The differences and similarities in factors affecting user satisfaction and repurchase intention on battery electric vehicles across cities: Comparative evidence from Beijing and Shenzhen in China's post-subsidy era

Abstract

To understand the similarities and differences in user satisfaction and intentions to repurchase battery electric vehicles (BEVs) across varying regions, an extended framework of theory of planned behavior is proposed by incorporating more constructs, including environmental preference, hedonic motivation, technology savviness, power supply reliability expectancy, and anticipation of electrification. This framework was estimated using covariance-based structural equation modeling with survey data of 1400 BEV users collected from Beijing and Shenzhen. The findings indicate that the factors influencing user satisfaction are similar in both cities, while the effects of factors on repurchase intention are different. To be specific, constructs including environmental preference, anticipation of electrification, and subjective norms only affect the repurchase intention of users in Shenzhen. Technology savviness and perceptual behavioral control are significant factors that only exert their influence on the repurchase intention of users in Beijing. This study can offer trans-regional insights that differences in climates, infrastructure scale, industrial structure, and energy structure result in diverse preferences for BEVs among users.