A widely used instrument for standardized assessment of affinity for technology is the 19-item TAEG questionnaire (Karrer et al. 2009). It assesses affinity for technology on four subscales: (1) self-assessed competence, (2) enthusiasm, (3) perceived positive consequences, and (4) perceived negative consequences. The present study presents a new version of the TAEG with 12 items that validly captures the multidimensional construct. The original questionnaire was updated at the item level and in the instruction and validated on a sample of N = 1206. The four questionnaire subscales showed good internal consistencies. The dimensional structure of the questionnaire could be replicated in a confirmatory factor analysis. The construct validity of the subscales was confirmed with correlated questionnaires, the criterion validity with the frequency of use and experience with technical devices. For the one German sample, norm values are provided which allow the comparison of individual TAEG values for predefined gender, age and educational background groups. In addition, an overall score is introduced as well as a short version of the questionnaire.
Practical Relevance In the research context of human-machine interaction, affinity for technology is assessed as a control variable or for the selection of test subjects. In this way, technology companies can analyse customer segments and incorporate different perspectives into the innovation and development process.
