Transforming rural economies: a study on adoption of digital payments by rural women in India

Purpose The purpose of this study is to determine the factor that influences the attitude and behavioral intention of rural women in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, India, for digital payment adoption. Design/methodology/approach This study uses a cross-sectional design, collecting data through the administration of 550 questionnaires to rural female participants. Total 468 valid responses were used in the analysis, which was conducted using the statistical software SmartPLS 4 and SPSS 26. Findings The findings of the study suggest that facilitating conditions (FC), social influence (SI), personal innovativeness (PI), lifestyle compatibility (LC) and perceived security (PS) have a significant impact on behavioral intention (BI) and also have significant impact on attitude (ATT) along with perceived security. Influence of attitude on actual usage indicates that attitude becomes more favorable when the actual usage of the system increases. Research limitations/implications The findings of the study offer insightful information about the factors that influence the attitude and behavioral intention of rural women in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh toward digital payment adoption. The results emphasized the critical need for development of facilitating condition to enhance the usage of digital payment in rural India. Originality/value This study offers novel insights about the factors influencing rural women’s adoption of digital payments in India. By emphasizing the role of infrastructure, social influence and security concerns, it provides actionable recommendations to promote financial inclusion, economic empowerment and socio-economic development in rural communities.