Generational Perspectives on Trust in Bank and Non-Bank Payment Options at Digital Checkout

Sammanfattning

This thesis explores how different generational cohorts in Sweden construct and compares trust toward bank-based and non-bank digital payment services during online checkout situations. Drawing on McKnight et al.’s Web Trust Model, the study examines how trust is shaped through perceptions of security, institutional safeguards, usability, and provider reliability in a highly digitalised payment environment influenced by open banking and PSD2 regulations. Using a qualitative, interpretive approach, twelve semi-structured interviews were conducted across four generations: Baby Boomers, Generation X, Millennials, and Generation Z. The findings show that trust is strongly connected to immediate payment confirmation, familiar interfaces, perceived control over spending, and institutional reassurance linked to banks and regulation. While younger participants generally displayed greater comfort with non-bank services, older participants relied more on familiarity and perceived safety. The study contributes to Information Systems research by highlighting how trust is negotiated differently across generations within contemporary digital payment ecosystems.