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A study of customer satisfaction with online shopping: Evidence from the UAE

Article  in  International Journal of Advanced Media and Communication · August 2010

DOI: 10.1504/IJAMC.2010.034659 · Source: DBLP

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Int. J. Advanced Media and Communication, Vol. x, No. x, xxxx 1

A study of customer satisfaction with

online shopping: evidence from the UAE

Marwan Mohamed Abdeldayem

College of Business Administration,
University of Dubai, P.O. Box 2575, Dubai, UAE
E-mail: Marawan2000@hotmail.com
Abstract: The critical importance of customer satisfaction in online shopping
stores has been recognised in academic research and its literature, in particular.
However, studies in this area remain broad and to some extent fragmented.
Therefore, the purpose of this study is to test empirically the integrated model of
customer satisfaction with online shopping that has been developed by Lee and
Joshi (2006). This study draws on 242 questionnaire surveys of university
students in Dubai, UAE. The analysis of these surveys reveals that attitudes
toward online shopping and the intention to shop online in the UAE are not only
affected by ease of use, usefulness, and enjoyment, but also by some other factors
such as perceived Web-store traits, channel traits and consumer traits.

Keywords: customer satisfaction; online shopping; internet shopping; customer-

based electronic commerce; UAE.

Reference to this paper should be made as follows: Abdeldayem, M.M. (xxxx)

‘A study of customer satisfaction with online shopping: evidence from the UAE’,
Int. J. Advanced Media and Communication, Vol. x, No. x, pp.xxx–xxx.
Biographical notes: Marwan Abdeldayem holds a PhD from the University of
Wales, UK. He now works as an Assistant Professor at the University of Dubai
(UD) in the College of Business Administration, Dubai, UAE. He is a frequent
author of international journal papers and international conference contributions.
His research agenda consists of various research subjects and he has published
in areas such as customer satisfaction, internet shopping, entrepreneurship and
Islamic banking. He has also training and consultancy experience in both public
and private sector business organisations in several countries, such as the UAE,
Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Qatar, Oman, Jordan, Syria and Sudan.

1 Introduction

The concept of satisfaction with online shopping can benefit by examining ‘satisfaction’
literature from different angles, for instance, customer satisfaction from a marketing
perspective, user satisfaction from information systems and job satisfaction from
organisational behaviour (Lee and Joshi, 2006). The literature review in this area shows
that the results of research efforts have not been satisfactory. These unsatisfactory results
can be attributed to several reasons, such as inconsistent and different measurements of
satisfaction, lack of a unified framework to integrate these different perspectives and

Copyright © 200x Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.

2 M.M. Abdeldayem

confusing definitions of variables used in these studies (see for example, Ahn et al., 2004;
Galletta et al., 2004; Lim, 2003; Barbara et al., 2005).
Customer satisfaction has been considered one of the most important constructs
(McQuitty et al., 2000), and one of the main goals in marketing (Erevelles and Leavitt,
1992). Satisfaction, according to Oliver, is
“the summary psychological state resulting when the emotion surrounding
unconfirmed expectations is coupled with a consumer’s prior feelings about the
consumer experience.” (Oliver, 1997)
In other words, satisfaction is an ongoing evaluation of the surprise inherent in product
acquisition or consumption experience. Satisfaction plays a major role in online business
because it helps to build customer trust (Flavian et al., 2006), enhances favourable word-
of-mouth reports (Bhattacherjee, 2001), leads to repeat purchases (Kim, 2005), predicts
purchase behaviour (McQuitty et al., 2000) and predicts the internet retailer’s endurance
and success (Nusair and Kandampully, 2008; Evanschitzky et al., 2004). Moreover,
satisfaction can be considered as one of the most important customer reactions to online
shopping and this is due to its ability to build customer loyalty (Anderson and Srinivasan,
2003), lead to repeat purchase (Reibstein, 2002), enhance favourable word-of-mouth
reports (Bhattacherjee, 2001) and improve the business’s market share and profitability
(Reichheld and Schefter, 2000).
Online shopping can be defined as the process customers go through to purchase
products or services over the internet. An online shop, e-shop, internet shop, web shop or
online store evokes the physical analogy of buying products or services at a bricks-and-
mortar retailer or in a shopping mall. It is an e-commerce application used for Business-
To-Business (B2B) electronic commerce or Business-To-Consumer (B2C) electronic
commerce. Online shopping is popular mainly because of its speed and ease of use.
However, some issues of concern can include fluctuating exchange rates for foreign
currencies, local and international laws and delivery methods. Websites can generally serve
many purposes such as:
• retail channel (Amazon.com)
• supplemental channel (Barnes & Nobel)
• technical support (Dell Computer)
• existing service embellishment (HBS Press)
• order processing (Delta Airline)
• information conveyancing (Kelly Blue Book)
• communication with membership (POMS.org)
• gaming (Treeloot.com).
Reading online product reviews is usually the first step in online shopping, and plays a
vital role in customers’ decisions. Many online stores such as Amazon.com and
Newegg.com allow customers to comment on or rate their items. There are also dedicated
review sites (e.g., Epinions, etc.) to host user reviews for different products.
 A study of customer satisfaction with online shopping 3

