Generational Adoption of Mobile Phones Based on Use Motivations and Demanded Attributes: Results from Focus Groups
Laura Castaldia, Alessandro Auguriob, Gaetano Buccinoc, Clelia Mazzonid

Abstract
Mobile communication is an interesting phenomenon, as mobile phones have become a pervasive object and indispensable platform for voice communication and content and services fruition. Based on the double perspective of the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Uses and Gratifications Theory (UGT), the purpose of this contribution is to go deeper into nowadays mobile phone usage and make an in-depth exploration of Italian users’ motivations and desired product/service attributes by means of two focus groups composed by individuals belonging to different generations. Based on the focus groups, we find that both theoretical perspectives contribute to explaining intentions to use but with different characteristics and impacts depending on consumers’ generational elements. Our results show that while, on the one hand, TAM and UGT are complementary research perspectives and theoretical frameworks when looking at products/services characterized by elements of social consumption, on the other, their interpretative capacity varies according to the specific features of generational cohorts.

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