# Validating the Adoption of Heterogeneous Internet of Things with Blockchain
## 3 Conceptual Model and Research Hypotheses
### Behaviour Factors  
#### 3.1.1 Attitude Related Factors  
Attitude influences all aspects of user decisions and actions. Attitudes involve responses to opportunities and challenges associated with the emergence of modern technologies. Acceptance of IoT and blockchain technology could be influenced by attitude. Previous studies have shown that the key factors in the study of attitudes assume a positive correlation between IoT systems and blockchain to include perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, personal competency, and transaction intention, which are described below in detail [25; 26; 27]:  
**Perceived usefulness. ** Defined as the degree that a user believes that a technology would enhance system performance within an organizational context [21]. There are many benefits and advantages gained from technology which increase the perceived benefit [28]. They can affect the quality of work done by improving performance, increasing productivity, and enhancing effectiveness [25]. The TAM specifies that perceived usefulness is one of the most important factors since it focuses on the user's  
Figure 1: Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) model for adopting blockchain technology in Internet of Things (IoT) environment. behavioral intention for the adoption of new technology. In the context of IoT and blockchain systems, perceived usefulness was found to be an important influencer of the intention to adopt these technologies in different studies [25; 26; 29; 30]. Perceived usefulness is a significant predictor of the intention to use IoT services with blockchain. Therefore, the following is hypothesized:  
**Hypothesis 1A (H1A)**. _Perceived usefulness positively influences the intention to use blockchain technology in an area of IoT._  
**Perceived ease of use. ** Referred to by [PERSON] as the \"degree to which a person believes that using a particular system would be free of effort\" [21]. According to [PERSON] and [PERSON] [25], perceived ease of use can be measured in several dimensions regarding the adoption of new technology: easy to learn, control and use, clear and understandable, easy to become skillful, and flexible to interact with. A number of studies have indicated that a perceived ease of use has a significant effect on the intention and behavior of IoT systems [12; 25; 31; 32]. According to [PERSON] and [PERSON] [30], they recommend focusing on ease of use to increase the perceived ease of use when applying blockchain technology to improve operations and enhance the user experience. Therefore, the role of perceived ease of use in the TAM is a significant factor enabling users to obtain advantages from Information Technology. Thus, on the basis of the above discussion, in this study, the effect of perceived ease of use on behavioral intention for the adoption of IoT systems integrated with blockchain is expected to play a significant role. Consequently, the following is hypothesized:  
**Hypothesis 1B (H1B)**. _Perceived ease of use has a positive effect on IoT blockchain technology adoption._  
**Personal competency. ** Building technical competency is complex and a collection of factors are involved, including people, knowledge, new skills, and effective abilities to fulfill tasks and responsibilities. Personal competence is made up of self-awareness, self-regulation, and self-motivation [33]. In the growth of this new technology, people need training in new tasks as well as with the IoT-enabled equipment and blockchain devices. The status of a self-aware person adds a new dimension to IoT devices integrated with blockchain because most of the operations are managed from the Internet for efficiency, reliability, and to reach the required level of security. Self-regulation can help to properly and safely operate technological equipment and can increase productivity through learning from operational data [34]. [PERSON] et al.