The spread of Covid-19 has seen governments worldwide developing and implementing new policies and guidelines to tackle and contain the pandemic. Integral to lockdown exit strategies have been contact-tracing apps. These apps are designed to tracks a person’s location throughout the day, identifying and informing anyone who might have come into contact with an infected person, reducing the risk of contagion and curbing Covid-19’s spread. They area controversial topicand there have been civic debates in many countries: Why should healthy citizens use them? Are theygathering sensitive data ? Are they running down mobile phone batteries? With most mobile apps – and health apps in particular – it is important to meet the requirements of a target group in order for the app to be installed. But tracing apps are different – they must reach the vast majority of the population to work effectively, encompassing different groups with sometimes conflicting demands. Without that widespread coverage, their efficacy is greatly reduced and the risks of new outbreaks orflare-ups in case numbers increases. The challenge policy-makers have faced as they scrambled to introduce them is meeting the needs of populations who are split in their acceptance of the necessity and desire to use them. There are the Proponents, the Undecided, and the Critics – the latter, particularly, need to be convinced. This is difficult, because tracing apps are characterised by unclear benefit structures, sensitive data requirements and the fact that installation brings certain inconveniences. App installation intention is shaped by this trio of factors, and the balance between them, but demands and desires are not the same for all three groups. Yet, there can be only one set of features for the app, which needs to be rolled out to everyone. Governments, therefore, need to understand how to achievemass acceptance when designing and promoting such apps for them to be useful. There can be no gradual uptake: the apps need to be used enmasse and at speed. Working with colleagues at the University of Goettingen, Alfaisal University and Hong Kong Baptist University, we took advantage of a unique window of time in Germany – after the government announcement that an official app would be introduced but before its release. This was a period when a debate over privacy and the usefulness of the app took the spotlight in the public media. We conducted an experimental study with 518 participants to better understand the specifications that matter most for all three groups. We showed themdifferent designs for 16 |
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