Personal goals in consumers' adoption of mHealth services
Journal of Service Theory and Practice
ISSN: 2055-6225
Article publication date: 22 November 2021
Issue publication date: 13 January 2022
Abstract
Purpose
mHealth services are effective and cost efficient, yet wide-scale adoption of these services by consumers has yet to be achieved, constraining their public health benefit. Further investigation of non-technological determinants of mHealth adoption is needed; specifically, the role of consumers' goals has received scant attention and forms the research focus.
Design/methodology/approach
Study 1 comprised 20 interviews with participants who possess a health goal, with the data analysed using an abductive reasoning approach. Study 2 was a 15-min online survey (n = 653), with the data analysed using multi-group structural equation modelling.
Findings
Study 1 identified several antecedents to the desirability and feasibility of consumers' health goals, which influence their desire to use mHealth services. Study 2 shows significant differences in the determinants of mHealth service acceptance depending on whether consumers set concrete as opposed to abstract goals, but social acceptance of mHealth services of these services is important for both groups.
Practical implications
The findings suggest emphasising the importance of health goals to achieving other consumer goals (e.g. work or travel goals), the efficacy of mHealth services relative to other service alternatives for achieving those health goals, and the social acceptance of mHealth services to increase their uptake.
Originality/value
This study is the first to use construal-level theory to improve understanding of the role of consumers' goals in the adoption of mHealth services. By identifying the antecedents to goal desirability and feasibility, it also broadens the model of goal-directed behaviour.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank our participants for their contributions to the project. We also thank the anonymous reviewers for their helpful feedback on the manuscript during the review process.Funding: Population and Social Health Research Program, Griffith Health Institute, Griffith University.
Citation
Schuster, L. and Parkinson, J. (2022), "Personal goals in consumers' adoption of mHealth services", Journal of Service Theory and Practice, Vol. 32 No. 1, pp. 30-51. https://doi.org/10.1108/JSTP-11-2020-0245
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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