Household technology acceptance heterogeneity in computer adoption

Technology policy analysis and implementation relies on knowledge and understanding of the "adoption gap" in information technologies among different groups of consumers. Factors that explain the residential "digital divide" also need to be identified and quantified. Through the application of survey data we provide an enhanced understanding of the key factors involved in the choice of residential computer adoption. These choices are analysed using a discrete choice model that reveals that sociodemographic factors strongly influence the adoption of the residential computer. Moreover, we apply the basic findings of the Technology Adoption Model (TAM) into the discrete choice framework heteroscedastically to deepen our understanding of why some households choose not to have computers; above and beyond what may be explained by socio-demography alone. Generally, we find that computer adoption is sensitive to household digital division measures and that the model fit improves with the heteroscedastic addition of the TAM factors. These findings are important for market planners and policymakers who wish to understand and quantify the impact of these factors on the digital divide across different household types, as defined by the TAM model

Personal Factors As Predictors of Content-Specific Use of the Internet by Ajayi Crowther University Students in Nigeria

The individual interest of the internet users on the content depends solely on some factors that are personal to users. These factors are the suspected drives that determine their choice of internet content. It is in this regard that this study examines the composite and relative contributions of personal factors (age, gender, religious background, socio-economic status and; academic level) to the choice of internet content. The survey method was employed in this study. The subjects of the investigation were drawn from the three faculties of Ajayi Crowther University using stratified sampling. Based on student enrolment in each of the Faculties, 10% (200) of the entire student population (2000) was selected. Purposive sampling was used in selecting 100 students from the Faculty of Social and Management Sciences, 70 students from the Faculty of Natural Sciences and 30 students from Humanities. Data were generated with the Undergraduates Personal Factors and Internet Content Preference Questionnaire (UPFICPQ) which yielded reliability co-efficient of .79 (Cronbach Alpha). Data were analyzed with frequency count, percentage, and regression analysis. Findings of the study show that 79 (40.5%) of the undergraduates use the internet for social networking, 64 (32.8%) use it for news and information while 36 (18.5%) use it for entertainment. While all the considered personal factors accounted for 67% ( R square =.67) of the variation in students’ choice of internet content, it was found that only academic level, religion and socio-economic background of the students made significant contributions to the choice of internet content. Key Words: Personal factors, Predictors, Content-specific, Interne

A Model of Attitudes toward the Acceptance of Mobile Phone Use in Public Places

Since the first commercial launch of cellular telecoms by NET in Tokyo Japan in 1979 and the launch of the NMT system in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden in 1981, the mobile phone has undergone continual incremental innovation for changing market needs. This study investigates the factors affecting the attitudes towards the social acceptance of mobile phones in public places and how this attitude affects its usage. Theories on innovation and technology acceptance were reviewed, and studies relating demographic factors to technology acceptance were examined. A model was proposed relating the usage frequency and attitudes towards acceptance of mobile phone in public places to demographic factors, such as country, age, education, gender, and work status. A survey was conducted among mobile phone users, and the sample consisted of 1079 respondents in the United States, France, Italy, Turkey, and Finland. A structural equation model was developed to analyze the survey data. Results of the analysis indicate that the attitudes about mobile phone use in public places depend on country, and age factors. This attitude in turn significantly affects the usage frequency of mobile phones. In addition, usage frequency also is affected by gender and work status. Implications of the findings for both academicians and practitioners are discussedAttitudes about Mobile Phone Use, Simultaneous Relationships, Demographic Factors, Mobile Phone Voice Messaging, Mobile Phone Text Messaging

Does Applying Screenshot Annotations Enhance Learning Effectiveness? The Moderating Role of Course Difficulty

The rapid growth of information technologies has given rise to a variety of e-learning platforms. However, simply providing multimedia instructional materials does not necessarily improve users’ understanding of the instructional content. The study makes use of Flickr annotations, including stickers, drawings, and texts, to improve users’ learning performance while learning computer software. All users are able to upload screenshots to Flickr to demonstrate computer software problems and troubleshooting software. To clarify what their screenshots mean, they can describe their problems or provide their opinions by attaching annotations to a specific screenshot. Through the use of annotations, Flickr provides the users with an easier way to describe or understand problems. This study comprised a three-course investigation. In addition to understand users’ learning effectiveness, two context-related factors, peer opinion and personal innovativeness, were chosen as the basis for the research model. Based on data collected from 281 students, the results indicated that peer opinion had a positive effect on intention, whereas the effect of personal innovativeness, surprisingly, was negative rather than positive. Besides, the results based on the three computer software courses with different levels of difficulty confirmed the moderating effect of course difficulty

Are people with chronic diseases interested in using telehealth?: a cross-sectional postal survey

