Introduction To Technology Acceptance Model

Online consumer researchers have mostly implemented the Technology Acceptance Model by Davis (1989) to explain the acceptance of e-commerce (Chen et al., 2002; Moon and Kim, 2001). TAM has been developed by Davis (1989) is one of the most popular research models to predict use and acceptance of information systems and technology by individual users. TAM has been widely studied and verified by different studies that examine the individual technology acceptance behavior in different information systems constructs.

There are two main factors relevant in computer use behaviors in the TAM model; perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use. Davis defines perceived usefulness as the prospective user’s subjective probability that using a specific

The research of Selamat et al. (2009) further proved that a technology which is perceived to be easier to use than another is more likely to be accepted by users whereas the more complex a technology is perceived to be, the slower will be its rate of adoption. This is supported by Teo (2001) as the study confirmed that a system which is easy to use often requires less effort on the part of users and thereby increases the likelihood of adoption and usage of a particular technology. Other scholars have also found that the perceived ease of use had a positive influence on consumers’ attitude in using the Internet to shop online (Bisdee, 2007; Yulihasri & Daud, 2011). This is in accordance with the work of Childers et al. (2001) which argued that online retailers which are able to provide online shopping sites which are clear and understandable, with less mental effort requirement, and allow consumers to shop the way they want results in ease of use perceptions in consumer minds with favorable attitudinal attachment to online retailers which are able to do

In other terms, this means that the excellence of the product holds no importance if the target and potential buyers are unlikely to be online. Although the online shopping environment is favorable i.e. the product uniqueness have electronic appeal together with consumer familiarity and trust in purchasing, consumers may still be reluctant to online shopping. This is possibly caused by consumers’ preference of using traditional shopping modes to shopping online (Delafrooz et al., 2009). Alternatively, they may control from continually visiting the store and their shifting tendency may eventually reduce the profit margin of the concrete stores. Therefore, assessing attitudes of target consumers towards online shopping is essential. As a result, the group which is more prone to a positive attitude should be the target market (Shwu-Ing, 2003). Consistent with the study of Armstrong and Kotler, (2000), “a person’s shopping choices are influenced by four main psychological factors: motivation, perception, learning and beliefs and attitude”. In other words, attitudes are shaped through motivation and perception that influence decisions making of consumers. Attitudes serve as a link between consumers’ background characteristics and the expenditure that gratify their