Measuring buying intention of generation Z on social networking sites: an application of social commerce adoption model

PurposeThe present study intends to measure buying intention of Generation Z (Gen Z) on social networking sites (SNSs) incorporating perceived risk with the social commerce adoption model (SCAM).Design/methodology/approachData were collected via an online questionnaire, and the study used a total of 349 accurate and useable responses. The population of the study includes Indian young consumers coming from the Gen Z cohort. Data were analyzed using SPSS 20 and AMOS 22.0. The proposed hypotheses were statistically tested.FindingsThe empirical results show that perceived risk is a significant and strong predictor of perceived usefulness that, in turn, negatively influences buying intention. Among all the constructs of SCAM, perceived usefulness is the most influential and strongest predictor of buying intention. The proposed model explained approximately 34% of the variance in the behavioral intention.Research limitations/implicationsBased on the findings of this study, many theoretical and practical implications may be inferred that can be used to make recommendations to social commerce companies and help them understand the buying intention of Gen Z.Originality/valueThere are many studies that have examined buying intention and a few have measured it on Gen Z. The present study is novel in itself as it has measured the buying intention of Gen Z using the SCAM in the Indian context. Hence, the present research attempts to comprehend the variables influencing buying intention and analyses the relationship between these factors in the social media setting.