Impact of Intrinsic Factors and COVID-19 Pandemic on the Use of Technology

The unprecedented pandemic of the infectious coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is still ongoing. Considering the limitations and restrictions imposed by COVID-19, we explored the role of technology and the extent of usage by end-users. In our online survey, we investigated users' perspectives on their use of technologies in different contexts (e.g., work, entertainment), taking into consideration intrinsic factors such as health consciousness, perceived social isolation, and pandemic-related concerns. Results from 218 respondents show a significant increase in technology use in all investigated contexts after the pandemic occurred. Moreover, the results suggest that different factors may contribute to such increases, depending on the context. It appears that perceived social isolation, concerns about the pandemic, and tracking have the most prominent influence on different use of technology. Furthermore, open-ended responses include beneficial opportunities, concerns & consequences, and behavioral transformations & adaptations due to COVID-19. Our findings provide insights for designing and developing new technologies, especially for communication and entertainment, to support users' needs during a pandemic.