Burke (2008) argues that the next fundamental shift in e-commerce is to create
experiential shopping by humanising the web. This means using new technologies,
techniques and capabilities to allow people to interact with each other, share ideas, and rate
products and services. In addition, it even means allowing negative comments about your
products and services to appear on your site. By making the online experience more
compelling through real and unfiltered human-to-human interaction, merchants will be
able to build trust with online shoppers, making them more likely to buy products and
services and recommend brands to others. Moreover, Burke (2008) suggests three primary
ways by which online merchants can create experiential shopping:
• promote customer reviews, satisfaction, service and support
• make the site a desirable destination by appealing to people’s personal interests with
engaging content
• help people connect with each other using blogs, wikis, forums, chat rooms and other
social-networking platforms. This is the definition of goal-oriented shopping.
The most popular research topics include the customer’s profile, reasons for buying online,
preferences and satisfaction with buying online (Teo, 2001; Szymanski and Hise, 2000;
Phau and Poon, 2000; Mehta and Sivadas, 1995). This paper contributes to the
understanding of customer satisfaction with online shopping in Dubai, UAE, which is the
fastest growing economy in the Middle East, and among the GCC countries in particular.

2 Literature review

Over the last few years, the web has become the most used internet application as a low-
priced way of gaining access to information and of communicating (Avlonitis and
Karrayanni, 2003; Dubois and Vernette, 2001).
A few years ago, business organisations questioned the role of the internet in business
performance. Today, they cannot live without it (Sultan and Rohn, 2004). Nowadays, the
internet is more focused on the management of the process of communication online,
regarding the improvement of transaction efficiency, giving value, and increasing customer
involvement and satisfaction (Berton et al., 2003; Rao and Perry, 2003; Osmonbekov et
al., 2002; Sharma, 2002; Burke, 2008).
The advent of the internet has empowered customers. Customers can access a virtually
unlimited variety of brands, products and merchants. They can try different products or
switch brands in a single click. However, customers have limited time and unlimited
selections. Customers would normally stick to those internet sellers who meet their wants
and provide them with quality products. DIRECT News line (2005) indicated that 80% of
the highly satisfied online customers would shop again within two months, and 90% would
recommend the internet merchant to others. On the other hand, 87% of dissatisfied
customers would permanently leave their internet sellers without making any complaints
(Customer Experience Management Web Partner, 2002).
Compared with shopping in a high street store, shopping in a virtual store online has
an inherently higher degree of uncertainty attached to it for a potential shopper.
4 M.M. Abdeldayem

This is partly because the activity is new to the majority of people. Also, potential online
shoppers normally lack information not only on the online store, but also on the buying
process itself (e.g., what is going to happen after the shoppers key in their credit cards
details) and the outcome (e.g., whether the product will arrive as promised) (Lim et al.,
2004).
Despite the adoption rate of online shopping being relatively high in the West, it is still
generally unpopular in the East. For instance, Taylor Nelson Sofres (2001) reported in a
survey that 33% of internet users in the USA have purchased online (cf. Germany: 28%;
Ireland: 18%; the UK: 24%; Norway: 19%). On the other hand, the corresponding
percentages are much lower in South East Asia: 2% for Thailand, 7% for Hong Kong, 8%
for Taiwan and 9% for Singapore.
Owing to the growing importance of online commerce, an increasing number of
research studies have focused on online satisfaction. To better understand online customer
satisfaction, two early models of online customer satisfaction were developed, the first by
Szymanski and Hise (2000) and the second by Lee (2001). Although both models have
provided some understanding of online customer satisfaction, the model developed by
Szymanski and Hise was a simple one and was limited to only four web dimensions,
namely convenience, merchandising, site design and financial security. On the other hand,
the model developed by Lee was very sophisticated with many interrelated constructs and
hence it was not able to provide further understanding of customer satisfaction. Also, Kim
(2005) proposed a model to explore the factors affecting online customer satisfaction. Her
model was effective for two reasons. First, it extended the number of antecedents of online
satisfaction to 10 (after-sales service, purchase result and price attractiveness, product
information, customer service, site design, product attractiveness, payment method, site
information, log-on convenience), and second, it linked online customer satisfaction with
two outcome variables: repeat purchase intention and purchase behaviour. The results of
the study have shown that the model is a good fit at explaining repurchase intention and
actual repurchase behaviour.
Furthermore, previous research has revealed that online service quality is a crucial
factor that can significantly contribute to customer satisfaction (Loiacono et al., 2002;
Voss, 2000; Zeithaml et al., 2002). Service quality is defined as the customers’ subjective
assessment of expectations compared with the actual service performance (Parasuraman et
al., 1988) . Given the extensive use of the internet in the service business, providing high-
service quality has become essential for the survival of the online service businesses. Thus,
on the basis of the customers’ perception of service quality, different service quality
measures relevant to online services were developed. Previous research that examined
online service quality measures includes: E-service quality (Zeithaml, 2000), SITEQUAL
(Yoo and Donthu, 2001), WebQual (Barnes and Vidgen, 2000) and eTAILQ (Wolfinbarger
and Gilly, 2003). These online service quality measures were applied to different contexts
such as online retailing, online travel services and portal site services. However, it is
apparent that very limited commonality exists among the various service quality measures.
Hence, these instruments have not been successful in providing a comprehensive
assessment of online customer satisfaction.
Research into satisfaction with online shopping is emerging in IS Journals. Like most
areas that are new, empirical studies have used different approaches and focused on a
variety of aspects in examining satisfaction with customer-based electronic commerce.
 A study of customer satisfaction with online shopping 5

