Mobile or Computer: Does it Matter? - A quantitative study investigating the effect of device experience in an online store context, on perceived visual complexity and processing fluency

Sammanfattning: E-commerce continues to transform the retail landscape at a fast pace, at the same time computer-access to online stores has gained competition from mobile-access. Consequently, the interest in how these devices and their inherent characteristics affect the consumers' perception of the content and behavioural intentions, has grown from both practitioners and academia. Given the current literature, there is an ambiguity regarding which device creates the most advantageous experience of the content. Building on processing fluency and environmental theory (SOR), this study investigates how online stores are perceived by consumers with the sole consideration of the device from which the content is experienced. It is proposed that the perceived visual complexity differs between a mobile experience and a computer experience, which in turn is assumed to generate a difference on processing fluency, perceived visual appeal, pleasure, attitude towards site and the subsequent behavioural intentions purchase intention and WOM intention. A quantitative experimental study was conducted comprising 248 respondents. The findings revealed that the perceived visual complexity was lower for respondents viewing the online store as a mobile experience which resulted in higher purchase intention and WOM intention. The impact of the device experience on purchase intention and WOM intention was mediated through processing fluency, perceived visual appeal and attitude toward site. Pleasure was not affected by the devices, suggesting that pleasure is not always a necessary outcome in order to produce positive behavioural intentions.