Antecedents of Impulse Purchase through Perceived Enjoyment Among Chinese Live Streaming Commerce Consumers

Abstract

Despite the growing live streaming commerce (LSC) in China, a comprehensive framework is required to examine the factors influencing consumer impulse purchases. By applying the Social Impact Theory (SIT) and Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) framework, the mechanism underlying consumers’ urge to buy impulsively (UTBI) was examined through perceived enjoyment as the mediator. Upon analyzing 380 valid responses, the results revealed that parasocial interaction, telepresence, discounted price, serendipity information, and ubiquity positively influenced consumers’ perceived enjoyment. Meanwhile, parasocial interaction, social presence, discounted price, scarcity, ubiquity and perceived enjoyment positively impacted consumers’ UTBI. Perceived enjoyment partially mediated the correlations between parasocial interaction, discounted price, ubiquity and UTBI, whereas perceived enjoyment fully mediated the correlations between telepresence, serendipity information, and UTBI. Moreover, the findings reveal that serendipity information is the most significant factor in perceived enjoyment, whereas ubiquity is the most impactful antecedent of UTBI. This study enriches the literature on impulse purchase and LSC by incorporating the SIT and S-O-R theories, seven multidimensional antecedents and perceived enjoyment as a mediator. Furthermore, the study provides in-depth insights into consumers’ impulse purchases, enabling live streamers, marketers, and retailers to develop effective marketing strategies. Additionally, the designers of live streaming platforms can benefit from this study by designing more interactive and multifunctional platforms to attract more users.