The mediating roles of structural assurance and task characteristics: An integrated UTAUT-TAM-TTF model of mobile banking acceptance

Abstract

This study aims to examine the mediating roles of structural assurance and task characteristics in shaping behavioral intention to adopt mobile banking by integrating the UTAUT, TAM, and task-technology fit frameworks. A quantitative, survey-based approach was employed, collecting data from mobile banking users. The proposed integrated model was tested using structural equation modeling to assess the direct and mediating effects among the constructs. The key findings reveal that structural assurance notably mediates the effects of effort expectancy, facilitating conditions, perceived trust, and perceived security on behavioral intention, with the strongest mediation path originating from perceived security. The integrated model demonstrates strong explanatory power, accounting for 81% of the variance in behavioral intention. Task characteristics significantly mediate the relationships of performance expectancy, effort expectancy, and facilitating conditions with intention, with the strongest effect for effort expectancy. However, task characteristics do not mediate the impacts of perceived trust and perceived security on behavioral intention. For practitioners, the findings underscore the need to enhance system security, ensure functional alignment with user tasks, and strengthen institutional guarantees to drive mobile banking adoption. Specifically, banks should prioritize structural assurance mechanisms (e.g., clear security policies, institutional guarantees) as they serve as the most robust mediator connecting perceived security to behavioral intention. Additionally, reducing user effort through task-characteristic alignment is critical, as effort expectancy emerges as the most important component indirectly affecting intention through task-technology fit.