Impacts of self-efficacy and herd behavior on farmers' intention to adopt digital payment in the mountainous regions of Northern Vietnam

PurposeThis study examines farmers' intention to adopt digital payment (DP) in the mountainous regions of northern Vietnam, employing the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT), self-efficacy theory and herd behavior theory.Design/methodology/approachThis research used partial least square-SEM (PLS-SEM) with orthogonalizing approach to examine farmers' adoption intention to adopt DP.FindingsThis research found that factors such as performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence and facilitating conditions emerge as significant drivers of farmers' intention to adopt DP. Moreover, our findings highlight the substantial impact of herd behavior and imitation self-efficacy on farmers' adoption intentions, illustrating their tendency to emulate the actions of others. Notably, DP self-efficacy emerges as a critical determinant, influencing farmers' adoption intentions both directly and indirectly through performance and effort expectancies.Research limitations/implicationsPerformance expectancy was used to represent DP benefits, which should be divided into economic and non-economic aspects. Imitation behavior and imitation self-efficacy were self-reported, potentially leading to overestimation due to self-image concerns. Hence, future research may consider using performance-based tests to measure herding behavior and imitation self-efficacy.Originality/valueThis study makes a distinct contribution to existing literature by incorporating imitation self-efficacy, thereby expanding the framework of self-efficacy theory in the context of DP adoption.