The effects of e-commerce institutional mechanisms on trust and online purchase have traditionally been
understood in the initial online purchase context. This study extends this literature by exploring the role of e-
commerce institutional mechanisms in the online repurchase context. In doing so, it responds to the emerging
call for understanding the institutional context under which customer trust operates in an e-commerce environ-
ment. Specifically, this study introduces a key moderator, perceived effectiveness of e-commerce institutional
mechanisms (PEEIM), to the relationships between trust, satisfaction, and repurchase intention. Drawing on
the theory of organizational trust, and based on a su rvey of 362 returning online customers, we find that
PEEIM negatively moderates the relationship between trust in an online vendor and online customer repur-
chase intention, as it decreases the importance of trus t to promoting repurchase behavior. We also find that