Accept it or forget it: mandatory digital learning and technology acceptance in higher education

Abstract

In early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic led to a rapid shift to emergency remote teaching and mandatory digital learning in higher education. This study tested an extended causal model built on the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) under the restrictions on higher education stemming from the pandemic. Data collected from a survey among 485 students were analyzed using structural equation modeling. Confirmatory factor analyses were performed to examine the construct validity of the measurement model using polychoric correlations. Path analysis was used to test the causal model. The results indicate a psychologically sound baseline model with nine latent variables that affect students’ behavioral intention to accept and continue using technology for learning. However, the model is only partially in line with the proposed causal model based on UTAUT. The implications of these results are discussed in terms of technology acceptance and use in higher education, both under the restrictions leading to mandatory digital learning and in future.