Flow Theory Approach to Impulsive Purchase of Millennials in Social Commerce in China

Abstract

Millennials’ motives to achieve flow and impulsive buying vary greatly in social commerce. This study provides a comprehensive framework better to understand millennial consumers’ spontaneous social commerce purchases. This framework aims to explain the flow experience and its complex relationship with Impulsive buying. The research used the partial least sHMOres structural model to analyse empirical data from 566 consumers who had previous experience purchasing on social media networks. This research revealed that the leach antecedent element significantly affects flow experience. The research also showed that flow experience strongly influences Impulsive buying. This study’s findings significantly impact social media companies trying to win millennials’ business. The key conclusion is that millennials’ flow experience may increase impulsive buying. Merchants may encourage more passionate and unconstrained shopping in this group by personalising techniques to boost flow experience characteristics. Moreover, a well-designed theoretical framework illuminates millennials’ social commerce engagement, flow experience, and Impulsive buying behaviour. The empirical validation of this framework illuminates the critical antecedents of the flow experience and its crucial role in Impulsive buying. These findings provide retailers with a path to improve millennial consumers’ flow experience and impulsive buying habits in social commerce.