Buying On The Internet, Gender Differences in Buying Motivations

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Style file version June 3rd, 2002
C 2004)
Sex Roles, Vol. 50, Nos. 5/6, March 2004 (
Buying on the Internet: Gender Differences in On-line

and Conventional Buying Motivations
Helga Dittmar,1,2 Karen Long,1 and Rosie Meek1
Two studies are reported that examine gender differences in attitudes toward conventional
buying and on-line buying. Thematic analysis of open-ended accounts (n = 113) in Study 1
provides a rich, qualitative map of buying attitude dimensions that are important to young
women and men. Study 2 is a quantitative survey (n = 240) of functional, emotionalsocial,
and identity-related buying motivations in the 2 environments. The on-line environment has an
effect on buying attitudes, but more strongly so for women than for men. Whereas mens functional concerns are amplifiedrather than changedin the shift from conventional to on-line
buying, womens motivational priorities show a reversal, and less involvement in shopping. In
contrast to men, womens on-line buying is associated with barriers (socialexperiential factors) and facilitators (efficiency, identity-related concerns) grounded in their attitudes toward
conventional buying. This has implications for the ease with which women and men can and
want to adapt to the accelerating shift toward computer-mediated shopping.
KEY WORDS: Internet and gender; buying motivations; buying on-line.
The new media of the Internet and the World

Wide Web have revolutionized many aspects of everyday life, including the way in which we buy consumer goods. The shift from conventional buying in
shops and stores to retail e-commerce was estimated
to generate upward of $108 billion by 2003 (Childers,
Carr, Peck, & Carson, 2001). The number of consumers who buy goods on the Internet has increased
phenomenally, and over 60% of respondents in a U.K.
survey said that on-line shopping is now a serious alternative to conventional shopping (Sky News, 2002).
Internet buying prevalence is highest in the United
States, where 93% of Internet users have bought online (Business Software Association, 2002), but it is
growing rapidly in the United Kingdom: on-line sales
almost doubled from December 2001 to December
2002, a three times faster growth than that in the

United States (Interactive Media in Retail Group,
2002).
Given that men and women have been shown to
differ in their attitudes toward both the Internet and
shopping (in conventional environments), it seems
surprising that there is little research that explicitly addresses gender differences in on-line buying. The computer environment is seen as masculine, which can
lead women to feel disempowered and possibly excluded, whereas men feel at home on-line (Woodfield,
2000). Indeed, gender gaps in Internet use were pronounced until a few years ago, but appear to be closing now. For instance, whereas U.K. users in 1998
were 85% men and 15% women (Morahan-Martin,
1998), women constituted half of the U.K. on-line
population by November 2000 (Jupiter MMXI, 2000).
This change mirrors U.S. trends (e.g., Pew Internet
and American Life, 2003). This closure of the gender
gap, however, tells us little about womens and mens
use and experience of the Internet. A recent study
of U.S. undergraduates confirmed that women report
less computer self-efficacy and more anxiety, and that
1 University
of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton, East Sussex, United

Kingdom.
2 To whom correspondence should be addressed at Department
of Psychology, Pevensey Building, University of Sussex, Falmer,
Brighton BN1 9QH, East Sussex, United Kingdom; e-mail:
h.e.dittmar@sussex.ac.uk.
423
C 2004 Plenum Publishing Corporation

0360-0025/04/0300-0423/0
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men enjoy surfing the Internet, whereas women prefer
to use it for interpersonal communication (i.e., e-mail;
Jackson, Ervin, Gardner, & Schmitt, 2001). These
findings imply that men could have more positive attitudes toward on-line buying than women do. Furthermore, research on buying in conventional shops
and stores documents that women are often more
psychologically invested in shopping than men are,
particularly when buying goods other than everyday
household products or groceries. Emotional, social,
and identity needs are more prominent in womens
shopping than in mens (Dittmar, 2000, 2001), and this
may influence their attitudes toward buying on-line in
a negative way.
It is possible that, despite the narrowed gender
gap in Internet use overall, gender differences in conventional buying motivations may be an additional
important reason why women experience greater barriers to buying on-lineas an environment that does
not offer much by way of emotional involvement and
social contactand they may therefore find it harder
to adapt to, and make the most of, the accelerating
shift toward computer-mediated shopping. Indeed, a
recent U.S. survey proclaimed that male Internet
users embrace on-line shopping more strongly; 58%
of men expressed a positive interest as compared
to 42% of women (Yahoo, 2002). Thus, gender differences in attitudes toward both on-line and conventional shopping deserve systematic and detailed
investigation.
GENDER DIFFERENCES IN CONVENTIONAL

BUYING
A number of researchers, mainly in the field of
consumer behavior, have examined individuals motivations and orientations to identify major conceptual dimensions for analyzing conventional buying. A
French study with more than 700 adult respondents
reported four dimensions of enduring involvement
with shopping: leisure, economic, social, and apathy
(Bergadaa, Faure, & Perrien, 1995). Women showed
much stronger buying involvement than did men, particularly on the leisure and social dimensions, whereas
men were high on apathy. Babin, Darden, and Griffin
(1994) developed a 15-item scale to measure utilitarian and hedonic values of shopping in a sample of
over 400 U.S. adults. These dimensions show good validity across multiple samples. Utilitarian values reflect concerns with efficiency and effectiveness, and
Dittmar, Long, and Meek

hedonic values capture the fun and enjoyment of
buying behavior. Hedonic values appear to be similar to the leisure and social involvement in shopping
identified in the French study. Thus, functional concerns on the one hand, and emotionalsocial factors
on the other, emerge as two major buying dimensions.
There are reports of gender differences on these dimensions, and it is surprising to note the lack of studies that examine gender explicitly and systematically.
Dittmar and Drury (2000) documented in an in-depth
interview study that shopping seems to play a much
more psychologically and emotionally encompassing
role for women than for men. Campbell (2000) also
reported that women have highly positive attitudes
toward buying and associate it with a leisure frame
whereas men tend to have negative attitudes toward
buying and see it as work that they want to accomplish with minimum input of time and effort. In other
words, women tend to focus on the (often enjoyable)
process of buying, whereas men focus on the outcome
to obtain the actual goods with the least fuss. In summary then, as a general tendency, men are comparatively more motivated by functional factors, whereas
women are more motivated by emotional and social
factors.
This conceptualization of buying dimensions
does not include consumer concerns with identity construction. Yet, there is evidence that consumers are
motivated to buy goods as symbols of who they are or
would like to be, and that there may be gender differences on this dimension. For instance, a U.K. survey
found that a greater proportion of women than men
were classified, according to their typology, as leisure
shoppers who report pleasure, buy a lot on impulse,
and come close to the stereotype I shop therefore I
am (Lunt & Livingstone, 1992). More direct support
comes from a recent set of U.K. studies, which developed scales that measure identity-related buying
motivations (Dittmar, 2000, 2001; Dittmar, Beattie, &
Friese, 1996). The motivation to buy consumer goods
in order to express who they are or would like to be
was stronger among women than among men. Expressing identity and searching for a better self through
consumer goods is also proposed to be a core feature
of modern consumption problems, such as compulsive
buying, which affects more women than men (Benson,
2000; Dittmar, in press). This general tendency might
be less strong or even reversed for particular types of
goods, such as tools or computer equipment, which are
predominantly bought by male consumers. Notwithstanding such exceptions, it can be plausibly argued
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Gender Differences in On-Line and Conventional Buying

that, overall, buying consumer goods is more integral to the personal and social identity of women, at
least in terms of traditional gender identity (Fischer
& Gainer, 1991).
Taking these arguments together, we put forward
two central propositions about conventional buying.
First, we propose that buying motivations can be understood in terms of three main dimensions: functional issues (economy, efficiency), emotionalsocial
factors (emotional involvement, social interaction),
and identity-related concerns (search for ideal self, social image). Second, the relative importance of these
motivational dimensions is strongly gendered: functional issues are particularly important to men, and
emotionalsocial and identity-related motivations are
particularly important to women. However, the gender differences discussed so far pertain to the emotional and psychological gratification of buying goods
in conventional shops and stores. The likelihood that
these gender differences in conventional buying are
simply reflected in on-line buying is called into question when the entirely different nature of the Internet
as an environment is considered, particularly from the
viewpoint of gender.
GENDER DIFFERENCES IN ATTITUDES

