## 3 Theoretical Model and Research Hypotheses
For carriers, to maximize the return on investment and establish competitive advantage, greater emphasis is placed on intrinsic attributes, such as reliability and service, whereas extrinsic attributes such as product image, may carry little weight [27]. Trucks purchased by organizational buyers are merely the functional property of the company, which is focused on maximizing profit rather than the quality and image of trucks [27]. We, therefore, hypothesized:  
**Hypothesis 1c (H1c). **_When making truck-purchasing decisions, owner-operators (individual buyers) have a higher preference than carriers (organizational buyers) for sustainable technologies related to quality._  
Studies have shown that technological innovation has expanded the variables under which carriers and drivers can sign contracts. The development of information technology enables carriers to better measure how drivers operate trucks. Due to the installation of the information technology, the performance improvements of carrier's drivers are greater than those of individual truck drivers [59]. Carriers manage fleets of trucks that are distributed over a wide geographical area. In such a highly dynamic industry, whether various information can be exchanged efficiently and cheaply may play a critical role for industry participants. To operate the fleet smoothly and efficiently, carriers have adopted a wealth of information technologies, such as global positioning systems, electronic data interchange [1; 66], and satellite communications [4]. Technologies involved in real-time communication enable carrier managers to provide each truck driver with the most up-to-date road conditions. Professional route management systems can direct the fleet to adopt optimal routes that bypass toll stations and highway weighing stations and effectively reduce idle time and total mileage [12]. Onboard computer systems can send all-round information about the truck, such as speed, position, condition of cargo, and arrival time. Organizational buying behavior is, thus, largely influenced by information communication [17; 36]. Obviously, information technology can help carriers reduce their costs, which also verifies the [PERSON]'s law [49] that carriers will choose to coordinate activities internally rather than through the external markets when the cost of transacting in the markets is higher than the cost of internal coordination. The combination of various resources become asset septicity for carriers that are difficult to be imitated by other carriers [27; 57]. When confronted with a purchase situation, owner-operators will try to collect information and acquire knowledge to help them evaluate the purchase decision. However, because of a low level of education, the information and knowledge they can access is extremely limited. Their evaluation of the product is primarily based on their personal experience, advertisements, word of mouth, and observational learning. Consequently, owner-operators have weak perception of the expected role of information as a technological attribute [59] and do not have too much preference for this attribute. We, therefore, hypothesized:  
**Hypothesis 2a (H2a). **_When making truck-purchasing decisions, carriers (organizational buyers) have a higher preference than owner-operators (individual buyers) for sustainable technologies related to information._Because of the damage to reputation and high financial costs of any delay or cessation caused by mechanical problems, carriers may put a high value on the quality of services provided by truck manufactures to guarantee the continuity and reliability of the operation. Manufacturers can provide sustainable technology-based services, such as self-diagnosis and electronic fleet management to help truck drivers improve driving performance and reduce driving pressure, thereby reducing the workload of truck drivers and improving safety. Lower accident incident rates improve the brand image and reputation of carriers [14].