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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Psychol.
Sec. Personality and Social Psychology
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1395674

Basic human values and the adoption of cryptocurrency

Provisionally accepted
Adrian Stanciu Adrian Stanciu 1Mariana Bernardes Mariana Bernardes 2Melanie Partsch Melanie Partsch 3Clemens M. Lechner Clemens M. Lechner 4*
  • 1 University of Luxembourg, Luxembourg, Luxembourg
  • 2 Independent researcher, Luxembourg, Luxembourg
  • 3 Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands, Netherlands
  • 4 GESIS Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences, Mannheim, Germany

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Cryptocurrency is an attempt to create an alternative to centralized financial systems using blockchain technology. However, our understanding of the psychological mechanisms that drive cryptocurrency adoption is limited. This study examines the role of basic human values in three stages of cryptocurrency adoption-awareness, intention to buy, and ownership-using the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). Logistic regression analysis was conducted on a quota sample of 714 German adults, and the results showed that openness-to-change values increased the likelihood of cryptocurrency awareness, while self-enhancement values increased the likelihood of intention to buy and ownership. These findings were consistent even after controlling for demographic characteristics, attitudinal beliefs, and perceived behavioral control, which are important factors in the TPB. The results suggest that basic human values may influence an individual's decision to adopt cryptocurrency, but the transition from awareness to ownership may be influenced by socio-economic opportunities available to interested individuals.

    Keywords: Basic human values, Cryptocurrency adoption, Theory of Planned Behavior, Inequalities, Logit regression analysis

    Received: 04 Mar 2024; Accepted: 25 Jul 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Stanciu, Bernardes, Partsch and Lechner. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Clemens M. Lechner, GESIS Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences, Mannheim, Germany

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.