EXTENDING UTAUT TO EXPLAIN SOCIAL MEDIA ADOPTION BY MICROBUSINESSES

Abstract

This paper extends the use of the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) to explain social media adoption by microbusinesses. A canonical action research method is used to study social media adoption in microbusiness, and a post positivist approach is used to report the results based on a predetermined premise. It is found that the major constructs of performance and effort expectancy played an insignificant role, and social influence and facilitating conditions did not influence the behavioral and adoption intentions of social media by microbusiness owners. Owner characteristics and codification effort dominated the use behavior. The goal of microbusiness owners in gaining additional customers leads to behavioral modification resulting in replacing of behavioral intention with goals as a superior method of predicting adoption behavior within the context of microbusinesses.