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Research Scholar, Faculty of Management, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Kattankulathur, Chengalpattu, Tamil Nadu, India
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Professor, Faculty of Management, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Kattankulathur, Chengalpattu, Tamil Nadu, India
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Associate Professor, Faculty of Management, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Kattankulathur, Chengalpattu, Tamil Nadu, India
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Research Scholar, SRM Faculty of Management, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Kattankulathur, Chengalpattu, Tamil Nadu, India
Research Scholar, Faculty of Management, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Kattankulathur, Chengalpattu, Tamil Nadu, India
The rapid development of social media commerce has changed online shopping behavior with the incorporation of social interaction, user-generated content, and digital marketing in e-commerce platforms. Social commerce has made Generation Z one of the largest user groups, yet little research has been done on the combined effects of social influence, trust mechanisms, and product promotion on their purchase decisions. The study aims to analyze the impact of these three factors on the purchase decisions of Generation Z consumers on YouTube, TikTok and Instagram. This study used a quantitative research design, and a structured questionnaire distributed to 384 valid respondents of Generation Z from China, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Singapore. The measurement model was tested for reliability and validity and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) with SPSS and AMOS was used to test the hypotheses. The constructs showed acceptable reliability with Cronbach’s alpha ranging between 0.845 and 0.883, composite reliability between 0.879 and 0.910, and average variance extracted (AVE) between 0.645 and 0.771. The structural model demonstrated a good fit (χ2/df = 1.433, GFI = 0.968, AGFI = 0.950, NFI = 0.969, CFI = 0.991, RMSEA = 0.034). The results indicate that all the hypothesized relationships are positive and significant. Trust mechanisms had the most substantial influence on purchase decisions (β = 0.379, p < 0.001) followed by product promotion (β = 0.240, p < 0.001) and social influence (β = 0.153, p = 0.019). The model explained 32.2% of the variance of purchasing decisions (R2 =0.322). Correlation analysis also showed significant positive correlation between social influence (r = 0.252), trust mechanisms (r = 0.429), product promotion (r = 0.387) and purchasing decision (all p < 0.001). The study shows that strengthening trust, enhancing real social interaction, and using targeted promotional strategies are effective ways to optimize the purchase decisions of Generation Z consumers, and provides useful theoretical insights and practical guidance for the sustainable development of social media commerce platforms.
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