TOWARD COMPUTERS AND INTERNET USE
Until a few years ago, surveys of Internet users reported that men greatly outnumbered women. There
were more of them, they used the Internet more
frequently and for longer than female users, and
for a greater variety of reasons (Morahan-Martin,
1998). More recent surveys in the United States indicate that the gender gap has disappeared; there
are now equal numbers of men and women Internet
users (Pew Internet and American Life, 2003), and
European figures suggest that womens Internet use
in the United Kingdom is not far behind: around 40%
(Netvalue, 2001). In November 2000, it was reported
for the first time that 50% of U.K. Internet users
were women, which followed a similar trend in the
United States 3 months previously (Jupiter MMXI,
2000).
Despite their increasing presence on the Internet, there is good reason to expect that female users
may not view the experience as positively as their male
counterparts. Gender differences have been demonstrated in attitudes toward computers generally: male
users are more confident, and they have more positive
425
attitudes toward computers (Whitley, 1997; Woodfield, 2000). A stereotypically masculine culture has
developed around computer use; this is particularly
evident in the marketing of, and participation in,
computer-based games. Such attitudes are likely to
generalize to the Internet, which is seen primarily as a
highly technological male domain (Morahan-Martin,
1998). Indeed, a recent focus group study of Internet nonusers reported that women are more likely to
believe that the Internet is complicated and hard to
understand (Pew Internet and American Life, 2003).
Although gender differences in attitudes toward Internet use may diminish over time with the increased
participation of women, it is unlikely that they will
disappear any time soon. Skill and confidence in navigating Internet sites have been identified as important
antecedents of positive attitudes toward the Internet
as a shopping environment (Childers et al., 2001). It
may well be the case that women feel less at ease
exploring websites, or at least do not find this activity as enjoyable as men do. Indeed, a recent study
(Jackson et al., 2001) showed that young women and
men use the Internet equally often, but use it differently: women reported less computer self-efficacy and
less favorable attitudes toward computer technology.
Clearly, this has implications for the democratizing
potential and benefits of Internet use, and may affect
more strongly the likelihood of women, than of men,
buying on-line.
ON-LINE BUYING AND GENDER

Predictors of On-Line Buying
As Internet buying becomes a realistic possibility for increasingly greater proportions of the population, researchers have begun to investigate the characteristics and motivations of Internet shoppers. Early
research tended to focus on demographic profiles of
Internet buyers rather than on their psychological attributes, and the few studies that did address buying
attitudes tend to be limited to functional advantages
of on-line buying or concerns about credit card security, which continues to be a significant issue (UCLA
Internet Report, 2003).
Functional advantages of Internet buying are
easy to identify: it is potentially easy to make price
comparisons, and one can purchase from a single location at any time: 24 hr a day, 7 days a week. However, the research is inconsistent regarding the extent
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to which Internet purchasing is entirely motivated by
such concerns. Whereas one recent survey reported
that 60% of on-line shoppers claim to have saved
money by buying on-line (Pew Internet and American Life, 2002), another on-line survey of Internet
users showed that economic orientations did not differentiate nonshoppers from shoppers (Li, Kuo, &
Russell, 1999; see also UCLA Internet Report, 2003).
Moreover, Donthu and Garcia (1999) found that Internet shoppers were less price conscious than nonshoppers, which suggests that price is less important
than other perceived benefits that Internet buying can
provide. Understandably, almost all studies show that
convenience is a primary motivation for Internet purchasing, identifying convenience of access, time saving, and efficiency as significant (Donthu & Garcia,
1999; Li et al., 1999; Olivero, 2000; Pew Internet
and American Life, 2002; Swaminathan, LepowskaWhite, & Roa, 1999).
Relatively few studies have considered the extent
to which emotional, social, or identity-related factors
are associated with buying on-line. This is surprising,
given that such concerns have been demonstrated to
be powerful motivations for conventional shopping.
It is not clear how such attitudes would extrapolate to
the Internet: people who derive pleasure from conventional buying may be deterred from e-commerce
if they believe it to be less emotionally rewarding. On
the other hand, those who believe that Internet buying
is (potentially) pleasurable should be more likely to
make purchases in this way. Some on-line buying studies have investigated hedonic motivations, but usually
without specifying the environment in which the buying activity is carried out. Contrary to expectation,
enjoyment of shopping (in general) as a recreational
activity did not differentiate Internet shoppers from
nonshoppers (Donthu & Garcia, 1999; Li et al., 1999),
but Korgaonkar and Wolin (1999) found that social
escapism was one of two predictors of Internet purchasing, and that Internet shoppers reported deriving
enjoyment from the interactive exploration aspects
of Internet buying. A recent study that specifically examined on-line buying motivations demonstrated that
hedonic concerns are at least as important as utilitarian motivations when people purchase on-line goods
other than everyday groceries and household products (Childers et al., 2001).
Social motives have also been shown to be important in conventional buying, and this aspect is clearly
less well facilitated on-line, despite the introduction
of such Internet retail website features as the ability to
e-mail product information to a friend. Swaminathan

et al. (1999) used only a single-item measure of social interaction, but found this to be a strong negative
predictor of on-line purchasing frequency: individuals
who prefer to deal with people buy on-line less often.
Finally, the lack of contact with the goods being purchased has been suggested as a potential deterrent to
web buying, and consumers who value these experiential aspects highly were less likely to buy on-line
(Li et al., 1999). The need to see products before purchase was identified as important by 53% of non-ebuyers in the Ernst and Young survey (1999), but did
not differentiate between buyers and non-e-buyers in
Oliveros (2000) survey. Childers et al. (2001) showed
that consumers perception that the Internet provides an acceptable substitute for direct product examination underlies positive attitudes toward on-line
buying.
Gender Differences in On-Line Buying

Gender differences in Internet use are reflected
in the domain of e-commerce. Most surveys report
that male consumers outnumber female consumers
(Ernst & Young, 1999; Pew, 1998), but here again the
difference is shrinking rapidly, and some recent surveys show even greater numbers of female than male
Internet consumers (Pew Internet and American Life,
2002; Sky News, 2002). Yet, most researchers still conclude that male buyers spend more money and make
more frequent purchases than female buyers do (e.g.,
Graphics, Visualization, Usability Centre, 1999; Li
et al., 1999). Hardly any previous research has explicitly compared buying motivations of men and women
Internet consumers, and there has not been any research that examined gender differences in reasons
for not choosing to buy products on the Internet. An
exception is Swaminathan et al. (1999), who reported
that male Internet buyers were more convenienceoriented and less motivated by social interaction than
women Internet buyers. Given that conventional buying motivations of men and women differ significantly,
it seems nave to assume that this would not also be
the case on the Internet.
In summary, the majority of previous studies on
Internet buying are limited because they tend to focus
on a narrow range of factors assumed to be of primary
importance to Internet buyers, such as convenience.
Emotional and social attitudes toward on-line buying
have been relatively neglected, and there is no previous research on identity-related concerns. Given that
the three main dimensions identified in conventional
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buying show pervasive gender differences, and that
there are gender differences with respect to using the
Internet, there are two main questions that need to
be addressed. How do buying motivations in conventional shops and stores relate to buying on-line, particularly in terms of potential barriers or facilitators?
Do these relationships differ for male and female
consumers?
THE PRESENT RESEARCH

