Live Streaming Commerce(LSC) is a relatively new retail model in e-commerce, where this model highlights its interaction with consumers live-streaming on online platforms. Consumers can also place orders within the same systems (Wang et al., 2022). Statista (2021) reported a 76% growth in LSC worldwide, and the sales grew from 3USD billion to 171USD billion within China (Arora, Kim, & Kohli, 2021). With the rapid growth of LSC, it is critical to understand the psychological mechanisms that underpin the buyer-seller relationship. We believe that two major factors govern the seller-buyer relationship in LSC. Specifically, they are the buyer's trust(in the seller's ability), and the trust is developed due to the interaction between the seller and the buyer.  

Trust relationships are crucial in buyer-seller relationships, yet, which type of trust is more important (i.e., ability, benevolence, and integrity) remain inconclusive (citation) and possibly not applicable in the LSC setting. Because the essence of LSC is for the seller to demonstrate the product in real time, it makes sense that the seller's ability can be evaluated. We hypothesize that trust in the seller's ability (but not benevolence or integrity) can predict both buying intention and actual purchase behaviors. We test this hypothesis in our Study 1.

Because one of the highlights of LSC is its readiness for the seller to develop rapport with the buyer via direct communication throughout the live-streaming process, and trust studies have highlighted that trust development requires personal interaction (citation). We further hypothesized that the relationship between trust in the seller’s ability and purchase behaviors is mediated by interaction frequency between the seller and the buyer. We test this mediation model in our Study 2.

            Study 1 and Study 2 were set up to simulate an actual LSC environment. Participants were recruited under disguise to evaluate a novel product. They were asked to view a pre-recorded "Livestream," and in Study 2, they could interact with the seller using pre-set questions. They will receive standardized responses. These pre-set questions are realistic and simulated after actual LSC platforms. They indicate their purchase intention and can place the order on the same platform. They also filled out the modified Mayer (1995) trust questionnaire.

            Consistent with our hypothesis, Study 1 results indicated that the perceived trust in the seller’s ability predicts both the consumers' purchase intentions (statistics) and also significantly predicts actual purchase outcomes (b=0.495, t(61)= 4.452, p<.001). Study 2 results are also consistent with our hypotheses, perceived trust in the seller’s ability significantly predicts live-stream purchase (statistics), and this relationship is fully mediated (or moderated?)  by the frequency of interaction (statistics). 

            The current study is the first to identify the trust dimension in a seller-buyer relationship in LSC. The mediation model also shows that interaction, a feature highlighted in the LSC environment, is crucial for developing this trust relationship. The understanding in this study can be used to understand the decision making process in LSC.