interpretations relevant to that cultural context. Thus, organiza-
tions operating in developed countries (with a low Uncertainty
Avoidance index) tend to stress both technological development
and technological adoption more than organizations operating in
countries with a high Power Distance and low tolerance for
ambiguity and uncertainty [14]. In another study, Guo et al. [15]
find that the way organizations use e-mail, phone and fax in China
(a developing country) and Australia (a developed country) is
largely influenced by the difference in the Uncertainty Avoidance
dimension of cultural difference between these two nations. As a
result, different sets of approaches to technology adoption are
required to suit the cultural and contextual conditions of
developing countries [16,17].
However, at this stage, there remains a relatively limited
number of in-depth studies and understanding regarding the
adoption of EC technologies by developing countries, despite a
growing number of technology penetrations that have taken place
in these countries in recent years [7,16]. An understanding of the
adoption of ICT, in particular EC technology, by developing
countries is thus important for both researchers and practitioners
[18]. Moreover, the contextual situations of countries are arguably
different in nature. For example, the maturity of the ICT
infrastructure, e-commerce readiness, degree of government
support, and extent of business competitiveness vary greatly,
not only between the developed and developing countries but also
among developing countries. Furthermore, it would be inappropriate
to assume that various dimensions of national culture
remain somewhat similar across all developing countries. In fact,
distinct cultural differences are noted among developing countries.
Hence, it could be argued that qualitative studies focusing on ecommerce
adoption in some developing countries are not
necessarily reflective of the e-commerce trends and adoption
dynamics of all developing countries across the globe