Escaping Loneliness Through Tourist-Chatbot Interactions

Social robots such as chatbots are regarded as a practical approach to alleviate loneliness. Few studies in the tourism field have focused on loneliness and its impact on the acceptance of chatbots used by the tourism industry. This paper explores the factors influencing tourists’ willingness to use chatbots from the perspective of loneliness by combining theories related to anthropomorphism and the uncanny valley effect. This paper adopts a qualitative research method by taking a semi-structured interview with 15 tourists who have used travel chatbots before. The results show that in addition to perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness, there are three factors (tourist loneliness, perceived anthropomorphism, and user anxiety) that directly influence tourists’ acceptance of travel chatbots. Moreover, tourist loneliness positively influences user anxiety through perceived anthropomorphism. User anxiety has a negative effect on perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness. This research then proposed an extended TAM model from the perspective of tourist loneliness. This paper enriches the research on loneliness as well as chatbots in the tourism field. The results provide suggestions for the practical application of travel chatbots.

Factors Influencing Intention to Technological Use in Older Adults. The TAM Model Aplication

The use of digital technology by older adults has improved in recent years in response to the need for their functional adaptation to an increasingly technological social context. Understanding this type of technological adaptation has recently become an important field of inquiry in both social and gerontological studies. Working within this framework, the aim of this study is to identify the main determinants that influence the intention of older people to use digital technology in their daily lives, using the Technological Acceptance Model. A study was carried out with the participation of 1155 people over 65 years of age in Spain. Confirmatory Factor Analysis and structural equation models (SEM) were performed. The results show that the TAM is a useful model to explain the intention of older adults to use Digital Technology, showing a high predictive power, highlighting Perceived Usefulness and Perceived Ease of Use as the main predictor variables.

Evaluating ICT utilization in education administration and management during the COVID-19 outbreak in Pakistan: An empirical review

This study aims to evaluate the utilization of ICT in education administration and management in a Pakistan context during the pandemic outbreak. Adoption of information and communication technologies (ICTs) has digitalized the learning process where education organizations were administrated by means of wireless-based instructions, electronic pedagogy, and online assessment in order to continue the educational activities while the government halted the physical appearance in education institutions. Data collection has been carried by three public universities in which teachers and general administration of these institutions participated to discover their intention to use the assigned technology to administrate organizations’ policies in the way to disseminate the respective service delivery. Survey questionnaires were used, and 178 respondents’ feedback was secured to analyze the study that was carried out via SPSS version 24 and validation OF hypotheses measured by means of regressions and correlations. Moreover, proposed factors like intention to use, perceived ease of ease, perceived usefulness, social influence, and Users’ expectations were used. A theoretical approach was inculcated to encircle the UTAUT and TAM model to determine the adoption of the innovative system education management during the pandemic outbreak in the country.

Acceptance of Technology by Islamic Boarding School Students Based on the TAM Model

This study aims to determine the acceptance of technology in Islamic boarding schools and their use in terms of physics learning outcomes, it is necessary to conduct research on technology acceptance among Islamic boarding schools. In this study, the acceptance of the technology was measured using the TAM model. Measurements were carried out in several Islamic boarding schools in the Aceh Besar area. The instrument used is a questionnaire on the perception of acceptance of information technology and documentation in the form of students' scores. The results obtained are the perception of students' acceptance of technology consisting of five indicators, namely the perception of PEOU (Perceived Ease of Use), PU (Perceived Usefulness), ATU (Attitude Toward Using), AU (Actual Usage), and B (Behavioral) towards information technology. Towards students tend to be high, and if there is the influence of other variables and not included in the study, so it can be seen that technology acceptance tends to be high. There is a strong relationship between Perceived Ease of Use (PEOU) and Perceived Usefulness (PU), PEOU and Attitude Toward Using (ATU), and Behavioral Intention (B) and Actual Usage (AU)

Integrating Trust into Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), the Conceptual Framework for E-Payment Platform Acceptance

Innovations acceptance is attracting increasing attention. Researchers are particularly interested in factors that affect the adoption of IS and IT innovations. However, despite numerous advantages of e-payment usage such as convenience, speed, efficiency and reduced cost, the economic ecosystem is skeptical to embrace e-payment systems (Adeyelure, Pretorius & Kalema, 2014). This research develops extended TAM model by integrating the three dimensions of trust (integrity, benevolence a0nd competence) and two key constructs from technology acceptance models (perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness of e-payment) to explain online consumers’ intentions to engage in the business relationship with e-payment. Through this framework, researchers can have a more accurate explanation of the consumer behavior and intention to accept new technology. This framework will be used to examine consumer’s behavioral intention to accept e-payment by researchers.

The Predictive Factors of New Technology Adoption, Workers’ Well-Being and Absenteeism: The Case of a Public Maritime Company in Venice

The main goal of this research was to investigate the psychosocial aspects that influence the acceptance of innovative technology in maritime transport and its impact on employees’ work-related wellbeing and absenteeism. In particular, this study focused on a device that had been introduced to sailors working in water public transportation in Venice. The theoretical framework included two integrated models: the TAM model, concerning acceptance of the technology, and the JD-R model, related to workers’ well-being. A two-wave study was conducted; at T1, a self-report questionnaire was administered to 122 sailors. Four months after its first administration (T2), objective data related to days of absenteeism were collected. The study showed that the perceived ease of use and the usefulness of the device influenced the workers’ intentions to use the technology and their motivational processes of work engagement, which was also related to social support. Work engagement impacted on work satisfaction and predicted the level of absenteeism (measured at Time 2). The implementation of a new technology may fail if transportation companies do not consider psychosocial factors that assist in the acceptance of such technology and promote the involvement of workers in the technological system.

Resilience Innovations and the Use of Food Order & Delivery Platforms by the Romanian Restaurants during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic, the blocking of activity by the government and the restrictions imposed in Romania had detrimental effects on the activity of restaurants, imposing their adaptation to new situations and generating creative innovations that caused changes in the way restaurants deliver food to consumers through food order & delivery platforms. Exploring the nature and implications of such innovations on resilience, this study analyzes their impact on the attitude and intention to use food delivery platforms by restaurant managers in Romania during the COVID-19 pandemic. Through the proposed structural model, the authors integrate innovations in resilience by joining together the new components of the established TAM model. This research was conducted on a sample of 402 restaurant managers in Romania. The data was collected based on a questionnaire, and it was analyzed with the SmartPLS3 software. The results of the study show that the four variables of innovation, namely business strategy innovations, technological innovations, financial innovations and social innovations, exert different effects on behavioral intention and attitude towards using the order & delivery platforms. The results of the study can be key points in the more efficient management of material, financial and human resources, thus improving the commercial performance of restaurants.