Accepted for/Published in: JMIR Formative Research
Date Submitted: Sep 15, 2023
Date Accepted: Sep 9, 2024
Acceptance and use of eHealth in support and psychological therapy for people with intellectual disabilities: Two cross-sectional surveys of healthcare professionals
ABSTRACT
Background:
Acceptance of healthcare professionals is of paramount importance for the uptake and implementation of eHealth. The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model is a widely used framework for studying healthcare professionals’ acceptance and actual use of eHealth among general client populations. However, there is limited understanding of the eHealth acceptance of healthcare professionals working with people with intellectual disabilities (ID).
Objective:
To explore the applicability of the UTAUT model toward understanding the acceptance, intention to use, and actual use of eHealth among support staff and therapists working with people with ID.
Methods:
Two cross-sectional survey studies were conducted among healthcare professionals from five healthcare organizations for people with ID in the Netherlands, in 2018 (N=311) and in 2021 during the Covid-19 pandemic (N=326). In addition to confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses (CFA/EFA) to evaluate both the original UTAUT model and an extended version. Descriptive analysis was utilized to explore participants’ characteristics, acceptance levels, and eHealth usage. Moderator analysis and multi-regression analysis were employed.
Results:
CFA indicated a poor fit for both the original four-factor UTAUT model and the extended version. An EFA was then conducted, resulting in a more satisfactory five-factor model after removing one item with a factor loading < .40. Internal consistency of the five factors ranged from acceptable to good (Cronbach’s α=.76–.85). Collectively, all factors predicted the intention to use eHealth in 2018 (R2 = 0.47, F(5, 305) = 54,885, p < .001) and in 2021 (R2 = 0.43; F(5, 320) = 49,32, p < .001). Participants scored moderately on all five acceptance factors in both 2018 and 2021. Moderator analysis indicated that age and voluntariness influence the relationship between factors that determined acceptance and intention to use eHealth.
Conclusions:
The findings from two cross-sectional studies conducted in 2018 and 2021, utilizing an extended UTAUT model, gave a deeper understanding of eHealth acceptance among healthcare professionals who work with people with ID.
Citation
Request queued. Please wait while the file is being generated. It may take some time.
Copyright
© The authors. All rights reserved. This is a privileged document currently under peer-review/community review (or an accepted/rejected manuscript). Authors have provided JMIR Publications with an exclusive license to publish this preprint on it's website for review and ahead-of-print citation purposes only. While the final peer-reviewed paper may be licensed under a cc-by license on publication, at this stage authors and publisher expressively prohibit redistribution of this draft paper other than for review purposes.