A longitudinal investigation of personal computers in homes: Adoption determinants and emerging challenges

Viswanath Venkatesh, Susan A. Brown

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

1002 Scopus citations

Abstract

While technology adoption in the workplace has been studied extensively, drivers of adoption in homes have been largely overlooked. This paper presents the results of a nation-wide, two-wave, longitudinal investigation of the factors driving personal computer (PC) adoption in American homes. The findings revealed that the decisions driving adoption and non-adoption were significantly different. Adopters were driven by utilitarian outcomes, hedonic outcomes (i.e., fun), and social outcomes (i.e., status) from adoption. Nonadopters, on the other hand, were influenced primarily by rapid changes in technology and the consequent fear of obsolescence. A second wave of data collection conducted six months after the initial survey indicated an asymmetrical relationship between intent and behavior, with those who did not intend to adopt a PC following more closely with their intent than those who intended to adopt one. We present important implications for research on adoption of technologies in homes and the workplace, and also discuss challenges facing the PC industry.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)71-98
Number of pages28
JournalMIS Quarterly: Management Information Systems
Volume25
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - 2001
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Adoption
  • Behavior
  • Household
  • Intention
  • Theory of planned behavior

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Management Information Systems
  • Information Systems
  • Computer Science Applications
  • Information Systems and Management

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