Consumers' hierarchy value structure on social commerce: a means-end chain approach

This study employs the means-end chains theory to explore the attributes emphasised by social commerce consumers and the resulting psychological values. We employ methods such as laddering interviews, content analysis, implication matrix, and hierarchical value map to construct the hierarchical value structure of 'platform attributes – consumption consequences – psychological values' from the consumer's perspective. The study categorised and summarised 12 platform attributes, ten consumption consequences, and eight psychological values. Additionally, this study extends the three main attribute categories of social commerce, an area previously unexplored by other research. The results indicate that a higher proportion of consumers seek support from social media technologies, followed by community interactions and commercial activities within the social commerce environment. These findings help online sellers to understand the most valued elements for consumers. The sellers could make promotion strategies based on these findings.