Mohammed Naved Khan

Exploring green purchasing behaviour of young urban consumers

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to explore factors that affect green purchasing behaviour (GPB) of young Indian consumers. Design/methodology/approach – A total of 161 young Indian consumers between age group of 15 and 18 years residing in northern region of the country were surveyed employing researcher controlled sampling. Data was collected thorough structured refined research instrument that comprised scales to measure various facets of green purchasing behaviour using five point Likert scale. The research instrument also included questions for generating demographic profile of respondents. For the purpose of meeting the study objectives, research hypotheses, well-grounded in relevant theory were empirically tested using appropriate statistical tools. Findings – Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) revealed existence of five underlying factors namely green purchasing behaviour, environmental involvement, environmental attitude, environmental consciousness and perceived effectiveness of environment...

Refinement of internet banking service quality scale: a confirmatory factor analysis approach

Internet technology has changed the world since it started facilitating activities for both individuals and businesses alike. With phenomenal growth and to sustain competitiveness, service providers, especially banks, are embracing online services. Measure of service quality provided through such means (i.e., internet) is still a relatively new area. Dearth of empirical research and need to develop new scales in the context of emerging economy like India, motivated the researchers to refine an existing scale for service quality of internet banking. A structured questionnaire was administered on 150 internet banking users of public, private and foreign banks. Analytical tools such as SPSS 18.0 and AMOS 16.0 have been used to establish validity and reliability of the scale, and to perform exploratory as also confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to confirm the appropriateness of the proposed model.

Developing a Website Service Quality Scale: A Confirmatory Factor Analytic Approach

ABSTRACT The surge in online consumers and their preference to buy over the Internet is nudging marketers to embrace e-commerce, but mere online presence without distinct user experience may not help attract and retain customers. Research suggests that website service quality is a determining factor in Internet buyer behavior. Several measurement tools have been used in the context of developed economies to measure e-service quality. The very few empirical researches in emerging economies, including India, motivated the researchers in the present study to refine the WEBQUAL 4.0 scale developed by Barnes and Vidgen (2002) to measure the service quality at shopping websites. The present study employs tools like SPSS 20.0 and AMOSS 20.0 to analyze the data through exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis. Study results suggest a 14-item WEBQUAL four factor (Ease of Use, Information Quality, Reliability, and Empathy) scale that is appropriate for Indian settings.

Consumer's Perception of Website Service Quality: An Empirical Study

ABSTRACT With the increasing penetration of the Internet, service quality has become one of the key areas of concern for online shopping sites. Website service quality has become a vital factor in making e-commerce successful because comparing the features of products in the online environment is easier, practically free of cost, and saves on time in comparison to conventional offline markets. To empirically explore the critical factors that determine perceptions of the service quality of online shopping sites, researchers adopted the eTailQ scale suggested by Wolfinbarger and Gilly (2003). Web layout, web info, customer service, fulfillment, and privacy emerged as the critical factors affecting website service quality. Findings of the study are expected to provide valuable insights to academicians in better conceptualizing the constructs and also help marketing practitioners in fine-tuning their strategies by addressing the peculiar needs of the Indian online shoppers.

Exploring the New Ecological Paradigm (NEP) Scale in India: Item Analysis, Factor Structure and Refinement

Researchers have raised concerns regarding the applicability of original New Environmental Paradigm (NEP) scale proposed by Dunlap and Van Liere (1978) and validity of dimensions in the context of cultures other than US where the study was originally carried out. Thus, there is a need to test the applicability of the original NEP scale from the point of view of Indian consumers. In the light of the above, the present study attempts to refine and validate original NEP scale keeping in mind the Indian audience. With this objective, data were collected using self-administered structured questionnaire from 429 office-goers in Delhi and Mumbai. The cities were chosen because of their rank as no. 1 and 3, respectively, among the most polluted metropolitan cities of India. Test of reliability and dimensionality of the original NEP scale was carried out with the help of SPSS 18.0. The data were further subjected to Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA). It was found that the original scale lacked unidimensionality. As against the three dimensions of the original NEP scale, four dimensions emerged in the case of Indian consumers. The new dimension has been duly identified and named. Due to heavy cross-loadings, three items from the original NEP scale were dropped, reducing it to be a 9-item scale. The scale developed has been named as Indian New Environmental Paradigm (I-NEP) scale or I-NEP in short. The I-NEP fared better in terms of the psychometric properties in comparison to the original NEP scale. It is expected that the proposed I-NEP scale would help in measuring the environmental attitudes of Indians in a more reliable and efficient manner, resulting in savings in terms of time and cost, too.