Background There is growing interest in telehealth—the use of technology to support the remote delivery of health care and promote self-management—as a potential alternative to face-to-face care for patients with chronic diseases. However, little is known about what precipitates interest in the use of telehealth among these patients. Objective This survey forms part of a research program to develop and evaluate a telehealth intervention for patients with two exemplar chronic diseases: depression and raised cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. The survey was designed to explore the key factors that influence interest in using telehealth in these patient groups. Methods Thirty-four general practices were recruited from two different regions within England. Practice records were searched for patients with (1) depression (aged 18+ years) or (2) 10-year risk of CVD ≥20% and at least one modifiable risk factor (aged 40-74 years). Within each general practice, 54 patients in each chronic disease group were randomly selected to receive a postal questionnaire. Questions assessed five key constructs: sociodemographics, health needs, difficulties accessing health care, technology-related factors (availability, confidence using technology, perceived benefits and drawbacks of telehealth), and satisfaction with prior use of telehealth. Respondents also rated their interest in using different technologies for telehealth (phone, email and Internet, or social media). Relationships between the key constructs and interest in using the three mediums of telehealth were examined using multivariable regression models. Results Of the 3329 patients who were sent a study questionnaire, 44.40% completed it (872/1740, 50.11% CVD risk; 606/1589, 38.14% depression). Overall, there was moderate interest in using phone-based (854/1423, 60.01%) and email/Internet-based (816/1425, 57.26%) telehealth, but very little interest in social media (243/1430, 16.99%). After adjusting for health needs, access difficulties, technology-related factors, and prior use of telehealth, interest in telehealth had largely no association with sociodemographic variables. For both patient groups and for each of the three technology mediums, the most important constructs related to interest in telehealth were having the confidence to use the associated technology, as well as perceiving greater advantages and fewer disadvantages from using telehealth. To illustrate, greater confidence using phone technologies (b=.16, 95% CI 0.002-0.33), while also perceiving more benefits (b=.31, 95% CI 0.21-0.40) and fewer drawbacks (b=-.23, 95% CI -0.28 to -0.17) to using telehealth were associated with more interest in using phone-based telehealth technologies for patients with depression. Conclusions There is widespread interest in using phone-based and email/Internet-based telehealth among patients with chronic diseases, regardless of their health status, access difficulties, age, or many other sociodemographic factors. This interest could be increased by helping patients gain confidence using technologies and through highlighting benefits and addressing concerns about telehealth. While the same pattern exists for social media telehealth, interest in using these technologies is minimal

A Review of Information Behaviour Literature on Professoriates across Disciplinary Fields

This paper reviewed empirical literature on information behaviour of academic faculty across disciplinary fields with particular reference to studies whose demography included the professoriate in the context of their information needs, purposeful information seeking and use of information for teaching and research. Paucity of literature focusing on the professoriate prompted this study. Literature focusing on the professoriate will provide a rich theoretical and contextual background for researchers embarking on studies that focus specifically on the professoriate in related information context, besides filling the knowledge gap in library and information science literature. The scope of the literature review covers scholarly journals in major electronic databases and search engines such as EBSCOhost, ERIC, Social Science Citation Index, ProQuest, Google and Google Scholar. In reviewing the empirical literature, attention was given to literature with professoriate in their population. The outcome of the literature review revealed the general information needs of the professoriate are for teaching and research. Literature on purposeful information seeking revealed the professoriates’ use of print and electronic information resources varied across disciplinary fields, and is influenced by age, environmental and individual characteristics. Use of electronic information resources is context-dependent and prevailed more in research settings and in studies conducted in the West relative to those carried out in sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East. The paper concludes that in-spite of the continued relevance of print information resources, electronic information resources usage continue to increase in academic environment that is fast embracing information technology

the New Relevance: Motives behind YouTube Use

This study applies the uses and gratifications theory (UGT) to discover how people are motivated to use YouTube, an example of Internet based technologies, similarly and differently to watch traditional broadcast television. The new features such as commenting, liking and uploading that YouTube offers can be seen as new affordances that might offer ne gratifications to users, which were not found salient to television viewing. A convenience sample of 127 students was recruited to participate in an online survey that included measures of traditional media motives (Rubin, 1983) as well as new media motives adapted from Sundar and Limperos (2013). The study found that participants were motived to use YouTube for passing time/habit and entertainment, which were similar to their motives for watching traditional broadcast television. The scale on new media motives did not provide conceptually coherent motives relevant to either media. Paired-sample t-tests were performed, which revealed some differences in specific items about new motives across the two media outlets

The COVID-19 pandemic and deepening digital inequalities in China

As Internet usage reshapes our societies, digital inequalities have increased over the past few decades. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many countries accelerated their digital transformation processes, and it is widely believed the COVID-19 pandemic has deepened existing inequalities in the digital realm. Yet, few studies have empirically examined whether digital inequalities in the labor market increased during the pandemic. This analysis studies how the COVID-19 pandemic affected Chinese workers' Internet usage and how this influence varied across socioeconomic groups. By using the ordered probit model and leveraging the most recent data from the China Family Panel Studies and the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center, we find that the pandemic significantly increased the overall level of Internet usage in the country, and the mediating effects of the perceived importance of the Internet and access to the Internet are confirmed. As Internet usage increased, digital inequalities in China's labor market deepened, especially among young and wealthy workers with high social status in urban areas, while older and poorer workers in rural areas benefited less from this new ‘digital wave.’ Moreover, during the pandemic, Internet usage increased among employees working in state-owned enterprises (SOEs), which suggests a growing digital inequality gap between SOEs and other sectors. Following a series of robustness tests, our research findings remain valid. We propose a policy redesign that embodies a comprehensive long-term vision and guarantees raising the levels of Internet usage for socially and economically disadvantaged groups in China