Toward a unified theory of technology continuance: Effects of conscious versus unconscious factors

Abstract

AbstractThe containment measures for the COVID‐19 pandemic, including social distancing, lockdown or quarantining, have led to a paradigm shift in people's life. In the wake of the pandemic, many people have begun adopting technology as a way to maintain their daily activities and limit face‐to‐face human interactions. While the pandemic has facilitated the widespread use of technology, little attention has been paid to how consumers' intention to continue using technology is affected by their rational evaluation and habitual response, simultaneously. To address this knowledge gap, this study employs the expectation‐confirmation model as a theoretical lens to propose the research model and explain the antecedents of technology continuance intention from both perspectives of conscious versus unconscious responses. The conscious response is reflected in perceived value and satisfaction, whereas the unconscious response is characterized as habit. The proposed research model and hypotheses are supported by the data collected from 308 online food delivery service users. Our results show that habit is driven by perceived value and satisfaction, and then mediates the effects of them on continuance intention. Moreover, habit exerts the strongest effect on continuance intention and weakens the importance of perceived value as well as satisfaction to continuance intention. This study is expected to set the theoretical foundation for more future research that focus on the exploration of the conscious versus unconscious nature of consumers' technology continuance. The study concludes with practical implications and suggestions for catering businesses and relevant stakeholders.