The Trust in Voting Systems (TVS) Measure

It is essential to democracy that voters trust voting systems enough to participate in elections and use these systems. Unfortunately, voter trust has been found to be low in many situations, which could detrimentally impact human-computer interactions in voting. Therefore, it is important to understand the degree to which voters trust any specific voting method. Voting researchers have developed and used measures of overall trust in technology; yet researchers have long argued that trust in systems is domain-specific, implying that system-specific measures should be used instead. To address this latter point, this paper describes the development of a psychometrically reliable and validated instrument called the Trust in Voting Systems (TVS) measure. The TVS not only allows researchers to understand group mean differences in trust across voting systems; it also allows researchers to understand individual differences in trust within systems—all of which collectively serves to inform and improve voting systems.

Population Aging and Multicultural Diversity in the United States: Implications for Older Consumers’ Needs and Expectations

Looking ahead to 2030 and beyond, the United States will be both older and more multicultural than presently. To explore the impacts and characteristics of an increasingly diverse population beginning to age, the MIT AgeLab conducted online focus groups in August 2020 (n=92) with ethnically diverse participants ages 40-69 on topics related to household composition, use of technology and digital engagement. Regarding household composition, Black and Latinx participants were more likely to report living with grandchild(ren), and Asian, Latinx, and White participants were more likely to report living with a parent(s) or parent(s)-in- law. Latinx participants often described ways in which caregiving for aging parents was a cultural value, but many participants who had raised children in the United States but who were not born in the United States themselves described cultural gaps in family attitudes that had sometimes widened across the generations. While all participants were using some technology, due to the coronavirus pandemic, digital tools were being used more widely than ever before. Racial/ethnic identity groups were more similar than different in terms of their responses to questions around consumer digital engagement. There were notable differences in overall trust in technology across racial/ethnic groups, with Asian participants reporting the highest average overall level of trust in technology and Multiracial participants reporting the lowest. Looking ahead, the intersection of aging and growing racial/ethnic diversity in the United States will yield a wider array of consumer needs and expectations.

DISRUPTIVE TECHNOLOGIES FOR ACCOUNTING OF THE FUTURE

Disruptive technologies in accounting represent a new evolutionary phase of accounting impacted by emerging technologies that are part of industrial revolution 4.0. The relevance of emerging technologies, their potential and the opportunities they offer for the accounting profession attract both academia and professionals with accelerated research efforts. Academia and scientific researchers must research and provide an appropriate theoretical basis to help practitioners better adapt and increase their awareness and trust in technology. This paper provides early quantitative research data on publication trends related to most disruptive technologies in accounting such as big data, data analytics, cloud, artificial intelligence and blockchain. We identified these five emerging technologies through literature review and elaborated in detail how they can change and advance the accounting profession. The research was conducted using bibliometric analysis to examine the level of coverage of each of the technologies in the period from 2016 to 2020 by analyzing the published articles by the Big Four accounting firms, professional accounting associations and institutions and high-ranking academic journals. The purpose of the research was to identify a potential gap in research preferences related to selected technologies between academia and development professionals and experts in the field. The findings highlight that there are no significant discrepancies or different views of academia and practitioners. It is a positive result indicating that academia and scientific researchers exploit in the same direction as practitioners, thus providing support for adaptation and alignment to technology trends.

A Study of the Human Factor in Industry 4.0 Based on the Automotive Industry

Human factor plays an important role in the implementation of the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0). The concept of Industry 4.0 is poorly researched, particularly the social aspect. The authors have conducted a study to determine the level of preparation of employees for the introduction of technological changes. This study involved conducting a survey on a sample of 453 employees based in four organizations within the automotive industry. The respondents were thereafter divided into groups based on age and positions held. The employees’ knowledge of the Industry 4.0 technology was examined, and their openness to change and readiness to increase competence was determined. A causal relationship was found between knowledge and trust in technology. Employees’ fears associated with production automation were discussed. A group of production workers was found to be the least prepared to implement technology changes. Actions to improve the situation and potential consequences of inadequate implementation of this technology were indicated. The findings from this study were compared with the results obtained in other countries. Special attention was paid to the limitations of this study, and we identified the necessity to conduct international comparative research on small, medium and large enterprises.

Trust in the Adoption of Internet of Things for Smart Agriculture in Developing Countries

Trust in online environments is based on beliefs in the trustworthiness of a trustee, which is composed of three distinct dimensions - integrity, ability, and benevolence. Zimbabwe has slowly adopted Internet of Things for smart agriculture as a way of improving on food security in the country, though there is hesitancy by most farmers citing trust issues as monitoring of crops, animals and farm equipment’s would be done online through connecting several devices and accessing data. Farmers are facing difficulties in trusting that the said technology has the ability to perform as expected in a specific situation or to complete a required task, i.e. if the technology will work consistently and reliably in monitoring the environment, nutrients, temperatures and equipment status. The integrity of the collected data as it will be used for decision making. There is a growing need to determine how trust in the technology influence the adoption of IoT for smart agriculture in Zimbabwe. The mixed methodology was used to gather data from 50 A2 model farmers randomly sampled in Zimbabwe. The findings revealed that McKnight etal. trust in technology model can be used to influence the adoption of IoT through trusting that the technology will be reliable and will operate as expected.Additional constructs such as security and distrust of technology can be used as reference for future research.

Smart Co-housing for People With Disabilities: A Preliminary Assessment of Caregivers’ Interaction With the DOMHO System

Millions of people with motor and cognitive disabilities face hardships in daily life due to the limited accessibility and inclusiveness of living spaces which limit their autonomy and independence. The DOMHO project deals with these fundamental issues by leveraging an innovative solution: a smart co-housing apartment. Besides, the project aims at exploiting the well know effects of co-housing on individuals’ health and well-being in combination with ambient assisted living technologies. The present study focused on the interaction of caregivers with the control application of an integrated smart system. Participants performed different tasks, fill out a questionnaire, and were interviewed. Performance and usability of the user interface, trust in technology, privacy, and attitudes towards home automation were explored. A series of guidelines for domotic technology control interfaces design was identified, and a high level of trust in these advanced tools was shown. Caregivers considered smart technologies as a work aid and a means for enhancing autonomy and life quality for users with disabilities.

A Trust-Based Model for the Adoption of Smart City Technologies in Australian Regional Cities

This paper explores the role of stakeholders’ trust in the adoption of smart city technologies, leading to the identification of the critical determinants for adopting smart city technologies in Australian regional cities. A comprehensive review of the related literature has been conducted. Such a review leads to the development of a trust-based research model for investigating the importance of trust in technology and its adoption. This model is then tested and validated with the use of a structural equation modeling technique on the survey data collected from ICT professionals in Australian regional cities. The study results show that perceived usefulness, perceived external pressure and perceived information security influence trust in smart city technologies. Further analysis highlights the significant relationship between stakeholders’ trust and their intention to adopt smart city technologies. This study is unique, as it is one of a few studies that focus on exploring stakeholders’ trust in the adoption of smart city technologies from the perspective of ICT professionals in Australia. The study results can be used by the government agencies to formulate appropriate policies to enhance the use of smart city technologies in the active pursuit of smart city development in Australia.