The Role of Affective Trust in Mediating the Effect of Digital Experience Quality on Continuance Usage Beyond Basic Features Livin' by Mandiri

Abstract

The development of mobile banking in Indonesia has encouraged banks to provide digital services that not only focus on basic features, but also advanced features such as investment, financial product purchases, e-wallet top-ups, and lifestyle services in a single application. Livin' by Mandiri is one of the apps with the highest user adoption rates, but various studies have found that the use of advanced features is not yet optimal due to usability issues and inconsistent digital experiences. This study aims to analyze the influence of Digital Experience Quality on Continuance Usage Beyond Basic Features, as well as to examine the role of Affective Trust as a mediating variable among Livin' by Mandiri users. Theoretical studies show that good digital experience quality increases users' perceptions of ease, emotional comfort, and positive sentiments (Hashem, 2024; Garcia et al., 2024). On the other hand, affective trust has been proven to be an important psychological factor that mediates the relationship between user experience and post-adoption behavior (Nguyen et al., 2024; Habib, 2025). However, previous studies have rarely examined affective trust as a mediator in the context of advanced mobile banking feature usage in Indonesia, creating a research gap that this study aims to address. This study uses a quantitative method with an explanatory research approach and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM-PLS) technique on 400 respondents who are active users of Livin' by Mandiri in Medan City. The research instruments were adapted from the models of DeLone & McLean (Digital Experience Quality), Johnson & Grayson (Affective Trust), and Bhattacherjee (Continuance Usage). The validity and reliability test results show that all indicators are valid and reliable. The R² value shows that Digital Experience Quality is able to explain 29.3% of the variation in Affective Trust, and together with Affective Trust explains 55.5% of the Continuance Usage Beyond variable. The hypothesis testing results show that: (1) Digital Experience Quality has a positive and significant effect on Continuance Usage Beyond (β = 0.302; p < 0.001); (2) Digital Experience Quality has a positive and significant effect on Affective Trust (β = 0.541; p < 0.001); (3) Affective Trust has a positive and significant effect on Continuance Usage Beyond (β = 0.537; p < 0.001); and (4) Affective Trust significantly mediates the effect of Digital Experience Quality on Continuance Usage Beyond (β = 0.291; p < 0.001). This mediation indicates that a good digital experience results in a stronger emotional connection, which in turn encourages users to continue utilizing the application's advanced features.