Exploring smart wearables through the lens of reactance theory: Linking values, social influence, and status quo

With production increases and new affordances offered by wearable devices, it is surprising that individuals resist the adoption and use of smartwatches. This study examines the barriers to smartwatch adoption to understand why individuals avoid smart technologies. To more fully understand this phenomenon, we draw from reactance theory, which suggests that individuals will react against efforts that infringe upon their perceptions of freedom. Specifically, we develop a research model that explores how perceptions of value incongruence and social influence affect perceptions of freedom restriction, affecting perceptions of intrusiveness of the smartwatch and result in status quo behaviors towards the smartwatch. We test this model by surveying individuals who do not own smartwatches about their perceptions. We contribute to research with new applications of reactance theory to explain smartwatch status quo. We offer implications for practitioners on how to mitigate the status quo behaviors towards smartwatches.