Abstract

This research paper examines the adoption of digital services for the vaccination in the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany. Based on a survey in Germany's federal state with the highest vaccination rate, which used digital vaccination services, its platform configuration and adoption barriers are analyzed to understand existing and future levers for optimizing vaccination success. Though technological adoption and resistance models have been originally developed for consumer goods markets, this study gives empirical evidence for the applicability of an adjusted model explaining platform adoption for vaccination services in special and for digital health services in general. In this model, the configuration areas personalization, communication, and data management have a remarkable effect to lower adoption barriers, but only functional and psychological factors affect the adoption intention. Above all, the usability barrier stands out with the strongest effect while the often-cited value barrier is not significant at all. Personalization is found to be the most important factor for managing the usability barrier and thus for addressing the needs, preferences, situation, and ultimately the adoption of the citizens as users. Implications are given for policy makers and managers in such pandemic crisis to focus on the click flow and server-to-human interaction rather than emphasizing value messages or touching traditional factors.