Two studies of gender differences in conventional and on-line buying motivations are reported
in this paper. The systematic study of gender differences in the two buying environments addresses
a gap in the literature. In addition, the current research makes original contributions because we examine gender-specific patterns in three ways. First,
by examining differences between conventional and
on-line buying as reported by the same individuals,
we offer a direct comparison between these two environments as they are perceived by both women and
men. Second, we address social psychological motivations that are likely to be important in buying,
but have been neglected in previous studies, particularly identity-related concerns. Some of these may
be particularly important for women. Third, we offer
an exploration of possible barriers to on-line buying
by including respondents who have Internet access,
but do not currently use it to make purchases. They
can be seen as hypothetical buyers, in the sense
that they are likely to be reasonably well-informed
about on-line buying, and can therefore be asked to
anticipate how they would feel about buying on the
Internet.
We chose to sample students because they constitute a group of young consumers who all have Internet access (through the university if not also at home),
who use computers routinely, and who fall predominantly into the 1825 age group. Surveys confirm that
Internet use is highest for this age group; 88% of
16 to 24-year-olds in the United Kingdom accessed
the Internet in a 1-month period in 2001 (Office of
National Statistics, 2001). Internet use is encouraged
in university settings, and it has become almost a necessity for students when they search for information or communicate with tutors. It also seems that
there is little difference between the sites that online college students and the general U.S. Internet
audience visit (ComScore Media Matrix, 2002). Although students are probably more limited in their
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capacity for spending money than are young adults
of a comparable age who are in full-time employment, this difference appears less important for an
investigation of motivationsas in the studies reported hererather than for a survey of purchase
frequency.
Moreover, a student sample offers a particularly
stringent test of our gender hypotheses, given that
studentscompared to the general populationare
more likely to have challenged or overcome traditional gender role identifications, particularly in the
context of computer use and confidence. It is important to emphasize that our predictions of gender differences should not be misunderstood as an essentialist account of differences between male and female
consumers. Rather, we are proposing that buying will
remain gendered in the way described only as long as
cultural norms and social representations (Moscovici,
1988) continue to frame shopping and computer use
as differentially linked to women and mens social,
personal, and gender identities.
Our concern about overcoming the limitations of
previous research through identifying a wider range of
buying motivations, particularly related to emotional,
social, and identity-related needs, suggested a qualitative study as a first step. The findings could then be
used in the development of a more quantitative survey
for a second study.
STUDY 1
A qualitative exploration of young womens and
mens motivations and concerns in on-line as compared to conventional buying from their own perspective allowed us to identify a wide range of positive
and negative aspects through spontaneously generated responses, thus avoiding the possible limitation
of researcher-generated constructs. Given the openended nature of this study, no hypotheses were formulated as such. However, based on previous research, there were general expectations of gender
differences in conventional buying: women would report more emotional and identity-related involvement than would men. With respect to the Internet,
the question arose as to whether the computermediated process of buying on-line fits better with
mens consumer motivations (such as convenience
and efficiency) than with womens. It was also considered likely that women who do not currently buy
on-line might express different concerns about Internet buying than might men who do not buy on-line.
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Method
Respondents
Participants were students at a U.K. university
who responded in writing to a set of open-ended questions on a voluntary basis or in return for course
credit. A total of 113 written accounts were collected: 57 completed by men and 56 by women. Respondents ages ranged from 19 to 34 years, with an
average of 21 years (SD = 2.66). Over 95% of participants were White. All respondents had free access
to the Internet in university-based, open-access, computer suites, regardless of whether or not they had
personal Internet access at home. Forty-three percent
of the sample had made a purchase over the Internet at least once. Consistent with findings reported
in previous studies, gender was significantly associated with buyer status, 2 = 5.70, df = 1; p < .05;
men were more likely than women to report having bought on-line in the past (54% of men, 32% of
women).
Open-Ended Question Schedule
The study was introduced as concerned with
students as consumers, and respondents were asked
to write brief accounts of their experiences of buying
consumer goods in the real world (defined as
conventional shops and stores) and on-line. They
were provided with a definition of consumer goods
as all products you buy excluding grocery and
household shopping. This means consumer goods
for your personal use, such as clothes, CDs, music
items. This distinction was suggested by the findings
of Childers et al. (2001). They responded to two (or
three) questions, and had one blank page to answer
each question in an A4 booklet. They were asked first
to tell us in their own words what they like and dislike
about conventional buying, then what they like or
dislike about buying consumer goods on the Internet,
andif they had never bought on-linetheir main
reasons for not doing so.
Analytic Method
Thematic analysis was carried out on participants responses, and the process was much the same
as that used by Dittmar and Drury (2000) for transcribed interviews on consumer behavior. The aim
of the analysis was to investigate the emergence of

themes and subthemes in the responses in the following areas: (1) advantages and disadvantages of conventional buying; (2) advantages and disadvantages
of buying on-line; and (3) for those who do not buy online, reasons why not. The analytic process involved
coding of the text to identify recurring themes and
then sorting these into a hierarchical order of predominant themes and associated subthemes.
Results
Three primary themes emerged and recurred,
each with their own associated subthemes: functional
issues; emotional, experiential, and social factors; and
identity-related concerns. These are consistent with
the three main buying dimensions identified earlier.
The relative prominence of each of these primary
themes and subthemes as advantages or disadvantages was identified across the sample as a whole, as
well as in terms of comparisons between women and
men, and between current e-buyers and non-e-buyers.
Typical responses are illustrated by verbatim quotes,
each of which is followed by a reference to the respondents questionnaire number, gender (M = male and
F = female), and buyer status (E = has bought goods
on-line in the past and N = has not bought on-line).
Theme 1: Functional Issues

Several subthemes emerged under this first main
theme, and they focused mainly on convenience, efficiency, and the transactions involved in buying and
ordering goods. These subthemes are presented twice:
first with respect to the advantages and disadvantages
in conventional buying, and subsequently with respect
to buying on-line.
Convenience and Efficiency in Conventional

Shopping
Seventeen percent of respondents, both men and
women, referred explicitly to the ease and speed of
conventional shopping and the wide range of goods
available:
I like the plethora of choices I have [121FN].
I like the choice of shops that sell items, e.g., I can go
to 10 shops to look at jeans [119ME].
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At the same time, almost one-third of respondents identified several disadvantages: the timeconsuming nature of shopping trips as well as the limited access to goods and sizes. When men described
disadvantages, they often focused on the time it takes
to shop.
When I go shopping for goods I dont like spending
much time doing it. Often Ill buy one of the first
things I see [107MN].
By comparison, women were more likely to refer
to access problems, in terms of location or parking:
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Good points are that one can compare sites and products readily. . . information is available, if you can
find it [092ME].
The second subtheme is that of access to a variety of goods, from a wide range of distributors, and
at cheaper prices. Slightly more men than women referred to these aspects.
I like the fact that you can usually find what you are
looking for [105ME].
You can access web pages of shops that you otherwise
couldnt visit [098FE].
The general inconveniences, such as transport and car

parking availability, are great pains [173FN].
Another disadvantage referred to the goods
within the shops; specifically, shortage of stock or
the unavailability of particular sizes. Two-thirds of respondent who discussed this were women:
Dislike. . . cant find something that you specifically
want or find something that you like and then cant
find it in your size [145FE].
Convenience and Efficiency in Buying On-Line

This was a highly prominent theme: 74% of respondents highlighted the convenient and efficient aspects of Internet buying, including time saving, ease
of ordering and delivery, and the ability to shop at any
time and at home.
I like the idea of being able to buy items from own
home [165FE].
I like the ease of being able to buy things quickly and
effectively [133ME].
Price Comparisons and Economic Buying On-Line

Over one-half of the respondents, men and
women, identified further advantages in terms of two
overlapping subthemesthe benefits of browsing and
comparison on the Internet, and increased access to
goods and cheaper prices. Responses, predominantly
by women, highlighted the benefits of being able to
compare sites, goods, and prices before committing to
purchase.
Being able to compare prices of different brands without walking for miles and searching different shops
[145FE].
On-Line Buying Transaction

The final subtheme in advantages concerns the
purchasing transaction and the increased control afforded by buying on-line. About 4% of participants,
nearly all of whom were women, referred to increased
control of their spending.
I do not waste so much money, because everything
I buy is carefully thought out beforehand and,
of course, I do not get intimidated to buy other
things as I visit only the sites Im interested in
[121FN].
Yet, the particular subtheme of control, in conjunction with order complications, also featured as
the most prominent disadvantage of buying on-line.
There were three strands to respondents concerns:
(a) increased spending on the Internet because of
transactions that feel unreal or additional charges,
(b) doubts about credit card security, and (c) incorrect or delayed deliveries. Over 52% of respondents mentioned one or more of these concerns,
and it was interesting that those who had and had
not previously bought on the Internet responded
similarly.
Both men and women expressed a concern about
security of credit card details: 40% of respondents
reported such fears.
There is always a worry of Internet and credit card
fraud [141ME].
A smaller number of participants (8%) referred
to the danger of increased spending, because of the
unreal feel on on-line buying transactions.
Very easy to spend a lot. . . detaches you from a sense
of actually spending money [137ME].
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Finally, anxieties about orders being damaged or
delayed in delivery concerned only a small number of
respondents.
Dont trust Internet prices, detailswhat if something
goes wrong? [223MN].
Transactions when ordering and buying on-line
were not only perceived as disadvantages, but also
emerged as the main functional barriers to on-line
buying, as mentioned by 59% of non-e-buyers, men
and women equally.
Theme 2: Emotional, Experiential,

and Social Factors
The second primary theme focused on emotional involvement; experiential factors, including
buying atmosphere and direct contact with the goods
and sales personnel; and social interaction. As for
the first main theme, these are presented as advantages and disadvantages in conventional buying first, and subsequently with respect to buying
on-line.
Direct Contact in Conventional Shopping

This subtheme includes two aspects of direct contact: (a) with the goods and (b) with shop personnel who provide help and consumer support, both
during and after the purchase. Fifty-seven percent
of respondents (over 50% of them were women) referred to at least one of these subthemes. Almost twothirds of respondents (64%) who referred to this advantage were those who had not previously bought
on-line.
A prominent subtheme in responses, given by the
majority of participants, dealt with the need to have
contact with the goods before purchase. This typically
referred to the importance and enjoyment of touching and trying on clothing and shoes, but also incorporated the need to smell (e.g., cosmetics), listen (e.g.,
CDs), or handle and check the quality of goods as part
of the buying process.
Buying something that you can pick up and feel is
a very positive advantage, and for size and fit especially when considering clothes and footwear
[111MN].
I like to be able to examine the items I buy. I prefer
to check quality, etc. [097FE].

