Abstract: From the perspective of traditional retailers, this paper studies the impact of multichannel integrated quality on the consumers’ across-channel free-riding intention. It analyzes how the multichannel integrated quality can influence the consumers’ cross-channel free-riding intention through the function of psychological contract. By developing a multichannel integrated quality scale, it constructs a model of the relationship between multichannel integrated quality and cross-channel free-riding intention. Based on 311 samples collected in different industries, it makes an analysis of these data. The results indicate that the service consistency is positively correlated with trade psychological contracts and relationship psychological contracts, that there is a positive correlation between service relevancy, service transparency and relationship psychological contracts, and that there is no correlation between service relevancy, service transparency and trade psychological contracts. However, the cross-channel free-riding intention is negatively correlated with trade psychological contract and positively correlated with relationship psychological contract.

Key words: multichannel integrated quality; psychological contract; cross-channel free-riding intention