Constraint and Dedication based Motivations on Use Continuance for a Web Portal Site

Most of the IS continuance research has assumed that IS use is activated by an intention to use, which in turn is determined by the evaluation of IS usage. Perceived usefulness is one of the evaluation variables most widely used. Typically, the past studies adopt this perceived usefulness because it views continuance as an extension of acceptance behavior. However, the literature on interpersonal relationships suggests that individuals are motivated to maintain relationships either because they genuinely want to or they believe they have no other option. The former is referred to as dedication-based relationship maintenance and the latter as constraint-based relationship maintenance. The IS continuance can be considered as the relationship maintenance situation with the existing IS that the user is currently using. The belief constructs previously used in IS continuance researches fall into the category of dedication-based ones. Additional constraint-based belief constructs are needed to explain the IS continuance behavior. In this regard, switching cost represents an important avenue for better understanding and predicting customer retention in that it can be regarded as the constraint-based motivation for relationship maintenance or IS use continuance. For an empirical exploration, 275 samples were collected from the users of a web portal site. Data analysis using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) shows that perceived usefulness shows a significant direct effect on continuance intention while perceived switching cost significantly affects continuance usage.