These concerns extended to contact with the product after purchase. Both men and women stated that
an important advantage of conventional buying was
the ability to handle, use, and take home the goods
immediately after the purchasing transaction.
I like buying in real shops best. You get to try things
on/examine/listen to the goods and when youve
bought them theyre in your hands immediately
[101FE].
Furthermore, some respondents talked about the
importance of direct contact with sales personnel,
both in terms of help and advice on purchases (care
of fabric, fitting of clothes; pointing out choices and
range of products) and in terms of customer service
after purchase (exchanges or refunds).
I can always get the help from the staff if I need help
or have any queries. I can return the good easily
with receipt if I am not happy with it [090FE].
Service is instantaneous. This means I can pay and
get a receipt immediately. . . I can ask specific questions and get specific answers from the sales staff
[092ME].
At the same time, direct contact with sales personnel was identified as a disadvantage by almost onequarter of all respondents, reporting dissatisfaction
with pestering, rude, or pushy shop assistants.
I also dislike moody shop assistants [116FN].
I dislike pushy sales assistants with their hard sell
tactics [224MN].
Experiential Dimensions and Social Interaction

This subtheme was mentioned by 43% of respondents, and it captures two interrelated dimensions:
(a) the buying ritual and/or shop atmosphere and
(b) the social activity of shopping (e.g., with friends).
Those who referred to these advantages were more
likely to be women (66%) and non-e-buyers (69%).
Over one-half of the social and experiential responses referred to the pleasure of browsing, wandering between shops, or simply appreciating the layout
and atmosphere of shops:
Like wandering to different locations not knowing
what I may buy where [168MN].
Respondents also referred to the social activity of buying. Shopping trips were seen as a crucial
aspect of many respondents social lives, a day out,
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an opportunity to meet friends, and buying was integrated with social interaction and other activities,
such as eating out.
I like actually looking around shops with friends. . . Its
quite a fun, leisurely activity [128FN].
Going shopping can be combined with meeting
friends, having a drink. . . you can window shop
even if youre short of money [178FN].
By the same token, a majority of respondents
(70%)just over one-half of them womenreported
disadvantages that referred to this subtheme at least
once, thus it is of importance to both genders. Disadvantages related to contact with other shoppers
were reported by over 50% of respondents, who commented on queues, crowds, and noise of other shoppers as troublesome.
The side of shopping I particularly dislike is the other
people getting in my way, rushing around and making the whole process a lot harder and a lot more
frustrating [118ME].
In terms of environment, 15% of men and women
highlighted the external, physical nature of shopping
trips, such as adverse weather conditions, walking distances, and carrying bags as disadvantages of conventional buying.
Traipsing around different shops to find what youre
looking for can be a real chore sometimes [224MN].
Finally, 20% of respondents, more than one-half
of them men, referred to the general context of shopping in terms of dissatisfaction with consumerism,
advertising, and high markups.
There is too strong a media influence on behavior. There are too many hidden motives of firms
[220MN].
The emphasis put on spending a huge amount of
money, the materialistic nature [106FN].
Emotional Involvement
Over 30% of respondents, three-quarters of them
women, referred to emotional involvement as an advantage of conventional buying. Three subthemes
were equally prominent. First, shopping was described, almost exclusively by women, as a buzz or
a thrill.
The ritual involved; its amazing walking into a shop
with all those new and glistening objects. . . Its all
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so tempting, a magical world of all things NEW
[157FE].
Shopping trips were also seen as a form of escapism, a reward or a distractionagain predominantly by women.
I usually buy consumer goods after completing a task,
for example at work or to do with studying. So
buying consumer goods is something of a reward
[163FN].
Its a form of escape into a nonrealistic world!
[157FE].
The thrill of hunting down a good bargain or an
unexpected find, particularly during the sales season,
was also mentioned.
Something can strike your interest that you wouldnt
have thought of picking up otherwise. . . Bargains
are stuck in front of youif you know the right
shops youre bound to find some things you like
[117FE].
Emotional disadvantages, such as discontent,
frustration, or boredom, were reported by 19% of respondents, two-thirds of them men.
Dislike getting tired and not finding what you want
[122ME].
Annoying if you go out to get a specific item and dont
find it [009FN].
Independent Buying On-Line

This subtheme encompassed respondents frustration with crowds, queues, and shop personnel in
conventional shops and stores, and their positive absence when buying on-line. These benefits were reported by 15% of respondents.
You can avoid crowds [122ME].
Can take as long as you like. Dont have people trying
to push and look as well [007ME].
You dont feel pressured to buy anything [138FE].
The analysis of reported disadvantages of buying on-line revealed subthemes that generally mirrored the advantages of conventional buying. In
other words, the perceived disadvantages of buying on-line are largely due to the absence of
the reported benefits of conventional buying. Lack
of direct contact was the most prominent subtheme. Sixty-three percent of respondents (men
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and women equally) reported dissatisfaction concerning goods, predominantly before purchase (not
being able to try on or touch goods) and to
a lesser extent afterward (no contact following
transaction). Furthermore, a lack of contact with
personnel in terms of help, advice, and customer service was seen as a disadvantage, and
over one-half of these respondents (62%) were
non-e-buyers.
Fifty-three percent of participants (slightly more
women than men) reported the need to see, touch, or
try on goods before purchase.
Why buy on the Internet if you can buy in shops
and really see, feel, try, the things you want to buy
[153FN].
In addition, the inability to handle the goods immediately after the decision to buy formed a common
complaint from 14% of respondents.
Want the good immediatelyI dont wanna wait!
[161ME]
Finally, slightly more men than women mentioned the lack of contact with sales personnel, in
terms of receiving advice, dealing with refunds or returns, or a more human touch in general.
I dislike the remote nature of it. I would rather have
the human touch of store shopping or even telephone ordering [213ME].
The lack of social or experiential dimensions in on-line buying was mentioned by 30% of
participantsthe inability to experience the social aspects of shopping and browsing, as well as a discontent with the impersonal and unfamiliar arrangement
of Internet shopping. Respondents wrote about the
difficulty of the buying process as well as boredom
and frustration. Almost three-quarters (74%) of these
respondents were non-e-buyers, and over two-thirds
were women.
In terms of barriers to buying on-line, 42% of
non-e-buyers reported the lack of contact with goods
before purchase, lack of communication with staff,
and having to wait for delivery as factors. Women
made up well over one-half of these respondents.
Just under one-third of non-e-buyers referred to
the lack of emotional involvement, the impersonal
nature of Internet buying and the superiority of
conventional buying as reasons why they do not
buy on-line; women made over two-thirds of these
complaints.

I dont know how to even begin shopping via computers, but even if I did Id rather go out and buy
something as you have to get out of the house and
meet people you dont know. I feel this is very
important socially [169FN].
Theme 3: Identity-Related Concerns

