Contributions of social capital theory in predicting rural community inshopping behavior

The social environment in which the retailer conducts business is not often measured for its fundamental influences on consumers’ local purchasing behavior. This study, using social capital theory as a theoretical framework, examines whether reciprocal actions exist between community members as consumers and retailers and if these actions are persuasive in predicting the economic activity regarded as consumer inshopping. Determinants of inshopping behavior are analyzed from the community member’s perspective in a study of the rural community marketplace. The sample population consisted of consumers living in two rural Iowa communities with populations less than 10,000, agricultural-based economies, and retail mixtures of locally owned and operated small-sized businesses as well as national chain and discount organizations. Structural equation modeling estimated the causal patterns among consumers’ attachment to community with two endogenous variables regarding reciprocity and inshopping behavior. Findings offer supporting evidence that social relationships aid in predicting rural marketplace relationships.