Measuring Senior Technology Acceptance: Development of a Brief, 14-Item Scale

Background and Objectives: Technology has the potential to provide assistance and enrichment to older people; however, the desired outcomes are dependent on users' acceptance and usage. The senior technology acceptance model (STAM) was developed as a multidimensional measure assessing older people's acceptance of general technology. It contained 11 constructs measured by 38 items and had shown satisfactory psychometric properties. However, the length of the questionnaire increased respondent burden and limited its utilization. The study aimed to develop a brief, reliable, and valid version of scale to measure older people's technology acceptance by shortening the full, 38-item STAM questionnaire. Research Design and Methods: The research method included (1) a sequential item-reduction strategy maximizing internal consistency, (2) convergent and discriminant validity analysis based on confirmative factor analysis, and (3) an expert review of resultant items. Data previously collected for developing the original STAM questionnaire were used to create the brief version. The data were collected from 1,012 community-dwelling individuals aged 55 and older in Hong Kong. Internal consistency and construct validity of the shortened questionnaire were examined. Two experts were invited for reviewing content validity. Results: The final 14-item, brief version of the STAM questionnaire consisted of a 4-factor structure, representing classical technology acceptance constructs and age-related health characteristics. Theoretical relationships in the brief version showed similar patterns to the original STAM. The 14-item STAM demonstrated robustness in psychometrics by preserving the reliability and validity of the original STAM questionnaire. Discussion and Implications: The availability of a reliable and valid assessment tool of the short STAM can help researchers and practitioners to measure older adults' acceptance of technology and its effective usage. The short STAM could save administration time, reduce the burden on respondents, and be included in large-scale surveys. Translational Significance: A novel 14-item questionnaire can be used to accurately assess older adults' propensity to try new technology.