Trustworthiness in mHealth information services: An assessment of a hierarchical model with mediating and moderating effects using partial least squares (PLS)

Effect of older adults willingness on telemedicine usage: an integrated approach based on technology acceptance and decomposed theory of planned behavior model

BACKGROUND

Telemedicine, as a novel method of health management system, has demonstrated to have a significant impact on health levels. However, a challenge persists in the form of low usage rates and acceptance among older adults in China. There are accumulating evidence that willingness will affect the telemedicine usage among older adults. This study investigates factors influencing older users' trust in adopting telemedicine technology, thereby promoting actual use.

METHODS

A questionnaire survey was conducted with 400 urban seniors aged 60 and above. Drawing from the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and the Decomposed Theory of Planned Behavior (DTPB), the author combines elements such as Perceived Usefulness, Perceived Ease of Use, Subjective Norms, Service Environment, Self-Efficacy, Behavioral Intention to Use, and Usage Behavior. The aim is to explore the interrelationships between these factors.

RESULTS

Perceived Usefulness (PU) and Service Environment (SE) significantly and positively impact Behavioral Intention (BI) to use telemedicine, with Trust (TR) identified as a crucial mediating variable. Enhancing trust can substantially increase older adults' intention to use telemedicine services. Furthermore, the study reveals a significant relationship between older adults' trust in telemedicine and factors such as Perceived Usefulness (PU), Service Environment (SE), Subjective Norms (SR), as well as Emotional Risk (ER) and Cost Risk (CR), the latter two tending to decrease Trust(TR).

CONCLUSIONS

This paper constructs and validates a combined model based on TAM and DTPB, comprehensively exploring the potential factors influencing the older adults' intention to use telemedicine. The findings suggest that telemedicine services for older adults should prioritize improving user perception and enhancing trust throughout the service process to effectively increase their willingness to use these services.

Impact of urban form on carbon emissions of residents in counties: evidence from Yangtze River Delta, China

Urban form is a key factor affecting carbon emissions. Accurately estimating the impact of urban form on the carbon emissions of residents (CER) is an important prerequisite for China to adopt effective low-carbon spatial planning strategies and respond to climate change. However, counties mainly account for China's energy consumption, and the relationship between their urban form and the CER remains unclear, limiting their low-carbon development. Therefore, in this study, the PLS-SEM model and data from 90 counties in the Yangtze River Delta are used to determine the extent and ways that urban form affects the CER. The model considers the impact of both geometric-aspect urban form factors (urban scale, compactness, spatial structure, and urban shape) and built environment-aspect urban form factors (public service facilities, urban greening, road traffic, public transportation, and urban energy infrastructure) on the CER. The results indicate that urban form factors related to the built environment (public service facilities, urban greening, road systems, and municipal infrastructure) have a direct impact on the CER. Geometric-aspect urban form factors (size, compactness, spatial structure, and shape) not only directly affect the CER but also indirectly affect the CER by altering built environment-aspect urban form factors. This study identifies the complex relationship between urban form and the CER, facilitating the coordinated integration of multiple elements and providing a basis for the formulation of low-carbon spatial planning strategies for counties.

Analysing the effect of resilience and perceived social environment on university students' intention to start sustainable ventures

The literature mostly has addressed the determinants of entrepreneurial intention in general and social entrepreneurship, without focusing specifically on sustainable entrepreneurial intention despite it has become highly relevant in addressing environmental degradation and social challenges. This study aims to contributes to the understanding of psychological and social factors that influence sustainable business, evaluating the effect of resilience, subjective norms, and perceived social support on sustainable entrepreneurial intention. We analysed the online survey responses of 433 students from Chile and Ecuador enrolled in business and engineering programs using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Models (PLS-SEM), moreover, a multi-group analysis (MGA) has been conducted to assess gender differences. The findings have supported the positive effect of psychological resilience and subjective norms on perceived social support, besides, an important effect of social support on sustainable entrepreneurial intention was found. These results offer new evidence regarding the significance of the social environment, support networks, and resilience of university students in fostering the establishment of sustainable businesses with a focus on social well-being and environmental protection in Latin America. This is particularly pertinent as the countries in this region are grappling with social and environmental challenges that could be addressed through sustainable entrepreneurship.

Intention to use a mobile phone to receive mental health support and its predicting factors among women attending antenatal care at public health facilities in Ambo town, West Shoa zone, Ethiopia 2022

BACKGROUND

Mental health problems are the most common morbidities of women during the prenatal period. In LMICs mobile phones have been identified as a good vehicle for monitoring individuals with a high risk of mental health conditions. However, evidence is scarce and the purpose of this study was to assess the intention to use a mobile phone to receive mental health support and its predicting factors among women attending antenatal care at public health facilities in Ambo town, Ethiopia 2022.

METHODS AND MATERIALS

An institutional-based cross-sectional study design was conducted from May 20th to June 20th, 2022. A total of 715 prenatal women were included and a systematic random sampling technique was employed. An interviewer-administered structured questionnaire was used. Collected data was exported to SPSS version 25 for the descriptive part, and AMOS 26 structural equation modeling was also used to describe and assess the degree and significance of relationships between variables.

RESULTS

A total of 699 (97.8% response rate) responded to complete all the questionnaires. About 530 (77.3%) 95% CI (74%-80.3%) of women intended to use a mobile phone to receive mental health support. The perceived usefulness has a positive effect on attitude (β = 0.391, p < 0.001) and intention to use (β = 0.253, p < 0.001). The perceived ease of use influences perceived usefulness (β = 0.253, p < 0.001) and attitude β = 0.579, p < 0.001). The intention to use is positively affected by attitude (β = 0.662, p < 0.001).Trust has a positive effect on perceived usefulness (β = 0.580, p < 0.001) and intention to use (β = 0.113, p = 0.005). Subjective norm has a direct positive effect on perceived usefulness (β = 0.248, p < 0.001). Attitude serves as a partial mediator between perceived usefulness and intention to use and a complete mediating role between perceived ease of use and intention to use.

CONCLUSION

The level of intention to use a mobile phone among prenatal women is relatively high and attitude, perceived usefulness, and trust had direct positive effects on intention to use a mobile phone. Therefore, hospitals and healthcare providers should take proactive measures to implement the strategies and policies for providing mobile phone-based mental health support to prenatal women in remote areas.

