The psychology behind cart abandonment : why do customers leave without buying?

Abstract

The thesis examines psychological factors that contribute to online shopping cart abandonment, a significant obstacle to achieving successful e-commerce conversions. Employing a qualitative methodology, ten semi-structured interviews with online shoppers representing various markets, this thesis identified emotional ambivalence, decision fatigue, information overload, perceived risk, platform trust, and economic rationalization as the principal behavioral determinants of abandonment. Furthermore, the findings indicated that consumer-level cognitive and affective processes are the most influential factors in abandonment, which contrasts with existing literature that primarily prioritizes technical or transactional explanations. Consumers frequently employ the shopping cart for exploratory, performative, or hedonic activities; however, abandonment during the checkout process suggests self-regulation, anticipated regret, and platform-specific concerns. This thesis integrates the Theory of Planned Behavior with the Trust-Risk Framework to explain how attitudes towards purchasing, are influenced by risk-trust evaluations, behavioral control, and subjective norms. These factors collectively shape intent and induce or discourage shopping cart abandonment. By reinterpreting abandonment as a strategic psychological outcome, the thesis also offers managerial recommendations for developing trust-enhancing conversion strategies to counter shopping cart abandonment.