Flying to your home yard: the mediation and moderation model of the intention to employ drones for last-mile delivery

Abdul Hafaz Ngah, Department of Marketing, Faculty of Management and Economics, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia
Ramayah Thurasamy, School of Management, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Minden, Malaysia; Department of Information Technology and Management, Daffodil International University, Birulia, Bangladesh; Department of Management, Sunway Business School (SBS), Petaling Jaya, Malaysia; University Center for Research and Development (UCRD), Chandigarh University, Ludhiana, India; Management Information Systems Department, School of Business, The University of Jordan (UJ), Amman, Jordan and Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas Indonesia (UI), Depok City, Indonesia
Samar Rahi, Hailey College of Banking and Finance, University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan
Nurul Izni Kamalrulzaman, Faculty of Bioresources and Food Industry, Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin – Kampus Besut, Besut, Malaysia
Aamir Rashid, York College, City University of New York
Fei Long, Business School, Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang, China and UKM-GSB, National University of Malaysia, Bangi, Malaysia

Originally published in Kybernetes © Emerald Publishing Limited 0368-492X DOI 10.1108/K-04-2024-1098

Abstract

Purpose – Drones will become part of daily lives similar to smartphones becoming a staple of modern living. Nonetheless, only several past studies investigated the intention to utilise drones for parcel delivery however, the intention to use drones among online shoppers was not fully explored. The study attempts to investigate the factors influencing the intention to use drones for last-mile delivery.

Design/methodology/approach – A total of 292 data were gathered via an online survey among online shoppers applying a snowball sampling method. Since the study operationalised the measures as composites, a combination of reflective and formative measurement, and the study focusses on predictive purposes, partial least squares structural equation modelling with SmartPLS 4 was applied to test the model developed based on the stimulus-organism-response model.

Findings – The analysis found that all the direct hypotheses were found supported. Moreover, Green support, green desire and pro-environmental behaviour positively and sequentially mediated future orientation and intention, whereas technology anxiety and perceived safety moderated the relationship between pro-environmental behaviour and intention.

Research limitations/implications – The respondents only limit to the online shoppers in Malaysia which based on purposive sampling method, thus the findings cannot be generalized to another countries.

Practical implications – Besides enriching the literature on drone studies, the findings provided practical insights to online platforms and drone operators to develop an effective strategy to encourage online shoppers to shift from conventional delivery to drone delivery.

Originality/value – The study developed a new model for drone delivery studies using the S-O-R model in introducing orientation towards the future and green support as the stimulus, green desire as an organism and proenvironmental behaviour and usage intention as a response. The study introduced multiple sequential mediators, also contributing to the S-O-R model to predict online shoppers’ behaviour towards drones as a tool for last-mile delivery. Another important contribution, technology anxiety and perceived safety were confirmed to have a moderation effect for the relationship between pro-environmental behaviour and intention to use drones for last-mile delivery.