Factors affecting student readiness towards OBE implementation in engineering education: Evidence from a developing country

Engineering universities in the South Asian region have been investigating the efficacy of Outcome-Based Education (OBE) in preparing their students to meet the demands of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR). Evaluating students' motivations towards OBE is crucial for its successful implementation into engineering degree programs. This research aims to explore students' readiness towards OBE implementation at one of the prominent engineering universities in Bangladesh. To achieve this aim, an instrument was developed to comprehensively measure students' readiness towards the implementation of OBE. The survey instrument with a 7-point scale, measuring six constructs of the proposed model, such as (a) Students' awareness, (b) Teachers' commitment, (c) Institutional support, (d) Perceived easiness, (e) Students' motivation, and (f) Self-efficacy, was developed and administered to a pilot sample of sixty-eight participants (N = 68) from two engineering domains: Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE), and Computer Science and Engineering (CSE). The final data was collected from a cohort of Three Hundred and Seventy participants (N = 370), distributed across four engineering domains. A structural equation modeling (SEM) with the help of the Smart-PLS software was conducted to determine the construct validity of the measurement model and to evaluate the model fit. Results from the analysis indicate no significant positive effect of teachers' commitment (TC) on students' readiness (SR). However, the results reveal a significant positive effect of students' awareness (SA) and perceived easiness (PE) on students' readiness (SR). Results also reveal no significant moderating role of institutional support (IS) on the relation between the exogenous variables (IS, SA, PE) and the endogenous variable (SR). The research recommends Institutional Support as essential for instructors and students to implement outcome-based education (OBE) in engineering education.

Extending the Privacy Calculus to the mHealth Domain: Survey Study on the Intention to Use mHealth Apps in Germany

BACKGROUND

With the increasing digitalization of the health sector, more and more mobile health (mHealth) apps are coming to the market to continuously collect and process sensitive health data for the benefit of patients and providers. These technologies open up new opportunities to make the health care system more efficient and save costs but also pose potential threats such as loss of data or finances.

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to present an empirical review and adaptation of the extended privacy calculus model to the mHealth domain and to understand what factors influence the intended usage of mHealth technologies.

METHODS

A survey study was conducted to empirically validate our model, using a case vignette as cover story. Data were collected from 250 German participants and analyzed using a covariance-based structural equation model.

RESULTS

The model explains R2=79.3% of the variance in intention to use. The 3 main factors (social norms, attitude to privacy, and perceived control over personal data) influenced the intention to use mHealth apps, albeit partially indirectly. The intention to use mHealth apps is driven by the perceived benefits of the technology, trust in the provider, and social norms. Privacy concerns have no bearing on the intention to use. The attitude to privacy has a large inhibiting effect on perceived benefits, as well as on trust in the provider. Perceived control over personal data clearly dispels privacy concerns and supports the relationship of trust between the user and the provider.

CONCLUSIONS

Based on the privacy calculus, our domain-specific model explains the intention to use mHealth apps better than previous, more general models. The findings allow health care providers to improve their products and to increase usage by targeting specific user groups.

The Influence of Anthropomorphic Cues on Patients' Perceived Anthropomorphism, Social Presence, Trust Building, and Acceptance of Health Care Conversational Agents: Within-Subject Web-Based Experiment

BACKGROUND

The last decade has witnessed the rapid development of health care conversational agents (CAs); however, there are still great challenges in making health care CAs trustworthy and acceptable to patients.

OBJECTIVE

Focusing on intelligent guidance CAs, a type of health care CA for web-based patient triage, this study aims to investigate how anthropomorphic cues influence patients' perceived anthropomorphism and social presence of such CAs and evaluate how these perceptions facilitate their trust-building process and acceptance behavior.

METHODS

To test the research hypotheses, the video vignette methodology was used to evaluate patients' perceptions and acceptance of various intelligent guidance CAs. The anthropomorphic cues of CAs were manipulated in a 3×2 within-subject factorial experiment with 103 participants, with the factors of agent appearance (high, medium, and low anthropomorphic levels) and verbal cues (humanlike and machine-like verbal cues) as the within-subject variables.

RESULTS

The 2-way repeated measures ANOVA analysis indicated that the higher anthropomorphic level of agent appearance significantly increased mindful anthropomorphism (high level>medium level: 4.57 vs 4.27; P=.01; high level>low level: 4.57 vs 4.04; P<.001; medium level>low level: 4.27 vs 4.04; P=.04), mindless anthropomorphism (high level>medium level: 5.39 vs 5.01; P<.001; high level>low level: 5.39 vs 4.85; P<.001), and social presence (high level>medium level: 5.19 vs 4.83; P<.001; high level>low level: 5.19 vs 4.72; P<.001), and the higher anthropomorphic level of verbal cues significantly increased mindful anthropomorphism (4.83 vs 3.76; P<.001), mindless anthropomorphism (5.60 vs 4.57; P<.001), and social presence (5.41 vs 4.41; P<.001). Meanwhile, a significant interaction between agent appearance and verbal cues (.004) was revealed. Second, the partial least squares results indicated that privacy concerns were negatively influenced by social presence (β=-.375; t312=4.494) and mindful anthropomorphism (β=-.112; t312=1.970). Privacy concerns (β=-.273; t312=9.558), social presence (β=.265; t312=4.314), and mindless anthropomorphism (β=.405; t312=7.145) predicted the trust in CAs, which further promoted the intention to disclose information (β=.675; t312=21.163), the intention to continuously use CAs (β=.190; t312=4.874), and satisfaction (β=.818; t312=46.783).

CONCLUSIONS

The findings show that a high anthropomorphic level of agent appearance and verbal cues could improve the perceptions of mindful anthropomorphism and mindless anthropomorphism as well as social presence. Furthermore, mindless anthropomorphism and social presence significantly promoted patients' trust in CAs, and mindful anthropomorphism and social presence decreased privacy concerns. It is also worth noting that trust was an important antecedent and determinant of patients' acceptance of CAs, including their satisfaction, intention to disclose information, and intention to continuously use CAs.

The Mediating Role of Brand Trust and Brand Love between Brand Experience and Loyalty: A Study on Smartphones in China

Smartphones have become increasingly essential in people's daily lives. Studying the enablers that influence students' smartphone buying intentions can inform technology-enhanced learning development, whereas research on brand loyalty and experience is important for marketing strategies. While prior research has acknowledged the importance of brand experience and customer loyalty, little literature has investigated the specific dimensions of brand loyalty and their connection to brand love and trust. This study investigates the effects of brand attributes on loyalty and word-of-mouth engagement in choosing smartphones in China, including the mediating role of brand trust and brand love between brand experience and loyalty. The study adopted a research framework based on the previous literature and tested it empirically. The study adopted a cross-sectional survey method, collecting 369 questionnaires from Chinese students in mainland China. The collected data were analyzed with the help of structural equation modelling by applying AMOS software version 26. The results showed that brand experience had a significant influence on brand trust, brand love, attitudinal loyalty, and word-of-mouth, except for behavioral loyalty. Likewise, the link between brand trust and attitudinal loyalty, behavioral loyalty, and brand love was found to be significant. The effect of brand love on attitudinal loyalty and behavioral loyalty became significant. Additionally, the study confirmed that behavioral trust and brand love significantly mediates the relationship between brand experience-attitudinal loyalty, and brand experience-behavioral loyalty, respectively. The study results provide numerous theoretical and managerial implications to help academicians and practitioners provide better customer and brand relationship management.

