The moderating effects of demographic and individual characteristics on nurses' acceptance of information systems: A canadian study

• Evidence in this study suggests that nurses have positive views of healthcare-based IS use at work.
• Nurses with higher educational levels have more positive views of implemented healthcare-based IS at work.
• Nurses possessing more computer knowledge have more positive views of implemented healthcare-based IS at work.
• Nurses’ years of working experience and age are factors of no significance in enhancing perceptions, attitudes, and IS use behaviors at work.

ObjectivesThe purpose of this study was to educate on the moderating effects of demographic (i.e., educational level and age) and individual characteristics (i.e., years of nursing experience and computer knowledge) on nurses’ acceptance of information systems (IS). The technology acceptance model (TAM) with its constituent variables such as perceived usefulness (PUSS) and perceived ease of use (PEOU) was the theoretical framework used for this study.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted in Nova Scotia, Canada. Usable data was collected from 197 registered nurses (RNs). Relevant hypotheses were formulated and the partial least squares (PLS) technique was used for data analysis.ResultsThe results of the hypothesized relationships showed that education and computer knowledge have positive moderating effects on the influences of PEOU and PUSS on nurses’ attitudes toward IS (ATTI). The factors of nurses’ years of nursing experience and age did not yield meaningful results. ATTI impacted behavioral intentions to use IS, which positively impacted nurses’ use of IS. The nurses sampled in the study have positive IS use behaviors.ConclusionsThis study demonstrates that relevant demographic factors and individual characteristics, if incorporated into frameworks used for investigating nurses’ acceptance of IS, could permit the emergence of useful insights for practitioners and researchers. Specifically, this study showed that nurses with higher educational attainments and more basic computer knowledge readily accept implemented IS at work. Hospital administrators benefit from insights such as the one presented in this study.