Article Category: Research Paper
Published Online: Sep 01, 2017
Page range: 60 - 74
Received: Feb 01, 2016
Accepted: May 16, 2016
DOI: https://doi.org/10.20309/jdis.201614
Keywords
© 2016 Jianya Wang
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.
Purpose
In order to explain and predict the adoption of personal cloud storage, this study explores the critical factors involved in the adoption of personal cloud storage and empirically validates their relationships to a user’s intentions.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on technology acceptance model (TAM), network externality, trust, and an interview survey, this study proposes a personal cloud storage adoption model. We conducted an empirical analysis by structural equation modeling based on survey data obtained with a questionnaire.
Findings
Among the adoption factors we identified, network externality has the salient influence on a user’s adoption intention, followed by perceived usefulness, individual innovation, perceived trust, perceived ease of use, and subjective norms. Cloud storage characteristics are the most important indirect factors, followed by awareness to personal cloud storage and perceived risk. However, although perceived risk is regarded as an important factor by other cloud computing researchers, we found that it has no significant influence. Also, subjective norms have no significant influence on perceived usefulness. This indicates that users are rational when they choose whether to adopt personal cloud storage.
Research limitations
This study ignores time and cost factors that might affect a user’s intention to adopt personal cloud storage.
Practical implications
Our findings might be helpful in designing and developing personal cloud storage products, and helpful to regulators crafting policies.
Originality/value
This study is one of the first research efforts that discuss Chinese users’ personal cloud storage adoption, which should help to further the understanding of personal cloud adoption behavior among Chinese users.