Beyond Habit: The Role of Sunk Costs on Developing Automatic IS Use Behaviors

Habitual routine behaviors and their subsequent conditioned response behaviors are two very powerful determinants of future human behavior. This study conceptualizes the habits or routines that people engage in with technology as being distinct and apart from automatic IS use behaviors. Automatic IS use behaviors—of which people are often unaware of the behavior until reflecting backward upon it—are hypothesized to be a result of a person’s interaction with certain technology features which act as stimulus and reward mechanisms. Additionally, the roles of habit and a person’s perception of sunk costs are hypothesized to play an important role in the development of automatic IS use behaviors. An international study of 177 individuals using a wide range of technologies provides support for the proposed relationships. The findings of the study, the limitations, and directions for future research are also discussed