"Why I wouldn't own an electric vehicle yet": an emerging market perspective

Official URL: https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.techsoc.2026.103266

While electric vehicles (EVs) are transforming global transportation, adoption rates in developing economies lag significantly. Addressing this research gap, this study investigates consumer resistance to purchasing EVs in Turkiye, as it illustrates the issues of both innovation adoption in emerging markets and specifically, why EVs are not being adopted in emerging markets. It employs an extended Innovation Resistance Theory (IRT) framework that incorporates multiple barrier types—usage (charging infrastructure), value (perceived cost, environmental value), risk (perceived risk, rapid technological change), traditional (hedonic motivation), image (unfavorable perceptions), and ideological (scepticism)—which are further organized into functional, psychological, and ideological dimensions. A dual-method approach, combining PLS-SEM and fsQCA, was applied to data from 411 consumers. The PLS-SEM results show that scepticism, unfavorable image perceptions, hedonic motivation, lack of charging infrastructure, perceived cost, and rapid technological change all significantly influence consumer resistance, whereas environmental value was not significant. Complementing this, the fsQCA analysis revealed complex causal configurations—or "recipes"—of these barriers that together create strong resistance. By integrating complementary analytical lenses, this dual-method approach offers a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of consumer hesitation, while advancing theoretical perspectives and providing practical direction for promoting EV adoption in emerging markets.