Although not as prominent as the other two
themes, buying motivations and concerns related to
consumer identity did emerge as a distinct third dimension. The main focus was on self-expression, increasing self-esteem, and projecting a more ideal image to others and to oneself. This final theme signifies
the manner in which respondents reported advantages of conventional buying in terms of social and
personal identity, often linked to mood adjustment
and self-esteem enhancement. This incorporates the
ways in which purchases relate to the ideal self, the
prestige of newly acquired goods, or how buying can
make one feel better about oneself. Psychologically,
this is an important theme, even if it emerged explicitly only in just over 11% of respondents accounts.
Subthemes related to (a) bringing new goods home
or wearing new clothes when going out and (b) receiving compliments or feeling better about oneself
because of the new goods.
Both women and men reported the pleasure of wearing a new item of clothing after purchase.
I like buying nice clothes and wearing them out that
night or the next day [165FE].
Find clothes shopping boring, but very satisfying after
the event when I own a new outfit [186MN].
Subsequently, respondents reported an additional thrill of wearing newly purchased clothes, in
terms of a boost in self-image and self-esteem, as well
as compliments they receive from others.
I like shopping for clothes, to feel better about myself
when wearing these new clothes [187FE].
It is when I get to use the product that I enjoy the
most, i.e., listening to a new CD or wearing new
clothes out, especially if I am complimented on
them [118ME].
Identity-related concerns were not voiced in descriptions of the disadvantages of conventional buying. They also did not get explicit mention in descriptions of either advantages or disadvantages of buying
on-line.
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Further Disadvantages of, and Barriers
to, Buying On-Line
Finally, a further themenot related to buying motivationsthat emerged repeatedly in descriptions of disadvantages of Internet buying and barriers
to it were issues of computer handling. A significant proportion of responses referred to physical
problems with access, using, and understanding computers and the Internet or to a general dislike of
using the technology associated with Internet use.
Negative computer handling issues included two subthemes, which were mentioned by 27% of respondents. First, womensand, to a lesser extent, mens
responses reflected a general mistrust, lack of confidence, or dislike of sitting at a computer screen to
shop.
Not as enjoyable as going shoppingjust looking at
a screen in a room... just clicking buttons to buy
[009FN].
Second, access problems, in terms of getting to
sites and finding information on products, were mentioned by almost 10% of respondents.
Your decision can only be based upon what information is made available [092ME].
Slow and time consuming when loading pages
[139FN].
Descriptions of computer-handling difficulties as a
disadvantage came predominantly from non-e-buyers
(70%). In addition, computer-handling issues were
described as barriers to buying on-line: 19% of non-ebuyers gave reasons that concerned a lack of knowledge about appropriate retail sites or means of accessing information on goods. Men and women alike
mentioned this theme. One-third of non-e-buyers reported a lack of confidence or trust in using computers
or the Internet, or a lack of access to the appropriate
technology as barriers to buying on-line. Two-thirds
of these respondents were women.
Discussion
In terms of an overall comparative evaluation,
the thematic analysis of advantages and disadvantages
of conventional buying showed some differences between actual and anticipating on-line buyers. Current non-e-buyers referred to more advantages than
disadvantages of conventional buying, which may indicate that they have a particularly positive view,
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which possibly acts as a disincentive to engage in online buying. Prominent differences emerged in terms
of gender. The majority of responses for most themes
came from women, who wrote more fully and eloquently than men, particularly concerning advantages
of conventional buying and positive emotional and
social involvement. The exceptions to this pattern
are subthemes related to emotional discontent and
hassles involved in buying, which occurred more frequently in mens accounts of disadvantages than in
womens. In summary, women tended to highlight
more positive aspects of buying with fewer references
to disadvantages, whereas men responded less overall,
but more in terms of the emotional disadvantages of
shopping. Furthermore, women frequently stated explicitly that the good aspects of shopping easily offset
the negative aspects.
Our analysis supports the claim made by some
previous researchers (Campbell, 2000; Dittmar &
Drury, 2000) that women tend to see conventional
shopping as an encompassing and psychologically involving activity and experience, in which the actual
ownership of the products forms a comparatively
small part. In contrast, men frequently depicted shopping trips as an arduous and distasteful task, best carried out as quickly and efficiently as possible, that has
to be endured as a means to achieve the main goal of
buying: getting the goods.
As regards buying on-line, women again offered more responsesboth negative and positive
than did men. Furthermore, both men and women
described more disadvantages than advantages of Internet buying, and they often concluded that the shortcomings of Internet shopping outweighed the benefits and that the experience of conventional buying
was generally superior to buying on-line. Perhaps not
surprisingly, differences between actual and anticipating on-line buyers were more prominent than
in conventional buying. Whereas there was no difference with respect to advantages, those who had not
previously bought on-line reported more disadvantages of, and barriers to, Internet buying, particularly
in relation to the lack of direct contact and social
experiential aspects, as well as computer handling
issues.
In summary, there are three findings of the thematic analysis that are both important and not reported in previous studies. First, it seems that security during the buying transaction on the Internet is
not the only, or even the main, barrier to buying online, as stipulated in earlier research, at least not any
longer. Although respondents referred to credit card
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security as a concern, there was no difference in concern between those who did and did not buy on-line. It
stands to reason that initial consumer concern about
credit card security has been alleviated through reassurances by web retailers and through personal experience. There are now additional issues that emerge
clearly, particularly concerning the less psychologically involving nature of the Internet, in terms of
lack of direct contact and socialexperiential buying dimensions. These seem particularly important
to women, and therefore may present gender-specific
barriers to on-line buying. The second interesting finding is that general competence in computer use
evident in our sampleis not sufficient for understanding specific issues concerning Internet buying:
routine use (e.g., word processing, e-mailing) does not
appear to lead automatically to ease and competence
in surfing, negotiating, and understanding retail sites.
Clearly, the increase in the sheer number as well as
complexity of sites is experienced as overwhelming.
The majority of respondents who referred to negative
computer handling issues were not currently buying
on-line, and some aspects of computer handing difficulties were reported more often by women. Finally,
the gendered nature of conventional buying emerged
clearly; women reported emotional and psychological involvement in the whole shopping and buying
process, whereas men focused on efficiency and convenience in obtaining buying outcomes: the actual
products. Although there were some gender differences with respect to Internet buying, these were less
pronounced.
Overall, there is an indication that the buying environment may play a much more important role for
women consumers whereas men may be able to fulfill
their main concerns relatively easily in either environment. For women, perceived advantages of conventional buying, such as emotional involvement and
socialexperiential benefits, may function as barriers
to buying on-line.
STUDY 2
Qualitative research is valuable in obtaining response diversity and identifying major buying motivations for consumers. This forms a useful foundation
on which to build a more quantitative approach that
can assess the relative importance of different motivations, examine systematically gender differences
in the relationships between motivations in conventional and on-line buying, and explore whether there

are gender-specific patterns in conventional motivations that discriminate between e-buyers and non-ebuyers. The buying motivations selected for this study
fall into three main categories that reflect the three
primary themes identified in Study 1: functional issues, emotional and experientialsocial factors, and
identity-related concerns. Scale items for assessing
each theme were either adapted from previous studies (e.g. Babin et al., 1994; Dittmar et al., 1996) or
formulated on the basis of Study 1.
Study 2 addresses several gaps in the research
literature. Some of the buying motivations have not
been examined previously in the context of on-line
buying, and previous studies have neglected to distinguish systematically between the two different buying
environments: conventional and Internet. This means
that they have neither directly compared the buying
experience of the same individuals in these two environments nor examined whether conventional buying
motivations act as barriers or facilitators of buying
on-line. Specific hypotheses can be formulated only
with respect to gender differences in conventional
buying and differences between the two buying environments for certain dimensions. Gender-specific
patterns in the impact of buying environment on motivations and barriers to buying on-line are a matter of empirical examination. Thus, we formulated
four sets of general expectations or research questions, with specific hypotheses only in appropriate
places.
Gender differences in conventional buying. Men
were expected to place more emphasis on functional
than emotionalexperientialsocial and identityrelated buying motivations, whereas women were expected to show either equally balanced or opposite
preferences.
The impact of shopping environment on buying
motivations. When we compared conventional and
on-line buying motivations in current e-buyers, we
expected that functional motivations would be more
important for on-line than for conventional buying,
whereas the other motivations would be weaker online. The findings of Study 1 suggest that the impact of shopping environment may be more powerful
for women than for men, which suggests genderspecific patterns. Women may be particularly concerned with the relative absence of emotional, tactile, and social gratification in the Internet buying
environment.
Comparing e-buyers and non-e-buyers on-line
motivations. A further research question addressed
by Study 2 is whether there is a significant difference
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between the actual experience of on-line buying and
consumers anticipation of what on-line buying will
be like. Comparisons between e-buyers and none-buyers on-line motivations allowed us to assess
whether non-e-buyers hold unrealistic expectations
or unwarranted concerns that function as barriers that
prevent them from buying on-line.
Predicting Internet buying from conventional
buying. Finally, given the possibility that conventional
buying motivations may act as barriers or facilitators of on-line buying, we explored whether conventional buying motivations could discriminate between
young adult consumers who do and do not buy on
the Internet, and whether these patterns differ between men and women. On the basis of Study 1,
we expected that valuing contact and social experience might be important barriers to buying on-line
whereas efficiency and convenience priorities might
act as facilitators. It is possible that, given their buying
motivations, women would experience greater barriers to buying on-line, as it offers less emotional involvement and social contact.
Method
Respondents
Two hundred and forty students at the same U.K.
university took part in Study 2 on a voluntary basis or
in return for course credit. They were 124 women and
116 men, of whom over 95% were White. They took a
variety of degree programs, and their average age was
21.75 years (sd = 4.31). In terms of using the Internet
to purchase consumer goods, almost one-half of the
sample (45.8%) had bought on the Internet at least
once. However, there were gender differences, such
that about one-third of women (34.7%), compared
to over one-half of the men (65.3%), had bought on
the Internet. Thus, as in Study 1, the proportion of
men who had made Internet purchases was significantly greater than that of women, 2 = 12.86, df = 1;
p < .001.
Questionnaire and Procedure

