A B S T R A C TThe present study investigates whether skills associated with operating the Internet-of-Things (IoT) contribute to the acceptance and (intended) usage of IoT technology and investigates to what extent these IoT skills are influenced by Internet skills. Extending the technology acceptance model (TAM), we conducted an online survey among 1356 respondents, a sample representative of the Dutch population. The results revealed that IoT skills directly contribute to IoT use and testify to the relevance of the TAM for predicting IoT acceptance and usage. However, people's attitudes towards the IoT did not influence its acceptance, suggesting that users are not yet fully aware of how IoT use affects their privacy and quality of life in general. Furthermore, the results revealed that several Internet skills are an important precedent for IoT acceptance and usage. Mobile, information navigation, social, and creative Internet skills directly or indirectly contributed to the level of IoT skills. It can be concluded that people's assessments of their IoT skills and that pragmatic considerations are important for its acceptance and that being skilled in using the IoT requires sufficient Internet skills.
Background The health internet-of-things (IoT) can potentially provide insights into the present health condition, potential pitfalls, and support of a healthier lifestyle. However, to enjoy these benefits, people need skills to use the IoT. These IoT skills are expected to differ across the general population, thereby causing a new digital divide. Objective This study aims to assess whether a sample of the general Dutch population can use health IoT by focusing on data and strategic IoT skills. Furthermore, we determine the role of gender, age, and education, and traditional internet skills. Methods From April 1, 2019, to December 12, 2019, 100 individuals participated in this study. Participants were recruited via digital flyers and door-to-door canvassing. A selective quota sample was divided into equal subsamples of gender, age, and education. Additional inclusion criteria were smartphone possession and no previous experience of using activity trackers. This study was conducted in 3 waves over a period of 2 weeks. In wave 1, a questionnaire was administered to measure the operational, mobile, and information internet skills of the participants, and the participants were introduced to the activity tracker. After 1 week of getting acquainted with the activity tracker, a task-based performance test was conducted in wave 2 to measure the levels of data IoT skills and the strategic IoT skill component—action plan construction. A week after the participants were asked to use the activity tracker more deliberately, a performance test was then conducted in wave 3 to measure the level of the strategic IoT skill component—action plan execution. Results The participants successfully completed 54% (13.5/25) of the data IoT skill tasks. Regarding strategic IoT tasks, the completion rates were 56% (10.1/18) for action plan construction and 43% (3.9/9) for action plan execution. None of the participants were able to complete all the data IoT skill tasks, and none of the participants were able to complete all the strategic IoT skill tasks regarding action plan construction or its execution. Age and education were important determinants of the IoT skill levels of the participants, except for the ability to execute an action plan strategically. Furthermore, the level of information internet skills of the participants contributed to their level of data IoT skills. Conclusions This study found that data and strategic IoT skills of Dutch citizens are underdeveloped with regard to health purposes. In particular, those who could benefit the most from health IoT were those who had the most trouble using it, that is, the older and lower-educated individuals.
As the Internet of Things (IoT) is making its entrance in people’s homes, differences in the skills to operate smart home devices need to be considered. This study examined (1) the levels of digital skills to use IoT home automation among Dutch adult citizens and (2) differences of these skills over gender, age, and education. Therefore, a performance test with actual real-life tasks was conducted among a representative sample ( N = 99) of the Dutch adult population to measure digital skill levels. The participants performed tasks while using interconnected smart home devices in a virtual test environment. The results revealed that the Dutch adult population possesses insufficient data and strategic skills to use smart home devices to its full potential. Even less likely to benefit are the elderly and less educated; they showed the lowest levels of data and strategic skills. In addition, the elderly lack operational skills to use IoT home automation beneficially.
BACKGROUND The health internet-of-things (IoT) can potentially provide insights into the present health condition, potential pitfalls, and support of a healthier lifestyle. However, to enjoy these benefits, people need skills to use the IoT. These <i>IoT skills</i> are expected to differ across the general population, thereby causing a new digital divide. OBJECTIVE This study aims to assess whether a sample of the general Dutch population can use health IoT by focusing on data and strategic IoT skills. Furthermore, we determine the role of gender, age, and education, and <i>traditional</i> internet skills. METHODS From April 1, 2019, to December 12, 2019, 100 individuals participated in this study. Participants were recruited via digital flyers and door-to-door canvassing. A selective quota sample was divided into equal subsamples of gender, age, and education. Additional inclusion criteria were smartphone possession and no previous experience of using activity trackers. This study was conducted in 3 waves over a period of 2 weeks. In wave 1, a questionnaire was administered to measure the operational, mobile, and information internet skills of the participants, and the participants were introduced to the activity tracker. After 1 week of getting acquainted with the activity tracker, a task-based performance test was conducted in wave 2 to measure the levels of data IoT skills and the strategic IoT skill component—<i>action plan construction</i>. A week after the participants were asked to use the activity tracker more deliberately, a performance test was then conducted in wave 3 to measure the level of the strategic IoT skill component—<i>action plan execution</i>. RESULTS The participants successfully completed 54% (13.5/25) of the data IoT skill tasks. Regarding strategic IoT tasks, the completion rates were 56% (10.1/18) for action plan construction and 43% (3.9/9) for action plan execution. None of the participants were able to complete all the data IoT skill tasks, and none of the participants were able to complete all the strategic IoT skill tasks regarding action plan construction or its execution. Age and education were important determinants of the IoT skill levels of the participants, except for the ability to execute an action plan strategically. Furthermore, the level of information internet skills of the participants contributed to their level of data IoT skills. CONCLUSIONS This study found that data and strategic IoT skills of Dutch citizens are underdeveloped with regard to health purposes. In particular, those who could benefit the most from health IoT were those who had the most trouble using it, that is, the older and lower-educated individuals.
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