The rapid developments Social Network Service (SNS) have offered opportunities to re-visit many seminal theoretical assumptions of technology usage within socio-technical environment. Online social network is a rapidly growing field that imposes new questions to the existing IS research paradigm. It is argued that information systems research must necessarily evolve in response to the emerging trends (Lyytinen and King, 2004). Specifically, one stream of research has been heavily lacking is SNS usage prediction (Hargittai, 2007). In SNS, the form of social network is realized by computing networks where the individual assumes an identity of an “avatar”. People are merging their activities of work and living thus blurring the borders among their social contexts (Beck and Wade, 2006). Such new trends have become more sophisticated due to the increasingly robust data network capacity and pervasive availability of communication technology. At present, research in SNS is still in its early stage; hence the need to develop knowledge of virtual world dynamics has become impending. SNS essentially provides various service channels to facilitate social network interactions. These channels are highly correlated with their respective service contexts, among which differences are obvious and important. Cultural factors have been crucial for context oriented studies in both IS and sociology fields. For instance, the global nature of the Internet “raises questions about the robustness of trust effects across cultures” (Jarvenpaa et al., 1999). In SNS, not only trust but also privacy has become a tremendous caveat for service providers. Investigating the combination effects of privacy and trust in a cross-cultural study may lead to important theoretical discoveries and meaningful managerial implications. This study contributes to knowledge by empirically testing established theoretical models of IS acceptance, trust, social and cultural research. Both qualitative and quantitative methods are used in order to present a comprehensive analysis of SNS perception and use in different cultural settings. Particularly, the study finds critical differences exist within the process of trust formulation between American and Chinese SNS users.

Yes / This paper studies the Critical Success Factors’ (CSFs) for the adoption of Digital Payment System in India. There are few studies about the literature on CSFs for the adoption of the digital payment system in the Indian context. This study is an attempt to cover this gap. In this study, we reviewed the theories for adoption model at the individual level used in Information System (IS) and discussed four technology model including “Technology Acceptance Model” (TAM). Ten factors have been identified with extensive literature review and review of selected models namely; Perceived Ease of Use, Perceived functional benefits, Awareness, Availability of Resources, Government as a policy maker, Performance Expectancy, Social Influence, Price Value, Experience & Habit, and Risk-taking ability. An expert from academic industry has been taken as a reviewer or consultant of the selected variables. The CSFs may ensure that they are the predictors and the important factors for adoption of digital payments system in India. The study mainly uses the deductive approach to consider the primary and secondary sources of data. The analyses of these models take into account through Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM) methodology and develop a model for effective adoption of Digital Payment System in India. The paper also makes future recommendations for further research studies.

Safety, quality, and production are critical factors that impact an enterprise organization’s success in industries where tasks are human-centered. One emerging area to help mitigate safety related concerns while enhancing quality and production is wearable technology. More specifically, studies have shown that wearable exoskeletons can prevent awkward posturing and excessive bending and reaching tasks. These are areas that can result in injuries and lost time for employees. While literature has shown that these devices can help prevent injuries and can assist employees with their job tasks, these devices are new, which can make critical stakeholders of an enterprise organization skeptical about adopting these devices. This dissertation studies the technology acceptance of the front-line workforce, human resources (HR), and subject matter experts (SMEs) within the industrial sector.

Date: 2024-05-30 Course: Bachelor thesis in Business Administration, 15 cr School of Business, Society and Engineering, Mälardalen University Authors: Jonathan Granlund & David Lundström Title: Unveiling the Impact of AI-Powered Chatbots on Customer Acceptance in Sweden Supervisor:Emre Yildiz Keywords: AI-Chatbots. Technology Acceptance Model. Artificial Intelligence in Sweden. Artificial Intelligence in Customer Relations Research question: What are the effects of AI-based chatbots on customer acceptance in Sweden, including usefulness, ease of use, and trust? Purpose: This study aims to ascertain the ways in which perceived usefulness, ease of use, trust, information, innovativeness, and personalization affect customers' acceptance of AI chatbots in Sweden. Method: To get information on participants' opinions and future intentions about AI-powered chatbots, 150 people were asked to complete a survey to which 114 responded. To verify the proposed connections between the identified parameters and customer acceptance, the data was examined. Conclusion: The results validate that the behavioral intention to use AI-based chatbots is positively influenced by perceived usefulness, innovativeness, and personalization. Meanwhile perceived ease of use, trust and information were proved to be non-significant. These findings suggest that increasing chatbots' perceived usefulness, innovativeness and customization can encourage more people to use them. The factors influencing the acceptance of AI chatbots are empirically demonstrated in this study, which can help organizations and developers improve customer acceptance and engagement in the Swedish market. The study also emphasizes how crucial it is to use efficient marketing techniques and unambiguous communication to educate consumers about the features and advantages of AI chatbots, which will eventually lead to increased acceptance rates in customer applications.

