A Study on the Willingness and Factors Influencing the Digital Upgrade of Rural E-Commerce

Abstract

The current problems of the low digital upgrading of rural e-commerce, single marketing method and high homogeneous competition will seriously hinder the development of rural e-commerce and rural revitalization. Therefore, finding how to guide the digital upgrading of rural e-commerce will be a key step in achieving rural revitalization and common prosperity. Based on 1387 Zhejiang rural e-commerce digital upgrading questionnaires, this paper analyzes willingness regarding rural e-commerce digital upgrading and its influencing factors using planned behavior theory and structural equation modeling. The findings show that (1) behavioral attitudes are the main influencing factors of upgrading willingness, and subjective norms are secondary influencing factors; (2) in terms of the behavioral attitudes of rural e-merchants, the greater the proportion of their online sales or the higher the proportion of online income, the better behavioral attitudes formed on this basis can promote the willingness to digitally upgrade rural e-merchants; (3) in terms of subjective norms, when rural e-merchant subjects perceive that the increased local participation in e-merchant association is too large or online income tends to saturate the total income, the more subjective norms can influence their willingness to digitally upgrade.