The Role of Personal Assistance in the Uptake of Smartphone-Based Tele-Audiology—An Extension of the Technology Acceptance Model

Florian Ross; Atilla Wohllebe; Erik Diez

doi:10.3991/ijim.v16i12.30133

Authors

Florian Ross MATE – Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Kaposvár Campus, Kaposvár, Hungary
Atilla Wohllebe WR Institute of Applied Sciences https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5848-3453
Dr. Erik Diez MATE – Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Kaposvár Campus, Kaposvár, Hungary

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3991/ijim.v16i12.30133

Keywords:

Hearing Healthcare, Tele-Audiology, Technology Acceptance Model, Mobile Health

Abstract

The arrival of new technologies in Hearing Healthcare is evident. The ability to connect hearing aids to smartphones via Bluetooth has opened up a host of new possibilities. By using an associated app, it is possible, among other things, to make an appointment with the Hearing Care Professional remotely. This function is nothing other than a further development of the classic Tele- Audiology. However, since the user base is mostly older, the question arises about the importance of the personal assistant in the clinic in setting up and explaining the technology for successful use. For this reason, a study was conducted among 110 patients who had already received such a form of intervention. For this purpose, the existing Technology Acceptance Model was further developed to include the latent variable of personal assistance. Existing basic hypotheses from other areas of application were confirmed and an additional relevant variable was identified. It could be concluded that due to a further shift of the patient generation towards baby boomers, the need for personal assistance might decrease.

Author Biographies

Florian Ross, MATE – Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Kaposvár Campus, Kaposvár, Hungary

Florian Ross is a currently working on his PhD at the Doctoral School in Management and Organizational Sciences, MATE Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences - Kaposvár Campus, Hungary. His research focuses on the application of mobile- health technologies and its effects on patient relationships, Digital Health and Health Economics. He works as a clinic owner, publisher and lecturer and holds a B.A in Business Administration and Diploma in International Business.

Atilla Wohllebe, WR Institute of Applied Sciences

Atilla Wohllebe works as a consultant, employee, researcher, lecturer and publisher. Specializing in digital CRM and the digitization of retail, he has also published several books, book chapters and scientific papers. As a lecturer, he lectures Multi-Channel Retailing in the e-commerce program at the University of Applied Sciences Wedel, Germany. He is a member of the International Association of Online Engineering (IAOE). He is currently pursuing a Ph. D. program at MATE Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences – Kaposvár Campus, Kaposvár, Hungary. Atilla holds a B. A. in Business Administration and a M. Sc. in E-Commerce.

Dr. Erik Diez, MATE – Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Kaposvár Campus, Kaposvár, Hungary

Erik Diez is a veterinary surgeon specialised in small animal medicine and practice management as well as digital health economics. He works as a lecturer for digital health in veterinary practice management at the University of Applied Sciences of Neu-Ulm, Germany as well as a researcher at the University of Veterinary Medicine Budapest, Hungary. His research focuses on practice management, marketing and telemedicine. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. program at the Doctoral School in Management and Organizational Sciences, MATE Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences – Kaposvár Campus, Hungary. Erik holds a DVM and M.Sc. in veterinary medicine degree.