The National Technology Readiness Survey: 10 Years of Trends

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The National Technology Readiness Survey 10
Years of Trends

• Charles L. Colby,
• President, Rockbridge Associates, Inc.
• For info, contact Charles Colby703-757-5213, x12
  ccolby_at_rockresearch.com

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Discussion Points Today

• NTRS Research Program
• Overview of the Technology Readiness Construct
• Trends in Consumer Technology Readiness
• Trends in e-Services in the U.S.
• Predictive Power of the TR Construct
• Issues in Tracking Technology Beliefs and
  Behaviors

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Our Research Program

• National Technology Readiness Survey
• Authored by Parasuraman and Rockbridge
• Sponsored by the Center for Excellence in
  Service, Robert H. Smith School of Business,
  University of Maryland
• Replicated in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004,
  2005/6, 2007, 2009 in field now (tracking)
• Nationally representative telephone survey from
  1999 to 2004, again in 2009
• Hybrid Web/Phone Survey in 2005/6 and 2007
• Other efforts in dozens of countries

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The TR Construct

• Quick Overview

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What is Technology Readiness? (TR)

• TR refers to peoples propensity to embrace and
  use new technologies for accomplishing goals in
  home life and at work
• TR reflects an overall state-of-mind it is not a
  measure of competence
• It describes the person, not the technology

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Technology Readiness Distribution
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Drivers of Technology Readiness
Innovativeness
Optimism
Technology Readiness
Discomfort
Insecurity
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TR Dimensions

• Optimism Positive view of technology belief
  that it offers increased control, flexibility and
  efficiency
• Innovativeness Tendency to be a technology
  pioneer and thought leader
• Discomfort Perceived lack of control over
  technology and a feeling of being overwhelmed by
  it
• Insecurity Distrust of technology and skepticism
  about it working properly

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The Technology Readiness Index (TRI) A
Multi-Item Measure

• 36 agreement scaled attributes
• 4 sub-scales for measuring individual dimensions
  of TR
• Many studies use an abbreviated 10 item or 6 item
  index
• In 2009, we are only tracking with the 10 item
  scale
• The scale is available to scholars without charge
• Note scale is called TechQual in a commercial
  setting

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10 Item Technology Readiness IndexDistribution
(Actual Data, 2009)
Kurtosis -.042 Skew -.533
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Sources

• Technology Readiness Index (TRI), a Multi-Item
  Scale to Measure Readiness to Embrace New
  Technologies, A. Parasuraman, Journal of Service
  Research, Vol. 2, No. 4, 307-320 (2000)
• Techno-Ready Marketing How and Why Your
  Customers Adopt Technology (Parasuraman Colby
  Free Press, April 2001)
• www.technoreadymarketing.com

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Trends in Technology Readiness

• 1999 to 2009

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The TRI is Highly Stable over Time

• The 10 Item TR has crept up gradually over the
  decade

SD16.67
99
99
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Technology Readiness Segments

• In Techno-Ready Marketing, Parasuraman Colby
  identified 5 technology segments
• The more tech-ready segments have become more
  prevalent as consumers have become more
  comfortable and secure

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Optimism Beliefs

• Consumers have become a little less optimistic
  about technology since the baseline study in 1999

99
99
99
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Innovativeness Beliefs

• Innovative tendencies have not changed much over
  time
• About a third of the population are early
  adopters and influencers

99
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Discomfort Beliefs

• Consumers have become more comfortable with
  technology over the years

99
99
99 04
99
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Insecurity

• Consumers have also become more secure with
  technology, especially with ecommerce

9904
99
9904
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Trends in e-Service

• 1999 - 2009

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NTRS Coverage has Changed over Time

• Old Themes (1999)
• Online services (e.g., AOL)
• ATMs
• Telephone Banking
• Cell Phones
• Computers and Modems
• Caller ID and Voice Mail
• Home fax
• Online Trading

• New Themes (2009)
• Internet Identity
• Social Networking
• C2C
• Mobile Commerce
• Online medicine
• Green technology

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Connectivity Trends in the U.S.

• NTRS shows consistent growth in home internet
  access, while exposure at work has not changed
  over 10 years
• 86 of consumers have access to the Internet
  somewhere, and broadband is becoming mainstream

1999 2004 2009 Broadband 8 46
79
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E-Commerce is Growing

• Consumers are more likely to buy online in all
  price categories

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e-Finance is a Booming Category

• There is continued growth in
• Online banking
• Online billpay
• Online management of accounts

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C2C Commerce

• The internet creates a growing market for
  consumers to deal directly with each other using
  online classifieds and auction sites

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e-Government Continues to Grow

• Consumers are taking advantage of increasing
  functionality at the local, state and federal
  level

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We are Learning and Belonging Online

• The internet is changing how we join and interact
  with non-profits
• E-learning is showing steady growth

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Correlates and Consequences of Technology
Readiness
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Questions for Analysis of 2009 Data

• What are the antecedents of TR?
• How important is TR in explaining and predicting
  behavior?
• Findings
• TR is determined by education, age, occupation,
  children, gender, marital status and
  homeownership status
• TR is a strong predictor of online behaviors

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Antecedents of Technology Readiness Education,
Age, Occupation, Children
YTRI, R-squared 34
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TR Predicts Internet Behavior

• A measure of technology behavior is the number of
  different online activities one conducts (e.g.,
  financial, commerce, government, health)
• The 10 item TRI alone can explain 33 of the
  variance
• 4.6 points on the TRI translates into 1
  additional behavior

Mean 11.8 Median 12 Range 0 - 27
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Impact of Techno-Readiness and other Variables on
Technology Behavior
Y Activities, R-squared 47
Unexplained in model where yTRI.
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Issues in Researching Technology Readiness and
e-Services
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Checklist

• TR continues to be a stable construct
• Items that reference a current technology or
  issue (e.g., the internet) change over time,
  albeit gradually
• While we track behaviors, the list needs to
  constantly be updated
• As discussed in past presentations, the sampling
  frame is an issue

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Thanks!