Factors Influencing Cloud Computing Adoption in Higher Education Institutions of Least Developed Countries: Evidence from Republic of Yemen

Abdullah Hussein Alghushami,Zahurin Mat Aji,Nur Haryani Zakaria

doi:10.3390/app10228098

Abdullah Hussein Alghushami, Zahurin Mat Aji + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/app10228098

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Abstract

Cloud-based technology, which is now well established, helps in reducing costs and providing accessibility, reliability and flexibility. However, the Yemen higher educational institutions (HEIs) have not yet embraced the technology due to security and privacy concerns, lack of trust, negative cultural attitudes (i.e., tribalism), and most importantly, lack of digital devices experience in educational settings as well as lack of knowledge and technical know-how. Thus, this study proposes a conceptual model of cloud computing adoption in Yemen HEIs by investigating the influence of technology, organization and environment (TOE) factors. In addition, this study investigates the moderating effect of tribalism culture in the relationships between the identified factors and cloud computing adoption. The study employed the quantitative approach to determine the factors that influence cloud computing adoption in Yemen HEIs through a questionnaire survey. Data were collected from 328 respondents in 38 HEIs and analyzed using partial least square (PLS) structural equation modelling (SEM). The results indicate that relative advantage, reliability, compatibility, security, technology readiness, top management support, regulatory policy and competitive pressure have positive significant impacts on the cloud computing adoption, except tribalism culture with negative significant impact. The study also found that tribalism culture moderates the relationship between compatibility, reliability, security, relative advantage, regulatory policy and cloud computing adoption. This study contributes to the TOE adoption model by including the cultural factor as a moderator towards cloud computing adoption in Yemen HEIs. The study also provides a model and insights for HEIs, technology consultants, vendors and policy makers in better understanding of the factors that influence cloud computing adoption in least developed countries (LDCs), specifically, Yemen.

Highlights

Cloud computing has been named by proponents of innovation as the fifth necessary utility, after water, electricity, oil or gas, and telephone [1,2]
Yemen is one of the first of the least developed countries (LDCs) to show an interest in cloud the present study focuses on the cultural factor that might influence cloud computing adoption (CCA) in Yemeni Hinger Education Institutions (HEIs)
This finding is aligned with previous studies which found that membership of a certain group or society has its impact on the individuals’ values and beliefs and on their behavior

Summary

Introduction

Cloud computing has been named by proponents of innovation as the fifth necessary utility, after water, electricity, oil or gas, and telephone [1,2]. Technology experts are predicting that by 2025, most institutions and companies will shift to cloud computing technology, eliminating their dependence on desktop resources [3,4]. This has attracted a large number of researchers to extensively investigate on cloud computing adoption [5,6,7,8,9]. Most of these studies were carried out in developed and developing countries [10,11,12] as compared to only a few. In contrast to developed countries, the HEIs in the least developed countries usually confronted a number of socio-economic and political barriers that hindered the investments in costly projects such as those involving information systems (IS) [2]

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