What about Passive Innovation Resistance? Exploring User’s Resistance to Technology in the Healthcare Sector1

Abstract

Where little is known about how users passively resist innovation prior to evaluation, this paper explores both past and current trends through a systematic review of 45 studies (1989 – 2017) related to the consumer decision journey. The literature on adoption largely assumes that consumers are open to change, presuming that all consumers will experience a new offering prior to reaching an adoption decision. However, the review confirms the existence of passive innovation resistance; the selected papers also identified two main drivers (resistance to change and status quo satisfaction). However, some recent studies have challenged these drivers for not evolving along with the consumer decision journey. Our contribution highlights the multidimensional nature of experience in today’s digital world through the re-examination of antecedents and correlates. In doing so, the study strengthens our understanding of the phenomenon, ensuring that managers become more aware of the differences when making strategic decisions on innovation.