Abstract/Summary

The present study focuses on understanding the effects of customers’ perception of control and regulatory focus on outcomes of online interactions. This thesis aims to examine how customers’ perception of control over website interactions influences customers’ emotions, trust, and intended behaviour towards a company, as well as to establish the role of customers’ regulatory focus impacting the relationships. This research argues that customers’ perception of control, customers’ emotions, trust, intended behaviour and regulatory focus orientation have been studies in isolation and more research is needed to fill knowledge gap on understanding the dynamics between the constructs. Hence, drawing upon the literature in online consumer behaviour, and specifically on Theory of Planned Behaviour, Cognitive Appraisal Theory, Trust literature, and Regulatory Focus Theory, this study extends the Stimuli-Organism-Response (S-O-R) Framework by conceptualising that customers’ perception of control over website interactions shapes customers’ emotions, and drives trust and intended behaviour towards a company, whilst customers’ regulatory focus orientation moderates these relationships. To achieve the research objectives, the PhD thesis conducts a quantitative survey research design in the context of buying a mobile phone contract on Vodafone’s website. Data was collected from a sample of 300 Vodafone respondents (18+). This research adopts structural equation modelling partial least squares to analyse the data. Moderating effect of customers’ regulatory focus is examined using multigroup Analysis. The findings demonstrate three important theoretical contributions. First, the findings determine that customers’ perception of control over website interactions has stronger associations with customers’ emotions rather than customers’ trust towards a company. Next, this thesis establishes that customers’ perception of control over website interactions influence intended behaviour towards a company only through mediating constructs of customers’ emotions and trust. Finally, the research shows that customers’ regulatory focus moderates the relationship between customers’ perception of control over website interactions and negative emotions, in addition to moderating the relationship between negative emotions and trust towards a company. These novel findings have important theoretical and managerial contributions. This thesis has some limitations, such as the study was conducted in particular context with specific set of customers. This creates a challenge of generalisability of the findings to other context. This PhD thesis addresses the potential limitations and suggests potential future research avenues.