Understanding Post-Adoption Behavioral Intentions of Mobile Health Service Users: An Empirical Study during COVID-19

This study aims to understand the post-adoption behaviors of mobile health (m-Health) service users during the COVID-19 pandemic. Drawing on the stimulus-organism-response framework, we examined the effects of user personality traits, doctor characteristics, and perceived risks on user continuance intentions and positive word of mouth (WOM) when using m-Health, as mediated by cognitive and emotional trust. The empirical data were collected via an online survey questionnaire from 621 m-Health service users in China and were verified with partial least squares structural equation modeling. The results showed that personal traits and doctor characteristics were positively associated and the perceived risks were negatively associated with both cognitive and emotional trust. Both cognitive and emotional trust significantly influenced users' post-adoption behavioral intentions in terms of continuance intentions and positive WOM, with different magnitudes. This study provides new insights for the promotion of the sustainable development of m-Health businesses after or during the pandemic.

Identifying major impact factors affecting the continuance intention of mHealth: a systematic review and multi-subgroup meta-analysis

The mobile health (mHealth) industry is an enormous global market; however, the dropout or continuance of mHealth is a major challenge that is affecting its positive outcomes. To date, the results of studies on the impact factors have been inconsistent. Consequently, research on the pooled effects of impact factors on the continuance intention of mHealth is limited. Therefore, this study aims to systematically analyze quantitative studies on the continuance intention of mHealth and explore the pooled effect of each direct and indirect impact factor. Until October 2021, eight literature databases were searched. Fifty-eight peer-reviewed studies on the impact factors and effects on continuance intention of mHealth were included. Out of the 19 direct impact factors of continuance intention, 15 are significant, with attitude (β = 0.450; 95% CI: 0.135, 0.683), satisfaction (β = 0.406; 95% CI: 0.292, 0.509), health empowerment (β = 0.359; 95% CI: 0.204, 0.497), perceived usefulness (β = 0.343; 95% CI: 0.280, 0.403), and perceived quality of health life (β = 0.315, 95% CI: 0.211, 0.412) having the largest pooled effect coefficients on continuance intention. There is high heterogeneity between the studies; thus, we conducted a subgroup analysis to explore the moderating effect of different characteristics on the impact effects. The geographic region, user type, mHealth type, user age, and publication year significantly moderate influential relationships, such as trust and continuance intention. Thus, mHealth developers should develop personalized continuous use promotion strategies based on user characteristics.

The impact of environmental risk and platform trust on satisfaction with health qr code use

In response to the economic and social hazards posed by the COVID-19 global pandemic, many countries have adopted various information technologies to rapidly track and control the spread of the epidemic. Health Quick Response (QR) codes are emergency measures implemented by the Chinese government in the epidemic environment to balance epidemic prevention and control with recovery of economic and social development, and facilitate public mobility across regions and access to various public spaces. The use of health codes by the public is a practical necessity, but the satisfaction of their use is influenced by multiple factors such as environment, technology, and organization. In this paper, we collected data through a questionnaire to analyze the basic situation of public satisfaction with the use of health QR codes in China and its influencing factors. The results show that perceived quality and platform trust directly affect the satisfaction of health code usage, while environmental risk and platform trust indirectly affect the satisfaction of health code usage through the mediating effect of perceived quality.

Virtual team performance: E-leadership roles in the era of COVID-19

Purpose

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) situation has led to the emergence of virtual teams in all organizations, and the role of leadership has become more pertinent. The current research focuses on understanding the factors for better team performance in virtual teams. Based on the contingency perspective, the behavioral complexity in leadership (BCL) theory is the most appropriate as BCL requires the leader to demonstrate multiple contrasting leadership behaviors according to the situation. Both internal as well external roles were explored, which could facilitate better communication quality and role clarity to increase interpersonal trust and leadership effectiveness in the current crisis.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected from employees who have worked in virtual teams during the crisis and who have experience of working in a virtual team environment. A total of 200 questionnaires were distributed, and 175 were received. A path model was built applying partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM).

Findings

Communication quality has come as a partial mediator for the relationship between internal and external leadership roles and trust. Role clarity fully mediated the relationship between external leadership roles and conflict. Internal and external leadership roles showed a significant effect on leadership effectiveness, which were further related to team performance in virtual teams. Additionally, synchronous technology was used more by virtual teams.

Research limitations/implications

The study did not examine cultural differences or cultural adaptation in virtual teams. Instead of the BCL theory, future research may apply attribute-based or relational-based theory to examine leadership roles in virtual team performance.

Originality/value

Using the BCL theory, the current study contributes to an understanding of virtual team performance and the internal as well as external role of leaders. This is relevant in an environment of extreme ambiguity such as COVID-19.

Online health management continuance and the moderating effect of service type and age difference: A meta-analysis

Numerous empirical studies have been carried out to explore factors of online health management continuance. However, results were not unified. We thus conducted a meta-analysis to identify influential factors and potential moderators. A systematic literature search was performed in nine databases (PubMed, Web of Science, the Cochrane Library, Ovid of JBI, CINAHL, Embase, CNKI, VIP, and CBM) published up to December 2020 in the English or Chinese language. Meta-analysis of combined effect size, heterogeneity, moderator analysis, publication bias assessment, and inter-rater reliability was conducted. Totally 41 studies and 12 pairwise relationships were identified. Confirmation, perceived usefulness, satisfaction, information quality, service quality, perceived ease of use, and trust were all critical predictors. Service type and age difference showed their moderating effects respectively. The perceived usefulness was more noteworthy in medical service than health and fitness service. The trust was more noteworthy in young adults. The results confirmed the validity and robustness of the Expectation Confirmation Model, Information Systems Success Model, and trust theory in online health management continuance. Moderators included but are not limited to age difference and service type. The elderly research in the healthcare context and other analytical methods such as qualitative comparative analysis should be applied in the future.

Understanding the Antecedents of the Routine Use of Mobile Health Services: A Person-Technology-Health Framework

Although numerous studies have been conducted to understand the antecedents of usage of mobile health (mHealth) services, most of them solely focus on characteristics of mHealth services themselves but neglect taking users' psychological and health-related factors into consideration. Besides, the comprehensive understanding of what influences users' routine use intentions regarding mHealth services is lacking. Therefore, this study proposes a person-technology-health framework that underlines how personal factors (e.g., personal innovativeness in IT), technological factors (e.g., trust), and health factors (e.g., perceived health severity) jointly influence individuals' routine use intentions regarding mHealth services. The proposed research model and related hypotheses were tested based on survey data from 270 respondents. The results indicate that personal innovativeness in IT, trust, and perceived health severity are important for enhancing routine use intention of mHealth services. Specifically, in situations of high perceived health severity, trust relates less positively to routine use intention than personal innovativeness in IT. In contrast, in situations of low perceived health severity, trust relates more positively to routine use intention than personal innovativeness in IT. The research findings extend the existing literature on routine use intention related to mHealth services and provide significant implications for practitioners.

