Student Retention Management in Online Courses Under the Perspective of the Acceptance of Technology

Abstract

Student retention rates in online courses are admittedly low. This article aims to evaluate the relationship between factors of acceptance of technology and the retention of students in online courses. The UTAUT Theory and the DeLone McLean Model serve as a basis for the study. The research is descriptive, with quantitative approach and analysis by the modeling technique of structural equations. Six hypotheses were developed relating technological factors to retention and students of free accounting courses were investigated. The results indicate that the relationship between information quality and retention is the most relevant among those surveyed, followed by hedonic motivation and self-efficacy. These findings contribute to the understanding of managers that retention can be obtained especially from investments in the quality of content, systems with agreeable and pleasant environments of use and capabilities that make users confident in using the system.