Table 1 – The main theoretic constructs of reference
Constructs | Definition | Advantages/concerns in e-health platforms |
|---|---|---|
Consumer Engagement | “Customer engagement (CE) is a psychological state that occurs by virtue of interactive, co-creative customer experiences with a focal agent/object (e.g., a brand) in focal service relationships.” [14:260] “Consumer engagement is a multidimensional concept comprising cognitive, emotional, and/or behavioral dimensions, and plays a central role in the process of relational exchange where other relational concepts are engagement antecedents and/or consequences in iterative engagement processes within the brand community [15:107] | Efficiency and effectiveness—Patient engagement guarantees efficiency and effectiveness in the health system and a reduction in health costs because it is anchored on patient participation [6, 16,17,18,19] |
Consumer Satisfaction | “Consumer satisfaction is a response (emotional or cognitive); 2) the response pertains to a particular focus (expectations, product, consumption experience, etc.); and 3) the response occurs at a particular time (after consumption, after choice, based on accumulated experience, etc.) [20] “Satisfaction is defined as a global evaluation or feeling state” [21:256] | Cooperation—The higher the level of satisfaction the more the patient will follow the treatment and cooperate with the doctors and health workers [22, 23] |
Perceived benefit | “Perceived benefit refers to the perceived likelihood that taking a recommended course of action will lead to a positive outcome, such as reduced risk or reduced worry” [24:36] “Benefits refer to the expected or experienced positive consequences of [a given behavior]” [25:50] “Perceived benefits construct is […] defined as an individual’s belief that specific positive outcomes will result from a specific behavior” [26:88] | Intention to use—The benefits perceived by the patient are inversely proportional to the difficulty perceived in the use of the technology [27]. The expected benefits have an effect on the intention to use the digital health platform [28] |
Perceived Technological Risk | “(…) is commonly thought of as felt uncertainty regarding possible negative consequences of using a product or service” [29:453] “(…) the potential for loss in the pursuit of a desired outcome of using an e-service” [29:454] | Reliability of health services—The level of security of the patient’s clinical data and their correct storage on the web increases the level of reliability of the health services provided through the digital health platform [30] |
Effort Expectancy | “(…) is defined as the degree of ease associated with the use of the system” [31:509] | Intention to use—The patient’s effort expectancy affects the intention to use a digital health service [28] |
Perceived Usefulness | “The prospective user’s subjective probability that using a specific application system will increase his or her job performance within an organizational context’’ [32:985] “(…) the degree to which a person believes that using a particular system would enhance his or her job performance” [33:320] | Positive attitude of patients—The perception of usefulness of digital health services favorably predisposes the patients and facilitates the doctor’s decision-making process (medical decision making) [34] |
Perceived Ease of Use | “(…) the degree to which an innovation is perceived as being difficult to use [35:195] “(…) the degree to which a person believes that using a particular system would be free of effort” [33:320] | Collaboration—The perceived ease of use of digital health services encourages the patient to continue using the platform [28] and guarantees a greater predisposition in the patient to collaborate and follow the treatment program [36] |