Measuring Customer Experience and Behavioural Intention in E-Banking: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach in the Indian Context

Abstract

Background: E-banking is now a primary service channel in India, but adoption remains uneven across customer segments. Classic acceptance models explain digital uptake through ease of use and usefulness, yet banks also influence upstream factors such as customers’ digital skill and the degree of technology integration in their platforms.

Objective: To measure customer experience and behavioural intention toward e-banking, and to test a seven-construct model linking Digital Skill and Technology Integration to Perceived Ease of Use, Perceived Usefulness, Attitude, Behavioural Intention, and Actual System Use.

Methodology: A cross-sectional survey of 400 retail banking customers was analysed using SEM. Data quality checks showed good reliability for the 35-item instrument (α = 0.885).

Findings: Digital Skill had a strong positive effect on Perceived Ease of Use (β = .74) and a small negative direct effect on Usefulness (β = −.18) after accounting for ease. Technology Integration increased Usefulness (β = .25). Ease of Use improved both Usefulness (β = .38) and Attitude (β = .48), while Usefulness had a negligible effect on Attitude (β ≈ −.01). Behavioural Intention was driven mainly by Attitude (β = .54) with an additional effect of Usefulness (β = .24). Actual System Use was strongly predicted by Intention (β = .68).

Originality / Novelty: The study extends TAM by introducing Digital Skill and Technology Integration as actionable antecedents and tests the full seven-construct specification on a large Indian sample using SEM. It shows that ease of use, rather than perceived utility alone, is the primary lever converting experience into intention and use in e-banking.