The willingness to continue using wearable devices among the elderly: SEM and FsQCA analysis

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Human-Computer Interaction
• Health Informatics

Background:

• Population aging and resource scarcity present challenges and opportunities for elderly care.
• Wearable devices offer potential for elderly care, but continued use factors are understudied.
• Few studies explore technical and personal characteristics influencing elderly willingness to use wearable devices.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate how technical characteristics (perceived usefulness, reliability, ease of use) and personal characteristics (self-perceived aging) influence elderly willingness to continue using wearable devices.
• To examine the mediating role of health promotion in the relationship between these characteristics and continued use intention.
• To apply the technology acceptance model and value attitude behaviour model to understand elderly adoption of wearable technology.

Main Methods:

• Utilized structural equation modeling (SEM) and fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (FsQCA) on 265 valid questionnaire samples.
• SEM was employed to identify direct and indirect effects of variables on continued use intention.
• FsQCA was used to explore the complex configurations of factors leading to high willingness for continued use.

Main Results:

• Perceived usefulness, perceived reliability, self-perceived aging, and health promotion significantly influenced willingness to continue using wearable devices.
• Perceived ease of use did not directly affect continued use intention, indicating a complex or dynamic relationship.
• FsQCA identified five distinct pathways to high continued use intention, with perceived aging being a critical factor in four of them.

Conclusions:

• Elderly individuals demonstrate a high willingness to continue using wearable devices, influenced by specific technical and personal factors.
• Self-perceived aging plays a crucial role in the continued adoption of wearable technology among the elderly.
• Findings provide insights for developing and promoting wearable devices tailored to the needs and perceptions of the aging population.