Consumer adaptation and infusion of wearable devices for healthcare

Consumers' concerns about health and privacy risks of the Internet of Things, and in particular healthcare wearable devices, have been recently intensified. Yet there is little research examining the impact of those concerns on consumers' behavioral patterns related to the post-adoptive use of healthcare wearable devices. The purpose of this study is to examine how consumers attain extended use of healthcare wearable devices in the presence of health and privacy concerns. This study empirically tests a novel research model drawing on coping theory and coping model of user adaptation. Data were collected from United States consumers using stratified and random sampling method. The effective sample included 260 responses from consumers. The results indicate that consumers' health and privacy concerns initiate a coping process. Problem-focused and emotion-focused coping efforts significantly predict the extended use of healthcare wearable devices. This study offers several implications for theory and research. Most notably, it demonstrates the viability of coping as a high-level theoretical lens for examining consumers’ post-adoptive use of information technology. •The purpose of the present study is to examine the entire process of infusion of healthcare wearable devices.•Consumers' adaptation to healthcare wearable device is analyzed by applying coping theory and CMUA.•Consumers' health and privacy concerns have significant impact on challenge and threat appraisals.•Problem and emotion-focused coping efforts determine the extended use (infusion) of healthcare wearable devices.•Implications for academicians and practitioners were suggested.