Relationship between Entrepreneurial Orientation and Business Performance among Malay-Owned SMEs in Malaysia: A PLS Analysis

Entrepreneurship has become a key part of economies, and having an entrepreneurial orientation for SMEs is essential for success. EO and dimensions may differ in different cultures and different countries, thus a cross-cultural validation is suggested by the existing literature, which is lacking Malaysian perspectives. The objective of this study is to examine the relationships between entrepreneurial orientation (EO) and business performances of Malay-based SMEs in Malaysia and used the Partial Least Square (PLS) approach for data analysis. The research model for this study was drawn from the literature on entrepreneurship. This study identified five entrepreneurial orientations and tested hypotheses on which EO has a significant influence on business performance with empirical data from a sample of 407 Malay-based SMEs in Malaysia. The PLS regression analysis shows that risk-taking, proactiveness, innovativeness, and achievement factors are the significant elements of entrepreneurship orientation. Nevertheless, one independent variable, i.e., autonomy does not exhibit any relationship. This study offers a significant contribution to the current literature by empirically analyzing the link between the subcomponent of EO and business performance, specifically in the Malaysian SME sector, which has not been explored comprehensively. The paper’s interesting findings can serve to remind entrepreneurs that they cannot neglect the element of EO in their activities, particularly the success of the business. The research could be useful for policymakers to obtain some ideas and develop policies to help SMEs in Malaysia. Specifically, to enhance the performance in the SMEs sectors, the government should enforce easy to use, consistent, and standardized policies in all SMEs sectors and for all other stakeholders in boosting these sectors.

An Emerging Market: The Impact of User Selection on the Decision-Making Behavior of Mobile Medical Businesses in China

Background

User selection is an important guarantee for the sustainable development of mobile medical businesses. Under the background of increasingly fierce competition, the decision-making behavior of mobile medical businesses will directly affect the choice of the behavior of users.

Methods

The study constructs the decision-making behavior model of mobile medical business based on the user choice and adds the role of people in government. It uses the game method to explore the relationship between the government, mobile medical business, and users. Finally, it makes an example analysis. Empirical research is conducted to demonstrate the influence of different parameter changes on the results.

Results

The results show that in the absence of government intervention, users’ choice of filtering information will create a bad environment for mobile medical businesses, and further will be reduced, and the expected utility of businesses will not be affected causing a reduction in expected utility of companies. Similarly, government regulations can effectively improve the mobile medical environment and enhance the expected utility of mobile medical companies.

Conclusion

The government needs to formulate relevant laws and regulations to ensure the orderly operation of the mobile medical market and strengthen government supervision. It is necessary to conduct publicity and education to protect the fundamental interests of users and businesses.

Social Media Influence Towards Understanding, Awareness and Perception on Royal Institutions: Empirical Study on Young Millennials

Social media currently plays a major role in the lives of young millennials (Gen Z) who primarily use technology to communicate, express their opinions and gather information. From one angle, social media usage brings significant benefits; the failure to use it wisely can lead to negative impacts. In the context of the Royal Institution, the liberty to use social media to express personal and public sentiments has led many youths to disregard protocol and to hurl insults to the Rulers. On the other hand, positive social media usage in this context can boost favourable perceptions of the Royal Institution. Hence, this study aims to examine how the level of understanding and awareness about our Royal Institution amongst young millennials can significantly influence their perceptions about the institution as reflected via social media. A cross-sectional survey was conducted using structured questionnaires distributed to 393 respondents comprising youths born after 1994 to fulfil the research criteria of young millennials (Gen Z). The partial least squares method was adopted for data analysis. It is confirmed that the hypothesis on the significant influence of understanding and awareness gathered from social media has reflected young millennials’ perception of our Royal Institutions. The findings are significantly important to facilitate the government in formulating policies or guidelines towards establishing positive social media usage that can nurture general respect for the Royal Institution and ultimately a harmonious social relationship between the people and the institution.

Continuance Intention of Online Healthcare Communities- The Mediation Mechanism of Social Interaction Ties

The purpose of this research is to evaluate the continuance usage intention on online healthcare community (OHC) platform for patients and examine the "doctor-OHC-patient" relationship. The proposed model attempted to integrate social interaction ties, shared value, trust with the indirect effects on the relationship between the determinants and continuous usage intention of the OHC platform. The empirical results showed that perceived critical mass, social identity, and para-social interaction would strengthen continuance intention via the social interaction ties. In addition, this study found that the shared values and trust increase users' willingness to continue usage of OHC. This study provides OHC platform managers with an in-depth understanding of the "doctor-OHC-patient" online social interaction. The results of this study may also help hospitals, health policy makers, and related healthcare practitioners to improve the way they use the web for advocacy and guidance, and provide insight into the intent of promoting the ongoing use of OHC platforms.

Applying an Extended UTAUT2 Model to Explain User Acceptance of Lifestyle and Therapy Mobile Health Apps: Survey Study

BACKGROUND

Mobile health (mHealth) care apps are a promising technology to monitor and control health individually and cost-effectively with a technology that is widely used, affordable, and ubiquitous in many people's lives. Download statistics show that lifestyle apps are widely used by young and healthy users to improve fitness, nutrition, and more. While this is an important aspect for the prevention of future chronic diseases, the burdened health care systems worldwide may directly profit from the use of therapy apps by those patients already in need of medical treatment and monitoring.

OBJECTIVE

We aimed to compare the factors influencing the acceptance of lifestyle and therapy apps to better understand what drives and hinders the use of mHealth apps.

METHODS

We applied the established unified theory of acceptance and use of technology 2 (UTAUT2) technology acceptance model to evaluate mHealth apps via an online questionnaire with 707 German participants. Moreover, trust and privacy concerns were added to the model and, in a between-subject study design, the influence of these predictors on behavioral intention to use apps was compared between lifestyle and therapy apps.

RESULTS

The results show that the model only weakly predicted the intention to use mHealth apps (R2=0.019). Only hedonic motivation was a significant predictor of behavioral intentions regarding both app types, as determined by path coefficients of the model (lifestyle: 0.196, P=.004; therapy: 0.344, P<.001). Habit influenced the behavioral intention to use lifestyle apps (0.272, P<.001), while social influence (0.185, P<.001) and trust (0.273, P<.001) predicted the intention to use therapy apps. A further exploratory correlation analysis of the relationship between user factors on behavioral intention was calculated. Health app familiarity showed the strongest correlation to the intention to use (r=0.469, P<.001), stressing the importance of experience. Also, age (r=-0.15, P=.004), gender (r=-0.075, P=.048), education level (r=0.088, P=.02), app familiarity (r=0.142, P=.007), digital health literacy (r=0.215, P<.001), privacy disposition (r=-0.194, P>.001), and the propensity to trust apps (r=0.191, P>.001) correlated weakly with behavioral intention to use mHealth apps.

CONCLUSIONS

The results indicate that, rather than by utilitarian factors like usefulness, mHealth app acceptance is influenced by emotional factors like hedonic motivation and partly by habit, social influence, and trust. Overall, the findings give evidence that for the health care context, new and extended acceptance models need to be developed with an integration of user diversity, especially individuals' prior experience with apps and mHealth.

