1. ¹Division of Business, Carson-Newman College, Jefferson City, TN, U.S.A.
2. ²Department of Management & Info Systems, Mississippi State University, Miss State, MS, U.S.A.

Correspondence: Cheon-Pyo Lee, Division of Business, C-N Box 71887, Carson-Newman College, Jefferson City, TN 37760, U.S.A. Tel: 865 471 3312; Fax: 865 471 3599; E-mail: clee@cn.edu

Received 28 February 2007; Revised 18 June 2007; Re-revised 3 September 2007; Accepted 27 September 2007.

Abstract

This study examines the radio frequency identification (RFID) adoption decision process and proposes a model predicting the likelihood of adopting RFID within organizations in the healthcare industry. A considerable number of studies have been conducted regarding organizational information technology (IT) adoption, but the nature of the organizational IT adoption process is still not well understood. Especially, although there are a number of variables and categories that have been found empirically to be related to adoption behavior, there is little in the way of evidence to suggest the origin or motivation behind the adoption. Thus, this study investigates the underlying motivations and driving forces behind the adoption of RFID using the theory of technology-push and need-pull. In this study, an organizational RFID adoption model is proposed and empirically tested by a survey using a sample of 126 senior executives in U.S. hospitals. The model posits that three categories of factors, technology push, need pull, and presence of champions, determine the likelihood of adopting RFID within organizations. This study also found that the relationships between those three categories and the likelihood of adopting RFID are strengthened or weakened by organizational readiness.