Determinants of the use of technological innovation in distance learning: a study with business school instructors

Abstract

This study's overall purpose is to identify the factors determining the use of technological innovation in Distance Learning (DL), as perceived by instructors of Business Education programs. The theoretical basis for the study is the Innovation Diffusion Theory (IDT). The study's sample is made up of 436 instructors; we used a quantitative approach and applied Confirmatory Factor Analysis and multiple regression. We found that not all of the attributes selected for analysis as proposed by IDT showed a direct effect for the use of innovation for the instructors investigated. The identified attributes were: compatibility, which shows how consistent innovation is with their values, practices and needs; relative advantage, indicating an innovation's perceived improvement from its predecessor; and demonstrated results, according to which instructors understand the tangible results obtained from the use of innovation.