As shown in Table 1, satisfaction has been conceptualised in a variety of ways. For

example, some researchers focused mainly on the impact of customer perceptions of
website characteristics (Lam and Lee, 1999; Szymanski and Hise, 2000). However, there
is still no general consensus on the satisfaction construct. The particular importance of the
analysis arises from the fact that a conclusive set of antecedent variables of customer
satisfaction with online shopping in the UAE is missing. Therefore, the key objective of
this research effort is to test empirically customer satisfaction with online shopping in the
UAE to fill this gap and provide insight in this regard.
Lee and Joshi (2006) have categorised the important antecedents of customer
satisfaction with online shopping into three groups, which are customer traits, channel traits
and web-store traits. Figure 1 represents the adopted research model for this study that
identifies the antecedent variables and their effect on customer satisfaction in the context
of an online web store. The theoretical basis for the relationships proposed in the adopted
model is outlined here.

Table 1 Antecedents and satisfaction-related concepts

Channel Customer
properties Store properties properties
Operational Delay, Time Convenience in Purchasing, Ease of Ordering, Product Internet
Antecedent Saving, Time Variety, Website Performance, Relevancy, Decision expertise
s Spent, Supporting, Product Selection, Accuracy, Product Quality,
Transaction Service Quality, Shipping/Handling, Employee Competence,
Cost, Cost Website properties, Reliability, Shopping Enjoyment,
Saving, Financial Security, Graphic Style, Perceived Risk, Privacy
Price, Concerns, Product Information, Information Properties,
Pricing, Cost Image, Design Supporting, Product Presentation, Navigation
Reduction Structure, Content, Physical Evidence, Comprehensibility,
On-time Delivery, Time to Receive, Comprehensiveness,
Order Tracking
Attitudes Satisfaction: E-Satisfaction, Channel Satisfaction, Satisfaction with Fulfilment
Process, Information Content Satisfaction, Satisfaction with Ordering Process, Price
Satisfaction, Connection Satisfaction, System Satisfaction Also: Ease of use,
Usefulness
Source: Lee and Joshi (2006, p.54)

1 Perceived channel traits

Time and cost effectiveness can be viewed as channel traits rather than as unique qualities
of an online shopping store. The same view has been adopted in satisfaction research that
is based on transaction cost theories (Kohli et al., 2004). In the classical theory of
transaction costs, consumers tend to search until marginal benefits are equivalent to
marginal costs (Stinger, 1961). Dejarav et al. (2002) suggested that time efficiency and
store efficiency are reflected in time cost and price savings, respectively, which are
antecedents of satisfaction. These characteristics were also highlighted in the concept of
‘cognitive miser’ (Shugan, 1980), which points out limitations in human information
processing. As in bricks-and-mortar stores, consumers contemplate price and time while
they are searching for products and evaluating them.
6 M.M. Abdeldayem

2 Perceived web-store traits

Web stores offer distinct benefits and disadvantages compared with bricks-and-mortar
stores. Web stores cannot offer the touch and feel of a real physical product and face-to-
face interaction with sales staff (Shih, 2004). However, they can compensate for this
disadvantage by offering other benefits such as a wider range of products, better
organisation of product information (including images, specifications, options and
reviews), search and browse tools, and greater customisation options. The importances of
well-organised contents, friendly website layout, and ease of navigation have also been
emphasised. System quality, information quality and service quality have also been
identified as key factors in the success of e-commerce and web stores (Zhang and von
Dran, 2002). Galletta et al. (2004) asserted that website interfaces are a dominant
component of general satisfaction attitude and that physical aesthetic properties of websites
can be compared with atmospheric features of traditional shopping stores. Previous studies
have identified web interface features as either website factors or information system
factors.
3 Consumer traits
Familiarity and expertise in using computers, prior internet and web-store purchase
experience are important consumer attributes that may influence the online shopping
experience and satisfaction. Prior IS research has identified the importance of user
knowledge and experience in determining satisfaction, for example, as IT education and
internet usage (Liao and Cheung, 2001), general internet expertise (Weiss et al., 2003) and
familiarity (Galletta et al., 2004). Novice users are more likely to experience higher anxiety
and difficulty in using web-store services. This is more likely to make their interaction with
online stores unsatisfactory. Those with more expertise can derive greater benefit from the
facilities offered by web stores. They may also be able to estimate risk on a realistic basis.
Therefore, Lee and Joshi (2006) have proposed these consumer attributes as moderators in
the relationship between channel and web-store factors, and satisfaction. Table 2
summarises some selected studies on customer satisfaction with online shopping

Figure 1 Adopted research model for this study

Source: Lee and Joshi (2006, p.55)

 A study of customer satisfaction with online shopping 7

Table 2 Selected studies on customer satisfaction with online shopping

Antecedents of online shopping
Study satisfaction Research method
Lee and Joshi (2006) Perceived channel traits Conceptual Study
Web-Store properties (Variables of the integrated model of
customer satisfaction with online
Product variety
shopping)
Risk
Customer support
Delivery level
Perceived web-store traits
Time spent
Price cost
Consumer traits
Internet expertise
Familiarity and expertise in using
Computers, prior internet and
Web-Store purchase experience
Reibstein (2002) Ease of ordering Survey
Product selection
Product information
Product prices
Navigation
On-time delivery
Product presentation
Customer service
Privacy polices
Shopping and handling
Cho and Park (2001) Product information Survey
Consumer service
Purchase result and delivery
Site design
Purchasing process
Delivery time and charge
Payment methods
Ease of use
Additional information service
8 M.M. Abdeldayem

