Why do consumers continue to use online-to-offline delivery services? Moderating roles of social anxiety

The proliferation of mobile Internet has accelerated the uptake of online-to-offline delivery (O2OD) operations. Although existing literature has extensively investigated the food (meal) delivery—a traditional O2OD concept, it remains unclear why consumers continue to use O2OD in a multi-service scenario—a broader O2OD context where consumers utilize multiple delivery services. Additionally, consumers with social anxiety may rely more on O2OD, as using these services reduces offline interpersonal interactions.

Drawing upon the extended unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT2), this study developed a framework applicable to a general O2OD context, with a particular interest in incorporating social anxiety as a moderator. Data were derived from a two-stage online survey completed in China and subsequently analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling. Results emphasize that individual beliefs (i.e., convenience expectancy, network size influence, and delivery price value), facilitating conditions, and habit positively predict continuance intention, which, alongside habit and facilitating conditions, in turn predicts actual use.

Social anxiety weakens the effects of convenience expectancy and delivery price value on continuance intention while strengthening the influence of network size. The study contextually adapts and extends the UTAUT2 baseline model to a generalized O2OD context, identifies social anxiety as a boundary condition, and provides practical insights for O2OD platforms as well as for consumer well-being. This research was funded by the Guangxi QingMiao Talent Support Program.

College of Business, Nanning University, Nanning, China Faculty of Human Ecology, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Malaysia Correspondence to Pinyi Yao or Yongheng Meng. The authors declare no competing interests. This study was conducted in accordance with local legislation in China (e.g., the Personal Information Protection Law) and followed the Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct (APA Ethics Code) for research involving human participants.

As part of a research project, this study received ethical approval from the Ethics Committee (the Office of Scientific Research and Discipline Construction) of Nanning University (Reference number: UNN2024022701; Date: 27 February 2024). The survey was conducted online from June to July 2024, and informed consent was obtained electronically from all participants. Before proceeding with the online questionnaire, respondents were required to read the relevant information and declare their consent to participate.

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