Factors influencing consumers’ adoption and use of wearable technologies

Inactivity and increase in chronic health conditions caused by sedentary behavior have become a growing concern in many countries. In the past years, many health and wellbeing technologies have been launched to promote healthy behavior and help people to better monitor and track their activity level and performance throughout the day. The main goal of this thesis was to take a closer look at factors influencing consumers’ adoption and use of wearable technologies. For this purpose, a theoretical framework was built, highlighting key factors influencing perceived benefits, perceived risks and abandonment of wearable devices. The theoretical framework was tested by conducting an empirical study using netnography. Focus of the empirical study was narrowed down to the consumer market and activity trackers. Data of this study was collected from top rated reviews (N=60) in Amazon for three products: Fitbit Charge 2, Garmin Vivosmart HR+ and Polar A370. Sixty customer reviews were collected and analyzed using Atlas.ti. Results of this study showed that usefulness is the most influential factor on consumers’ perceived benefits of a wearable device. Perceived risks are mainly affected by financial and performance risks. Finally, data inaccuracy, build quality, synchronization, poor UI & UX design and system malfunction are the most impactful factors for dissatisfaction and device abandonment