Creating commercially compelling website-service encounters: an examination of the effect of website-service interface performance components on flow experiences

While the study of flow has attracted the interest of scholars seeking to understand its nature and effects on consumption related behaviors, it has received limited attention from Internet researchers seeking to understand factors controllable by firms which influence its formation. This study contributes to literature by examining the impact of consumer evaluations of website service interface performance components on the development of flow. The study also examines the moderating role of Internet self-efficacy. The analysis of data collected from consumers of organizations across two samples involved in the professional sport sector and e-retailing sector, indicate that the delivery of compelling website-service interface performance (via web-based components) is significantly related to the development of flow experiences.

[1]  M. Gilly,et al.  eTailQ: dimensionalizing, measuring and predicting etail quality , 2003 .

[2]  J. Sinacore Multiple regression: Testing and interpreting interactions , 1993 .

[3]  J. Francis Category-specific RECIPEs for internet retailing quality , 2009 .

[4]  Richard L. Celsi,et al.  An Exploration of High-Risk Leisure Consumption through Skydiving , 1993 .

[5]  V. Mittal,et al.  Satisfaction, Repurchase Intent, and Repurchase Behavior: Investigating the Moderating Effect of Customer Characteristics , 2001 .

[6]  Brian T. Ratchford,et al.  The Economics of Consumer Knowledge , 2001 .

[7]  E. Hirschman,et al.  The Experiential Aspects of Consumption: Consumer Fantasies, Feelings, and Fun , 1982 .

[8]  D. A. Kenny,et al.  The moderator-mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. , 1986, Journal of personality and social psychology.

[9]  Christopher D. Jones,et al.  Validation of the Flow Theory in an On-Site Whitewater Kayaking Setting , 2000 .

[10]  I. Ajzen The theory of planned behavior , 1991 .

[11]  Russell Williams,et al.  From servicescape to “cyberscape” , 2004 .

[12]  William T. Borrie Measuring the multiple, deep, and unfolding aspects of the wilderness experience using the experience sampling method , 1995 .

[13]  J. Kowal,et al.  Testing Relationships from the Hierarchical Model of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation Using Flow as a Motivational Consequence , 2000, Research quarterly for exercise and sport.

[14]  Dennis L. Hoffman,et al.  Marketing in Hypermedia Computer-Mediated Environments : Conceptual Foundations 1 ) , 1998 .

[15]  Heiner Evanschitzky,et al.  E-satisfaction: a re-examination , 2004 .

[16]  Norizan M. Kassim,et al.  Customer Loyalty in e-Commerce Settings: An Empirical Study , 2008, Electron. Mark..

[17]  Larry J. Menor,et al.  Toward a Provider-Based View on the Design and Delivery of Quality E-Service Encounters , 2010 .

[18]  Paul A. Pavlou,et al.  Understanding and Predicting Electronic Commerce Adoption: An Extension of the Theory of Planned Behavior , 2006, MIS Q..

[19]  Detmar W. Straub,et al.  Trust and TAM in Online Shopping: An Integrated Model , 2003, MIS Q..

[20]  D. Soberman,et al.  It's a whole new ball-game , 1999 .

[21]  Mary Jo Bitner,et al.  Servicescapes: The Impact of Physical Surroundings on Customers and Employees: , 1992 .

[22]  J. Nunnally Psychometric Theory (2nd ed), New York: McGraw-Hill. , 1978 .

[23]  Chuan-Fong Shih Conceptualizing consumer experiences in cyberspace , 1998 .

[24]  James W. Gentry,et al.  The Impact of Flow and Communitas on Enduring Involvement in Extended Service Encounters , 2008 .

[25]  Aron O'Cass,et al.  Examining the effects of service brand communications on brand evaluation , 2005 .

[26]  J. Hair Multivariate data analysis , 1972 .

[27]  Gerald L. Lohse,et al.  Predictors of Online Buying: Findings from the Wharton Virtual Test Market , 1999 .

[28]  Mary Jo Bitner,et al.  Evaluating service encounters: The effects of physical surroundings and employee responses. , 1990 .

[29]  P. Nath,et al.  A model of trust in online relationship banking , 2003 .

[30]  S. West,et al.  Multiple Regression: Testing and Interpreting Interactions. , 1994 .

[31]  G. Mcdougall,et al.  A model of online customer behavior during the initial transaction: Moderating effects of customer characteristics , 2005 .

[32]  Eileen Bridges,et al.  Hedonic and utilitarian shopping goals: The online experience , 2008 .

[33]  V. Mummalaneni,et al.  An empirical investigation of Web site characteristics, consumer emotional states and on-line shopping behaviors , 2005 .

[34]  Esther P. Y. Tang,et al.  Effects of supplier and customer integration on product innovation and performance: Empirical evidence in Hong Kong manufacturers , 2010 .

[35]  M. Csíkszentmihályi Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience , 1990 .

[36]  Barbara Wixom,et al.  Antecedents of Information and System Quality: An Empirical Examination Within the Context of Data Warehousing , 2005, J. Manag. Inf. Syst..

[37]  Banwari Mittal,et al.  The role of personalization in service encounters , 1996 .

[38]  Mary Jo Bitner,et al.  Technology infusion in service encounters , 2000 .

[39]  Blanca Hernández Ortega,et al.  The impact of self-efficacy, ease of use and usefulness on e-purchasing: An analysis of experienced e-shoppers , 2009, Interact. Comput..

[40]  Glenn B. Voss,et al.  Determinants of online channel use and overall satisfaction with a relational, multichannel service provider , 2003 .

