Date of Graduation

5-2024

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science in Human Environmental Sciences

Degree Level

Undergraduate

Department

Apparel Merchandising and Product Development

Advisor/Mentor

Cho, Eunjoo

Committee Member/Reader

Kim, Kyuree

Committee Member/Second Reader

Hubert, Stephanie

Abstract

The buying and selling of goods online (e-commerce) has grown significantly in recent years and will continue to grow (Grand View Research, 2023). E-commerce platforms serve as an alternative environment to brick-and-mortar stores, providing customers with the opportunity to make impulse purchases. Due to this, it is important to understand the reasons why people make impulse purchases online. The purpose of this study was to examine the driving factors behind impulse purchase patterns within e-commerce platforms. Using the stimulus-organism-response theory, this study examined the impact of consumer characteristics and external stimulus on consumer’s impulse purchase behavior. In particular, the study explored the influence of fashion involvement, online product presentation, and perceived value on impulse purchase behavior. After obtaining permission from the Institutional Review Board (IRB), an online survey was administered through Amazon Mechanical Turk. A total of 506 responses were used to test the proposed hypotheses in the study. Results of this study support the idea that fashion involvement and product presentation positively influence perceived value which in turn influences online impulse buying. Multiple regression analysis showed that fashion involvement and online product presentation had a significant direct impact on online impulse buying. Fashion involvement had a stronger impact on online impulse buying than online product presentation did. Product presentation was insignificant on online impulse buying when the path between perceived value and online impulse buying was looked at. Perceived value had the strongest impact out of all the variables on online impulse buying. The results of this study contribute to understanding online shoppers’ impulse purchase behavior. Research on the influence of various stimuli on impulse purchase patterns is essential for marketers and brand managers if they want to increase sales. Findings of this study help marketers develop successful e-business strategies.

Keywords

Impulse buying; e-commerce; web browsing; fashion involvement; online product presentation; perceived value

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