The Relationship Between the Motivation to Use the Internet and Consumer Purchasing Behavior

Abstract

The purpose of this quantitative correlational study was to examine to what extent, if any, subcomponents of the motivation to use the internet (communicating, surfing, shopping, and researching), considered individually, are related to consumer purchasing behavior by individuals in Oregon. The sample, recruited via SurveyMonkey, consisted of 117 individuals who frequently accessed the internet, lived in Oregon, were above the age of 18, and shopped online. Two theories served as the theoretical foundation for this study, the uses and gratifications theory and the theory of reasoned action. The Web Motivation Inventory and the Purchasing Involvement Scale were used to measure the study variables. The results of nonparametric Spearman’s correlation analysis (evaluated using a corrected level of statistical significance, α = .0125) showed no statistically significant relationships between communicating on the internet and consumer purchasing behavior (r_s (115) = .16, p = .093), surfing on the internet and consumer purchasing behavior (r_s (115) = .16, p = .084), shopping on the internet and consumer purchasing behavior (r_s (115) = .09, p = .320), and researching on the internet and consumer purchasing behavior (r_s (115) = .21, p = .020). These findings indicated that the tested motivations to use the internet may not be relevant to consumer purchasing behavior_s for individuals living in Oregon. Future research may examine other motivator_s of Internet utilization and focus on purchases of a very specific type of products. The findings are to marketing and advertising professionals working in online sales in Oregon.