Online Consumer Trust: A Multi-Dimensional Model

Consumer trust is widely heralded as an essential element for the success of electronic commerce, yet the concept itself is still clouded in confusion by the numerous definitions and points of view held across multiple disciplines. It is the aim of this paper to synthesise the viewpoints from across the disciplines and bring them together in a multidimensional trust model. It is hoped that in doing so, these broad assortment of views will highlight the true underlying nature of trust in the online environment. From these multiple disciplines, three dimensions of trust emerged: Dispositional Trust, Institutional Trust and Interpersonal Trust, each bringing their own influencing factors into the overall intention to trust. From this model emerged the notion that the consumer as an individual is central to the understanding of trust, and in turn that the individual’s personality and culture form the foundation for the development of trust. INTRODUCTION There is increasing acceptance that consumer trust is a key foundation for electronic commerce success. If the consumer can not develop some sense of confidence in the vendor’s competence, predictability, benevolence and integrity, then they are likely to abort the purchase and simply look elsewhere for a more trustworthy alternative (McKnight & Chervany, 2002; McKnight, Cummings, & Chervany, 1998; Tan & Theon, 2001). Much of the literature surrounding trust in electronic commerce looks to substitute trust by focusing solely on the aspects of consumer privacy and security (Belanger, Hiller, & Smith, 2002; Benassi, 1999; Dekleva, 2000;