Table 2 Selected studies on customer satisfaction with online shopping (continued)

Antecedents of online shopping

Study satisfaction Research method
Abbott et al. (2000) Accessibility Conceptual Study
Information availability
Consumption/personalisation
Speed of acquisition
Security
Atmospheric
Service/experiential
Convenience
Price across brands
Assortment
Physical presence
Shim et al. (2002) Ease of contact Interview
Ease of access of product
information
Customer service information
Eroglu et al. (2003) Pleasure Survey
Arousal
Attitude
Szymanski and Hisc (2000) Convenience Survey
Site design
Merchandising
Financial security
Kohli et al. (2004) Time saving Survey
Cost saving
Kim and Lim (2001) Width of information Survey
Update of information
Depth of information
Promptness retrieval
Speed of transaction
Web design and construction
Customer service
Ho and Wu (1999) Logistical support Survey
Technological characteristics
Information characteristics
Home page presentation
Product characteristics
 A study of customer satisfaction with online shopping 9

Table 2 Selected studies on customer satisfaction with online shopping (continued)

Antecedents of online shopping

Study satisfaction Research method
Lam and Lee (1999) Business content Conceptual study
Navigation efficiency
Security
Marketing customer focus
Website design
McKinney et al. (2002) Information quality Survey
disconfirmation
System quality
disconfirmation
Liu and Guo (2008) Content Survey
Accuracy
Format
Ease of use
Timeliness

In the context of online shopping in the UAE, an estimated 700 websites are scheduled to
be launched there over the next two years. The UAE has the largest number of internet
users in the Middle East, according to the Emirates Telecommunications Corporation,
ETISALAT and industry sources. The launch of COMTRUST, ETISALAT’s e-commerce
arm, and the setting up of Dubai Internet City have given new impetus to the growing trend
of private and public sector organisations aiming for a presence on the World Wide Web.
According to a study by the Washington Institute for Near East Pacific, Arab countries
with the largest presence today are the UAE and Egypt. At present, there are approximately
2500 websites in the UAE, which introduced internet services eight years ago. According
to projections, some 80% of the population in the UAE is expected to access the internet
by 2010, which will be a dramatic jump from 14% in 1998. A number of existing websites
are working on enabling them for e-commerce. Industry sources said that B2B e-commerce
has been growing in the UAE, but that the B2C sector has yet to catch up (Dubai Chamber
of Commerce and Industry, 2008).
Moreover, the UAE Mall website is the largest online shopping mall in the UAE. With
more than 90,000 user hits per day, UAE Mall has been ranked by many market critics as
the best e-shopping site in the region and has won many prestigious awards. It includes all
the e-shops in the UAE in diverse industry sectors. The customer can look for products by
category or by business type. It also gives access to all the online retailers in the UAE.

3 Methodology

The main purpose of this section is to provide an outline of the research methods used and
procedures employed to collect and analyse data. Hence, it includes sample structure,
reliability of the study and the statistical analysis.
10 M.M. Abdeldayem

3.1 Sample structure

In this research effort, 300 questionnaire surveys were distributed to university students in
Dubai, UAE in two different colleges, i.e., College of Business Studies and College of
Computer Science. 256 out of the 300 students responded to the questionnaire survey and
this represents a response rate of 85.3%. This response rate is perceived to be very good,
since previous researchers (such as Al-Kassim, 1996; Al-Jaber, 1995; Al-Rugaib, 1995)
have all stated that the average response rate to questionnaire surveys in the Middle East
tends to be very low, being in the range 30–40%. The sample structure (or the basic profile
of the respondents) is shown in Table 3.

Table 3 Sample structure (basic profile of respondents)

Items Category No. Percentage

Gender Male 156 64.5
Female 86 35.5
Age Under 20 Years old 72 29.8
Above 20 and under 25 101 41.8
25 and above 69 28.4
College College of business studies 171 70.7
College of Computer Science 71 29.3
Computer competency Very bad 2 0.8
Not good 26 10.7
Good 149 61.5
Very good 165 26.8
Online shopping experience Less than 6 months 18 7.4
6 months to 2 years 151 62.3
2 years to 4 years 65 26.8
4 years and above 8 3.3
Average online shopping Every month or less 28 11.5
Every 1 month to 3 months 98 40.5
Every 3 months to 6 months 46 19
Every 6 months or above 70 29

Survey questionnaires were distributed to a sample of web users who had prior online
shopping experience. As already stated, the respondents came from a variety of
departments and with various majors. The respondents were also encouraged to ask their
friends to complete the survey. The researcher tried to make the sample as representative
of the online population, and as heterogeneous, as possible. The researcher does realise,
however, that using a sample that consists mainly of university students raises the concern
of generalisability. University students tend to be heavy computer users and highly skilled
at using the internet, in particular those students from the College of Computer Science.
On the other hand, research shows that such a sample is acceptable in online shopping
research because university students are not dissimilar to the general online population,
and they are often the target market for online purchasing (Liu and
 A study of customer satisfaction with online shopping 11

