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Total online retail spending in China reached $427 billion in 2014 and is expected to surpass $1 trillion in 2018 (Chu and Wong 2015). In addition, the number of online stores in China has been rapidly increasing. The present study proposes a model based on the theoretical frameworks of technology readiness (Parasuraman et al. 2005) and e-service quality (Parasuraman and Malhotra 2005), and tested the model on consumers from China. The results indicate that consumer technology readiness positively influences the perceived efficiency, system availability, fulfillment, and privacy dimensions of e-service quality as it relates to the online retailing environment in China. Moreover, the influence of technology readiness on the intention to purchase online in the future is both direct and mediated by the dimensions of perceived e-service quality. Implications and future research suggestions are also discussed.

Internet-based retailing is growing and increasingly becoming popular as an alternative to traditional retailing around the world. Increased research interest in the quality of e-retailer service has led to the development of domain-specific models. The new models, however, have not been extensively tested, and their generalizability remains to be established. The present study undertakes the task of extending the available models by incorporating the influence of cultural factors and empirically testing the proposed model. Data from China and the United States are employed for this purpose. The results provide partial support for the proposed model.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to apply Lichtenstein et al.'s price perception model to American, Chinese and Japanese cultures, to test the measurement equivalence across three cultures, and to compare the price perception constructs across three cultures using equivalent instruments.Design/methodology/approachA questionnaire is used to collect information on more than 500 student respondents from America, China, and Japan.FindingsUtilizing structural equation modeling, a 21‐item version of Lichtenstein et al.'s scale is created that has good fit across the three cultures. In progressively constraining tests, good model fit is found when constraining or partially constraining the factor loadings, error correlations, factor variances, and correlations between factors to be equal across three cultures tested. In addition, after creating price perception subscales, no significant differences emerge between Chinese, Japanese, and US consumers on value consciousness or price/quality schemas. Significant differences emerge on price consciousness, prestige sensitivity, and sales proneness.Practical implicationsThe 21‐item scale of Lichtenstein et al.'s price perception model can be generalized to both China and Japan. The primary conclusions (i.e. that Chinese consumers reported significantly higher price and prestige sensitivity, compared to USA and Japanese consumers, while US consumers showed higher levels of sales proneness than Chinese and Japanese consumers) provide a rationale for international retailers to develop different pricing and promotional strategies when expanding their business into these three cultures.Originality/valueA 21‐item scale to measure five of Lichtenstein et al.'s price perception constructs that has been validated through measurement invariance tests and compared across consumers in China, Japan, and the USA is provided.

Purpose – This paper seeks to use the consumer‐perceived levels of internet shopping skills and challenges, to cluster the young Chinese customers and to compare the quality perceptions of customers from the different clusters.Design/methodology/approach – A survey of 237 college students from Beijing with the average age of 20.2 was conducted via a paper‐and‐pencil questionnaire. All the constructs were measured using established scales. The students completed the questionnaire in their native language.Findings – The paper finds that, at the present level of internet development in China, online consumers can be segmented on the basis of their self‐rated internet skills and their perception of the challenges involved in online shopping.Practical implications – Online customer segments obtained through internet skill and challenge level perceptions are demonstrated to explain some of the differences in the online shopping behaviors and service quality perceptions. The managers of online stores in China co...

In March, 2005, Japan attempted to bid for a permanent seat on the United Nations (UN) Security Council. Millions of Chinese protested strongly against it because Japan’s invasion and partial occupation of China in World War II. Demonstrations opposing Japan’s UN bid were conducted in almost every province in China. The voices of anti-Japan, anti-Japanese product, and even boycotting Japanese products rose higher and higher.

The proliferation of new self-service technology in retailing suggests a need to assess the extent to which consumers are ready and willing to actually use the technology. This study examines the influence that the dimensions of the Technology Readiness Index (TRI) has on the propensity of consumers in China, one of the fastest growing economies in the world, to use self-service technology to complete retail transactions. Cluster analysis was also used to classify Chinese consumers into consumer types based on their TRI scores. The findings indicate that the dimensions of TRI impacts consumer types differently with respect to influencing the likelihood of using self-service technology. Implications of the consumer classifications are also discussed.