Title: The determinants and consequences of consumer trust in online environments: an exploratory investigation

Authors: Caroline Bramall, Klaus Schoefer, Sally McKechnie

Addresses: Nottingham University Business School, Jubilee Campus, Wollaton Road, Nottingham NG8 1BB, UK. ' Nottingham University Business School, Jubilee Campus, Wollaton Road, Nottingham NG8 1BB, UK. ' Nottingham University Business School, Jubilee Campus, Wollaton Road, Nottingham NG8 1BB, UK

Abstract: In the relatively new world of e-commerce in consumer markets, managing customer relationships across new channels presents a significant challenge in terms of understanding the antecedent conditions for developing buyer-seller relationships in online environments. Consumer trust in e-retailers has recently been acknowledged as having a role to play in determining the likelihood of using the internet for purchasing. Without building and maintaining trust between consumers and e-retailers, the development of the internet as an e-commerce medium in mass markets is unlikely to reach its full potential. This exploratory study presents and tests a model describing the relationship between the determinants and consequences of consumer trust in online environments.

Keywords: consumer behaviour; trust; relationship marketing; perceived transaction risk; online consumers; e-commerce; marketing; model; e-retailing; web retailers; electronic commerce; customer relationships; customer relationship management; customer-supplier relationships; web-based purchasing; online purchasing.

DOI: 10.1504/IJIMA.2004.006331

International Journal of Internet Marketing and Advertising, 2004 Vol.1 No.4, pp.388 - 412

Published online: 20 Feb 2005 *

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