Examining the Adoption and Use of Mobile Data Services: A Consumer Behavior Analysis

The increasing penetration of mobile phones and mobile services even in poorer communities in the developing world (where the number of mobile phones has exceeded that of bank accounts) has led to an ever-larger number of services aimed at providing development in various sectors of the economies of the developing countries. Recent studies have shown the rise in the use of mobile applications to leapfrog the developmental agenda of many developing countries. This is because of continuous improvements in mobile technologies, increased affordability and availability. One of such mobile services developed to bring financial services to the rural unbanked is referred to as mobile money. However, the consumer acceptance and use of the technology have been varied in different countries with similar socio-economic factors. Whereas, the implementation of mobile money (M-PESA) was successful in Kenya, the same implementation in Tanzania did not attract large acceptance. The interaction between consumers and technology takes place within a social environment where existing social practices, norms and cultures exist. The aim of this research is to examine how these environmental factors interact with the technological and individual characteristics and determine the consumer's acceptance, use and adoption of the mobile data services. In addition, the aim is to provide a better understanding of the phenomenon that arises because of consumer interaction with the mobile money services.
This thesis contributes to the understanding of mobile data services acceptance, use, and the process by which consumers make the decision to adopt technology in their everyday life. It introduces an integrated mobile money adoption model (iMoMAM) which provides an understanding of consumers' socially influenced decision processes that guide the decision to adopt and use mobile money services. It also provides a new perspective to the determinants of end-user technology appropriation decision making. It was observed that an end-user's technology appropriation is determined by the public meaning of the technology, the end-user's private meaning, and social influence. Furthermore, it provides contextual information about how the technology is being incorporated into the everyday life of those who have adopted it.