Marketing Strategies and Digital Mental Healthcare Consumption in Guangxi, China: The Mediating Role of Customer Perception and Digital Technology

Background and Aim: Chinese mental healthcare providers increasingly adopt digital technologies to address mental distress. This study examines how marketing strategies influence digital mental healthcare consumption among young adults (18-25) in Guangxi, China, focusing on the mediating roles of customer perception and digital technology. Methodology: Data were collected from 735 young adults aged 18-25. To capture an effective sample, the survey was distributed to psychological counseling centers in universities to sample those who have used digital mental healthcare services. Structural equation modeling and the Bootstrap Test were used as statistical analyses. Results: More than 30% of young adults consumed digital mental healthcare through Apps, web-based. Female respondents dominantly used digital mental healthcare (72.9% - 86.6%). Marketing strategy indirectly affected consuming behavior, significantly mediated by digital technology (β = 0.553, 95% CI [0.435, 0.655] in the urban population dominated model; β = 0.110, 95% CI [0.035, 0.174] in the rural population dominated model) and customer perception (β = 0.084, 95% CI [0016, 0.152] and 0.090, 95% CI [0.042, 0.148], respectively). Digital technology’s mediating effect significantly outweighed customer perception in the urban population-dominated model, while exhibiting no significantly greater effect size in the rural population-dominated model. Conclusion: Our empirical findings provide novel insights into the patterns of out-of-pocket consumption on digital mental healthcare. Specifically, the study highlights the mediating roles of digital technology and customer perception in shaping consumer behavior. These factors not only influence the willingness to pay but also affect the perceived accessibility, trust, and effectiveness of such services, thereby offering a more nuanced understanding of out-of-pocket consumption in the digital healthcare landscape.