Baseball Data Utilization by Korean Professional Baseball Players Focusing on the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology as well as Technology Readiness

Abstract

PURPOSE This study aimed to explore the structural relationships between technology-related factors and the intention to use baseball data, drawing upon the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) and technology readiness (TR). METHODS Survey data from 203 Korean professional baseball players were used in frequency, reliability, correlation, and confirmatory factor analyses as well as structural equation modeling. RESULTS Positive TR positively influenced performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, and conditions facilitating baseball data use. Negative TR did not significantly impact performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, and conditions facilitating baseball data use. Performance expectancy, effort expectancy, and facilitating conditions were found to positively influence data use intention, while social influence did not significantly impact data use intention. CONCLUSIONS The findings suggest that increasing performance expectancy, effort expectancy, and facilitating condition factors could be key to enhancing the intention to utilize baseball data.