Regulation as a pathway to individual adoption of cryptocurrency

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the antecedents of individuals’ behavioral intention to transact in blockchain cryptocurrency through the theoretical lens of the expanded theory of planned behavior (TPB). Design/methodology/approach This study investigated the antecedents of a blockchain cryptocurrency adoption framework by adapting well-established items from the information systems (IS) and psychology literature to produce a survey instrument to measure individuals’ intention to engage in blockchain cryptocurrency transactions. The survey was administered to 492 individuals through Amazon Mechanical Turk. Findings This study resulted in a research model of an individual’s intention to transact with a blockchain cryptocurrency. Results indicated that the expanded TPB model explains 63.5% of the variance in intention to adopt cryptocurrency for transactional usage. In this study, all paths leading to behavioral intention were found to be significant in the hypothesized directions. In addition, all paths leading to attitude, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control were found to be significant in the hypothesized directions. Originality/value This study furthers prior literature by empirically validating the expanded TPB in the context of individuals’ intention to use cryptocurrency for transactional purposes. This study can better inform practitioners on individual attitudes and behaviors toward transactional cryptocurrency use. The findings provide regulators meaningful insights toward the development of a regulatory framework which encourages innovation while safeguarding the interests of individual citizens.