Examining the Factors Influencing Purchase Intention of Smartphones in Hong Kong

INTRODUCTIONSince mobile phones have become indispensable product in our daily lives, the quality and functions have been greatly improved. The smartphone industry is one of the fastest growing consumer electronic goods industries in the Hong Kong market. Research from Digitimes projects notes that global smartphone shipments rose from 655 million in 2012 to 865 million in 2013, and the proportion of overall handset shipments of smartphones is 43.9% (Digitimes, 2012). To stay competitive, many brands are launching new models with more product features in order to differentiate themselves (IDC, 2010), and smartphones have become products that incorporate sophisticated technologies. Since smartphone technology is rapidly evolving, an understanding of the critical factors that influence the adoption of smartphones is an important topic of study. This study focuses on examining the factors that influence the purchase intention of smartphones in Hong Kong.LITERATURE REVIEW AND HYPOTHESES DEVELOPMENTA number of studies have investigated the factors influencing purchase intention of smartphones. A theoretical modeling approach is used by most scholars to investigate these factors. These studies attempt to explain the technology acceptance model (TAM) and theory of reason action (TRA) to explain technology adoption. The TAM is generally considered as the most influential and common theory in the adoption of a technology (Davis, 1989). TAM is based on TRA, which addresses how attitude impacts behavior (Fishbein and Ajzen, 1975). Seven constructs and six hypotheses are outlined below.Purchase IntentionPurchase intention refers to the tendency for the consumer to take actual purchase action. Purchase intention shows one's willingness to purchase a product and his/her assessment of alternative options based on preference, experience, and external factors (Zeithaml, 1988).Perceived UsefulnessPerceived usefulness refers to users' beliefs that a smartphone could help individuals enhance their performance in terms of communication, personal management of activities, personal agendas, and entertainment (Davis, 1989). TAM also addresses perceived usefulness, one of the major determinants that predict the behavioral intention of a new technology (Cyr et al., 2006; Venkatesh, 2000). Therefore, the following hypothesis is proposed:H1: Perceived usefulness is positively related to purchase intentionPerceived Ease of UsePerceived ease of use can be referred to as the extent to which users believe that using a technology could be free of effort (Davis, 1989). Sometimes, even though an application or a technology is believed to be useful in completing tasks, simultaneously, users may believe that such a technology is too hard to use, so the performance benefits of usage are outweighed by the effort of using or learning the technology. Perceived ease of use is found to be one of the significant determinants of behavioral intentions to adopt new technology (Agarwal and Karahanna, 2000; Davis, 1989; Venkatesh, 2000). Thus, the following is hypothesized:H2: Perceived ease of use is positively related to purchase intention.Perceived EnjoymentPerceived enjoyment refers to the emotional benefits, intrinsic value, or affective dimension of benefits gained from consumption of smartphones, which include fun, enjoyment, and entertainment. Evidence from technology acceptance literature shows much support for the relationship between perceived enjoyment and purchase intention (Cyr et al., 2006). Therefore, it is hypothesized as follows:H3: Perceived enjoyment is positively related to purchase intention.Subjective NormsA subjective norm is defined as a perceived social pressure toward whether or not to perform the behavior in question (Ajzen, 1991). Sanchez and Hueros (2010) incorporate subjective norms into TAM, showing that it has a significant impact on behavioral intention. …