[41]  G. Hopkinson,et al.  A factor analytic study of the sources of meaning in hedonic consumption , 1999 .

[42]  Mary Jo Bitner,et al.  Self-Service Technologies: Understanding Customer Satisfaction with Technology-Based Service Encounters , 2000 .

[43]  D. Hoffman,et al.  The Influence of Goal-Directed and Experiential Activities on Online Flow Experiences , 2003 .

[44]  A. Bandura Self-Efficacy: The Exercise of Control , 1997, Journal of Cognitive Psychotherapy.

[45]  G. Häubl,et al.  Explaining Cognitive Lock-In: The Role of Skill-Based Habits of Use in Consumer Choice , 2007 .

[46]  H Rubinstein,et al.  Branding matters more on the Internet , 2001 .

[47]  Marios Koufaris,et al.  Applying the Technology Acceptance Model and Flow Theory to Online Consumer Behavior , 2002, Inf. Syst. Res..

[48]  M. Csíkszentmihályi,et al.  Optimal experience: Introduction to Part IV , 1988 .

[49]  Simon Chadwick,et al.  From outside lane to inside track: sport management research in the twenty‐first century , 2009 .

[50]  Richard T. Watson,et al.  WebQual: An Instrument for Consumer Evaluation of Web Sites , 2007, Int. J. Electron. Commer..

[51]  K. Weber,et al.  The Service Encounter , 2008 .

[52]  Carol C. Bienstock,et al.  Measuring Service Quality in E-Retailing , 2006 .

[53]  M. Fassnacht,et al.  Quality of Electronic Services , 2006 .

[54]  Sertan Kabadayi,et al.  The relationship between trusting beliefs and Web site loyalty: The moderating role of consumer motives and flow , 2010 .

[55]  M. Richard,et al.  A model of consumer web navigational behavior: conceptual development and application , 2005 .

[56]  Steven Pace,et al.  A grounded theory of the flow experiences of Web users , 2004, Int. J. Hum. Comput. Stud..

[57]  M. Shank Sports Marketing: A Strategic Perspective , 1998 .

[58]  Alan Tapp,et al.  Scoring with the Net - the Cybermarketing of English Football Clubs , 2000, Electron. Mark..

[59]  Tino Fenech,et al.  Web retailing adoption: exploring the nature of internet users Web retailing behaviour , 2003 .

[60]  Jaeki Song,et al.  A Theoretical Approach to Web Design in E-Commerce: A Belief Reinforcement Model , 2005, Manag. Sci..

[61]  R. Rust,et al.  The Path to Customer Centricity , 2006 .

[62]  L. Berry,et al.  Managing the Total Customer Experience , 2002 .

[63]  Richard L. Celsi Transcendent Benefits of High-Risk Sports , 1992 .

[64]  Donna L. Hoffman,et al.  Measuring the Customer Experience in Online Environments: A Structural Modeling Approach , 2000 .

[65]  Gerald L. Lohse,et al.  Cognitive Lock-In and the Power Law of Practice , 2003 .

[66]  Lia Patrício,et al.  Designing Multi-Interface Service Experiences , 2008 .

[67]  Scott B. MacKenzie,et al.  Common method biases in behavioral research: a critical review of the literature and recommended remedies. , 2003, The Journal of applied psychology.

[68]  Hans H. Bauer,et al.  eTransQual: A Transaction Process-Based Approach for Capturing Service Quality in Online Shopping , 2006 .

[69]  Chao-Min Chiu,et al.  Internet self-efficacy and electronic service acceptance , 2004, Decis. Support Syst..

[70]  Julie Hay,et al.  Where are the drivers? , 1968, Modern hospital.

[71]  Donna L. Hoffman,et al.  Flow Online: Lessons Learned and Future Prospects , 2009 .

[72]  Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi,et al.  Flow and biocultural evolution. , 1988 .

[73]  A. Hausman,et al.  The effect of web interface features on consumer online purchase intentions , 2009 .

[74]  Lenita M. Davis,et al.  Empirical testing of a model of online store atmospherics and shopper responses , 2003 .

[75]  G. L. Shostack Breaking Free from Product Marketing , 1977 .

[76]  M. Csíkszentmihályi Finding Flow: The Psychology of Engagement with Everyday Life , 1997 .

[77]  J. H. Gilmore,et al.  Welcome to the experience economy. , 1998, Harvard business review.

[78]  Gerald L. Lohse,et al.  Predictors of online buying behavior , 1999, CACM.

[79]  Rolf T. Wigand,et al.  Optimal experience of Web activities , 1999 .

[80]  V. Zeithaml,et al.  E-S-QUAL A Multiple-Item Scale for Assessing Electronic Service Quality , 2004 .

[81]  Taeshik Gong,et al.  The electronic service quality model: The moderating effect of customer self‐efficacy , 2008 .

[82]  Ingoo Han,et al.  The Effect of On-Line Consumer Reviews on Consumer Purchasing Intention: The Moderating Role of Involvement , 2007, Int. J. Electron. Commer..

[83]  F. Sultan,et al.  Are the Drivers and Role of Online Trust the Same for All Web Sites and Consumers? A Large-Scale Exploratory Empirical Study , 2005 .

[84]  Donnavieve N. Smith,et al.  Flow and Internet shopping behavior: A conceptual model and research propositions , 2004 .

[85]  J. Pfeffer,et al.  An examination of need-satisfaction models of job attitudes. , 1977 .