Investigating the effect of perceived risk factors and COVID-19 pandemic situation on online shopping behavior among Malaysians

Abstract

This study investigates the effect of perceived risks, i.e., financial risk, product risk, and convenience risk, as well as the COVID-19 pandemic situation on online shopping behavior among Malaysians. This study uses convenience sampling techniques and comprises 185 respondents who have experience buying online. In addition, the study setting was non-contrived, and data was gathered using a closed-ended questionnaire through an online survey. Descriptive analysis was conducted using SPSS version 25.0 software and SmartPLS version 3.2.8 to test the proposed hypotheses. This study found that perceived risk factors such as financial, product, and convenience risk did not influence online shopping behavior. In contrast, the COVID-19 pandemic positively influences online shopping behavior among consumers. It showed a new development in the theory of online shopping behavior, where users continue to make purchases despite being aware that there may be various risks due to the spread of COVID-19. The role of the ministry, business owners, and consumer associations needs to be given attention to form a sustainable electronic commerce system and protect the rights of consumers. This research can help consumers understand their rights.