A MODEL FOR INSTRUCTORS’ ADOPTION OF LEARNING MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS: EMPIRICAL VALIDATION IN HIGHER EDUCATION CONTEXT

ABSTRACT

Through the rapid expansion of information technologies, Learning Management Systems have become one of the most important innovations for delivering education. However, successful implementation and management of these systems are primarily based on the instructors' adoption.  In this context, this study aims to understand behavioral intentions of higher education instructors towards Learning Management Systems and further to identify the influencing factors. A multidimensional research model has been proposed based on the Belief Factors, Application Characteristics, and Individual, Social and Technological dimensions to identify the effects of key variables on behavioral intentions of users. A comprehensive survey was conducted with 224 academicians, followed by semi-structured interviews with ten of them. This paper presents evidence for the factor structure, reliability and validity of the survey. Additionally; structural equation modeling, specifically partial least square, was applied to assess the proposed multi-dimensional research model. Consequently, relationships between the influencing factors were detected and the results showed that the research model significantly predicts instructors' behavioral intention towards Learning Management System use. Findings of this research will be valuable for academicians and practitioners in implementation, management and continuous improvement of learning management systems.