Understanding IT adoption and consumption within the social structure of a consumer's economy

Research into adoption, acceptance and consumption of Information Technology (IT) within its diffusion cycle has been extensively studied in Information Systems (IS) and marketing. However, research often focused too narrowly on technology adoption rates and drivers leading to technology adoption and acceptance. This paper discusses how understanding the social structure of a consumer’s economy, a consumer’s portfolio of capital resources, can reveal the individual’s approach and experiences towards technology adoption and consumption present and future. It provides a novel multi-disciplinary and practical approach into understanding the technology consumer by looking at how economic, cultural, social, educational, technological and political capital resources differentiates consumer coping with complex technology consumption experiences. The cultural capital of three technology consumers is specifically compared in this paper. Outcomes from this research will assist designers and marketers in enhancing the future design and promotion of personal technologies.