| Online community has become the new interactive platform for consumers. Consumers'interactive behavior in online community, which is different from interactive behavior in traditional context, has attracted much attention from both academic and industrial fields. Virtual community and SNS are two main types of online community. There are remarkable differences between the two communities. Virtual community and SNS will coexist for a long time. Companies'businesses involve how to promote in these communities. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to explore the influence of interaction on consumers'purchase intention in the context of online communities, and compare the difference of the influence between virtual community and SNS context.Based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), this paper developed a theoretical model to predict the influence of interaction on consumers'purchase intention in online communities. The theoretical model took interaction dimensions as stimulus, perceived usefulness, cognitive trust and perceived expectation fit as psychological reaction, and purchase intention as behavioral reaction. Using data from online surveys, the proposed model was tested by using the Partial Least Squares (PLS) technique. The process of data analyses contains four parts:two preliminary studies, a full model analysis (not containing moderator) and a moderator analysis. The contents and results of these parts are as follow:First, the first preliminary study:the development of a plan-interaction-reaction model. Based on the TAM, this paper developed a theoretical model to predict the psychological and behavioral reaction of consumers in the context of interaction in online communities, which is named plan-interaction-reaction model. Using data from online surveys of consumers who have the experience of interaction in online communities before purchasing digital products/household appliance, the proposed model was tested by using PLS. The results show that the plan-interaction-reaction model is well suited to explain consumers'reaction process of interaction in online communities:perceived usefulness, cognitive trust and perceived expectation fit are antecedents of purchase intention; perceived usefulness and cognitive trust have positive impact on perceived expectation fit; cognitive trust has a positive impact on perceived usefulness. In addition, the plan-interaction-reaction model explained a significant proportion of the variance in consumers'purchase intention, which is 3% higher than TAM in the whole online communities context (AR=3%) and 3% higher than TAM in the virtual communities context (AR2=3%) and 4% higher than TAM in the SNS context (AR2=4%).Second, the second preliminary study:the development of interaction dimensions. Based on the Information Communication Model, this paper developed the dimensions and scale of interaction in online communities. Using data from online surveys of consumers who have the experience of interaction in online communities before purchasing products, the scale was tested by using PLS. The results show that consumers' interaction characteristics in online communities can be tested by using four dimensions, namely source quality, tie strength, information quality and interaction atmosphere.Third, the full proposed model (not containing moderator):the development of a theoretical model to predict the influence of interaction on consumers'purchase intention in online communities. Based on the conclusions of the two preliminary studies, using data from online surveys of consumers who have the experience of interaction in online communities before purchasing products, the full proposed model was tested by using PLS. The results show:perceived usefulness, cognitive trust and perceived expectation fit are antecedents of purchase intention; perceived usefulness and cognitive trust have positive impact on perceived expectation fit; cognitive trust, information quality and interaction atmosphere have positive impact on perceived usefulness; source quality, tie strength, information quality and interaction atmosphere have positive impact on cognitive trust.Fourth, the analysis of moderator:a comparison between virtual community and SNS. By using data collected in the third study, the full proposed model was tested in the context of virtual community and SNS context by using PLS. Then, multi-groups analysis, was explored to compare the difference between the two groups. The results show:source quality has significant effect on perceived usefulness in virtual community context, but has none in SNS context; tie strength has no significant effect on perceived usefulness in both communities; information quality and interaction atmosphere have significant effect on perceived usefulness in virtual community context, but has none in SNS context; source quality has significant effect on cognitive trust in both communities, but more stronger in SNS context; tie strength and information quality have significant effect on cognitive trust in virtual community context, but has none in SNS context; interaction atmosphere has significant effect on cognitive trust in both communities.As last, some marketing implications were developed based on the conclusion of the empirical studies.
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