Online Shopping in Haiti: An Empirical Study of Students’ Shopping Perceptions and Consumer Behavior

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate consumer behavior toward online shopping in Haiti with the findings of factors that affect whether or not they purchase online. The study showed that there is some potential for e-commerce in Haiti. However, there are many challenges, including lack of infrastructure, the low availability of credit cards, low government initiations. The sample consisted of 188 Haitian students at university level that were approached by using the “snowball” technique. Every participant made a purchase online before he received the questionnaire, and they were all above eighteen. Different questions were asked to the participants that reflected the characteristics of shopping. First, they were asked to give their frequency of online shopping transactions using a four-point Likert scale. Second, a seven-point Likert scale was used to rate their opinions about trends affecting electronic commerce, companies’ marketing approaches. Third, participants were asked to evaluate their feelings about traditional and online shopping using a nine-point bipolar scale. Finally, the Six Dimensional Achievement Motivations Scale by Jackson, Ahmed, and Heapy (1976) were used that allowed the participants to describe themselves. The results show that the participants still have a negative perception of online shopping compared to traditional shopping. Also, the study reveals that online shopping in Haiti is significantly affected by various Demographic factors like gender, income, and education. As opposed to demographics, the achievement dimensions were less related to online shopping behavior. The results show some limitations in terms of the time available to collect the data, the availability of the participants and their concerns about some questions. Also, generalization must be made carefully since the study is limited to Haitian students. The study has practical and managerial impacts, including the possible use by businesses, other researchers, and the Haitian government. The results of the study could be further used by researchers to conduct future studies in the same field.