Do Your Neighbors Matter to You? : Focused on Chinese Jiu Ling Hou (Post-’90s) Generation Online Shoppers

The post-’90s generation is made up of those born between 1990 and 1999 in China; it is also the generation that is driving e-commerce in China. To attract these post-’90s consumers, online retailers have adopted recommender systems based on previous purchases and personal preferences. However, current Chinese online retailers do not typically consider the purchasing histories of their neighbors, although those neighbors have been proven to influence consumer behavior intention in several fields of study. Thus, this study investigates neighbors’ influences on Chinese consumer behavior in online shopping. In particular, this study examines the relationship between neighbors’ purchase histories and consumers’ purchase decisions among Chinese post-’90s consumers. Furthermore, this research seeks to determine whether neighbors’ purchasing history has an influence on consumer perceptions (e.g., perceived enjoyment, perceived risk) and whether perceived enjoyment and perceived risk have influences on purchasing intention.