Models of personal computer buying intention and behaviour based on the "theory of reasoned action".

Abstract

This consumer buying intention study employs the "theory of reasoned action" as its background theory. The theory states that an individual's intention concerning any course of action can be predicted by two variables - attitude toward the behaviour and social norm. In addition, the theory claims that, where variables such as attitude, social norm, income, and expectation are concerned, intention is the best single predictor of behaviour and that intention mediates the influence of all other variables on behaviour. The validity of the theory's claims has been tested in a number of studies and findings are as diverse as the number of studies done. This study attempts to test and improve the theory in the context of personal computer purchase. Using data from the Survey Research Centre, University of Michigan, it was found that income and its interaction with expectation have stronger systematic effects on intention and behaviour than the social norm. Income was also found to explain significantly higher variation than attitude in the PC purchase model. However, our finding concerning the role of intention as the best single predictor of PC purchase conforms with the theory but there was no sufficient empirical evidence to justify its mediating role. Against the background of logit modelling, the study developed some alternative models of individual PC buying intention and behaviour which were found to be superior to the original theory. Thereafter, we developed a dynamic model of aggregate PC purchase within a structural time series framework. This model - with its geometric-distributed lag structure and a scheme that separates intenders from non-intenders - was also found to be superior to the Fishbein-Ajzen's theory