Computer Self-efficacy Beliefs Research Articles

Rethinking determinants of primary school teachers’ technology acceptance during the COVID-19 pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic forced teachers to suddenly change their teaching mode from face-to-face to emergency remote teaching creating the biggest disruption in the history of education. Despite facing significant challenges such as a lack of proper information technology training, teaching unprepared students, and infrastructural barriers, there is a gap in research on primary school teachers’ readiness to integrate technology. This study aims to address this gap by utilizing the technology acceptance model to explore the relationships between primary school teachers’ computer self-efficacy beliefs, attitudes, and intentions to incorporate computer-based technology during times of disruption. Participants were N = 144 Greek, primary school teachers, who taught in virtual settings during the pandemic. Findings from structural equation modeling showed that self-efficacy beliefs, perceived ease of use, and perceived usefulness are strong predictors of teachers’ attitudes towards computer use. The study adds to the scarce literature on the crucial role of teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs as drivers of their intention to use technology during emergency remote teaching. Additionally, it highlights the need to consider the unique circumstances in which technology is used and provides insights that can inform the design of effective interventions and policies.

Nursing Students’ Computer Self-Efficacy and Attitudes toward Its Use in The Health Care Setting: A Comparative Study

Context: The use of technology and computers in health care has been reported to improve nurses' decision-making and competencies, which in turn increase the quality of health-care practice.
 Aim: of this study is to assess and compare nursing students’ computer self-efficacy and attitudes toward its use in a health care setting in the Faculty of nursing – Benha and Hail Universities.
 Methods: A descriptive comparative cross-sectional study design was used to achieve the current study aim. The study conducted in the Faculty of Nursing - Banha University, Egypt, and Faculty of Nursing – Hail University, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Quota sampling of 219 students was chosen as follows; 190 students from the Faculty of Nursing - Banha University and 29 students from the Faculty of Nursing – Hail University. A structured self-administered questionnaire covering sociodemographic data, the pretest for attitudes toward computers in healthcare, and computer self-efficacy scales were the tool used to collect the study data. 
 Results: 33% of nursing students from Benha University were have a realistic view of current computer capabilities in health care. In contrast, 28% of nursing students from Hail had a very positive view of computer use in health care. Nursing students at Hail University have the highest mean score compared to Benha nursing students (79.45±15.85 & 61.2±7.25, respectively) in their attitudes toward computer and computer self-efficacy. Benha nursing students have moderate computer self-efficacy compared with Hail nursing students who have a high computer self-efficacy level. A highly statistically significant relationship was detected between students' attitudes toward computers and computer self-efficacy (p-value=0.000). Also, there was a highly positive, statistically significant correlation between the demographic variables of nursing students and both students’ attitudes toward computers in health care and computer self-efficacy (p-value =0.00).
 Conclusion: Nursing students in both universities have a positive attitude toward computer use. A significant difference between the mean scores of the two groups in their attitude toward computer and self-efficacy was detected, with a highly statistically significant correlation between both students’ attitudes and their self-efficacy. Also, a significant relationship revealed between the studied students’ demographics and their attitude and self-efficacy. Future studies are recommended to evaluate existing technologies in terms of acceptance, effectiveness, and efficiency in real-life settings and to examine its effect on patient outcomes. Nurse educators should design training courses and educational programs to enhance computer self-efficacy beliefs among nursing students.

Teachers’ Computer Self-Efficacy Scale: Development and Validation

Bu araştırmanın amacı, teknoloji entegrasyonu bağlamında öğretmenlerin bilgisayar öz-yeterlilik inançlarını ölçmek için bir ölçek geliştirmektir. Teknoloji adaptasyonu üzerine yapılan çalışmaların ve geliştirilen modellerin birçoğunda bilgisayar öz-yeterliliği genel bir değişken olarak gözlemlendiğinden, geçerliliği ve güvenirliği test edilmiş ölçme araçları teknoloji entegrasyonu çalışmaları için önemli bir gereksinimdir. Bu çalışmanın amacı araştırmacılar için odak noktası bilgisayar ve teknoloji entegrasyon boyutunda alternatif bir ölçme aracı sunmaktadır. Çalışmaya 110 öğretmen adayı ve 115 hizmet-içi öğretmen katılmıştır. Keşfedici ve onaylayıcı faktör analizleri, güvenilirlik analizleri çalışma sonunda elde edilen bilgisayar öz-yeterlilik ölçeğin yüksek geçerlilik ve güvenilirliğe sahip olduğunu göstermiştir. Her bir alt boyut .89’un üzerinde geçerlilik düzeyine sahip beş alt boyut ortaya çıkarılmıştır. Sonuçlar ölçeğin öğretmenlerin öz-yeterlilik algılarını ölçmek için uygun olduğunu göstermektedir.

