Purpose This paper examines the shopping and buying behavior of younger and older online shoppers as mediated by their attitudes toward internet shopping. Design/methodology/approach Over 300 students and staff from a US university completed a survey regarding their online shopping and buying experiences for 17 products. Findings The results show that, while older online shoppers search for significantly fewer products than their younger counterparts, they actually purchase as much as younger consumers. Attitudinal factors explained more variance in online searching behavior. Age explained more variance in purchasing behavior if the consumer had first searched for the product online. Research limitations/implications The limitations of the present research are threefold. First, the sample was restricted to university faculty, staff and students. Second, a better measure of the hedonic motivation construct is needed. Third, additional independent measures such as income should be included to understand the additional demographic factors related to online purchase. Practical implications Retailing managers can make use of the results as describing multifaceted nature of online shopping and buying behavior. Age differences (in both directions) were seen for many product categories. In addition, results indicate that how one measures online shopping impacts on one's understanding of age effects on internet shopping. Age was negatively correlated with online pre‐purchase search but was positively correlated with online purchasing when pre‐purchase search behavior was taken into account. Originality/value The present study advances knowledge of the nature of the relationships among age, attitudes, and online shopping and buying behavior.
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