The Effect of Perceived Characteristics of Innovation on E-Commerce Adoption by SMEs in Thailand

Abstract

The study investigates factors that effect E-commerce adoption rate by Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in Thailand. Based on Rogers’ Innovation Diffusion theoretical framework, five perceived characteristics of innovation are considered as factors affect E-commerce adoption rate. Security and Confidentiality is additional variable investigated this research. A multiple regression was conducted and the result shows that four characteristics of innovation – relative advantage, compatibility, security/confidentiality and observability – were positively related to the rate of E-commerce adoption by Thai SMEs.

Keywords: e-commerce, innovation diffusion, innovation characteristics, Thailand