The questionnaire consisted of two sections. The
first section recorded demographics and whether participants use the Internet to make purchases. If they
had never bought on the Internet, they were instructed to complete the remainder of the question-
435
naire hypothetically, that is, to anticipate how they
would feel if they did buy on the Internet, given that
Study 1 confirmed that people who routinely use computers and the Internet have established attitudes toward on-line buying, even if they have not engaged in
it as yet.
The second, and main, part of the questionnaire
consisted of a set of statements, which included motivations for buying consumer goods. These were designed to tap three main dimensions. The first concerned functional issues, which included economic
concerns about the rational benefits of goods (e.g.,
good value for money, price comparison, usefulness);
efficiency and convenience (e.g., saving time, speed
and efficiency, constant access); and information acquisition and exploration, which captures potentially
important dimensions of Internet buying, such as
excitement of tracking down a particular item, or
quick and easy access to consumer information. The
second main dimension focused on emotional and
experientialsocial factors. These consisted of emotional involvement in shopping as a pleasurable activity in which the actual purchase of goods can be of
secondary or even little importance (e.g., leisure activity, enjoyment of browsing without buying), and as
an activity that arouses emotions and can be used to
regulate ones mood (e.g., fun, excitement, buzz, better mood), and experientialsocial dimensions, such as
buying experience, contact and social interaction that
may be linked, particularly for women consumers.
The final dimension of identity-related concerns includes both social and personal identity. On the one
hand, consumers may want to buy consumer goods
as a way of moving closer to an ideal self (e.g., feel
more like person I want to be) and, on the other,
they can see goods as a means of improving social
image and social standing (e.g., impress friends, getting prestige). Respondents were asked to rate the extent to which they agree or disagree with each statement (on 6-point scales, from 1 = disagree strongly
to 6 = agree strongly), first with reference to conventional buying, and second with reference to buying online. They were told to expect that their views might
be similar for some statements, but may differ for
others.
The questionnaire was introduced as a study on
students as consumers, and the introductory paragraph referred to the importance of consumption in
everyday life and the predicted exponential increase
in Internet purchasing in the United Kingdom. Participants were provided with the same definition of
consumer goods as used in Study 1, which asked them
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to exclude grocery and household shopping and concentrate on consumer goods for personal use. Participants were assured that their responses would be
treated confidentially and that they could withdraw
from the study at any time.
Results
Preliminary Analysis on Dimensions
of Buying Motivations
Questionnaire items were first examined by
exploratory factor analysis, separately for conventional and on-line buying, andfor on-line buying
separately for actual and anticipating buyers. A small
number of items that did not load strongly on any factors were discarded as a consequence, and five dimensions were identified. We carried out two confirmatory
factor analyses using structural equation modeling,
one for each environment. For conventional buying
(C), the model provided a good fit (RMSEA = .05;
CFI = .92), and for on-line buying (I), the goodnessof-fit statistics indicate a slightly worse, but nevertheless acceptable, fit (RMSEA = .06; CFI = .86). Factor
loadings are similar across the two buying environments (see the Appendix)3 .
Reliability analyses confirmed that these five factors can be treated as scales, as Cronbachs alphas
were acceptable to good for most of them. Reliability coefficients were .92 (C) and .82 (I) for emotional
involvement, .60 (C) and .59 (I) for experiential
social, .73 (C) and .72 (I) for identity-related, .54
(C) and .60 (I) for efficiency, and .65 (C) and .42
(I) for economic concerns. For on-line buying, coefficients were also computed separately for current
as compared to anticipating buyers, but no differences emerged. The five factors fit well with the three
main categories proposed: economic concerns and ef-
3 It
is worth noting that there are significant intercorrelations between factors in the real world: positive links within functional issues (economic concerns and efficiency, r = .37), as well as within
psychological concerns (socialexperiential and emotional, r =
.66; emotional and identity-related, r = .44; socialexperiential
and identity-related, r = .21). In addition, there are a number of
negative associations between dimensions from the two different
main categories (efficiency and emotional, r = .38; efficiency and
socialexperiential, r = .34; economic and emotional, r = .21).
In contrast, for Internet buying, only a single within-category correlation was found: between emotional and identity-related dimensions (r = .53). Thus, compared to conventional buying, factors are far less interconnected on-line.

ficiency are functional issues, emotional involvement
and social experience constitute social-emotional factors, and identity-related concerns emerged as a separate factor. The exploration and information acquisition cluster did not stand up as a separate dimension, and the quick and easy access to information
item became part of the convenience and efficiency
dimension, which is meaningful. Scale means were
computed for each of the five factors and used in subsequent data analysis.
Gender Differences in Conventional

Buying Motivations
Scale means were analyzed by a 2 (gender)
5 (motivation) ANOVA with repeated measures on
the second factor. The hypothesis that some motivations are more important to women and others to men
was supported by a significant interaction between
gender and motivation, F(4, 952) = 30.83, p < .001,
2 = .124 ; the means are shown in Fig. 1. A set of orthogonal contrasts on the motivation factor was used
to examine this interaction further by examining in
detail the relative importance to women and men
of the three key dimensionsfunctional, emotional
social, and identity-related concerns. The most central contrast shows that identity-related, emotional,
and socialexperiential concerns are more important
to women than to men, whereas the two functional
factors are more important to men than to women,
F(1, 238) = 55.33, p < .001, 2 = .19. It is interesting to note that this difference between functional
and psychological motivations is not significant for
the motivation main effect, when gender is not taken
into account, F(1, 238) = 0.01, ns, that is, both types of
motivations are equally important overall. The second
comparison contrasted identity-related concerns with
emotional and experientialsocial factors and found
that whereas identity is relatively less important to
both genders, women differentiate more strongly between these two types of motivations than men do,
4 Main
effects were also significant, but are less central to the concerns of this paper. Some motivations were stronger than others, F(4, 952) = 100.59, p < .001, 2 = .30, andin orderthey
are direct contact (X = 4.48), economy (X = 4.32), emotional involvement (X = 4.16), efficiency (X = 3.48), and, finally, identity
(X = 3.08). Thus, identity-related concerns do play a role in conventional buying, even if less powerfully than the other factors.
Overall, motivations were stronger for women than for men, F(1,
238) = 19.13, p < .001, 2 = .07, which is consistent with womens
greater involvement in conventional buying.
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Fig. 1. Gender differences in conventional buying motivations.
F(1, 238) = 14.45, p < .001, 2 = .06. The third contrast showed that the gender gap on emotional involvement is much more pronounced than that for
the experientialsocial motivation, F(1, 238) = 20.28,
p < .001, 2 = .08, whereas there is no gender-specific
pattern for the final contrast between the two functional factors, F(1, 238) = 0.70, ns. To summarize
gender differences in conventional buying, men are
more concerned with functional motivations, whereas
women place more emphasis on psychological motivations, particularly emotional involvement, but also
identity-related concerns.
The Impact of Shopping Environment Conventional
and On-Line Buying Motivations
in Current e-Buyers.
The analyses reported in this section are limited to those respondents who had experience of online buying, so that their motivations could be contrasted directly, within-respondent, between buying
on-line and buying in conventional shopping environments. The impact of shopping environment on
buying motivations was assessed separately for men
and women by 5 (motivation) 2 (environment)
ANOVAs with repeated measures on both factors,
and the same set of orthogonal comparisons as in the
previous analysis was carried out. Means are shown in
Fig. 2.
In terms of main effects, environment did not

have an impact overall on mens buying motivations,
F(1, 66) = 1.27; ns; 2 = .02, and the strong effect of some motivations being more important than
others, F(4, 264) = 55.57; p < .001; 2 = .47, replicates the findings for men reported in the previous
section, that is, functional concerns are more important than psychological motivations. Of most interest is the significant interaction, because it shows
that the impact of buying environment differs depending on the type of buying motivation, F(4, 264)
= 28.00; p < .001; 2 = .30 (see means in Fig. 2).
The first contrast shows that, compared to conventional buying, functional motivations increase on-line,
whereas psychological motivations become less important, F(1, 66) = 64.78; p < .001; 2 = .50. Second,
the difference between identity-related concerns and
emotionalsocialexperiential factors is greater in
conventional buying than in on-line, F(1, 66) = 11.12;
p = .001; 2 = .14. The drop in experientialsocial
motivation is greater than for emotional involvement,
F(1, 66) = 4.21; p < .05; 2 = .06. Functional concerns both increase, but do not show a differential
pattern, F(1, 66) = 1.69; ns. In summary, the pattern
of mens motivations in conventional buying becomes
more pronounced when buying on-line, as functional
concerns become more important and psychological
motivations less important. It is worth noting that
emotional involvement is not strongly affected.
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Fig. 2. Buying motivations in conventional vs. on-line shopping environments.
As for men, some of womens motivations are

more important overall than others, F(4, 168) = 8.45;
p < .001; 2 = .21, but the effect size is less than half
that found for men. In contrast to men, environment
did have a significant main effect on womens buying
motivations, F(1, 42) = 8.45; p < .01; 2 = .17, such
that there is a drop in importance, which suggests that

