The Effects of the Social Influence Approach on Swift Guanxi, Trust and Repurchase Intention When Considering Buyer Dependence

Abstract

This study explores how social influence approaches alter buyer–seller swift guanxi, trust in the seller and repurchase intention when considering the influence of buyer dependence. Based on the results of an online survey in three cities of Taiwan, we empirically test the research model using partial least squares analysis. We found that buyer dependence exerts different but positive effects on each social influence approach usage and only the identification approach contributes to buyer–seller swift guanxi, trust in the seller and repurchase intention. The buyer–seller swift guanxi also mediates the effects of the identification approach and trust in the seller on repurchase intention. This study clarifies the role of buyer dependence on the seller’s social influence approaches and buyer–seller swift guanxi in the online C2C marketplace context. A seller should exploit buyer dependence, learn how to use each social influence approach and develop close buyer-seller swift guanxi, then repurchase intention can be secured.