Publication Details
Abstract
The current research paper examines and evaluates the electronic consumerism in the context of Iraq as it continuously shifts to digital business. Over the last few years, the development of the information technological infrastructure and the increased availability of the Internet resulted in the accelerated growth of online shopping and the development of new decision-making trends in consumers. The primary purpose is to determine the primary factors affecting consumer behavior on the digital field with a greater focus on trust and technology acceptance. The study takes a descriptive-applied and survey-based approach; the data were gathered via the use of standardized questionnaires that were based on Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and electronic trust measures. The statistical population is the people who actively use online commerce platforms in Baghdad, Basra, and Erbil with the sample size of 380 individuals who were chosen based on Cochran formula. The Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) analysis demonstrates that the most positive impact is produced by trust in digital platforms and perceived ease of use on the electronic purchase intention (0.61 and 0.47, respectively). Also, there is an intermediate effect between trust and actual purchase behaviour mediated by technology acceptance and the value of determination coefficient (R 2 = 0.58) demonstrates that the proposed model has high explanatory value. The results indicate that facilitation of the growth of electronic commerce could be enabled by reinforcing virtual security, increasing transaction transparency, and digitally empowering people, thus remaining a source of consumer confidence in the Iraqi market. Finally, the research paper contains a practical framework that policy-makers in the digital economy field can use to help the people of Iraq to shift their priorities to digital trade via increased technology in adoption and consumer trust.