Abstract
Whilst there has been a large amount of research conducted on user acceptance and acceptability of systems (Davis, 1986, Davis et al. 1989, Holden and Karsh 2010, Nielson 1993), there is no unified definition of user acceptance, or a list of concepts that can be applied to different design disciplines (Regan et al. 2002). The aim of this research is to develop a comprehensive definition and model of technology acceptance. This paper will describe an initial study that explores user acceptance from the perspective of two relevant subject disciplines: Industrial Design and Information Technology. Experts in Industrial Design (ID) (n=6) and Information Technology (IT) (n=8) who had been involved in the design of a range of different technologies from computer systems through to products and cars were interviewed. During semi-structured interviews they were asked to consider and generate factors and definitions relating to acceptability, and any perceived overlap with the concept of usability. The data was analyzed through content analysis. 151 concepts were generated by the participants; these were grouped to give 31 mutually exclusive concepts. The generated list was supplemented with acceptance criteria identified through a literature review to produce a comprehensive list of 63concepts. These items were then categorized into 11 mutually exclusive constructs. Future work will produce a revised Technology Acceptance Model which can be applied to hedonic, voluntary and utilitarian systems.
Keywords
user acceptance, system acceptability, technology acceptance model
Citation
Garton, L., Woodcock, A., and Moody, L. (2012) Interpreting Acceptability in Information Technology and Product Design, in Israsena, P., Tangsantikul, J. and Durling, D. (eds.), Research: Uncertainty Contradiction Value - DRS International Conference 2012, 1-4 July, Bangkok, Thailand. https://dl.designresearchsociety.org/drs-conference-papers/drs2012/researchpapers/43
Interpreting Acceptability in Information Technology and Product Design
Whilst there has been a large amount of research conducted on user acceptance and acceptability of systems (Davis, 1986, Davis et al. 1989, Holden and Karsh 2010, Nielson 1993), there is no unified definition of user acceptance, or a list of concepts that can be applied to different design disciplines (Regan et al. 2002). The aim of this research is to develop a comprehensive definition and model of technology acceptance. This paper will describe an initial study that explores user acceptance from the perspective of two relevant subject disciplines: Industrial Design and Information Technology. Experts in Industrial Design (ID) (n=6) and Information Technology (IT) (n=8) who had been involved in the design of a range of different technologies from computer systems through to products and cars were interviewed. During semi-structured interviews they were asked to consider and generate factors and definitions relating to acceptability, and any perceived overlap with the concept of usability. The data was analyzed through content analysis. 151 concepts were generated by the participants; these were grouped to give 31 mutually exclusive concepts. The generated list was supplemented with acceptance criteria identified through a literature review to produce a comprehensive list of 63concepts. These items were then categorized into 11 mutually exclusive constructs. Future work will produce a revised Technology Acceptance Model which can be applied to hedonic, voluntary and utilitarian systems.