Evidence for Acceptance of Ride-Hailing Services in Iran

Ride-hailing, as an important part of the sharing economy in the transport sector, has gradually become a popular model of travel. Nowadays, ride-hailing is rapidly being adopted in Iran. Thus, there is a necessity to explore the factors that determine potential users' acceptance of ride-hailing services. To do so, a model was developed from a combination of the technology acceptance model with the information system success model and trust. About 500 users participated in this study, and 466 valid responses were collected. Structural equation modeling with mediation analysis was used to examine the data. Information and service quality have a significant influence on perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness. As predicted, perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use both had a positive relationship with trust, and perceived usefulness had a positive relationship with behavioral intention. However, the predicted relationship that perceived ease of use had a positive relationship with behavioral intention was rejected. Furthermore, results underline the important role of trust as a mediator variable in the model. The model confirmed good explanatory power in the context of ride-hailing. This study expands the literature on technology acceptance by examining the mediating role of trust, a topic that has not previously been investigated. The paper points to the central role of trust in increasing intention to use ride-hailing, and ultimately the likelihood of this behavior.