Investigating factors that affect attitude, consumer satisfaction, and intention to use of electric vehicles

Abstract

Demand for environmentally friendly vehicle has been rapidly increased due to paradigm transition of automobile industry and policies that foster the adoption of environmentally friendly vehicle to meet the goal of carbon neutrality. Among environmentally friendly vehicles, electric vehicle is the one that customers can easily access and experience based on demand across the countries. Therefore, how consumers perceive and understand characteristics of electric vehicles might be the key aspects to increase adoption rate. Based on the consideration, this study investigates factors that affect attitude, satisfaction, and intention to use of electric vehicle. By classifying actual and potential consumers, this study develops research questions i) how factors such as economic feasibility, sociality, environmental sustainability, inefficiency, inconvenience, convenience, and uncertainty affect attitude; ii) how attitude affects actual consumers satisfaction for actual consumers; and iii) how attitude affects intention to use for potential consumers. This study conducted online survey and applied factor and regression analyses, ANOVA, and t-test to test hypotheses. The results of this study found that economic feasibility and convenience factors significantly affect attitude based on both actual and potential consumers, while effects of inefficiency and uncertainty on attitude showed significant based on actual consumers. This study provides policy implications that foster promotional policies for the adoption of electric vehicles to meet carbon neutrality and regulate negative aspects. This study also provides managerial implications for manufacturers to develop better technology competences such as battery related to enhance reliability on electric vehicles.