Factors affecting impulse buying behavior in the context of E-commerce live streaming

Impulsive buying is a prevalent consumer behavior associated with hedonic consumption needs, particularly in live-streaming e-commerce environments. This study applied the Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) framework to develop a model examining how five key characteristics of live-streaming content, including opinion leadership, professionalism, entertainment, interactivity, and promotional intensity, can serve as external stimuli influencing impulse buying behavior. Using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) with bootstrapping, the analysis of data from 263 respondents revealed that all five content characteristics were positively correlated with consumers' impulse buying intentions. Furthermore, pleasure and arousal partially mediate the relationship between content characteristics and impulse buying, confirming the effectiveness of emotional transmission. This study extended the traditional two-dimensional shopping model by integrating emotional factors in the live-streaming context. Practical implications suggested strategies for streamers to enhance professionalism, increase interactive entertainment, and utilize time-limited promotions to trigger emotional responses that could promote impulsive purchases.