Consumer Acceptance of Product as a Service Leasing Model for Home Appliances Using an Extended Theory of Planned Behavior in Ecuador

The home appliances sector’s role in the depletion of critical raw materials and electrical and electronic waste generation highlights the need for different circular business models. Use-oriented product-as-a-service (PaaS) leasing model offers a great opportunity for original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to provide customers access to different appliances while guarding the ownership, facilitating to close the supply chain. However, one major obstacle in the adoption of PaaS leasing models is consumers lack of trust. This is particularly true in developing countries such as Ecuador, where the culture of ownership is well attached in their consciousness. Supported in the theory of planned behavior (TPB) through the incorporation of subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, and attitude towards behavior, driving the intentions to behave ecologically, this research presents an extended framework by incorporating two additional constructs, environmental consciousness and external influences in moderation and mediation roles, respectively, to predict consumers’ leasing intentions. By using the data from 1,026 home owners in Ecuador and through partial least square structural equation model (PLS-SEM), the findings reveal that attitude towards behavior (β = 0.492, p