Guo, 2008; Abdinnour-Helm et al., 2005; Han and Ocker, 2002; Lee and Lin, 2005). From
the viewpoint of customer relationship management, companies pay more attention to the
long-term lifetime value of their customers, which means that university students are
considered a key target market for the long-term success of companies (Liu and Guo, 2008;
Lim and Dubinsky, 2004). Thus, the sample involved in the current study should have high
potential value for companies in the future, and the results of this study should provide
insights into how companies can acquire and retain this target market.
The questionnaire consisted of three main parts. In the first part, items covering general
information about the participants in this research effort such as their gender, age, college,
computer competency, online shopping experience and their average online shopping The
second part included eight items measuring attitude, which were adopted from Lee and
Joshi (2006). Responses for attitude were described in a five-point Likert-type scale as self-
reported agreement towards a statement, in which 5 was ‘Strongly Agree’ (SA) and 1 was
‘Strongly Disagree’ (SD). In the third part of the questionnaire, the respondents were given
a chance to comment on their previous online shopping experience and to give their
recommendations in this regard.
Among the 256 collected questionnaires, 14 were incomplete, leaving 242 for the final
analysis. The demographics of the respondents are shown in Table 3. It can be seen that
35.5% of the respondents were females, and 64.5% were male. The majority (71.6%) of
the respondents were younger than 25 years old, whereas 28.4% were above 25 years old.
In terms of computer competency, a significant number of respondents (88.3%) considered
themselves to be experienced users, whereas only 11.5% did not consider themselves to be
experienced. The majority (62.3%) had been shopping online for six months to two years;
the next largest group (26.8%) comprised those with two to four years of experience;
whereas, 7.4% had only begun online shopping within the last six months. Many of the
respondents were frequent online shoppers who shop every month (11.5%) or shop every
one to three months (40.5%). In other words, we can draw up the following profile: the
majority of the respondents were under 25 years old and had a college degree and a high
level of computer competency. They had more than six months’ experience with online
shopping as well as having an online shopping frequency of more than once every three
months.

3.2 Data analysis

To determine whether the adopted model is a valid and reliable measure for customer
satisfaction with online shopping in UAE, LISREL 7.62 was used to test the research
model. First, a confirmatory factor analysis was run on the measurement model. The
measurement model was one with three identified dimensions as first-order factors (i.e.,
channel traits, web-store traits and consumer traits). The three factors were correlated with
each other. The observed variables (i.e., the items) were indicators of the three factors and
had non-zero loading for corresponding factors and zero loadings for other factors. All
error terms for the measured items were uncorrelated.
The first-order measurement model showed a reasonable model fit. The measurement
properties are listed in Table 4. When assessing a model, there are several measures of fit
that can be adopted. Since χ2 is sensitive to the sample size and is normally significant
when the sample size is large, it is not suitable for testing the construct validity (Bentler
and Bonett, 1980; Homburg and Rudolph, 2001; Tan, 2001). In light of the limitation of
χ2, the ratio of χ2 to Degrees of Freedom (df) can be adopted. The value of
12 M.M. Abdeldayem

4.25 (χ2 = 106.32, df = 25) in this study indicates a marginal fit because a ratio between 2
and 5 indicates a reasonable fit (Liu and Guo, 2008; Marsh and Hocevar, 1985). The overall
fit of a model can also be assessed by the NFI, GFI, AGFI and RMSR (Doll and Torkzadeh,
1988). A well-fitted model should have an NFI greater than 0.90 (0.92 in this study); the
GFI and AGFI should be greater than 0.80 (0.85 and 0.91 in this study, respectively); the
RMSR should be smaller than 0.05 (0.031 in this study). In addition, the Comparison Fit
Index (CFI) was 0.89 and the Root Mean Square of Error Approximation (RMSEA) had a
value of 0.07 in this study. On the basis of these criteria, the goodness-of-fit measures of
this model were satisfactory (Liu and Guo, 2008; Lai and Li, 2005). It should be
remembered here that the main purpose of this study was to validate the Lee and Joshi
model for measuring customer satisfaction with online shopping in the UAE.

Table 4 Measurement properties

Variables Mean SD Loading* t-value

Perceived channel traits
(Cronbach’s Alpha = 0.77, AVE = 0.61)
1 Web-store properties 4.42 0.71 0.69 17.54
2 Product variety 3.25 0.51 0.72 17.35
3 Risk 3.6 0.72 0.81 16.70
4 Customer support 3.8 0.69 0.70 16.13
5 Delivery level 4 0.53 0.78 17.10
Perceived web-store traits
(Cronbach’s Alpha = 0.81, AVE = 0.57)
1 Time spent 3.65 0.59 0.77 18.13
2 Price cost 4.19 0.69 0.83 17.30
Consumer traits
(Cronbach’s Alpha = 0.78, AVE = 0.55)
Internet expertise 4.61 0.77 0.88 18.90
(such as familiarity and expertise in using
computers, prior Internet and Web store
purchases experience)
*Standardised loadings estimated by LISREL 7.62.
AVE: Average Variance Extracted.