Connecting information literacy and social capital to better utilise knowledge resources in the workplace

Human resources and intellectual capital are best utilised through an ongoing interaction between individual and social processes. Still there is a research gap of empirical multilevel studies, focusing both on individual and organisational aspects of knowledge processes. To fill this gap, this article reports on a quantitative study, where the relationship between information literacy and social capital, representing the individual and social contexts affecting organisational knowledge processes, is explored. Structural equation modelling-based analysis of 378 employees working in different companies in Finland demonstrated that information literacy supports all three dimensions of social capital at workplace. Strong information handling skills enable better access to knowledge beyond the resources of an individual, that is, social capital. The results of the study contribute to a better understanding of how to manage human resources and the information and knowledge processes that employees are expected to be involved in.

Antecedent Factors of Green Purchasing Behavior: Learning Experiences, Social Cognitive Factors, and Green Marketing

This study extends the theory of planned behavior (TPB) framework by introducing three further variables (i.e., learning experience, contextual factors, and green marketing) to explain how behavioral intention and actual behavior are induced by situational factors as well as green advertising from the company. Then, this study has four objectives. First, this study will assess the direct effect of personal factors (i.e., demographic factors) and contextual factors on learning experience and the direct effect of personal factors (i.e., demographic factors) on subjective norms. Second, this study will assess the direct effect of learning experience on social cognitive factors for a specific green product. Third, this study will assess the direct effect of social cognitive factors on intention purchasing behavior. Finally, this study will assess the role of green marketing as a moderating variable for the relationship between intention and purchasing behavior. Data used in this study were primary data, which were collected through closed questionnaires with a five-point Likert scale. This study succeeded in obtaining 602 valid data from the results of filling out questionnaires by participants. This study uses the partial least square (PLS) method with SmartPLS 3.0 for data processing. The result of data processing indicated that outcome expectation, self-efficacy, and subjective norms had significant positive effects on purchase intention for green personal care products. This study also found that the learning experience influenced both outcome expectation and self-efficacy. Although weak, the learning experience was influenced by demographic factors and contextual factors. The demographic factors that affect learning experience were gender and level of education. The contextual factor has a more substantial influence on learning experience in developing consumption-related attitudes to green personal care products than the demographic factor. Finally, this study also found the direct effect of intention on actual purchase behavior and the positive role of green marketing as the moderating variable.

Bridging Green Gaps: The Buying Intention of Energy Efficient Home Appliances and Moderation of Green Self-Identity

This study investigates the factors influencing the buying intention of energy-efficient home appliances in Bangladesh. It also develops a conceptual framework that integrates additional constructs with the theory of planned behavior (TPB) and borrows questions from past literature. Employing a convenience sampling technique, a total of 365 completed structured questionnaires were gathered from various super shops in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The structural equation modeling (SEM) technique was thereafter used to analyze the data with the AMOS 21. The study established that environmental knowledge, attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control significantly affected the consumers’ buying intention of energy-efficient home appliances (EEHA). The result revealed a significant relationship between environmental concern, environmental knowledge, subjective norms, eco-labeling, and attitude towards buying. It also confirmed that the green self-identity moderates the existent relationship between the attitude and buying intention of energy-efficient home appliances, while environmental knowledge does not. The research advances numerous policy suggestions to managers or marketers, as well as future research directions.

Moderating effects of trustworthiness between pharmacists and physicians: using partial least squares

Objectives

Trustworthiness (TRS) is an essential factor that drives pharmacist–physician collaboration (PPC), which, in turn, improves prescribing behaviour. This study examines the moderating effect of TRS on the relationship between pharmacist expertise, PPC and prescribing decisions of physicians (PPD).

Methods

A total of 393 usable data were collected from selected physicians using a structured questionnaire form. Partial least squares structural equation modelling was adopted for data analysis.

Key findings

The result shows that TRS does not moderate the relationship between pharmacist expertise power and PPD, although the relationship is stronger with higher TRS (β = 0.054, t = 0.483, P &gt; 0.05). As expected, the relationship between PPC and PPD is stronger at high TRS (β = 0.137, t = 1.653, P &lt; 0.05).

Conclusions

TRS plays a ‘dynamic’ role in strengthening the positive impact of high pharmacist collaboration on prescribing rather than a ‘supportive’ role in increasing physicians’ readiness to gather information and recommendations from the pharmacist.

Examining the factors influencing college students’ continuance intention to use short-form video APP

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to explore the effects of recommendation algorithm, product reputation, new product novelty, privacy concern and privacy protection behavior on users’ satisfaction and continuance intention to use short-form video application (APP).

Design/methodology/approach

Based on the existing theories, the research model of this study was developed and 445 valid data were collected through a questionnaire survey. The partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was employed for data analysis to test the research model and hypotheses.

Findings

The results reveal that the recommendation algorithm has a significant positive effect on user satisfaction, new product novelty and privacy concern. The influence of recommendation algorithm on privacy concern is negatively moderated by product reputation. Privacy concern has a significant and positive impact on privacy protection behavior, and privacy protection behavior has a significant and positive impact on user satisfaction. New product novelty also has significant impact on user satisfaction.

Originality/value

This study is one of the earliest studies to incorporate recommendation algorithm as a construct into the college students’ continuance intention to use short-form video APP. The influence of reputation as a moderator variable on the relationship between algorithm and privacy concerns is also investigated.

Identifying the Antecedents of University Students’ Usage Behaviour of Fitness Apps

The purpose of the study is to explore the antecedents of university students’ fitness application usage behaviours by combining the theory of planned behaviour and the technology acceptance model. An anonymous questionnaire survey was adopted to address the objectives of the study. Purposive and snowball sampling was used to select eligible students from six universities in Zhanjiang City. An online survey was used to collect data from 634 eligible subjects, and partial least squares structural equation modelling was used to analyse the collected data. The results indicated that the students’ perceived usefulness (β = 0.17, p < 0.05) and perceived ease of use (β = 0.32, p < 0.05) concerning the application and their attitude (β = 0.31, p < 0.05) toward it significantly influenced their usage intentions. Furthermore, perceived usefulness (β = 0.11, p < 0.05) and perceived ease of use (β = 0.38, p < 0.05) fully mediated the relationship between subjective norms and usage intentions. However, subjective norms and perceived behavioural control did not enhance the students’ intentions to use fitness applications. That is, students’ attitudes and fitness application design are the determinants of usage intention. Accordingly, improving students’ fitness applications usage intention requires strategies that involve customised services, social networking, and collaboration with schools; this would further increase students’ engagement in physical exercise.

