Determinants of E-Commerce Development: An Empirical Study by Firms in Shaanxi, China

Past research has studied a variety of variables. However, less research is found to measure e-commerce (EC) development in terms of business processes. Building upon the TOE (Technology-Organization-Environment) framework, a research model for assessing EC development was developed, incorporating eight factors. A series of propositions were then developed. 156 cross-sectional samples in 16 industries, covering 11 cities and regions in Shaanxi in China, were collected by e-mail survey, online survey and telephone interviews. Statistical analysis was carried out to test the model. The findings showed that technology foundation, user satisfaction, management of informatization, EC security, and potential technology investment tended to have the most significant impact on EC development, while firm size seemed to be a non-significant factor and firm property was found not to affect EC development.