Understanding Consumer Adoption of Electric Vehicles in Rome: Insights from a Structural Equation Model

Abstract

This research elucidates the influence of environmental and hedonic motivations on the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs). A framework was constructed to scrutinize the impacts of perceived environmental friendliness on an extended technology acceptance model (TAM), with an added element of perceived enjoyment. A sample of 391 residents in Rome was surveyed, and findings were extracted using structural equation modeling (SEM) in JASP, a statistical software. The results indicated a significant influence of perceived environmental friendliness on TAM factors. Moreover, the perceived enjoyment associated with using an EV significantly correlated with consumer intention to adopt such vehicles. These insights suggest that understanding and promoting the environmental advantages and enjoyment of EV usage could potentially stimulate consumer adoption. Strategies such as government procurement of EVs and expansion of charging infrastructure may also prove beneficial. This research augments existing literature by emphasizing the importance of environmental friendliness perceptions and hedonic motivations in consumer adoption of EVs, contributing unique insights into consumer mobility needs. To the best of our knowledge, such an extensive examination has not been previously undertaken.