Acceptance and continuance of learning management system use : a longitudinal exploration of teenagers

Abstract

Although previous research into acceptance and continuance of technology use has been conducted on adult users in organizational and higher educational contexts, few studies have provided an understanding of teenagers’ e-learning technology acceptance and continued use via a longitudinal approach. Moreover, no study has taken into account both social influences and potential cultural and social moderators in examining teenagers’ acceptance and continued use of e-learning technology. Drawing on the theory of reasoned action, the technology acceptance model, and the expectation-confirmation model, this study proposes a two-stage model of learning management system (LMS) acceptance and continuance to examine the factors affecting teenagers’ acceptance and continued use of LMSs. The hypothesised model was examined using a three-wave longitudinal survey of 1,182 junior secondary students from 25 Hong Kong secondary schools. Structural equation modelling (SEM) analysis was used to test the two-stage model with the entire sample. The results showed that perceived ease of use, peer influence, and teacher influence were significant predictors of behavioural intention at all three use stages. More specifically, perceived ease of use was found to have an increasing effect on behavioural intention over time, whereas perceived usefulness turned out to have an unstable and less influential effect on intention. In addition, peer influence, perceived ease of use, and LMS use were also positively related to students’ satisfaction with LMS use over time. The results also supported the effect of satisfaction in predicting LMS continuance intention. Multi-group SEM analysis was conducted across teenagers with different gender, experience, socio-economic status (SES), and immigrant background. The results supported significant path differences in all group comparisons. With respect to immigrant background, the sample was classified into three cultural groups: 203 first-generation immigrant (FG) students, 354 second-generation immigrant (SG) students, and 521 non-immigrant (Native) students. The FG students, who were born in mainland China, were significantly different from the Native and SG groups in terms of the effects of beliefs and satisfaction on behavioural intention. The SG and Native groups, students who were born in Hong Kong, were least noticeable in significant path differences. Peer influence played a critical role in driving FG students’ acceptance and continued use of LMS, whereas the impact of teacher influence on such LMS use was much stronger for Native and SG students. Moreover, FG students’ intention to use LMS was only driven by their current stage beliefs, whereas their counterparts’ intention to use LMS was also affected by their satisfaction with LMS use. The results revealing cultural divides in the modelled relationships. In terms of gender, experience, and SES, most significant path differences were between satisfaction and its antecedent variables. The results revealing social divides in the modelled relationships. Explanations of these findings are discussed. The findings could provide future directions for studies on teenagers’ e-learning technology acceptance and continuance. The empirical evidence could provide a set of guidelines and recommendations for various stakeholders to better promote LMS use for different cultural and social groups of students in the school curriculum.