Modeling the Factors Enhancing the Implementation of Green Procurement in the Pakistani Construction Industry

This paper adds to the existing body of knowledge on green procurement approaches and sustainability theories for procurement management. It provides practical factors that can directly help the practitioners in implementing green procurement in construction projects. Green procurement is a new era in the construction industry of Pakistan. Thus, this paper aims to quantify the factors improving the adoption of green procurement in construction projects. A detailed literature review has been conducted to design and develop a conceptual model for green procurement. The study intricates the perception of 77 experienced practitioners involved in handling construction projects. The model was analyzed and validated with a partial least squares structural equation modeling technique with SmartPLS V3 software. The model results indicate that market factors and techniques play an essential role in enhancing green procurement acceptance and adoption. This study highlights the gap in achieving sustainability and controlling the environmental impacts caused by construction activities. It assists the construction practitioners to implement the green procurement for better environmental and sustainable performance.

Re-Examining the Impact of Multidimensional Trust on Patients' Online Medical Consultation Service Continuance Decision

Recent years have witnessed the rapid growth of an emerging digital healthcare service - online medical consultation (OMC). Despite its popularity, many OMC platforms have encountered issues in initial adoption and continuance use among patients. We posit that many of the hesitation and resistance may arise from a lack of trust toward OMC, which is a complex phenomenon that involves both interpersonal and technological-oriented considerations. This study seeks to clarify the conceptualization of online trust in the context of OMC. It compares two plausible explanations (i.e., trust as a direct cause vs. trust as a moderator) regarding how interpersonal and technological trust contributes to the service continuance decision in OMC. By contextualizing the valence framework, we identify the critical factors in making the risk-benefit assessment of patients' OMC decision. We conduct an online survey of 365 experienced OMC users and analyze our structural model using a partial least square approach. Our results show that the multidimensional conceptualization approach, which incorporates both interpersonal and technological aspects of trust, is superior to the unitary approach. Besides, our findings suggest that the role trust plays in determining service continuance decisions in OMC is more of a direct cause than a qualifier that buffers the impacts of risk-benefit evaluation. We believe the findings can help both researchers and practitioners recognize the multidimensional perspective of trust and better understand the role trust plays in OMC and other online healthcare delivery problems.

Evaluating the effects of electronic health records system adoption on the performance of Malaysian health care providers

BACKGROUND

The Ministry of Health of Malaysia has invested significant resources to implement an electronic health record (EHR) system to ensure the full automation of hospitals for coordinated care delivery. Thus, evaluating whether the system has been effectively utilized is necessary, particularly regarding how it predicts the post-implementation primary care providers' performance impact.

METHODS

Convenience sampling was employed for data collection in three government hospitals for 7 months. A standardized effectiveness survey for EHR systems was administered to primary health care providers (specialists, medical officers, and nurses) as they participated in medical education programs. Empirical data were assessed by employing partial least squares-structural equation modeling for hypothesis testing.

RESULTS

The results demonstrated that knowledge quality had the highest score for predicting performance and had a large effect size, whereas system compatibility was the most substantial system quality component. The findings indicated that EHR systems supported the clinical tasks and workflows of care providers, which increased system quality, whereas the increased quality of knowledge improved user performance.

CONCLUSION

Given these findings, knowledge quality and effective use should be incorporated into evaluating EHR system effectiveness in health institutions. Data mining features can be integrated into current systems for efficiently and systematically generating health populations and disease trend analysis, improving clinical knowledge of care providers, and increasing their productivity. The validated survey instrument can be further tested with empirical surveys in other public and private hospitals with different interoperable EHR systems.

THE MEDIATING EFFECT OF LEADERS’ IDEALISED INFLUENCE ON THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LEADERS’ EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE AND JOB PERFORMANCE AMONG ACADEMICS IN MALAYSIAN PUBLIC RESEARCH UNIVERSITIES

Academics exert themselves tremendously to advance in higher education institutions, and their leaders’ emotional intelligence and idealised influence are fundamental to responsiveness regarding performance. The effects of transformational leadership on job performance have been established, but a single component, idealised influence, has been neglected. Hence, this study aims to investigate the potential mediating effects of academic leaders’ idealised influence between academic leaders’ emotional intelligence and subordinates’ job performance. Approximately 386 questionnaires from five Malaysian public research universities were obtained. The partial least squares structural equation model was utilised in dichotomising the measurements. Drawing from attribution theory and social exchange theory, it was predicted that academic leaders’ idealised influence will mediate the relationship between academic leaders’ emotional intelligence and their subordinates’ job performance. However, the study reveals that the relationship between academic leaders’ emotional intelligence and their subordinates’ job performance was not mediated by academic leaders’ idealised influence. This study is useful for government and higher institutions in planning, developing, and implementing programs or policies in producing highly talented academic leaders in Malaysian research universities.

Trust and elderly users' continuance intention regarding mobile health services: the contingent role of health and technology anxieties

Purpose

Mobile health (mHealth) services are considered an important means of relieving the problems of the aging population. The efficiency of mHealth services can be enhanced by engaging more elderly users and guaranteeing their continued use. However, limited attention has been directed toward investigating elderly users' continuance intention regarding mHealth services. The purpose of this paper is to explain elderly users' continuance intention by investigating the contingent role of technology anxiety and health anxiety on affective trust and cognitive trust.

Design/methodology/approach

Survey data were collected from 232 elderly users to verify the research model and hypotheses based on structural equation modeling (SEM).

Findings

This study revealed that both affective and cognitive trust enhance elderly users' continuance intention regarding their use of mHealth services. Health anxiety strengthens the effect of cognitive trust but weakens the effect of affective trust with regard to continuance intention. Furthermore, technology anxiety strengthens the effect of affective trust but not the effect of cognitive trust with regard to continuance intention.

Originality/value

This study is one of the first to examine elderly users' continuance intention regarding mHealth services use from the perspective of affective and cognitive trust, thus enriching the extant literature on the use of mHealth services. Additionally, this study sheds light on the contingent effects of technology anxiety and health anxiety on affective and cognitive trust, which have been neglected by previous research.

The impact of information technology culture and personal innovativeness in information technology on digital entrepreneurship success

Purpose

Very little or no study has explored the predictors of behaviour and traits that determine digital entrepreneurship (DE) success. In response, the purpose of this paper is to present a research model that takes information technology (IT) culture as a theoretical lens and personal innovativeness and experience in IT projects as theoretical constructs to predict behaviour and traits that explain DE success.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on the literature review, the authors propose hypotheses and a research model. The authors tested the model using structural equation modelling (SEM), by surveying a sample of digital entrepreneurs operating in the Yabacon Valley, Lagos, Nigeria.

Findings

The results indicate that IT culture is an essential predictor of achieving DE success. The results also suggest that an entrepreneur's innovativeness in IT and experience in IT projects have significant negative and positive moderating effects on the relationship between IT culture and achieving DE success.

Research limitations/implications

This paper taps into a new setting – DE context – by exploring the moderation effects of an entrepreneur's innovativeness in IT and experience in IT projects on the link between their IT culture and achieving a successful DE outcome.

Practical implications

This model offers managers an understanding of how IT culture and personal innovativeness and experience in IT work together to achieve DE success. Meanwhile, it sheds some light on managers to treat individuals with different levels of experience differently.