3.3 Reliability and validity

The Cronbach’s alphas for each factor are listed in Table 4. They were 0.77, 0.81 and 0.78
for channel traits, web-store traits and consumer traits, respectively. The reliability of all 8
items was 0.86. All values were above the acceptable level of reliability of 0.70. (Liu and
Guo, 2008; Nunnally and Bernstein, 1994).
Next, the researcher examined construct validity of the instrument from two aspects:
convergent and discriminatory validity. First, to assure convergent validity, all item
loadings for corresponding factors should be significant (t value should be greater than
 A study of customer satisfaction with online shopping 13

1.96) and above 0.60 (Bagozzi and Yi, 1988), whereas the Average Variance Extracted
(AVE) estimates should be greater than 0.50 (Fornell and Larcker, 1981). The AVE is the
percentage of variance in the items as explained by the constructs and indicates the extent
of convergence among the items measuring the same construct. As shown in Table 4, the t
values of the items ranged from 16.13 to 18.90, and the standardised loadings ranged from
0.69 to 0.88. In this study, the AVE of channel traits was 0.61, that of web-store traits was
0.57, and that of consumer traits was 0.55. All values were greater than 0.50. Hence, the
convergent validity was supported.
Second, the researcher assessed the discriminatory validity of the adopted model, which
means that one construct can be empirically differentiated from other similar constructs. A
series of confirmatory factor analyses was performed on the constrained model. The
unconstrained model is the first-order measurement order without setting values for
correlations among factors. A constrained model is one with a correlation between a pair
of factors fixed at one. Such a model has one more degree of freedom than the
unconstrained model, assuming there is no discriminatory validity between the two factors
with a correlation of one. The difference in χ2 was calculated between each constrained
model and the unconstrained model. The minimum difference in χ2 between a constrained
model and the unconstrained model was 18, which was greater than χ2 (0.999, 1) = 10.83.
This demonstrated that discriminatory validity had been achieved.

3.4 Statistical analysis

Having tested the reliability and validity of the adopted model for this study, further
analysis was then conducted to shed more light on customer satisfaction with online
shopping in the UAE. Thus, an analysis according to three different background
characteristics, i.e., age, gender and type of college, was done. For the purpose of analysing
the data relevant to this study, the main statistical techniques employed are discussed in
the following section.
The following two non-parametric tests were employed
• the Mann Whitney U test
• the Kruskal Wallis test.
Only these two types of non-parametric tests were used since all non-parametric tests are
inclined to produce similar results and a brief discussion of these is provided in Table 5.
The Mann Whitney U test is utilised to compare two sample means to detect if there
are statistically significant differences between the two population means. The Mann
Whitney (or ranked sum) test allows for testing differences between two independent
groups when the populations are not normally distributed or when it cannot be guaranteed
that the samples are from populations that are equal in variability. It is an alternative to t-
test for two independent samples (Zikmund, 2000; Pallant, 2001). Examples of where this
test is utilised are in the comparison of responses between males and females and between
respondents from the College of Business Studies and those from the College of Computer
Science.
Furthermore, the Kruskal Wallis test (sometimes referred to as the Kruskal Wallis H
test) is also utilised in this research to compare three or more groups as is the case in the
analysis by age. This test is the non-parametric alternative to a “one way between groups”
analysis of variance. It is similar in nature to the Mann Whitney test mentioned
14 M.M. Abdeldayem

earlier, but it allows the comparison of more than just two groups. Scores are converted to
ranks and the mean rank for each group is compared. This is a ‘between groups’ analysis;
therefore, different people must be in each of the different groups (Pallant, 2001, p.263).

Table 5 Summary of statistical tests

No. of Proposed statistical
Background characteristics Sub groups respondents tests
1 Age Under 20 Years old 72 Kruskal Wallis test
Above 20 and under 25 101
25 and above 69
2 Gender Male 156 Mann Whitney U test
Female 86
3 Type of College College of Business Studies 171 Mann Whitney U test
College of Computer Science 71

4 Empirical results

To ascertain the relationship between customer satisfaction and online shopping,

respondents were asked to indicate on a scale ranging from 1 to 5 [where 1 means ‘Strongly
Disagree’ (SD) and 5 ‘Strongly Agree’(SA)], the extent to which they agree or disagree
with each of the items reported in Table 6. This table displays the overall mean scores and
reveals no evidence of any extreme variations in responses. However, it is still possible to
detect minor differences between the different variables of customer satisfaction with
online shopping in the UAE (since the mean response of the entire sample only varies from
3.25 to 4.61). The most important variable influencing customer satisfaction, as reported
by respondents, was internet expertise (such as familiarity and expertise in using
computers, and prior internet and web-store purchase experience) with as many as 81.5%
of the respondents indicating that they either agree or strongly agree (a mean of 4.61). The
second highest score was the web-store properties variable with an overall mean of 4.42.
Price cost had the third highest score (mean = 4.19), with as many as 75.7% of the
respondents either agreeing or strongly agreeing. Another interesting finding of the
questionnaire was that a majority of the respondents (71.2%) either agree or strongly agree
that the delivery level and customer support play a vital role in influencing customer
satisfaction in the case of online shopping, with a mean of 4.0 and 3.80, respectively. The
least-important variable influencing customer satisfaction was the product variety (mean =
3.25).
The above-mentioned results support to some extent the findings in the literature
review regarding customer satisfaction with online shopping, which were revealed earlier
in this study (see for example, Lee and Joshi, 2006; Cho and Park, 2001; Abbott et al.,
2000; Shim et al., 2002; Eroglu et al., 2003; Kohli et al., 2004).
It may well be argued that as the 242 students are not a completely homogeneous group,
an attempt should be made to isolate the determinants of responses. Therefore, the overall
sample was analysed by the background variables discussed earlier. These are (1) gender,
(2) age, (3) type of college they belong to. The analysis by gender, age and type
 A study of customer satisfaction with online shopping 15

of college did reveal some significant differences when using the Kruskal Wallis test and
the Mann Whitney U test and these are reported in Table 7.

