Document Type
Article
Publication Date
12-1-2005
Abstract
Cell phone density in G8 countries ranges between 80 and 90 percent – except in the US where some 35 % of Americans have failed to adopt the technology. The relative reluctance of US consumers to embrace cellular technology is puzzling given that the barriers for use appear to be low and the benefits high. If rejection was the simple inverse of adoption, we would expect people to reject cellular telephony based on negative evaluations of usefulness and ease of use, dominant constructs in technology acceptance models. This research suggests, however, that barriers to cell phone rejection transcend those traditionally tapped in the vast literature that explains adoption. We used qualitative semi-structured interviews and a written survey instrument to probe the attitudes and beliefs of cell phone rejecters and discovered that personality attributes and powerful social/psychological perceptions about consequence of use may better explain rejection. Our findings imply that beliefs about dystopian consequences to self and society as a result of cell phone usage trump perceptions of convenience and efficiency in the formation of attitudes that drive the adoption decision.
Keywords
organizational behavior
Rights
© The Author(s). Kelvin Smith Library provides access for non-commercial, personal, or research use only. All other use, including but not limited to commercial or scholarly reproductions, redistribution, publication or transmission, whether by electronic means or otherwise, without prior written permission is strictly prohibited.
Department/Center
Design & Innovation
Recommended Citation
Aversano, Nina, "Silence Please: The Case for Cell Phone Rejection" (2005). Student Scholarship. 380.
https://commons.case.edu/studentworks/380