Originality/value

The authors theorise IT culture, personal innovativeness and experience in IT and show their effects on DE success, thus making an essential contribution to the information systems (ISs) and entrepreneurship research and practice. Moreover, the authors provide a novel methodology to conceptualise IT culture as a second-order hierarchical reflective construct by giving evidence that partial least squares (PLS) path modelling can assess a hierarchical model with moderating effects. This study answers scholars' call to construct more accurate explanations of innovation outcomes in an increasingly digital world.

Healthcare at Your Fingertips: The Acceptance and Adoption of Mobile Medical Treatment Services among Chinese Users

Mobile health (mHealth) services have recently been receiving increasing attention. However, there is a lack of knowledge about how users accept and adopt mobile medical treatment (MMT) services, some of the most promising mHealth services that aim to extend the patient-physician relationship beyond the conventional clinic environment. To fill this research gap, this study proposes a research model for predicting consumers' acceptance behavior toward MMT services based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). A survey was conducted among 303 Chinese MMT service users to evaluate the proposed model and relevant hypotheses using partial least squares. Several key findings were summarized from the results: (1) the attitude toward using MMT, technology anxiety, and trust are significantly associated with users' behavioral intention to use MMT services; (2) the perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, and trust significantly influence users' attitude toward using MMT services; (3) the perceived interactivity, perceived personalization, and privacy concerns have significant impacts on users' perceptions of ease of use, usefulness, and trust toward MMT services. The current findings have both theoretical and practical implications that may guide practitioners and researchers to better understand consumers' acceptance of MMT services.

Examining the Effect of Overload on the MHealth Application Resistance Behavior of Elderly Users: An SOR Perspective

Aging has increased the burden of social medical care. Mobile health (mHealth) services provide an effective way to alleviate this pressure. However, the actual usage of mHealth services for elderly users is still very low. The extant studies mainly focused on elderly users’ mHealth adoption behavior, but resistance behavior has not been sufficiently explored by previous research. A present study tried to remedy this research gap by examining the effect of overload factors on the mHealth application resistance behavior based on the stimulus-organism-response (SOR) framework. The results indicated that information overload and system feature overload of an mHealth application increased the fatigue and technostress of the elderly user, which further increased their resistance behavior. Meanwhile, we integrated the intergeneration support with the SOR model to identify the buffer factor of the elderly user’s resistance behavior. The results showed that intergenerational support not only directly decrease the elderly user’s mHealth application resistance behavior, but also moderates (weaken) the effects of fatigue and technostress on resistance behavior. The present study also provided several valuable theoretical and practical implications.

Determinants of stakeholders' intention to adopt pharmacogenomic

Pharmacogenomics (PGx) testing, which aims to identify the genes that affect our responses to drugs, has been favoured by healthcare professionals as a means of maximising drug efficacy and improving the safety and cost-effectiveness of healthcare. Support from the public is needed to determine the successful development of this technology and its implementation in society. Therefore, the objective of this paper was to analyse factors that influence stakeholders' intentions to adopt pharmacogenomic testing in Malaysia. A validated instrument was administered through face-to-face interviews with a total of 421 adult respondents who were stratified according to 2 stakeholder groups: healthcare providers (n = 221) and patients/family members (n = 200). The data were then analysed using SPSS® version 24 software and the advanced multivariate statistical approach of Partial Least Square (PLS) path modelling in order to analyse the complex relationships among variables. Results of the studies indicated that the Malaysian stakeholders had a high amount of trust in the key players (mean score of 5.31), perceived high benefits (mean score of 5.53) and claimed to have high intentions of adopting PGx (mean score of 5.39). The majority of the predictors have significant direct relationships with the intention to adopt PGx, with the exception of moral concerns. Perceived benefits appeared to be the most important direct predictor of the intention to adopt PGx testing (ß = 0.371, P < 0.001) followed by trust in the key players (ß = 0.312, P < 0.001), engagement (ß = 0.272, P < 0.001) and religiosity (ß = 0.133, P < 0.01). In addition, perceived risks also had a direct negative association with the intention to adopt PGx (ß = -0.096, P < 0.05). At the same time, the perceived benefits also served as a mediator for all the other factors except risk. The results provide insights into the multidimensional nature of the determinants of the intention to adopt PGx testing in Malaysia. Although the results showed that the stakeholders in Malaysia were very positive towards PGx testing, they were also cautious about it. The predictors identified in this study can serve as indicators for social acceptance of PGx testing to facilitate the clinical research and implementation of PGx.

Apply the SERVQUAL Instrument to Measure Service Quality for the Adaptation of ICT Technologies: A Case Study of Nursing Homes in Taiwan

The adoption of information and communication technology by elderly care organizations is an inevitable trend. Most empirical studies on e-Health service quality have focused predominantly on the general population rather than on the elderly. Thus, the generalizations are rather problematic. In addition, in the planning stage, pre-implementation analysis is considered critical but seldom performed. In this research, an instrument to evaluate the e-Health service quality in nursing homes was developed based on the SERVQUAL model. Furthermore, a pre-implementation analysis combining the SERVQUAL questionnaire and importance performance analysis was performed. Dissatisfactory factors were identified as follows. Regarding the physical environment quality, the residents expressed that the nursing homes did not provide well-maintained rooms and that the temperature in the rooms was unsuitable. Regarding the outcome quality, the elderly residents replied that the medical treatments and doctor visits were not well scheduled. Regarding the interaction quality, the residents indicated that the staff did not solve their problems sincerely or clearly understand their needs. Health care informatics (HCI) such as an electronic shift system (ESS) and electronic health records (EHR) are proposed to eliminate these problems. Given current resource limitations, our instrument and methodology proposed in this research could be extremely meaningful in practical application.

Understanding continuance usage intention of mHealth in a developing country

Purpose

This study aims to understand the factors affecting the continuance usage intention (CUI) of mHealth among the rural elderly.

Design/methodology/approach

An integrated model was proposed with the constructs derived from multiple models such as the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology, information system success model and expectation confirmation model. Data were collected from 400 participants who had prior experiences with mHealth services in Bangladesh. The research model was tested using the partial least squares method based upon structural equation modelling.

Findings

The findings indicated that system quality, performance expectancy, facilitating conditions and social influence were significant to the degree of confirmation and ultimately affect satisfaction and CUI. Surprisingly, service quality and information quality were insignificant.

Research limitations/implications

This study has added in the field of knowledge by contributing some new thoughts and interpretations of continuance usage modelling for mHealth services. The findings may become beneficial for the government agencies, policymakers, mHealth systems developers and service providers.

Originality/value

As limited research was found on CUI of mHealth in the integrated view of rural elderly’s value, this research contributes to the extant literature by categorizing key factors that might support to proliferate the continuance usage of this service. Moreover, the contextualization of the related variables and integration of the existing model is theoretically original. Furthermore, because of a generic approach, the findings could be easily modified to assist other developing countries in the planning and up-take of mHealth.

