The relevance of UTAUT and UTAUT 2 to online gambling intentions : an abstract

Abstract

Gambling has been around for hundreds, possibly thousands, of years, and is perhaps one of the oldest forms of entertainment. It is a multifaceted phenomenon that allows a person the chance to win large sums of money or a significant prize. While being a fascinating aspect of consumer behaviour, marketing scholars have given it surprisingly little attention. This research focuses on recreational gambling and pursues a consumer behaviour perspective that seeks better understanding of online betting intentions, by applying the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Technology – UTAUT/ UTAUT 2, to an online betting context. It proposes model enhancements by incorporating the role of anticipated enjoyment and perceived fairness. Anticipated enjoyment is conceptualised as a pre-purchase cognition – something that one is looking forward to experience – as opposed to enjoyment, which is more closely linked to satisfaction and thus a post-consumption experience. In addition, fairness has become an important point of discussion for legislators as countries seek to improve regulation of online gambling within their jurisdiction. Particular concern has focused on issues surrounding promotions and their terms and conditions, the fairness of games, as well as monetary transactions and the correct handling of customers. Prevalence studies have also shown that customers take fairness seriously. It is therefore expected that both anticipated enjoyment and perceived fairness impact online betting intention. Data are collected from 593 customers of an online gambling firm and analysed using PLS-SEM via Smart PLS. Results of the comparison of UTAUT and UTAUT 2, both with and without all moderators and with the additional constructs of anticipated enjoyment and perceived fairness, indicate that both added constructs are significant drivers of gambling intention. Perceived fairness is found to be fully mediated by effort expectancy, anticipated enjoyment and social influence. Shorn of drivers and moderators that have not been found to be significant in UTAUT/ UTAUT 2, the resultant gambling intention model titled UTAUT-GIM is presented. Managers of online casinos would do well to appreciate the positive impact on customer intention and retention resulting from customers perception of a site as being fair and fun. The research suggests that anticipated enjoyment and perceived fairness are likely to play a role in other contexts as well. Further studies could investigate the relevance UTAUT-GIM beyond online casinos to other online gambling contexts and in addition consider the role of risk and responsible gambling as further enhancements to the model. The model can also be extended to other forms of online entertainment and to stock market trading. In a number of ways, the latter can be said to be similar to gambling.