Factors driving the adoption of smart home technology: An empirical assessment

Abstract

Smart home technology, an application of Internet of Things (IoT), provides households with e.g., comfort, control and convenience. The technology has been around for sometimes, but its prevalence is not yet widespread, and thus the potentials have largely been underestimated. The purpose of this paper is to develop a comprehensive model that can explain a large percentage of variance in the intention to use smart home technology. To do so, this paper, based on technology acceptance model, diffusion of innovation theory and consumer perceived innovativeness, proposes an integrated model and validates it through Structural Equation Modelling on data collected from 156 respondents. The results reveal that compatibility, perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use are important determinants affecting the adoption of smart home technology. Moreover, trialability while show no direct effect on the intention to use, its affect is realized indirectly via constructs of PU and PEoU. The SEM results also show that the perceived cost negatively impacts the intention to use. This paper is one of the first empirical attempt that includes consumer perceived innovativeness in the model. This paper contributes to the literature of IoT, in particular to smart home technology research. Some theoretical and practical implications are discussed.