F-Commerce platform for apparel online social shopping: Testing a Mowen’s 3M model

•Openness to experience influenced market mavenism.•Arousal needs influenced social browsing.•Market mavenism influenced socializing gratification and social shopping intention.•Value consciousness influenced information-seeking gratification and intention.•Social browsing influenced gratifications and social shopping intention.•Tie strength and homophily moderated the links between gratifications and intention. Applying the Meta-Theoretic Model of Motivation and Personality (3M Model), this research examined (1) whether online social shopping intention in Facebook commerce was affected by users’ personality traits, psychographic characteristics, and gratifications and (2) whether tie strength and homophily moderated the links between gratifications and intention. U.S. Facebook users who had online social shopping experience (n=601) were drawn from a consumer panel. Users who were market mavens and social browsers were likely to use online social shopping for the purpose of socializing and intended to engage in online social shopping. Users who were value conscious and social browsers were likely to use online social shopping for the purpose of information-seeking and intended to engage in online social shopping. Tie strength and homophily moderated the links between gratifications and intention.