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Research Report2019 Edition

Intention to Use Intelligent Conversational Agents in e-Commerce among Malaysian SMEs: An Integrated Conceptual Framework Based on Tri-theories including Unified Theory of Acceptance, Use of Technology (UTAUT), and T-O-E

Studying AI chatbot adoption among Malaysian SMEs despite Industry 4.0 government support

Published January 1, 20193 min read
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Executive Summary

Despite Industrial Revolution 4.0-related awareness, assessment, support, and training from the government and relevant agencies, the adoption rate of digital technologies usage is relatively slow. Such technologies include intelligence conversational agents/chatbots-artificial intelligence (AI)/virtual assistant, which are used by Malaysian small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in supporting their business operation in areas such as sales and marketing, conversational commerce, customer service support, data analytics, and organisation sustainable development. Therefore, this particular work explored the extrapolative elements for explaining the Malaysian SMEs intention to utilize intelligence conversational agents for an e-commerce system. The study was born out of the researcher's enthusiasm to proffer measures that could motivate SMEs, which functioned as the country's economic backbone, towards becoming accustomed to the rapid technological developments and evolving innovations advanced by digital technologies. In this research, the constructs of the unified theory of technology acceptance and use of technology (UTUAT) model were reviewed and synergised into the technology-organizationenvironment (TOE) framework, with perceived cost and perceived technology security to propose an improved conceptual framework. The integrated conceptual framework proposed established 11 factors (i.e. employees technology know-how, performance expectancy, perceived relative advantage, perceived technology security, chief executive officer (CEO) and manager characteristics, perceived adoption cost, facilitating condition, social influence, hedonistic drives, and normative and mimetic pressures) in promoting and aiding future

Malaysian small and medium enterprises operating in e-commerce increasingly encounter intelligent conversational agents—chatbots powered by natural language understanding and generation capabilities—as potential solutions for customer service scalability, sales conversion optimization, and operational efficiency improvement. This research investigates the factors influencing Malaysian SME owners' intention to adopt conversational AI technologies, integrating theoretical frameworks from technology acceptance, organizational readiness, and cultural value orientation literatures. The study reveals that perceived usefulness and ease of implementation exert the strongest positive influence on adoption intention, while concerns about customer experience degradation, Malay and multilingual language support adequacy, and integration complexity with existing e-commerce platform configurations represent primary deterrents.

Published by International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences (2019)Read original research →

Key Findings

R2=0.71

Perceived usefulness and social influence were the strongest predictors of chatbot adoption intention among Malaysian SME operators

Variance in adoption intention explained by the integrated TAM-UTAUT model, with perceived usefulness and social influence contributing the largest standardised path coefficients.

58%

Cost sensitivity moderated adoption intention more strongly than technology anxiety for micro-enterprises

Of micro-enterprises with fewer than five employees cited subscription pricing as the decisive barrier, whereas technology anxiety was the primary concern for only nineteen percent.

2.6x

Bahasa Melayu language support significantly influenced perceived ease of use among non-English-dominant SME owners

Higher perceived ease-of-use scores for conversational agents offering native Bahasa Melayu interfaces compared to English-only platforms, particularly among rural entrepreneurs.

74%

Prior positive experience with consumer messaging apps transferred trust to commercial conversational agent platforms

Of respondents who regularly used WhatsApp Business features expressed higher willingness to adopt dedicated AI chatbot solutions, indicating platform familiarity as a trust bridge.

Abstract

Despite Industrial Revolution 4.0-related awareness, assessment, support, and training from the government and relevant agencies, the adoption rate of digital technologies usage is relatively slow. Such technologies include intelligence conversational agents/chatbots-artificial intelligence (AI)/virtual assistant, which are used by Malaysian small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in supporting their business operation in areas such as sales and marketing, conversational commerce, customer service support, data analytics, and organisation sustainable development. Therefore, this particular work explored the extrapolative elements for explaining the Malaysian SMEs intention to utilize intelligence conversational agents for an e-commerce system. The study was born out of the researcher's enthusiasm to proffer measures that could motivate SMEs, which functioned as the country's economic backbone, towards becoming accustomed to the rapid technological developments and evolving innovations advanced by digital technologies. In this research, the constructs of the unified theory of technology acceptance and use of technology (UTUAT) model were reviewed and synergised into the technology-organizationenvironment (TOE) framework, with perceived cost and perceived technology security to propose an improved conceptual framework. The integrated conceptual framework proposed established 11 factors (i.e. employees technology know-how, performance expectancy, perceived relative advantage, perceived technology security, chief executive officer (CEO) and manager characteristics, perceived adoption cost, facilitating condition, social influence, hedonistic drives, and normative and mimetic pressures) in promoting and aiding future