buying on-line is less involving overall than conventional buying. However, this effect is produced by the
strong decreases in emotional and experientialsocial
motivations when women buy on-line, and therefore
has to be understood in the context of the powerful
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interaction between motivations and environment,
F(4, 168) = 45.85; p < .001; 2 = .52 (see means
in Fig. 2). The findings for the first contrast are
even stronger for women than for men, F(1, 42)
= 83.48; p < .001; 2 = .67; they show that functional motivations increase on-line, whereas psychological motivations decrease. The second contrast
within psychological motivations reveals an interesting finding for women. Although identity-related concerns are also less important than emotionalsocial
experiential factors in conventional buying, the gap
closes on-line, F(1, 42) = 32.98; p < .001; 2 = .44,
which suggests that the drop in emotional involvement and social experience has the effect that identity concerns become equally important. Emotional
socialexperiential motivations decrease, and functional concerns increase, but neither set of factors
shows a differential pattern, F(1, 42) = 2.37, ns;
F(1, 42) = 1.51, ns; respectively. In summary, buying environment appears to have a stronger impact
on womens than mens motivations, with the possible exception of identity. There is an interesting reversal of motivational priorities. Although emotional and
socialexperiential factors are more important than
functional concerns in conventional buying, this order reverses when women buy on-line.
Two findings are central in summarizing the differences in gender-specific reactions to shifting from
conventional buying to the Internet. First, buying
environment seems to have a much stronger effect
on women than on men. Second, given that women
report a reversal of motivational concerns (functional motivations become more important than psychological ones on-line), their orientations resemble
the pattern found for men. Put differently, whereas
mens motivational concerns are amplifiedrather
than changedin the shift from conventional to online buying, womens motivational concerns do not
only change, but they also come to resemble those of
men.
Experience and Anticipation: Comparing e-Buyers

and Non-e-Buyers On-Line Motivations
This part of the analysis addresses the question
of whether the actual experience of buying on-line
is different from how men and women anticipate it
to be. We did this to explore whether unwarranted
or unrealistic expectations may act as barriers against
buying on-line. In this case, we expected systematic
differences between e-buyers and non-e-buyers, at
439
Table I. e-Buyers Actual and Non-e-Buyers Expected On-Line
Motivations (by Gender)
Men
Motivation
Identity
Emotion
Experiential
social
Economy
Efficiency
Women
e-Buyer Non-e-buyer e-Buyer Non-e-buyer

2.61 (1.08) 2.84 (1.03) 3.17 (1.11) 2.93 (1.05)
3.09 (0.88) 2.86 (0.80) 3.46 (0.99) 3.29 (1.00)
3.47 (0.97) 3.82 (0.93) 3.44 (1.04) 4.00 (1.01)
4.92 (0.79) 4.85 (0.62) 4.82 (0.95) 4.84 (0.75)
4.52 (0.89) 4.18 (0.92) 4.48 (0.88) 4.12 (0.95)
Note. Values in parentheses represent standard deviation.
least for certain motivations. This was examined by

2 (buyer status) 5 (motivation) ANOVAs with repeated measures on the second factor, conducted separately for men and women, including the same set of
orthogonal contrasts as before.
In terms of a main effect, the overall difference between men who had and had not bought
on-line was not significant, F(1, 114) = 0.02; ns,5
but the significant, if weak, interaction suggests that
there is some difference, depending on motivation,
F(4, 456) = 3.48; p < .01; 2 = .03 (see means in
Table I). Only one of the four contrasts yielded
a significant result; it shows that anticipated emotional involvement on-line is lower among non-ebuyers that the actual involvement reported by ebuyers whereas the opposite is true for experiential
social motivations, F(1, 114) = 6.93; p = .01; 2 = .06.
Thus, it is possible that non-e-buyers expectation
of less emotional involvement when buying on-line
(compared to what is reported by current e-buyers)
may act as a potential barrier, but differences appear
minor.
As for women, no overall difference emerged
between women who had and had not bought on
the Internet, F(1, 122) = 0.17; ns,6 but the interaction between buyer status and motivation again
was significant, although equally weakly, F(4, 456)
= 4.26; p < .01; 2 = .03 (see means in Table I).
The main difference accounting for this interaction
is that women report and anticipate similar levels
of emotional involvement on-line, whereas non-ebuyers expect higher experientialsocial motivation,
F(1, 122) = 7.95; p < .01; 2 = .06. The contrast between identity on the one hand, and the combined
emotionalsocialexperiential motivations, on the
other, is significant for the same reason, but weaker,
5 As
before, some motivations were more important than others,

F(4, 456) = 132.26; p < .001; 2 = .54.
6 As before, some motivations were more important than others,
F(4, 488) = 66.93; p < .001; 2 = .35.
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440
F(1, 122) = 3.91; p = .01; 2 = .03. Thus, the only
noteworthy difference between e-buyers and non-ebuyers occurred in terms of the experientialsocial
motivation, and this may mean that the actual experience of on-line buying offers less in terms of this
motivation than women anticipate.
To summarize these results, the lack of gender
differences is striking, as is the finding that there
are only minor differences between actual and anticipated on-line buying. Clearly, it does not seem to
be unrealistic or unwarranted expectations of on-line
buying that act as major barriers for non-e-buyers, nor
do these findings help to understand why more men
than women buy on-line. Instead, we may need to
look for an explanation in mens and womens conventional buying motivations, which are highly gendered.
Predicting Internet Buying

From Conventional Buying
The final research question to be addressed was
whether conventional buying motivations, which are
temporally prior to on-line motivations, can discriminate between consumers who currently buy on the
Internet and those who do not. The five buying dimensions were entered simultaneously as predictors
into two logistic regression analyses, one for men and
one for women.
Although the overall model is significant for male
consumers, 2LL = 145.48, p < .05, only concern
with efficiency reaches marginal significance as a predictor, B = .42; p < .06, which suggests that the
likelihood of buying on-line is higher amongst those
men who particularly value efficient and convenient
buying. However, when the analysis was rerun with
only this one (marginally) significant dimension, the
overall model was no longer significant. Thus, for
men, conventional buying attitudes do not discriminate amongst current e-buyers and non-e-buyers. This
suggests that mens on-line buying is not particularly
associated with barriers or facilitators rooted in conventional buying.
For women, the overall model with five buying
dimensions was significant, 2LL = 138.22; p < .001,
and three dimensions emerged as significant predictors of on-line buying: concern with efficiency,
experientialsocial, and identity-related aspects. The
logistic regression was therefore rerun with these
three dimensions. This produced a significant model,
2LL = 143.11; p<.001, where 73.4% of women
were correctly classified as either e-buyers or non-

e-buyers, with explained variance estimates of .13
(Cox & Snell) and .18 (Nagelkerke). experiential
social needs emerged by far as the strongest predictor, B = .83; p < .005, which shows that the likelihood of being an e-buyer in this sample (.35) increases
more than twofold (2.29), with a one-scale-point drop
on the experientialsocial dimension. Clearly, this is
a formidable motivational barrier for women. This
was followed by identity-related concerns, B = .48;
p < .05, where the likelihood of being an e-buyer is
bolstered by .21 with a one-scale-point increase, that
is, strong identity-needs are an motivational facilitator
of on-line buying. Finally, there is a marginal effect for
efficiency concerns, B = .49; p < .06, which shows
that the likelihood of buying on-line is slightly higher
amongst women who particularly value efficient and
convenient buying. In summary, the main findings to
emphasize are, first, that psychological motivations in
conventional buying act as barriers and facilitators of
on-line buying for women, and second, that identityrelated motivations make it more likely that women
buy on-line.
Discussion
Men are more functional in their buying attitudes in conventional shops and stores than are
women, whereas women stress socialexperiential
and identity-related concerns, and, in particular, emotional involvement. These findings, which confirmed
the hypothesized gender differences in conventional
buying attitudes, are consistent with previous research. It should be noted that these attitudinal differences are still characteristic of young consumer
samples, who should be less likely than general
population samples to express gender-stereotypical
attitudes.
The environment in which buying takes place
has a much stronger impact on women than on men.
Nonetheless, the environment does have an effect on
mens buying attitudes: functional motives become
even more important on-line than in conventional
buying, and psychological motivations, especially social experiential concerns, become less important.
Thus, it is unlikely that the lack of direct experience
or social contact on the Internet will be a strong deterrent for male consumers. Further, mens emotional
involvement in buying is hardly affected by environment, which suggests that men do not experience
the on-line buying environment as dampening their
hedonic enjoyment. Overall, their pattern of buying
motivations is amplified on the Internet rather than
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fundamentally altered. For women, there is an increase in the importance of functional concerns on the
Internet, and a strong decline in emotional and social
experiential motivations. Identity-related motives are
affected less strongly than the other psychological
motives by the change in buying environment. There
is an interesting reversal of motivational priorities.
Whereas emotionalsocialexperiential factors are
more important than functional concerns in conventional buying, this order reverses when women
buy on-line. In fact, womens shopping attitudes are
markedly more similar to mens on-line than they
are in the real world. Once women engage in online buying, their underlying attitudes resemble those
of male e-buyers. Thus, the shift from conventional
to on-line buying entails greater attitudinal change
for women, which may explain why their overall involvement in shopping appears to be reduced on the
Internet.
Comparison of Internet buying motivations reported by men who have bought on-line with the anticipated motivations of men who have not yet bought
on-line revealed only one minor difference: hypothetical buyers anticipated less emotional involvement
than that experienced by the current buyers. Differences between women current e-buyers and non-ebuyers were also rather modest. There was no difference in actual and anticipated emotional involvement,
but nonbuyers reported stronger socialexperiential
concerns than did current buyers. Anticipating more
socialexperiential engagement than is actually offered by buying on-line does not imply a barrier, but
in contrastpossibly an underestimation of on-line
constraints. The overall finding that differences between actual and anticipated on-line buying are only
minor suggests that non-e-buyers do not hold unrealistic or inaccurate expectations of what on-line buying
will be actually like. Furthermore, gender differences
in on-line buying motivations are modest compared
to conventional buying. on-line buying attitudes do
not appear to offer an explanation of why more men
than women buy on the Internet.
Given that mens buying attitudes remain relatively stable across buying environment, it is not surprising that the logistic regression of conventional
buying attitudes failed to discriminate between men
who do and do not currently buy on the Internet.
For women consumers, socialexperiential attitudes
emerged as a strong predictor: women who value this
aspect of conventional buying are less likely to be online buyers. In contrast to this barrier, concern with
efficiency emerged as a mild facilitator: women who
441
are more concerned with efficiency in conventional
buying are also more likely to have bought on-line.
It is interesting that identity-related concerns also
emerged as a significant discriminator between current and nonbuyers for women consumers. If they
value identity-related functions of goods in conventional buying, then women were more likely to have
tried buying on-line. It may be the case that a focus
on identity-serving functions of consumer goods leads
women to be less concerned about the relative lack of
hedonic and experiential benefits of on-line buying.
Thus, concern with efficiency and identity-related dimensions in conventional buying are facilitators of online buying, whereas attaching importance to social
experiential aspects of conventional buying is a clear
barrier to on-line consumption.
GENERAL DISCUSSION
A recent survey (Angus Reid, 2001) of young
adults Internet buying in several countries indicates
that the samples in our studies are more likely to have
bought on-line than is average for their age group in
the United Kingdom (22%). In fact, on-line buying
rates for the samples in both Studies 1 and 2 are similar
to the 43% average reported for young adults in the
United States. Thus, our samples are comparable in
this respect to young adults in the United States, which
means that our findings may be generalizable to young
Internet users beyond the United Kingdom.
Similarities between the findings from the qualitative and quantitative investigations add confidence
to the validity and consistency of our conclusions. The
dramatic reduction of gender differences in on-line
buying is apparent in both studies. Mens attitudes stay
much the same in both buying environments, whereas
womens do not. Attitudes toward conventional buying seem particularly important for women consumers. Valuing functional benefits of conventional
buyingeconomy, convenience, and efficiencyacts
as a facilitator for womens on-line buying, whereas
socialexperiential concerns are a very important barrier. Socialexperiential aspects are seen as an important benefit of conventional buying, and their
lack as a serious drawback of the Internet, and
the extent to which socialexperiential factors are
important to women discriminates between those
who do and do not buy on-line. Social contact during conventional buying is a double-edged sword
particularly for men, who in the qualitative study reported many irritating and frustrating aspects of such
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442