Background: The video game industry thrives on innovation and technology, striving to understand player preferences to maintain a competitive edge. Forecasts indicate significant growth, with the virtual reality (VR) gaming market expected to become a major player, driven by technological advancements and rising consumer interest in immersive experiences. However, the current adoption of the VR gaming rate remains low, indicating a substantial gap between interest and actual usage.  Purpose: The purpose of the thesis is to investigate the key game components that influence players’ intention to play VR games while also evaluating the significant role of players' emotions within this context. Additionally, it establishes connections between these game elements and the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) constructs, providing a comprehensive understanding of the factors shaping VR game acceptance.  Method: The research is grounded in the positivist paradigm, employing a deductive approach and quantitative methodology. It involves the analysis of 657 observations extracted from 200 reviews of two popular VR games on the Steam platform, using content and sentiment analysis techniques. Subsequently, the Baron and Kenny method is employed to explore potential mediations of TAM constructs between players’ sentiments and their intention to play VR games.  Conclusion: The results indicate that players’ sentiments significantly influence the acceptance of VR games. Among the TAM constructs, perceived enjoyment (PE) plays the most pivotal role and is the sole mediator between sentiments and the intention to play. Game elements linked to PE, such as game content, gameplay, and interactivity, tend to elicit positive emotions from players. Conversely, elements associated with perceived ease of use (PEOU), such as bugs, technical performance, and optimization issues, tend to evoke negative sentiments.

Yes / The family environment plays a crucial role in child physical activity (PA). Wearable activity trackers (wearables) show potential for increasing children's PA; however, few studies have explored families' acceptance of wearables. This study investigated the acceptability of using wearables in a family setting, aligning experiences with components of the Technology Acceptance Model and Theoretical Domains Framework. Twenty-four families, with children aged 5-9 years, took part in a 5-week study, where all members were provided with a Fitbit Alta HR for 4 weeks. Acceptability was measured using weekly surveys and pre-post-questionnaires. Nineteen families participated in a focus group. Quantitative and qualitative data were integrated using the Pillar Integration Process technique. Pillars reflected (1) external variables impacting wearable use and PA and (2) wearable use, (3) ease of use, (4) usefulness for increasing PA and other health outcomes, (5) attitudes, and (6) intention to use a wearable, including future intervention suggestions. Families found the Fitbit easy to use and acceptable, but use varied, and perceived impact on PA were mixed, with external variables contributing towards this. This study provides insights into how wearables may be integrated into family-based PA interventions and highlights barriers and facilitators of family wearable use. / This study is funded as part of a Ph.D. studentship by the Born in Bradford study. The Born in Bradford study receives core infrastructure funding from the Wellcome Trust (WT101597MA) and the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), under its NIHR ARC Yorkshire and Humber (NIHR200166) and Clinical Research Network (CRN) research delivery support. For this piece of work, funding from the Sport England’s Local Delivery Pilot awarded Born in Bradford funding for this Ph.D. studentship. S.A.C. is supported by the NIHR Leicester Biomedical Research Centre—Lifestyle theme

The use of enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems by small enterprises is proliferating. Traditionally used by large enterprises, ERP systems are now considered important enterprise management aids, which may contribute to the sustainability and growth of small enterprises. Although varying acceptance factors may impact on the acceptance of ERP systems, there is no consolidated list of ERP system acceptance factors specific to small enterprises. In this study, the strategic, business, technical and human factors that influence the acceptance of ERP systems in small manufacturing enterprises in South Africa is presented. These influencing factors may guide future initiatives aiming to ensure the acceptance of ERP systems by small manufacturing enterprise. A combined quantitative and qualitative data analysis approach was used as an analytical lens to interpret responses gathered from small manufacturing enterprises. Recommendations are made for future research on ERP system acceptance and adoption within the broader spectrum of small enterprises. / Information Systems / M. Sc. (Information Systems)

