptance of the
Internet as a shopping channel (Jahng, Jain, and Ramamurthy, 2001). Research being done early
has revealed that attitude towards online shopping is a significant predictor of making online
purchase (Yang et al., 2007) and buying behaviour (George, 2004; Yang et al., 2007).

5. Modelling Trust in B2C E-Commerce
Trust is characterised by dependence, uncertainty, and vulnerability (J.L. Bradach et al., 1989).
These characteristics will reflected in an online transaction, where customers wont be able to see
the seller physically. Examine the merchandise physically, or collect the merchandise upon
payment. All customer can do for the expectation of getting the right delivery with the right
merchant is to believe in the merchants technical competence, goodwill and past experience with
the merchant due to the fact that both regulatory and technical systems of B2C e-commerce are far
from perfect.
According to social exchange theory (Thibaut, and Kelley, (1959), people form exchange
relationships on the basis of trust. Exchange relationships that are likely to cost more than the
potential reward will be avoided. On the Internet, customers typically perceive higher risk
compared to a conventional shopping environment (S.J. Tan,(1999), as a result of distance, virtual
identity, and lack of regulation. Therefore trust is the preliminary condition to consumers e-
commerce participation.











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