The Impact of Live Commerce Service Quality on Repurchase Intention in China: The Mediating Role of Trust and Generational Differences Between Gen Z and Older Adults

As a core growth driver of China’s digital economy, live commerce faces intergenerational trust gaps—Gen Z (18–24 years, digital natives) prioritizes interactive experiences, while older adults (55 + years, digital immigrants) rely on streamer professionalism and after-sales support, leading to low repurchase rates. This study constructs a moderated mediation model with service quality (streamer professionalism, interactive experience, after-sales support) as the independent variable, trust as the mediator, digital generations as the moderator, and repurchase intention as the dependent variable. Using 600 valid questionnaires (300 Gen Z, 300 older adults) from Chinese platforms (Douyin, Taobao), we tested hypotheses via SPSS 26.0 (reliability/validity) and Mplus 8.4 (SEM + multi-group analysis). Results show: (1) All three service quality dimensions positively predict trust (β = 0.22–0.31, p < 0.001) and repurchase intention (β = 0.12–0.32, p < 0.01); (2) Trust partially mediates these relationships (indirect effects = 0.033–0.057, 95% CI no zero); (3) Digital generations moderate: older adults are more sensitive to streamer professionalism (β = 0.37 vs. Gen Z’s 0.22) and after-sales support (β = 0.32 vs. Gen Z’s 0.15), while Gen Z responds stronger to interactive experiences (β = 0.43 vs. older adults’ 0.18). The study enriches intergenerational trust theory in Chinese live commerce and provides practical strategies (e.g., AR try-on for Gen Z, streamer certification for older adults).