Gen Z Consumer Purchase Intention Towards Blockchain-enabled Traceable Coffee – A Study in Bangkok

MSME Business School, Department of Marketing, Assumption University, Bangkok, Thailand

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Abstract

As the use of blockchain technology in the food sector has soared in recent years, it is imperative to examine how consumers respond to this novel practice. For this purpose, this study aims to understand the factors influencing consumers’ purchase intention for blockchain-traceable coffee. As a hub of coffee consumption in Southeast Asia, Bangkok has advanced in the application of QR code-based traceability in the coffee sector. Consequently, this research employs the Stimulus–Organism–Response (SOR) framework as a theoretical foundation to carry out a survey study, and specifically, consumer blockchain knowledge (BK) is treated as stimulus, consumer trust in blockchain (BT) is treated as organism and consumer purchase intention (INT) is regarded as response. An online survey was conducted from September to October 2025, and respondents were recruited by using a purposive sampling technique. For the statistical analysis, Hayes’ PROCESS macro (model 4) was applied to analyze the mediating effect of trust in blockchain. The results revealed that BK significantly affect BT (β=0.503, p<.001), and BT significantly predict INT (β=0.815, p<.001). Although the direct effect of BK on INT is not significant (β=0.032, p=.458), the indirect effect of BK on INT was confirmed (β=0.410) with 95% bootstrapped confidence interval that zero did not exist [0.317, 0.503]. Thus, a full mediation of BI is exhibited. The results support the S-O-R logic, which holds that stimuli influence consumer behavioral responses by shaping their psychological states.