Effect of contextual factors of online retailing on customer patronage intentions

As an emerging retailing channel,Internet plays a more and more important role in retailing industry.With the intensifying competition in online retailing,retailers lay more emphasis on the effect of the contextual factors of online stores on customer patronage.Based on self-determination theory,this article investigates how product-relevant and market-relevant contextual factors of online retailing affect customers' need for autonomy and relatedness and,in turn,customer patronage intention;the article also proposes two internalization mechanisms of the effect of contextual factors on customer patronage intentions,i.e.,perceived control and perceived interest.The findings enhance our knowledge of online retailing contextual effects,and provide companies with a new perspective to design online retailing contextual factors.