Green Purchasing Behaviour of Young Indian Consumers: An Exploratory Study

There is a growing pressure from the stakeholders and regulatory bodies to promote green consumption. Heightened environmental consciousness is also contributing to greater adoption of green products and services. But still there exists a value–action gap in the way the consumers’ think and respond. This study explores the psychological factors which affect the green purchasing behaviour (GPB) of young consumers in India. Our primary question was ‘what are the factors which play a vital role in the adoption and curtailment of green purchasing behaviour of young Indian consumers?’ Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) revealed existence of five underlying variables namely environmental attitude (EA), environmental consciousness (EC), GPB, environmental involvement (EI) and perceived effectiveness of environmental behaviour (PEEB). Subsequently, regression analysis was performed to explain the role of EI of these young consumers in overall GPB. The study makes significant contribution to existing literature by providing valuable insights into the psyche of young consumers.

Exploring the role of website quality and hedonism in the formation of e-satisfaction and e-loyalty: Evidence from internet users in India

The purpose of this study is to explore the factors that help in building e-loyalty towards online retailers. Internet has brought the world market into a single platform. Marketers have started using Internet as a new and innovative way to interact and reach people all around the world. With the increase in the number of Internet users, the number of e-marketers has also increased. In the context of online retailing, the service quality being offered is increasingly being used as a tool for competitive advantage. E-tailers are embracing superior e-services to attract, retain and convert patrons into loyal customers.,The researchers in the present study have used a research instrument that consists of constructs of the modified eTailQ scale, hedonism and e-satisfaction that together result in the formation of e-loyalty. Researcher-controlled sampling was employed to collect data from 159 student respondents.,Exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling were applied for analysing the collected data. The results of the study demonstrate that major factors which help in the formation of e-loyalty are e-satisfaction, customer service, privacy and hedonism.,This study extends the understanding of the role of e-satisfaction, customer service, privacy and hedonism in the formation of loyal consumers. The researchers proposed a model to study the factors impacting the e-loyalty of the Internet shoppers in India. The findings of the study are expected to help both researchers and marketers.

Environmental attributes and market segmentation: insights from India

The main purpose of the study was to identify the segments of consumers based on their environmental attributes (such as eco-literacy, environmental concern, attitude towards green products and willingness to pay for green products). Data was collected from a sample of graduate and post-graduate students enrolled in educational institutions located in the national capital of India (New Delhi) and surrounding areas, popularly known as National Capital Region (NCR). The data collected was analysed with the help of exploratory factor analysis, hierarchical clustering and discriminant analysis. Three segments i.e. Heavy greens, middle greens, and light greens were identified. Heavy greens are characterised by high levels of eco-literacy, environmental concern, positive attitude towards green products and willingness to pay for green products. Middle greens demonstrate high levels of eco-literacy but it does not translate into environmental concern and willingness to pay. Light greens are negatively disposed towards environmental issues and are indifferent towards environment-friendly products. It is expected that the study will be of immense benefit to marketers in identifying and effectively targeting consumer segments and also in dovetailing of marketing strategies in the context of green products in India.

Gauging attitudes towards the environment through NEP: a case study from India

Rapid deterioration of environment poses a serious threat to our planet. Emerging economies like India have been slow in realising that the threat is for real. It is in this context that the present paper attempts to gauge the attitude of Indian respondents and their sensitivity towards the environment primarily using new environmental paradigm (NEP) scale originally developed by Dunlap and Van Liere (1978). Findings suggest that while age and gender do not have significant effect on the attitude of individuals toward the environment, educational level does a role to play in how a person reacts towards his surroundings. The study has an applied bias as the findings can be of vital importance to policy makers in the government in deciding on environment related regulations and public awareness programs; and by the marketers in dovetailing promotional strategies and embracing green initiatives.

Examining the role of consumer lifestyles on ecological behavior among young Indian consumers

The purpose of this paper is to identify what lifestyles best explain and impact ecological behavior among young Indian consumers.,This paper adapts the lifestyle scale developed by He et al. (2010) and the Actual Commitment scale to the Indian context to describe its impact on the young consumer’s ecological profile. The study is based on an extensive literature review. The data were obtained from a questionnaire handed out to a sample of 250 students. With the information obtained, and after the scale validation process, a structural equation analysis has been conducted.,Findings of the study highlight that environmental patterns and lifestyle factors are those that best characterize the ecological market segment. This group of young consumers is characterized by their self-identity and a feeling of uniqueness. They are people who always try to improve themselves and take actions which pose a new challenge for them. They are also characterized by having an ecological lifestyle, selecting and recycling products and taking part in events to protect the environment. This type of consumer is a present and future investment for firms that are committed to the environment.,The results of this study might interest consumer behavior researchers and those firms that care about the ecological consumers. Moreover, previous studies have not dealt with young consumers. Further research is needed including new psychographic variables.