The effect of government regulations on continuance intention of in-store proximity mobile payment services

Purpose: This study proposed and tested three comprehensive models of the usage intention of proximity mobile payment services after a government regulation, by integrating the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) and the norm-activation model (NAM). The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of moral norms, merchant pro-activeness and perceived government regulation (demonetisation) on users’ continuance intention of proximity mobile payment services. Design/methodology/approach: In total, 387 users of proximity mobile payment services in India were surveyed using a structured questionnaire. This study was carried out with shoppers in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region and New Delhi because of the diverse and large population of these cities. Findings: The results of this study indicated that: integrating the variables of NAM into the original TPB model enhanced the prediction effect; perceived demonetisation regulation exerted a direct determinant effect as well as moderate effect on continuance usage intention of mobile payment services; also, extended TPB model with perceived demonetisation regulation as moderator could satisfactorily predict the continuance usage intention. Research limitations/implications: The results provided insightful evidence for the government and policymakers to outline more effective mandatory regulation policies. Originality/value: This investigation attempts to enhance the theoretical understanding of the antecedents of in-store proximity mobile payment services after government regulation (demonetisation) in India.