Reluctance to use technology-related products: Development of a technophobia scale

Sinkovics, Rudolf R.; Stöttinger, Barbara; Schlegelmilch, Bodo B.; Ram, Sundaresan

Abstract

Many consumers feel overloaded by the complexity of technology-related products. This renders consumers less open and may even lead to an aversion or anxiety towards this kind of products, so-called technophobia. The prevailing paper aims to establish an instrument which measures technophobia. Following a literature review and in-depth interviews with experts, a scale is developed and tested in seven different countries (U.S., U.K., France, Spain, India, Mexico and Austria, total sample size = 1503 respondents). The three underlying dimensions of the scale, namely, "Personal Failure", "Human vs. Machine Ambiguity" and "Convenience" are discussed and future research avenues to strengthen the cross-national usability of the scale are identified.

Citation

Sinkovics, R. R., Stöttinger, B., Schlegelmilch, B. B., & Ram, S. (2002). Reluctance to use technology-related products: Development of a technophobia scale. Thunderbird International Business Review, 44(4), 477-494. https://doi.org/10.1002/tie.10033

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Publication Date: 2002
• Deposit Date: Dec 19, 2024
• Journal: Thunderbird International Business Review
• Print ISSN: 1096-4762
• Electronic ISSN: 1520-6874
• Publisher: Wiley
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 44
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 477-494
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/tie.10033
• Keywords: Technology, anxiety, fear, Scale development, personal failure, human vs. machine ambiguity, convenience
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/2772747
• Publisher URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/tie.10033