Are you hungry for play? Investigating the role of emotional attachment on continuance intention to use food delivery apps

Purpose Food delivery apps (FDAs) have rapidly developed due to mobile technologies, changes in modern consumption and increased online use during the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite this, the platforms are struggling to build a stable customer base and make a profit. This study combined tech-driven motivators in an information system success model (ISSM) and emotional attachment operated by affect transfer theory (ATT) to explain why people might continue to use an FDA. Design/methodology/approach An online quantitative cross-sectional survey was carried out via the Prolific platform. Data were collected from 416 FDA users and analyzed to test the hypotheses using the partial least squares based structural equation modeling. Findings The study found that system quality, information quality and emotional attachment directly influence the continued use of FDA. Moreover, the results suggest that perceived social interactivity and perceived playfulness are significant antecedents of emotional attachment. Research limitations/implications The findings of this study enrich the current literature on continuance intention in online food delivery services by integrating the technology- and affective-based factors. The findings also provide various practical implications for app designers and marketers to foster an emotional bond with users, resulting in high retention rate. Originality/value The study proposes the integrated framework of ISSM and ATT for enhancing understanding of consumer behaviors in the post-adoption stage for FDA.