Can Setting and users’ characteristics influence m-banking value and reuse intentions?

Abstract

In the last decade, the provision of banking services has dramatically changed due to the intense implementation of new technologies, starting from the Internet and mobile banking (m-banking), including virtual assistance, to functioning entirely without any physical presence of offices or staff. This technological disruption has required from m-banking users to start considering different elements of the setting in order to appropriately recognise the value of the provided service. However, value-related perceptions are also believed to be closely connected to customers’ individual characteristics or conditions. That is why we have found necessary to study the duality of the environment-related stimuli and their antecedent influence on different value elements that depict the overall perceived value.

With this objective in mind and following Sheth, Newman, & Gross’s (1991) Theory of Consumption Values, we employ the Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) model (Mehrabian & Russell, 1974) to describe the process of environmental stimuli determining customers’ actions and finally their precise responses. Thus, we contemplate external (m-banking setting) and internal (m-banking users’ personality) factors as environment-related stimuli (S); utilitarian, hedonic, social and epistemic value as organism perceptions related to the overall perceived value of the service (O); and, customers’ intention to continue using m-banking services as a response (R).

After a thorough literature review, we decided to consider the following variables (Figure 1), as some of the most influencing ones in the provision of m-banking services to describe the proposed S-O-R process: (a) the external stimuli are described by m-banking ubiquity and gamification; (b) the internal stimuli are designated to be customers’ self-congruence and innovativeness; (c) the value elements, which further influence the overall perceived value, are represented by the perceived usefulness, entertainment, subjective norms and acceptance of change, related to the utilitarian, hedonic, social and epistemic value, respectively.

Figure 1: Proposed model

An empirical investigation was performed in the Republic of Macedonia with 252 actual users of m-banking services. The survey was carried out using personal questionnaires and the employed methodology for the data analyses was the method of Partial Least Squares. The results reveal that the external factors (ubiquity and gamification) positively influence the respective utilitarian and hedonic perceived values (presented through the perceived usefulness and entertainment). Furthermore, the users’ internal factors (self-congruence and innovativeness) correspondingly affect the social and epistemic value (explained by subjective norms and acceptance of change). Moreover, except for the hedonic value (entertainment), each of the value elements impacts the overall perceived value, which in turn incites m-banking reuse intentions.

The main implications of this study can be summarised as follows: a) this is a unique study that considers both external factors from the m-banking environment and internal elements of its users as incitements of different value elements; b) banks should focus their effort to maintain users who are prone to using innovative technologies and try to evoke customers’ identification as m-banking users; c) the m-banking universal usage should be emphasised as a unique opportunity for customers, so that the practicality of the service could be acknowledged; d) games and animation elements should be avoided, given that the implementation of entertainment features might contribute to a lack of seriousness perceived in the service; e) banks’ actions should address users interested in new technologies who need social recognition related to these preferences.

The limitations of this research can be overcome in future by replicating the model to other Balkan countries, so a more general conclusion for the whole region can be obtained. Furthermore, m-banking users’ personality could be more thoroughly explored as a way to distinguish between different types of users. Finally, concentrating on diverse environmental stimuli might better explain the m-banking setting, perceived rather as utilitarian than as hedonic.