Factors Influencing Students' Adoption of E-Learning: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach

• Published in: Journal of International Education in Business 2017-01, Vol.10 (2), p.164-182
• Main Authors: Tarhini, Ali, Masa'deh, Ra'ed, Al-Busaidi, Kamla Ali, Mohammed, Ashraf Bany, Maqableh, Mahmoud
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adoption (Ideas); Behavior; College Students; Computers; Cost Effectiveness; Data Analysis; Distance learning; Education; Educational Facilities; Educational Technology; Electronic Learning; Foreign Countries; Hypotheses; Internet; Investigations; Maximum Likelihood Statistics; Mobile commerce; Online Courses; Online instruction; Performance Factors; Product development; Self Efficacy; Social Influences; Statistical Analysis; Structural equation modeling; Structural Equation Models; Student Attitudes; Student Motivation; Student Surveys; Students; Studies; Study Habits; Technology Acceptance Model; Technology adoption; Technology Uses in Education; Theory; Trust (Psychology); Usability
• ISSN: 2046-469X; 1836-3261
• DOI: 10.1108/JIEB-09-2016-0032

Purpose: This research aims to examine the factors that may hinder or enable the adoption of e-learning systems by university students. Design/methodology/approach: A conceptual framework was developed through extending the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (performance expectancy, effort expectancy, hedonic motivation, habit, social influence, price value and facilitating conditions) by incorporating two additional factors, namely, trust and self-efficacy. Data were collected from students at two universities in England using a cross-sectional questionnaire survey between January and March 2015. Findings: The results showed that behavioral intention (BI) was significantly influenced by performance expectancy, social influence, habit, hedonic motivation, self-efficacy, effort expectancy and trust, in their order of influencing the strength and explained 70.6 per cent of the variance in behavioral intention. Contrary to expectations, facilitating conditions and price value did not have an influence on behavioral intention. Originality/value: The aforementioned factors are considered critical in explaining technology adoption but, to the best of the authors' knowledge, there has been no study in which all these factors were modeled together. Therefore, this study will contribute to the literature related to social networking adoption by integrating all these variables and the first to be tested in the UK universities.