Business Students' Perceptions of Electronic Commerce - Will They Join the Revolution?

The dramatic impact of Electronic Commerce (EC) is attracting much attention, most of which is directed towards emerging Internet technology. However, it is generally acknowledged that it will take a few more years before EC becomes mainstream. The perceptions of business students, the future business leaders, on the promises and perils of EC are therefore vital. Our research indicated that they believe that the capabilities of the Internet for marketing and distribution are achieved to a greater extent than those for accounting and finance. The use of digital money appears to be still unrealistic in their opinion. Their main concern is for the insecurity of EC in such areas as computer viruses, theft of information, and unauthorised access to data by intruders. As a consequence, the trust the students currently have in EC is relatively low. However, they are optimistic about future prospects of EC, which they perceive will significantly improve over the next few years