What drives consumers to adopt mobile payment apps in the Post-COVID-19 Scenario: The role of openness to change and user involvement

Abstract

The study aimed to use the Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) framework to investigate the connection between personal safety, digital literacy, and social influence on the adoption of m-payment apps in the post-COVID-19 scenario. The study adopts a mixed-method approach. Initially, semi-structured are conducted to identify the constructs. Subsequently, empirical analysis is carried out to establish the relationship between different constructs. In the framework of the present investigations, personal safety, digital literacy, and social influence as stimuli (S) that affect an individual's openness to change, which acts as organism (O), and in turn, it expresses an individual's willingness to adopt the services of m-payment apps (R). Through structural equation modeling, responses from 429 consumers are used to evaluate a model incorporating the S-O-R framework with mediator, moderator, and control variables. The results showed a positive and significant relationship between personal safety, social influence, digital literacy, and m-payment adoption. Openness to change partially mediated all the associations, while user involvement moderated the associations between digital literacy, openness to change, and m-payment adoption. One of the study's primary contributions is applying the S-O-R model in this context, along with mediating and moderating the influence of openness to change and user involvement. The study's results enrich our understanding of consumer behavior and actual practices post-COVID-19.