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Purpose More and more older adults begin to use the mobile internet to obtain information. However, the quality of information obtained through mobile internet by older adults is hard to be guaranteed. The purpose of this paper is to study the role of family support when older adults obtain information from mobile internet. Design/methodology/approach This study conducted a survey of 263 older adults who owned mobile internet devices such as smartphones or tablet PCs. The theory hypotheses are tested using partial least squares techniques. Findings For older adults, family support is the influencing factor of mobile internet literacy improvement. Family emotional support has stronger impacts on the improvement both of mobile internet skill literacy and of mobile internet information literacy than family cognitive support has. Furthermore, the improvement of both mobile internet skill literacy and of mobile internet information literacy hs positive impacts on the quality improvement of obtained information by older adults. Practical implications This paper gives advice on how family members can support older adults during their obtaining information from mobile internet to improve their mobile internet literacy and quality of obtained information. Originality/value This study examines the factors that influence mobile internet literacy and quality of obtained information among older adults from the perspective of family support in the Chinese mobile internet context. The research results enrich the internet literacy theory and the information quality theory.

Purpose The purpose of the study is to explore the effects of two dimensions of perceived risk (functional and emotional risk) on two types of consumer information search (ongoing and pre-purchase search) in the context of innovative products and services and examine the moderating effect of innate consumer innovativeness. Design/methodology/approach The findings in this study are generated with a quantitative design using a multiple linear regression model and a residual centering method on data-collected survey responses related to tablet PC adoption in an online community and laboratory experiment on online bike-renting services. Findings The results show that functional and emotional risks influence on-going and pre-purchase search differently in innovative products and services context. On the one hand, functional risk affects on-going search negatively, whereas emotional risk affects on-going search positively; on the other hand, the effect of functional risk on pre-purchase search is not significant, and the effect of emotional risk on pre-purchase search is positive. Furthermore, these relationships are moderated by innate consumer innovativeness. For on-going search, consumer innovativeness moderates the negative effect of functional risk negatively and moderates the positive effect of emotional risk positively; for pre-purchase search, consumer innovativeness moderates the positive effect of emotional risk negatively on pre-purchase search. Originality/value Unlike established products and services, innovative products and services possess some elements that are unfamiliar to consumers. Companies typically pre-release innovative products and services long before officially launching them in the market, enabling consumers to assess potential risks and seek information in advance, thereby priming the market. Since innovative products and services are becoming more ubiquitous, research on the impact of perceived risk on information search is crucial for marketers. The present work is designed to be the first to consider the effects of two dimensions of perceived risk (functional and emotional risk) on two types of consumer information search (ongoing and pre-purchase search) and the moderating effect of innate consumer innovativeness. The present research is, therefore, intended to make contributions to the literature on perceived risk, information search and innovation management.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0157831.].

The purpose of this study is to clarify whether there is a learning effect on brain activity after writing with an ink pen vs. a digital pen. Previous studies have reported the superiority of handwriting to typing in terms of learning performance, but differences between the use of an ink pen vs. a digital pen remain unclear. In the present study, the participants learned to read difficult words by writing with an ink pen vs. a digital pen. After the learning period, electroencephalography (EEG) signals were measured, while the participants underwent a repetition priming paradigm with the use of the learned words. The repetition priming effect of the N400 event-related potential (ERP) was quantified as an index of the learning effect and the effects between pen types were compared. The groups were also subdivided according to whether a digital pen is frequently used (familiar vs. unfamiliar group). The number of writing repetitions for each word within 10 min during the learning activity and the post-learning test scores were not affected by the pen-type or familiarity with a digital pen. However, the repetition priming effect of the N400 was greater for words written with a digital pen in the learning session, as compared with an ink pen, in the familiar group, but not the unfamiliar group. These results suggest that for those familiar with its use, writing with a digital pen may improve learning relative to the use of an ink pen.