Push-pull-mooring framework for e-commerce adoption in small and medium enterprises

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is twofold: first, to develop a conceptual model using the push-pull-mooring (PPM) framework to understand the switching behavior of small- and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) of batik from adopting traditional marketing to e-commerce; and, second, to test whether the PPM variables prevent or lead to the switching behavior of SMEs of batik to adopt e-commerce.

Design/methodology/approach

This study uses a hypothesis which is drawn from related literature, quantifiable measures variables with a 1–5 Likert scale, hypothesis testing and draws the inference about a phenomenon of switching the behavior of SMEs from traditional marketing to e-commerce from the sample of 100 owners of batik SMEs, which are located in Yogyakarta, Solo and Pekalongan. The study used partial least square with the aid of the SmartPLS software program to test the hypothesis.

Findings

The result of hypothesis testing indicates that two factors significantly influence the switching behavior of batik SMEs from physical store retailing to e-commerce. The first factor is the desire of SMEs to support the information searching behavior of their customers, and the second factor is the perception that adopting e-commerce can provide value for the SMEs. However, this study fails to prove that the attractiveness of e-commerce can significantly pull the switching behavior of batik SMEs from physical store retailing to e-commerce. Moreover, related to mooring factors, the results show that the computer self-efficacy of the SME owners as a moderating effect is not supported.

Research limitations/implications

This study has several limitations. First, the samples were restricted to the SMEs of batik in three cities (Yogyakarta, Solo and Pekalongan). It is significant to conduct cross-sector, cross countries, cross-region or even cross-cultural investigations on this subject for better explanations of the results from a global perspective. Studies on cultural differences in switching behavior are supposed to accommodate to different individuals from the SME owner. Second, the study does not differentiate the sizes of enterprises; that is, no test was conducted for small-, medium- and large-size enterprises. The study only focuses on SMEs. Different empirical results may be obtained for different sizes because each enterprise size can have a different condition in e-commerce adoption. Second, this study pays more attention to the product categories of stamped batik and hand-drawn batik. Consumers can have dissimilar favorite channels to purchase other types of batik. Future research should also consider this issue.

Practical implications

Within all the opportunities available through e-commerce (support the information searching behavior, save the travel time and travel cost, better service quality to their customer, a lower price to their customer as well, and increase their sales), the SMEs need to enhance e-commerce activities and put it in their strategy for moving forward. On the other side, the government should have a strong interest in helping and supporting the SME through several activities.

Social implications

The research confirms that e-commerce adoption may benefit SMEs. It may encourage more SMEs to move from the traditional physical store retailing to e-commerce.

Originality/value

Although this study uses the conceptual model from the study of Chang et al. (2017), significant differences exist between the two studies. This study uses the PPM framework in the context of the seller migratory decision, whereas in most studies, the PPM framework is used in the context of the consumer migratory decision. Moreover, most studies about the adoption of e-commerce by owners of SMEs use the theory of reasoned action, theory of planned behavior, technology acceptance model, technology, organization and environment, and unified theory of acceptance and use of technology as the framework.

Marketing and Management in Higher Education: the Relationship between the Quality of Online Programmes and Student’s Satisfaction

Presently online courses have been a big agenda in educational institutes apart from their academic hours and to engage students more in their studies apart from their involvement in academic hours. The purpose of this study is how the online program quality can be improved from both a business point of view as well as for the understanding of student's expectations from an online program irrespective of one's interest. In this study, researchers tried to analyze the relationship among various factors involved leading to student satisfaction which become the source of successful online programs. This study applied SEM on smart PLS to analyze a survey of 100 respondents and found that Online program quality Perception is the multifaceted dimension, and it also involves quality instructors who also seen as a significant construct. Based on the literature review and discussions presented the theoretical framework for online learning program course quality was developed. Findings indicate that high student satisfaction is relatively associated with the user-friendly interface, which eases the students to further continue with the course. Along with these quality instructors also contribute much to student satisfaction. Content of course, although assumed to be essential along with the online discussion on forums it was found not significant, which is a surprise and unexpected finding. Based on calculations and modeling estimates, the model is in the best fit. The results show in the form of external loadings of every construct, which is given below explains the variance of respective latent constructs. It was also found that factors are contributing to perceived online program effectiveness which are Course Content, Online Assignments, Interaction with Peers, Quality Instructors, and User Interface respectively. Keywords: the online program, student satisfaction, MOOCS, program effectiveness, quality instructors, higher education.

What Motivates Chinese Young Adults to Use mHealth?

mHealth is one of China’s national strategies that brings affordable, accessible, and convenient health care to its entire population, may they be in cities or rural areas. Although Chinese young adults are among the first to adopt mHealth, the factors influencing Chinese young adults to use mHealth are yet to be studied both empirically and in depth. This study explores the mechanism that determines Chinese young adults’ intention to use mHealth, based on an extended Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). The extended TAM was tested using responses from 486 Chinese young adults. The results showed that perceived usefulness strongly and significantly influenced people’s intention to use mHealth. Additionally, communication effectiveness, health consciousness, and perceived ease of use were found as significant factors influencing people’s intention to use mHealth through perceived usefulness. Distrust was not found to significantly influence people’s intention to use mHealth.

Improving Patient behavioral Consent through Different Service Quality Dimensions: Assessing the Mediating Role of Patient Satisfaction

This study aimed to examine the impact of the five-dimensional health care service quality (SQ) on patient behavioral consent (PBC). This study further explored the mediating role of patient satisfaction (PS) on the SQ–PBC relationship. A survey questionnaire was used to collect the data from public sector hospitals situated in Bahawalpur division, Punjab, Pakistan. We used confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modeling (SEM) to test the hypotheses. This study found positive and significant relationships between SQ and PBC, SQ and PS, and PS and PBC. Our results further revealed that PS partially mediates the relationship between SQ and PBC. Our study offers a comprehensive theoretical framework of several service quality attributes (SQs) affecting patient behavioral consent (PBC) and patient satisfaction (PS) in health care institutions. Testing these above relationships via a mediation approach is novel and contributed to the current study on service quality.

Search Engine Advertising Perceived Effectiveness

Search engine advertising (SEA), in which businesses (or advertisers) bid on keywords and pay search engine providers (e.g. Google) to get a secure place on the first page of search results, is a prominent source of revenue for search engine companies, and an effective method for businesses to promote their visibility on the Web. SEA is a complex and dynamic form of advertising and managing it effectively is still a challenge for many businesses, particularly smaller businesses. Building upon resource-based theory, this study has developed a context-specific model for understanding advertisers' competency factors that influence SEA effectiveness. Using structural equation modelling and survey data collected from 142 businesses, this research has found that SEA effectiveness is influenced by organizations' ability to manage keywords and bids, ability to analyse and monitor outcomes, advertising expertise, commitment to SEA task, and the use of external experts. Moderating relationships between the factors have been examined, and the implications of the findings for both academics and practitioners have been discussed.