Abstract

The purpose of this research is to investigate factors impacting internet buying in three cultures: USA, India, and
Jordan. While several consumer characteristics impacting internet buying have been studied in previous research,
there has been relatively little research which studies the factors across national cultures. Internet buying and
commerce has a global reach and several corporations count on global markets for expansion and growth. As a
result, it is critical to understand the particular nature of differences in consumer characteristics impacting
internet buying in different countries and cultures. This paper reports on an empirical study, which tests the
impact of consumer characteristics uncertainty avoidance and perceived risk on internet buying. Data was
collected and analyzed from USA, Jordan, and India. Results indicate that in cultures where uncertainty
avoidance is high, perceived risk with internet, buying is also high, and this impacts internet buying negatively.
Cultures where perceived risk is high, it impacts internet buying negatively. Results provide practical
implications to web based vendors on consumer characterize that should be taken into account when marketing
online in different cultures. Results also provide valuable insights into the nature of internet buying and the
factors that limit internet-buying acceptance across cultures.

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