Investigating the Factors Influencing the Adoption of Online Pharmacy in Oman
Abstract
There is a low level of adoption and acceptance of online pharmacies in Oman; only very limited Omani Citizens are aware of online pharmacies. Even fewer Omanis accessed and bought medicines using online pharmacy systems. Therefore, the online pharmacy business is facing a significant challenge in adaption in Oman. Despite many attempts on using web applications that mimic the actual pharmacy operations, such attempts are still preliminary. They need more theoretical modeling and practical enhancements to trust, reliability, efficacy, and other factors of success. The main aim of the current study is to investigate the factors that influence the adoption of online pharmacy to give a better understanding of technology adoption and acceptance in an Omani context. This study carries out under UTAUT-2 to examine the perception of customers on adapting online pharmacy. The study has presented an extensive review of existing books, journals, reports, newspapers, articles, and reputable online information on the issue at hand. The thought of relevant literature is closely linked to UTAUT-2 variables and the adoption of online pharmacy in Oman. The most important factors, such as performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, facilitating condition, habit, hedonic motivation, and price value, were observed as their influence on the adoption of online pharmacy among Omanis. This study provides valuable, insightful information about the effectiveness of a specific online pharmacy application and a more comprehensive assessment of users' perspectives on the factors that might influence their adoption of new technology in the context of Oman.
Keywords: technology adoption, unified theory of acceptance and use of technology, technology acceptance model, online pharmacy.
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