This thesis examines the effects of Culture, the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT), Expectation Confirmation Theory (ECT) and Technology Readiness (TR) on the satisfaction and usage continuance intention of Internet banking customers within the Saudi Arabian context. The aim is to develop and test a new framework for use in determining the factors that affect Internet banking customers’ actual usage behaviours, with a special focus on the role of cognitive processes, and cultural and personal psychological traits. This research uses cross-sectional survey questionnaire methods within a quantitative approach. 261 valid responses were received. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was used to test the hypothesised relationships within the research model in Analysis of Moment Structures (AMOS 20) software. ECT is well established in conventional marketing literature and explains how cognitive beliefs and affects lead to customers’ repurchasing behaviour. It was first adopted for the Information Systems (IS) context and then customised to explain IS continuance intention behaviour. However, previous ECT customisations in the IS context present a significant knowledge gap because technology-based services are sensitive to individuals’ psychological traits, which ECT does not account for. This research integrates psychological traits and culture into the ECT framework to explain customer satisfaction and continuance intentions in the context of Internet banking usage. It combines ECT with the UTAUT in order to expand ECT to include more cognitive beliefs. Then it integrates TR and Culture to account for psychological and sociological traits. The results present a new contribution to the body of knowledge by validating a theoretically backed integration of the above models into one structural model. This model broadens the understanding of the factors that influence IS satisfaction and usage continuance intention. Compared to previous studies, the explanatory power of this model is a major improvement, with an R2 of (0.61) for usage continuance intention.

<p>The subject of the thesis is to examine what communication tools the students of Kungsmadskolan in Växjö uses to communicate on the Internet and what are the motives that lie behind this choice and continued use. The thesis focus on five groups of communication tools: chat, Internet forum, community, Internet telephony and e-mail. The purpose of the study is to investigate and understand the motive that lies behind the choice of Internet-based communication tools done by high school students. We have chosen a qualitative method to conduct our research. We have collected empirical data through discussions with two focus groups divided into one with only boys and one with only girls from Kungsmadskolan in Växjö. We then analyze this data and draw conclusions from it. Prior to the focus group discussions, we created a theoretical framework. This framework has been used to steer and support the discussions and as a theoretical support in our analysis. The framework consists of five parts: communication, communication tools, motivation, choice and acceptance. Through this study we have been able to establish that the most important influence on the students choice of communication tools comes from their friends. This means that the strongest motivation to their choice comes from the search for social communion. Communication tools that the students use are: MSN, Flashback.com, Forumet.nu, Fuska.nu, Bilddagboken.se, Lunarstorm, Community.se, Helgon.nu, Facebook, Hotmail, school-mail, work-mail and Spraymail.</p> / <p>Ämnet för uppsatsen är att undersöka vilka kommunikationsverktyg gymnasieelever på Kungsmadskolan i Växjö använder sig av för att kommunicera på Internet, vilka motiv som ligger bakom valet av kommunikationsverktyg och det fortsatta användandet. Uppsatsen inriktar sig på fem olika typer av kommunikationsverktyg: chatt, Internetforum, community, Internettelefoni och e-post. Undersökningens syfte är föreståelseinriktat, vilket innebär att vi ämnar att undersöka och förstå vilka motiv som avgör gymnasieelevernas val. Vi har valt en kvalitativ metod för vår undersökning. Vi har genom diskussion med två stycken fokusgrupper indelade i en med bara killar och en med bara tjejer från Kungsmadskolan i Växjö samlat in empirisk data. Denna data har vi sedan analyserat och dragit slutsatser utifrån. Inför våra diskussioner med fokusgrupperna har vi skapt en teoretisk referensram. Denna referensram har fungerat både som underlag för att styra och stödja diskussionerna och som teoretiskt stöd vid analysen av resultatet. Referensramen är uppdelad i fem avsnitt: kommunikation, kommunikationsverktyg, motivation, val och acceptans. Vi kom fram till att vänner i den direkta omgivningen har störst påverkan på vilken/vilka kommunikationsverktyg gymnasieeleverna använder sig av och väljer att börja använda. Detta innebär också att den starkaste motivationsfaktorn i valet är sökandet efter social gemenskap. Kommunikationsverktygen gymnasieeleverna använder är: MSN, Flashback.info, Forumet.nu, Fuska.nu, Bilddagboken.se, Lunarstorm, Community.se, Helgon.nu, Facebook, Hotmail, skolmail, jobbmail och Spraymail.</p>

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