Table 6 Analysis showing the relationship between customer satisfaction and online shopping in
the UAE for the whole sample

Variables SD (%) D (%) U (%) A (%) SA (%) Mean Median SD Rank

Perceived channel traits
1 Web-store properties 9 12 3.6 55.4 20 4.42 5 0.71 2
2 Product variety – 1.4 3 51 44.6 3.25 4 0.51 8
3 Risk 9.9 20.1 19.3 13.7 37 3.6 4 0.72 7
4 Customer support – 17.1 14 53.1 15.8 3.8 4 0.69 5
5 Delivery level – 10.8 18 25.2 46 4 5 0.53 4
Perceived web-store traits
1 Time spent – – 35.4 13.6 51 3.65 4 0.59 6
2 Price cost – – 24.3 45.8 29.9 4.19 4 0.69 3
Consumer traits
Internet expertise 4.4 5.6 8.7 14.7 66.6 4.61 5 0.77 1
(such as familiarity and expertise in using computers, prior Internet and Web store purchases
experience)

Table 7 shows that regarding the analysis by age, in four cases (i.e., web-store properties,
product variety, risk and internet expertise) the distribution of responses between the three
categories (respondents under 20, above 20 but below 25 and 25 years old and above) were
significantly different, as measured by the Kruskal Wallis test. An examination of the
means for the groups suggests that respondents above 20 and under 25 years old had the
highest optimism scores in most cases, with the respondents 25 years old and above
reporting the lowest level of optimism.
The analysis by gender is also reported in Table 7. It can be seen that in three cases the
differences in the distribution of responses between male respondents and female
respondents were significant as measured by the Mann Whitney U test. The means for the
two groups reveal that the male respondents had higher scores in two cases, which were
the web-store properties and price cost, compared with the female respondents. Meanwhile,
in one case (i.e., risk), the female respondents had a higher mean (4.60) than that of male
respondents (3.75).
Table 7 also shows the analysis by type of college and reveals that in four cases the
differences in the distribution of responses between the respondents from the College of
Business Studies and those from the College of Computer Science were significantly
different using the Mann Whitney U test. The mean scores for the two groups suggest that
respondents from the College of Computer Science had higher scores than respondents
from the College of Business Studies. This result is perhaps not surprising given that
respondents from the College of Computer Science are expected to have had more
experience in using computers, internet and web-store purchase, compared with
respondents from the College of Business Studies.
16 M.M. Abdeldayem

Table 7 Analysis showing the relationship between customer satisfaction and online shopping in
UAE analysed by age, gender and type of college

Age Gender Type of college

College
Above 20 College of of
Under and under 25 and business Computer
20 25 above Male Female studies Science
(N = 72) (N = 101) (N = 69) Sig. (N = 156) (N = 86) Sig. (N = 171) (N = 71) Sig.
Variables Mean Mean Mean Mean Mean Mean Mean
Perceived channel traits
1 Web-Store 4 4.6 4.4 ** 4.7 4.2 *** 3.8 4.35 ***
properties
2 Product variety 4.7 4.5 4.6 * 3.28 4.4 – 4.4 4 –
3 Risk 4.2 4.7 4 *** 3.75 4.6 ** 4.7 4.15 *
4 Customer support 4.71 4.8 3.75 – 4.8 4.1 – 3.8 4.7 –
5 Delivery level 4.3 4.1 3.85 – 3.7 3.85 – 3.8 3.6 –
Perceived web-store traits
1 Time spent 4.8 4.5 4.4 – 3.83 4.45 – 4.23 4.72 **
2 Price cost 4.75 4.2 4.1 – 4.45 4.1 ** 3.83 3.95 –
Consumer traits
Internet expertise 4.5 4.55 3.85 *** 4.5 4.2 – 3.9 4.81 ***
(such as familiarity and expertise in using computers, prior Internet and Web store purchases experience)
*, **, ***, Indicates the distribution of responses between the categories is significantly
different at the 1, 5 and 10% levels (using the Kruskal-Wallis test and the Mann Whitney
U test respectively).

5 Limitations

Although customer satisfaction with online shopping has been established in the literature,
to the author’s knowledge, this paper is the first of its kind to examine this issue in the
Middle East and particularly in the UAE. The findings of this study are confined to a
sample of university students in Dubai, UAE, and this may limit the generalisability of the
results. Hence, future research may incorporate the perception and experience of a much
larger and diversified sample of customers in the UAE. A greater understanding could then
be obtained of customer satisfaction with online shopping in this country.