The manipulation of video content is still a difficult task due to its complexity and richness. This paper applies pen-based technology to video editing, with the goal to improve such interaction. In this research, digital ink is replaced by video content, aiming to provide a more familiar and creative interaction for video editing and to study how pen gestures can be used on this context as well as what kind of changes are needed in the interface. The concept was implemented in a Tablet PC prototype and evaluated by expert and non-expert users. The user feedback shows that this approach proved to be natural and at the same time to foster user creativity as measured by the Creative Support Index.

Communications studies and psychology offer analytical and methodological tools that when combined have the potential to bring novel perspectives on human interaction with technologies. In this study of children using simple and complex mathematics applications on tablet computers, cognitive load theory is used to answer the question: how successful are tablet computer educational applications at directing children's attention towards intrinsic and germane content? An eye tracker collected gaze data and cognitive tasks were performed to assess memory and attention. The results show that simple applications are able to direct a child's attention to intrinsic and germane content, regardless of the child's cognitive ability. Children assessed as high executive functioning found the germane content of the complex applications helpful whereas children assessed as lower executive functioning did not take advantage of the germane content. Claims that the cognitive structure of the individual is intimately linked to the forms or systems of communication used were partially supported. The research showed that tablet computers and their applications offer a learning experience that appears to be inherently highly interactive-thereby introducing challenges to the cognitive load of children as users.

Potential benefits of multiscreen and multiple device environments were assessed using three different computing environments. A single factor, within-subject study was conducted with 18 engineering students in a laboratory experiment. Three levels for the computing environment factor included one with a desktop computer with a single monitor (control, condition A); one with a desktop with dual monitors, as well as a single tablet computer (condition B); and one with a desktop with a single monitor, as well as two tablet computers (condition C). There was no statistically significant difference in efficiency or workload when completing scenarios for the three computing environments. However, a dual monitor desktop with a single tablet computer (B) was the ideal computing environment for the information-rich engineering problem given to participants, supported by significantly fewer errors compared to condition C and significantly higher usability ratings compared to conditions A and C. A single desktop monitor with two tablet computers (C) did not provide any advantage compared to a single desktop monitor (A).

Since English is probably the most popular second language, helping students learn English through technology is a critical issue in non-English-speaking countries. With the growth of digital pen technologies, developing an interactive learning environment that combines printed textbooks and a digital pen to support English-language classroom learning has become feasible. This work presents an attention-based diagnosing and review mechanism (ADRM) based on brainwave detection to help learners identify the passages with low attention level in a lesson as review targets in order to perform efficiently and accurately review processes while reading paper-based English texts with digital pen support in autonomous learning environments. Based on the true experimental design, this work aims to confirm whether the ADRM improves the review performance and sustained attention of learners while reading paper-based English texts with digital pen support. The research participants were a total of 108 students at an industrial vocational high school in Taipei City, Taiwan. All research participants were male and aged from 17 to 18 years. The experimental group used the ADRM while reading paper-based English texts with digital pen support, whereas the control group used the autonomous review while reading paper-based English texts with digital pen support. Experimental results reveal that the review performance of the experimental group was significantly better than that of the control group, proving that the ADRM improved review performance. The results also show that the field-dependent learners in the experimental group exhibited a great improvement in review performance in comparison with the field-independent learners. Additionally, the low-ability learners in the experimental group exhibited better review performance compared to those in the control group. Furthermore, learners with high attention level in the experimental group have exhibited better review performance and sustained attention than the learners in the control group. This work confirms that developing an ADRM based on brainwave detection to assist learners’ review processes is practicable. However, the usability and acceptability of using ADRM instead of human autonomous review should be further considered in the information society.

Using Luhmann's communication theory and affordance theories, we develop a framework to examine how kindergarten-grade 2 students interact with tablet computers. We assessed whether cognitive ability and device configuration influence how successfully children use tablet computers. We found that children's limited ability to direct their cognitive resources affects child-tablet communication (i.e., sending and receiving information to and from the device). While it may appear that children simply know how to use this technology, they are actually engaged in a systematic assessment of the device governed by their level of attentional maturity. Interestingly, tablet computers designed for adults result in a higher frequency of successful communication but prolonged communication was most likely to take place on child-focused tablet computers. It seems that communication success and user engagement are independent.