The roles of privacy concerns and trust in voluntary use of governmental proximity tracing applications

ABSTRACT

A growing aspect of e-government is healthcare-related. Although preventative e-health services provided by governments like proximity tracing applications (PTAs) can bring important benefits, their adoption is lagging behind expectations. Researchers and policymakers need a better understanding of the factors that influence their adoption. The paper draws from the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model and extends it by including privacy concerns as an explanatory factor regarding the intention to use PTAs. The study empirically evaluates the impact of privacy concerns together with two of its antecedents – trust in government and trust in technology – on the intention to use a PTA. Data from 762 adult respondents from Slovenia and Germany were collected and analysed using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). The main findings are (1) even in the unique context of a PTA the universal predictors of UTAUT have a significant impact;(2) privacy concerns have a direct impact on intention to use;and (3) trust in government and trust in technology both have a significant impact on privacy concerns. The theoretical implications are important for technology adoption research on e-health services provided by the government generally and PTAs in particular. © 2022 Elsevier Inc.