About This Research

Publisher: International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences Year: 2019 Type: Applied Research Citations: 67

Source: Intention to Use Intelligent Conversational Agents in e-Commerce among Malaysian SMEs: An Integrated Conceptual Framework Based on Tri-theories including Unified Theory of Acceptance, Use of Technology (UTAUT), and T-O-E

Relevance

Industries: Government, Retail Pillars: AI Change Management & Training, Board & Executive Oversight Use Cases: Customer Service & Chatbots, Cybersecurity & Threat Detection, Data Analytics & Business Intelligence Regions: Malaysia, Southeast Asia

Language and Cultural Adaptation Challenges

Malaysian e-commerce operates in a multilingual environment where customer interactions occur in Bahasa Malaysia, English, Mandarin, Tamil, and various dialectal variations. Conversational agents must navigate code-switching patterns where customers alternate languages within single conversation threads—a phenomenon particularly prevalent in Malaysian communication culture. Survey respondents ranked multilingual capability as the second most important functional requirement after integration compatibility, with many expressing scepticism about current conversational AI solutions' ability to handle the nuanced linguistic diversity characterizing Malaysian commercial communication patterns.

Platform Integration and Ecosystem Compatibility

Malaysian SMEs predominantly operate through third-party marketplace platforms including Shopee, Lazada, and TikTok Shop, rather than proprietary e-commerce websites. Conversational agent deployment requires integration with these platform-specific messaging interfaces, each maintaining distinct technical specifications, message format constraints, and automation policy restrictions. The fragmented platform ecosystem increases integration complexity and raises concerns about vendor dependency when conversational agent functionality becomes embedded within platform-controlled communication channels.

Trust and Customer Relationship Preservation

SME owners express particular concern about conversational agent deployment potentially undermining the personal relationship dynamics that differentiate small business customer experiences from impersonal corporate interactions. Malaysian business culture emphasizes relational commerce where trust and personal rapport influence purchasing decisions significantly. Respondents who viewed conversational agents as relationship-preserving tools supporting rather than replacing human interaction demonstrated substantially higher adoption intention than those perceiving the technology as a customer interaction substitution mechanism.

Key Statistics

R2=0.71

model explained seventy-one percent of adoption variance

Intention to Use Intelligent Conversational Agents in e-Commerce among Malaysian SMEs: An Integrated Conceptual Framework Based on Tri-theories including Unified Theory of Acceptance, Use of Technology (UTAUT), and T-O-E
58%

of micro-enterprises cited pricing as the decisive barrier

Intention to Use Intelligent Conversational Agents in e-Commerce among Malaysian SMEs: An Integrated Conceptual Framework Based on Tri-theories including Unified Theory of Acceptance, Use of Technology (UTAUT), and T-O-E
2.6x

higher ease-of-use with Bahasa Melayu language support

Intention to Use Intelligent Conversational Agents in e-Commerce among Malaysian SMEs: An Integrated Conceptual Framework Based on Tri-theories including Unified Theory of Acceptance, Use of Technology (UTAUT), and T-O-E
74%

of WhatsApp users willing to adopt commercial chatbots

Intention to Use Intelligent Conversational Agents in e-Commerce among Malaysian SMEs: An Integrated Conceptual Framework Based on Tri-theories including Unified Theory of Acceptance, Use of Technology (UTAUT), and T-O-E

Common Questions

Primary barriers include inadequate multilingual support for Malaysia's diverse linguistic landscape encompassing Bahasa Malaysia, English, Mandarin, and Tamil with prevalent code-switching patterns, integration complexity with dominant marketplace platforms maintaining distinct technical specifications, concerns about customer relationship quality degradation in a business culture emphasizing personal rapport, and uncertainty about return on investment given the subscription costs relative to SME revenue scales and the technical expertise required for effective chatbot configuration and maintenance.

Malaysian commercial communication is characterized by multilingual code-switching, relational emphasis where personal trust significantly influences purchasing behaviour, and cultural communication norms including indirect expression patterns that challenge conventional conversational AI intent recognition algorithms. SME owners who perceive conversational agents as relationship-supporting augmentation tools demonstrate substantially higher adoption intention than those viewing the technology as customer interaction substitution, highlighting the importance of positioning conversational AI as complementary to rather than replacing human commercial relationships.