The influencing factors of social commerce on shopping behavior among non-earning individuals in the digital age

The main objective of this study is to examine the factors that influence shopping behaviour among non-earning individuals in the context of social commerce in Malaysia. This research investigates five key predictors: price sensitivity, social interaction, visual appeal, hedonic motivation, and trust. Past literature has shown varying results on the impact of these factors on online shopping behaviour, particularly among non-earning individuals, leading to the need for further investigation. The target population for this study comprised students from Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM), Sintok, Kedah, due to their active use of social media and familiarity with online commerce. Structured questionnaires were distributed using a simple random sampling technique, and a total of 300 valid responses were collected. The data were analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), through descriptive statistics, reliability testing, and multiple regression analysis to examine the relationships between the independent variables and shopping behaviour. The results show that price sensitivity, social interaction, visual appeal, hedonic motivation, and trust all have a significant relationship with the shopping behaviour of non-earning individuals on social commerce platforms. Among these, price sensitivity emerged as the most influential factor, followed by trust and hedonic motivation, while visual appeal and social interaction also demonstrated notable effects. The findings offer valuable insights for marketers, social media platforms, and e-commerce businesses aiming to target non-earning consumers more effectively. The study highlights the importance of affordability, trust-building, emotional appeal, and social engagement in influencing the purchase decisions of this segment. Finally, managerial implications, limitations of the study, and recommendations for future research are discussed