6 Implications and conclusions

To the researcher’s knowledge, this study is the first of its kind to examine customer
satisfaction with online shopping in the Middle East and particularly in the UAE. In the
study, the researcher built on current knowledge and outlined some research proposals that
can help us gain a more comprehensive understanding of customer satisfaction with
 A study of customer satisfaction with online shopping 17

online shopping in the UAE. Understanding customer satisfaction with online shopping is
particularly important since a high level of satisfaction is associated with several key
outcomes such as positive word-of-mouth reporting, repeat purchase and so on.
This study tested the integrated model of customer satisfaction with online shopping
that has been developed by Lee and Joshi (2006). The purpose of the study was to validate
that model as a measure of customer satisfaction with online shopping systems. Following
the approach in previous studies (Liu and Guo, 2008; Doll et al., 1994; McHaney et al.,
1999; Somers et al., 2003), the researcher examined that model in the context of online
shopping in the UAE. The study provided strong evidence that the adopted model is a
multifaceted construct consisting of three subscales: channel traits, web-store traits and
consumer traits. Although attention was given to online shopping systems, the researcher
is quite confident that the Lee and Joshi model can also be applied to other kinds of online
businesses, such as online auction systems and information portals. For researchers, the
major contribution of this study lies in the area of measurement. The adopted model was
validated, thus enabling researchers to use the instrument with increased confidence,
perhaps in some other Gulf countries such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain or
Oman, especially for online shopping and internet applications. In this regard, this research
can serve as an example for instrument validation.
The adopted model can, therefore, be used to detect major areas of customer
satisfaction or dissatisfaction for a particular system, thereby enabling managers in the
UAE to focus on those factors that contribute most significantly to overall satisfaction and
to improve systems in an efficient and effective manner.
Satisfaction with the online shopping experience is very important in that it has an
impact on the bottom-line profitability of sellers. The shopper’s satisfaction with the
website is an integral part of overall satisfaction. This study thus contributes to the
understanding of shoppers as end-users in e-commerce and provides online retailers with
a tool to evaluate their systems in terms of end-user computing satisfaction. This research
also suggests that consumer traits and web-store properties are the two most important
variables in online shopping in the UAE. Therefore, to better serve shoppers, websites
should pay close attention to consumer traits and web-store properties.
Although the sample of this study was limited (242 university students from Dubai,
UAE), it provides the researcher with an opportunity to study a specific potential market.
First of all, university students represent a large and lucrative segment of both present and
future markets in the UAE. Second, the UAE e-commerce sector is becoming increasingly
important and has great potential for growth. In the Middle East, the UAE has a relatively
mature e-commerce environment, with broadband connections and an e-commerce
population (Shiu and Dawson, 2002). In other Gulf countries, although there is a long way
to go for e-commerce to become a viable means of shopping, the number of internet users
has become quite close to that of the huge US market (The Associated Press, 2007). Thus,
not only is the UAE an example for other Middle Eastern markets to follow, but also
represents what those currently underdeveloped markets could become
in the future.
The empirical findings of this research study (i.e., the perception and analysis
of the 242 university students in Dubai, UAE participating in this study) reveal
that the attitude towards online shopping and the intention to shop online in the UAE are
affected not only by ease of use, usefulness and enjoyment, but also by some other factors
such as perceived web-store traits, channel traits and consumer traits.
18 M.M. Abdeldayem

Hence, these results can greatly assist researchers in understanding how customer
satisfaction with customer-based electronic commerce in the UAE is generated.
The analysis, based on three background characteristics (i.e., (1) age, (2) gender and
(3) type of college), did reveal some significant differences when using the Kruskal Wallis
test and the Mann Whitney U test. For example, the analysis by age, in four cases (i.e.,
web-store properties, product variety, risk and internet expertise) reveals that the
distribution of responses between the three categories (respondents under 20, above 20 and
under 25 and 25 years old and above) were significantly different, as measured by the
Kruskal Wallis test. An inspection of the means for the groups suggest that respondents
above 20 and under 25 years old had the highest optimism scores in most cases, with the
respondents 25 years old and above reporting the lowest level of optimism.
The analysis by gender shows that in three cases the differences in the distribution of
responses between male respondents and female respondents were significant as measured
by the Mann Whitney U test. The means for the two groups reveal that the male respondents
had higher scores in two cases, which concerned the web-store properties and price cost,
compared with the female respondents. Meanwhile, in one case (i.e., risk), the female
respondents had a mean (4.60) higher than that of male respondents (3.75).
The analysis by type of college reveals that in four cases the differences in the
distribution of responses between the respondents from college of business studies and
those from college of computer science were significantly different using the Mann
Whitney U test. The mean scores for the two groups suggest that respondents from college
of computer science had higher scores than respondents from college of business studies.
This result is perhaps not surprising given that respondents from college of computer
science are expected to have had more experience in using computers, internet and prior
web-store purchase compared with respondents from college of business studies.
The integrated model of Lee and Joshi (2006) that has been examined in this study
provides both an integration of existing research and a springboard for future research in
the area of customer satisfaction with online shopping. Hence, future research may
incorporate the perception and experience of a much larger and diversified sample of
customers in the UAE. A greater understanding could then be obtained in this regard. In
addition, the relative importance of dimensions of customer satisfaction with online
shopping in UAE could be a very interesting area, worthy of future investigation. Finally,
comparative research that covers customer satisfaction with online shopping in other
countries in the Middle East, or in the GCC in particular, such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar or
Kuwait, may be worthwhile.
In summary, this study investigates one important variable having an influence on
online shopping in the UAE: customer satisfaction. A validity study for online shopping
systems was conducted, using the integrated model of customer satisfaction with online
shopping that has been developed by Lee and Joshi (2006). As a result of this study, this
model is better understood, and its applicability has been extended to online shopping in
the UAE. Thus, the model can provide a summary evaluation for researchers and a means
of formally evaluating online shopping for practitioners in terms of customer satisfaction
not only in the UAE, but also in some other counties in the Gulf and in the Middle East
area in general.
 A study of customer satisfaction with online shopping 19

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