Toward an understanding of Pakistani customers' adoption of smart banking services: an extended application of UTAUT2 model with big brother effect and information privacy concern

PurposeThis study examines the main factors influencing banking customers' behavior toward smart banking services (SBS) adoption in Pakistan. This study extends the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT2) by integrating information privacy concern and big brother effect into an overarching conceptualization.Design/methodology/approachThis study adopts theoretical constructs from the related literature and develops hypotheses. An analysis of 385 banking customers was performed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM).FindingsThe results show that most predictors of behavioral intention, including facilitating conditions, effort expectancy, habit, performance expectancy, hedonic motivation (except for social influence and price value), big brother effect and perceived information privacy concern are significant. Indeed, all predictors of use behavior are also significant. Gender and age differences between individuals further moderate the relationship between UTAUT2 constructs. Moreover, information privacy concern mediates the relationship between big brother effect and behavioral intention.Research limitations/implicationsThis cross-sectional study focused only on Pakistan as a developing country, which limits the generalizability of the results.Practical implicationsThe roles of social influence and price value must be strengthened by employing marketing strategies and personalized communication. Banks should offer incentives and rewards to customers who recommend SBS to friends and family members. In addition, banks must consider the price factor when offering these services to increase their market share.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the field of technology adoption by providing a unique perspective of SBS adoption in Pakistan. This empirical study is the first to extend the UTAUT2 model by integrating information privacy concern and big brother effect to assess SBS acceptance and use behavior. This study examines SBS adoption issues at the national level, especially in Pakistan.