Assessing the telemedicine acceptance for adults in Brazil.

Purpose: This study aimed to find factors influencing the acceptance of telemedicine for adults in Brazil. Moreover, it investigates the moderating role of disease complexity and the generational digital divide phenomenon on the intention to use the telemedicine service.

Design/methodology/approach: A quasi-experiment was employed. Primary data were collected using a survey research method considering two different scenarios based on disease complexity and symptom severity. A total of 248 responses were collected using a structured questionnaire. The authors also tested these two scenarios in three generations (X, Y and Z) of adults. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was used to analyze the collected data and test the research hypotheses.

Findings: The results indicated that performance expectancy and perceived security and reliability are two predictors of the behavioral intention to use telemedicine, whereas effort expectancy and social influence showed no statistical significance. Furthermore, the results demonstrated that adults tend to adopt telemedicine regardless of the level of disease complexity. Finally, this study does not support the existence of a digital divide in the three generations.

Originality/value: The study applies the UTAUT model to assess the telemedicine acceptance for younger generations. It examines patient risk perception (security and reliability) as one antecedent of telemedicine acceptance.