E-learning across cultural boundaries: A European perspective on technology acceptance

Abstract

This study starts by questioning the e-learning transfer between countries by merely translating the text into a different language. We apply and thus verify the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT, [1]), which has not yet been sufficiently empirically validated [2]. Our bi-cultural sample encompasses N = 732 undergraduate and graduate students aged under 30, from Romania and Germany. As a first result, we offer empirical evidence for UTAUT on a wider basis. Secondly, we extend the UTAUT model by the moderator geographic location; the acceptance mechanisms appear to be different in the two sub-samples. Thirdly, a cluster analysis confirms the intercultural differences in the technology acceptance variables. Finally, we conclude that the transfer of e-learning concepts and contents from the old to the more recent EU member countries requires much more than simple translation; acceptance factors are a first aspect to consider. © 2010 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.