APPENDIX: FACTORS IN CONVENTIONAL AND ON-LINE BUYING
Factor loadings
Scale
Functional issues
Economic
Efficient
Emotional involvement
and social experience
Socialexperiential
Emotional
Conventional
On-Line
Scale item
.74
.59
.58
.82
.54
.35
.22
.59
.59
.27
.74
.57
.51
.31
I like to compare prices carefully before I buy

It is important to me that the goods I buy are value for money
Goods I buy have to be useful and practical
I want buying to be as fast and as efficient as possible
Saving time while buying goods is very important to me
It is important to me that I can buy things whenever I choose to
Buying things this way avoids hassles
.76
.46
.45
.42
.86
.83
.82
.78
.74
.72
.70
.56
.75
.47
.43
.44
.76
.63
.61
.71
.61
.63
.41
.50
I need to see and touch consumer goods before I buy them

The feel of the place I buy things is important to me
It is important to me to have contact with people when I make purchases
I wouldnt want to buy clothes without trying them on first
Shopping is fun and exciting
I get a real buzz from buying things
I often buy things because it puts me in a better mood
For me, shopping and buying things is an important leisure activity
Compared to other things I could do, buying consumer goods is truly enjoyable
Buying things arouses my emotions and feelings
I like to shop, not because I have to but because I want to
I enjoy browsing and looking at things, even when I do not intend to buy something
.83
.71
.57
.82
.84
.47
I like to buy things which impress other people

I buy consumer goods because they give me prestige
I want to buy things which make me feel more like the person want to be
Identity
contact. It may well be that men expect that the Internet will allow them to avoid those social aspects
of conventional buying that they experience as negative, and they may therefore anticipate a different
and more positiveemotional involvement on the
Internet.
Identity-related concerns did not emerge
strongly in the qualitative study, but emerged as
a separate buying dimension in the survey. It is
interesting that, although they were not mentioned
in the qualitative study in the context of buying
on-line, they did appear as an important motivational facilitator for womens on-line buying in the
survey. Identity-related concerns may therefore
be underlying attitudes that respondents do not
detail spontaneously when asked about their buying
motivations, perhaps because they are not completely
aware of them. This apparent tension between the
lack of respondents spontaneous reports concerning
identity and its identification as a predictor of on-line
buying, at least for women, clearly deserves attention
in future research.
The respondents in the studies reported here constitute a sample of young consumers who are highly
computer-literate and fairly at ease with computer

handling, yet men were more likely to buy on-line than
women. Their change in attitudes from conventional
to on-line buying, and the reversal of motivational priorities, suggests that women may find it harder, or be
less willing, to adapt to on-line buying than men. On
the one hand, this may protect them from particular
disadvantages of buying on-line (which are discussed
below), but, on the other, it may hamper their full
and equal participation in Internet shopping and, as
a consequence, may mean that they will not benefit from some of its positive aspects: better information search, price and product comparisons, convenience, freedom from time pressure, and instant access from a single location. Motivational barriers to
on-line buying may be even stronger in groups of nonstudent women, and this needs further examination.
Increasing womens participation in on-line buying
(outside grocery shopping) is likely only with attitude
changes, such that socialexperiential needs are seen
to be better met. Internet retailers who particularly
aim at a female market ought to take these needs into
account, and some retail websites aimed at women
consumers already attempt to incorporate more
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socialexperiential dimensions, such as increasing visual material, or offering on-line alternatives to trying
consumer goods (such as placing clothes on a female
body shape selected as similar by the potential buyer).
Yet, on-line buying does not only have advantages. Although its disadvantages have not yet been
addressed much, either in public debate or in academic research, there are good reasons for suspecting that it may encourage uncontrolled buying and
spending. Shopping on-line is available without any
limitations of time or access, and buying with a button
click is not only extremely easy, but also far removed
psychologically from the reality of parting with hard
cash (Dittmar & Long, 2001). Buying on the Internet
may therefore not really feel like spending money. A
recent analysis of popular retail websites highlights
the potential for unregulated buying (LaRose, 2001),
possibly leading to impulsive, excessive, and even addictive buying patterns. Although excessive and addictive behavior in conventional buying is much more
common for women (Dittmar, 2001, in press), the easy
fit between mens buying concerns and the Internet
environment may mean that they may be disproportionately more at risk than women from uncontrolled
on-line buying.
Regardless of whether we would welcome or deplore such a development, the Internet may well become a, if not the, major consumer route of the new
millennium. It therefore seems important to understand the factors that help and hinder womens and
mens participation in on-line buying, as well the quality of their on-line buying experience, and the positive
or negative consequences it may have for their buying and spending patterns. These are fruitful areas for
future research.
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Buying on the Internet: Gender Differences in On-line

The new media of the Internet and the World

2002, a three times faster growth than that in the

of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton, East Sussex, United

C 2004 Plenum Publishing Corporation

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GENDER DIFFERENCES IN CONVENTIONAL

Dittmar, Long, and Meek

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Gender Differences in On-Line and Conventional Buying

GENDER DIFFERENCES IN ATTITUDES

ON-LINE BUYING AND GENDER

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Dittmar, Long, and Meek

Gender Differences in On-Line Buying

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Gender Differences in On-Line and Conventional Buying

THE PRESENT RESEARCH

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Dittmar, Long, and Meek

Theme 1: Functional Issues

Convenience and Efficiency in Conventional

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Gender Differences in On-Line and Conventional Buying

The general inconveniences, such as transport and car

Convenience and Efficiency in Buying On-Line

Price Comparisons and Economic Buying On-Line

On-Line Buying Transaction

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Theme 2: Emotional, Experiential,

Direct Contact in Conventional Shopping

Dittmar, Long, and Meek

Experiential Dimensions and Social Interaction

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Gender Differences in On-Line and Conventional Buying

Independent Buying On-Line

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Dittmar, Long, and Meek

Theme 3: Identity-Related Concerns

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Gender Differences in On-Line and Conventional Buying

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Dittmar, Long, and Meek

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Gender Differences in On-Line and Conventional Buying

Questionnaire and Procedure

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