Technology-Enabled Type-1 Diabetes Self-Management – Protection Motivation Theory Perspective

Abstract

There is a growing emphasis on technology-enabled self-management among patients with chronic conditions such as Type-1 (T1D) diabetes. Regular self-monitoring empowers individuals with Type-1 diabetes to actively participate in their care, make informed decisions, and adjust their treatment plans as needed. Mobile applications are available to support patients' efforts, yet many users do not utilize them to help manage their care. In this study, we integrated the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) with the Protection-Motivation Theory (PMT). By integrating PMT into UTAUT, we can incorporate the motivational factors associated with health threat perception and protective behaviors specific to adolescent diabetes patients. PMT adds a layer of understanding by considering the perceptions of severity, vulnerability, response efficacy, and self-efficacy, along with reward and response cost. The collected responses to our survey among related m-health app users and non-users were analyzed using an independent 2-tailed t-test. The PMT constructs highlighted that T1D self-monitoring app users perceived their disease as more severe with higher self- and response efficacy but lower response cost. Non-users perceive T1D-related health threats differently and may have different coping mechanisms. Results, implications, and future research directions are discussed.