Task-Technology Fit in Mobile Work: Exploring the Links between Task Attributes and Technology Characteristics

Based on reviewing the extensive research on the task-technology fit (TTF) theory, we suggest a more natural perspective which focuses on the relations between task attributes and technology characteristics, instead of human perception about the abstract concept of "fit". Our study is then aimed at identifying the characteristics of emerging mobile technologies and applications as well as the typical attributes of tasks in modern mobile business environments, and further exploring the corresponding fit between task attributes and technology characteristics. An initial framework for linking task attributes with technology characteristics is proposed based on existing literature, and a field case study with regard to mobile applications in municipal administration in Beijing, China, is presented to tentatively validate and improve the framework. This exploratory study postulates a conceptual model which reflects the pair-wise links between five types of task attributes and five dimensions of mobile technology characteristics. Drawing upon the findings, we also present our further research plan for empirically testing the task-technology fit model for mobile applications that we have formulated, using more quantitative methods.