When Familiarity Works Differently: Cognitive Belief Formation and User Heterogeneity in Virtual Exhibition Adoption

Virtual exhibitions have emerged as a prominent technology‐mediated alternative to physical exhibitions, yet the theoretical mechanisms underlying user adoption remain insufficiently specified. Grounded in the technology acceptance model (TAM), this study develops an extended framework that conceptualizes virtual exhibition familiarity as a foundational antecedent shaping cognitive belief formation and behavioral intention. Survey data were collected from 350 virtual exhibition users via Credamo and analyzed using PLS‐SEM and multi‐group analysis. The results show that familiarity influences behavioral intention indirectly through perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness rather than via a direct pathway, and that these mechanisms are contingent on personal innovativeness and prior virtual exhibition experience. Theoretically, the study refines TAM by explicating its conditional validity in digital exhibition contexts; practically, it offers guidance for designing familiarity‐driven and user‐segmented virtual exhibition systems.