이력추적(Traceability)시스템 이용의도에 영향을 미치는 요인에 관한 연구

Abstract

Occurrences of large-scale food-related mishaps around the globe are degrading the safety and confidence on food items. This can be said to result from problems such as information asymmetry between the supplier and the consumer(information user). It makes it difficult to confirm product-related information including 'who produced an item how, what manufacturing process was involved, and how the product was distributed, and deal with a food-related trouble. A food safety misfortune will not only lead to a slowed consumption but also deal a smashing blow to businesses concerned. As for a solution to this problem, quality-control systems are introduced and applied; HACCP(Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point), GAP(Good Agricultural Practices), ISO(International Standardization Organization) 25000 series. This system is part of an effort made for the producer to convey the message to the consumer that his or her product is superior to those of others. But it is reduced to a limited system that manages the production and distribution of food, and short of a fundamental solution as it fails to provide the information service user with as much desired information as possible. Traceability System is designed to check product information by discerning products automatically through an automatic recognition technology such as RFID(Radio Frequency Identification) and Bar-code and sharing identified product information with one another of businesses via a network, and to be on the track of distribution channels in a real time. Therefore Traceability System can restore safety and reliability on products, solve information asymmetry regarding products and establish various criteria of selection for goods in terms of the information user. With regard to businesses, it can minimize the damage related businesses suffer, bring the distinction of products into relief, guarantee the safety and quality of products in connection with exports, and improve the reliability of the consumer on the business. In the aspect of policy, it can investigate the cause of a food mishap without delay, strengthen a control on hazardous factors of products, fix up safety problems in conjunction with leaving the door for imports open, and prevent mixups of products. Traceability System is currently in its incipient stage and needs expanding into the social system with its significance increasing. In this regard, it is necessary to figure out what elements affect the service use of information service users. At the moment, the research on Traceability System is nothing more than a theoretical research made up of institutional introduction conditions for a system installation, a theoretical concept definition, consumer awareness, prerequisites for the system, direction for the establishment and embodiment of the system in terms of the information provider, and application researches on system embodiment technologies, and a technological research. In addition, it is a long way to go before establishing a Traceability System based on what influences information service users for a substantial use of Traceability System. The research verified and analyzed what has an effect on the intention to use Traceability System when the user uses information service. Existing technologies are nothing but general research on the actual condition that focuses on technological statistics, a far cry from a demonstrative study based on a systematic analysis model, so the research employed theories such as Diffusion of Innovation, IDT, Technology Acceptance Model, TAM and Technology Innovation Model. That is, it was committed to establishing main causes affecting information service users, and drew Information Output Quality, Job relevance, Self-efficacy, Learning, Training, and Information Accessibility through an indirect effect of the Intention to Use that expanded Technology Acceptance Model as an exogenous variable influencing the information system use. The study selected Subjective Norm, Perceived Risk, Perceived Usefulness, and Perceived Ease of Use as direct effects and investigated the extent to which they influence the Intention to use Traceability System. The nine factors are variables derived from the research on Technology Innovation Model and made up of elements considered influential in connection with the Intention to use Traceability System and those that reflect innate features of the system, taking the properties of Traceability System into account. The performance was analyzed by statistical software package SPSS 12.0 for Windows and AMOS 5.0 and verified by a total of 275 nutritionists nationwide(Jeju, Seoul, Kyeonggi, Cheolla Province, Gyeongsang Province, Chungcheong Province and Gangwon Province). Proposed factors from the findings set up and examined a total of 12 hypotheses based on a core construct of Usefulness, Ease of Use and Intention to use Traceability System, five of which were rejected and the remaining seven of which were adopted. First, Job relevance, Information Accessibility and Perceived Ease of Use were adopted as leading elements affecting Perceived Usefulness , with Quality of information product, Information Accessibility and Learning and Training not. Job relevance is useful for food safety-related work of Traceability System by information users, especially nutritionists, subjects of the research, and the system is composed of what is needed to confirm food safety and is significant in Job relevance. As for Information Accessibility, information provision by Traceability System, unlike existing methods, can use various means(KIOSK, Web Page, Mobile) to make it possible to have access to information at any time and any place, and it is considered beneficial in a real-time check of product information, and it is being demonstrated that there is a link to results from the use of the system. Perceived Ease of Use has a significant impact on Perceived Usefulness as shown in a number of preceding researches by TAM, which reaffirms existing findings. But Learning and Training and Quality of information products are deemed not significant in Perceived Usefulness. However, for Quality of information products, people are thought of as in need of database of accurate information rather than a real-time provision of quality information, and it will be used as a major variable if a research on product-specific information favored by future information users is carried out and applied to the system. As for the reason why Learning and Training was not adopted, from the findings from a questionnaire that it was not cared for as a policy, the subjects of the research think that it is not so much influential in Perceived Usefulness. Only Information Accessibility, excluding Self-efficacy and Learning and Training, was adopted as a leading element influencing Perceived Ease of Use. Information Accessibility has been confirmed as having a plus impact on Ease of Use. It shows that as seen in Information Accessibility Usefulness, it is more convenient and easier in handling than existing product-specific information confirmation methods to have a real-time check of product information provided by Traceability System. But, Learning and Training and Self-efficacy are found not to be related to Perceived Ease of Use, as most of the subjects of the research have been using the system and similar systems. Perceived Usefulness, Perceived Ease of Use and Perceived Risk were taken up and Subjective Norm was rejected as leading factors influential in the Intention to use Traceability System. To begin with, Perceived Usefulness and Perceived Ease of Use show a high relevance to the Intention to use Traceability System, so it is confirmed that they are taking roots as a major parameter of Technology Innovation Model. They are also found to be related to Perceived Risk and the Intention to use, which reflects social issues on food and anxiety of information users, and people seem to be interested in confirming food safety through Traceability System. A feeling of uneasiness of food in particular plays a major role in the use of the system. But Subjective Norm, unlike in existing researches, is not relevant, which reflects an organizational distinctiveness as all the samples of the study were school nutritionists, and people in general have a great interest in food safety, but they are not so much influential as organizations that represent an immediate interest. The research model, on the whole, supports the results proposed by relevant studies to Technology Innovation Model, but it is judged that irrelevant factors are coming out, unlike in existing researches, due to the fact that Traceability System is still at an introductory period and not so much popular. Information Accessibility, Job relevance and Perceived Risk are variables that reflect the characteristics of Traceability System, and play a significant role in the Intention to use. Technology Innovation Model is also supported in case of Traceability System as a brand-new information technology, which shows that the findings of the study have an external validity applicable to various targets and circumstances.