Digital Literacy Stratification: Analyzing how Prior Technology Experience Moderates Intrinsic Motivation on Mobile Gaming

Abstract

This study investigates how digital literacy moderates the relationships among intrinsic motivation, Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) perceptions, and mobile gaming adoption among African university students, addressing whether technology acceptance pathways operate uniformly across users with varying technological backgrounds. Combining TAM with Self-Determination Theory, the research conceptualized digital literacy as a fundamental moderator shaping how competency, relatedness, and autonomy influence perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, behavioral intention, and actual usage. Using a quantitative cross-sectional design, data were collected from 310 Nigerian university students and analyzed through multi-group structural equation modeling. Participants were classified into high (34.8%), moderate (45.2%), and low (20.0%) digital literacy groups based on technology experience profiles across seven platforms. The findings reveal substantial literacy-contingent variation in adoption pathways. Competency effects on perceived ease of use were markedly stronger among low-literacy users, while autonomy significantly predicted perceived usefulness only among digitally experienced users. Perceived ease of use consistently dominated the formation of behavioral intention across all literacy levels. However, actual usage remained constrained by infrastructure and economic barriers, irrespective of user expertise. These findings challenge foundational assumptions within TAM and Self-Determination Theory about the universal applicability of adoption processes, demonstrating instead that motivational hierarchies are conditional on users’ digital proficiency. Hence, the results foreground the need for literacy-sensitive theoretical models and adaptive technology designs that align competency scaffolding, autonomy features, and social integration with users’ digital capacities and proficiency level. Policy interventions that address structural constraints are also necessary to translate adoption intentions into sustained usage within African higher education settings.