Effects of General and ERP Self-Efficacy Beliefs on the Acceptance of ERP Systems

The impact of computer self-efficacy (CSE) on acceptance and utilisation of enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems is widely recognised in the literature. However, past ERP adoption research has mostly used CSE as a universal and general computer cognitive variable across the computing domain. While CSE is a multifaceted concept which can be conceptualised and assessed at the general computer or application-specific level, past studies did not differentiate between the general and application self-efficacy belief in examining the acceptance of ERP systems. This study aims to address this issue and make a clear distinction between general computer and application (ERP) self-efficacy beliefs and examines the effects of both types of efficacy beliefs on known determinants of acceptance and use of ERP systems. The results provide strong support for the effects of self-efficacy beliefs at the ERP level. The results show that the effects of CSE beliefs at the ERP level are stronger than those of general CSE beliefs on ERP acceptance behaviour.

The relationship between sources of self-efficacy in classroom environments and the strength of computer self-efficacy beliefs

Motivation and success in computer-science courses are influenced by the strength of students' self-efficacy (SE) beliefs in their learning abilities. Students with weak SE may struggle to be succe...

Explicating the influences that explain intention to use technology among English teachers in China

ABSTRACTGiven the paradox between pervasive promotion of technology use in English teaching and lack of studies about teachers’ technology acceptance in China, this study aims to examine intentions of English teachers in China to use technology in their classroom teaching. Based on the technology acceptance model, eight variables including perceived usefulness (PU), perceived ease of use (PEU), attitude toward use, behavioral intention (BI), computer self-efficacy (CSE), technology complexity (TC), facilitating conditions (FC), and constructivist teaching beliefs (CTBs) were incorporated to examine relationships among these variables. Data were collected from 183 English teachers at 5 Chinese universities via a self-report questionnaire and analyzed using a structural equation model. Results indicated that the proposed model has a good fit. Three variables – PU, FC, and CTBs were found to be significant predictors of attitude toward use, while PEU and TC were not. Additionally, PU, CSE, and CTBs are significant antecedents for teachers’ BIs to use technology. This study contributed to the understanding of technology acceptance theories by contextualizing the current study to Chinese educational context. It also provided valuable references for technology-related policy-making and teachers’ professional development.

Greek Pre-service Teachers’ Intentions to Use Computers as In-service Teachers

The study examines the factors affecting Greek pre-service teachers’ intention to use computers when they become practicing teachers. Four variables (perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, self-efficacy, and attitude toward use) as well as behavioral intention to use computers were used so as to build a research model that extended the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and structural equation modeling was used for parameter estimation and model testing. Self-reported data were gathered from 487 pre-service teachers studying at the Departments of Primary School Education in Greece. Results revealed a good model fit and of the nine hypotheses formulated, seven were supported. Overall, the TAM, with the addition of computer self-efficacy beliefs, adequately represented the relationships among the factors. It also possesses the explanatory power to predict pre-service teachers’ intention to use computers when they become practicing teachers since a high percentage (68%) of the variance in behavioral intention to use computers was explained, while the most influential factors were perceived usefulness and attitude toward computers. Implications for practice are also discussed.

Faculty of Education Students’ Computer Self-Efficacy Beliefs and their Attitudes towards Computers and Implementing Computer Supported Education

This study investigates faculty of education students‘ computer self-efficacy beliefs and their attitudes towards computers and implementing computer supported education. This study is descriptive and based on a correlational survey model. The final sample consisted of 414 students studying in the faculty of education of a Turkish university. The results show that male students have higher computer self-efficacy beliefs; major and class level variables do not affect students' computer attitudes and self-efficacies; students who have their own PC have more positive computer attitudes and higher computer self-efficacies; and the time spent on a computer each day and computer experience are correlated with computer attitudes and self-efficacies.

Relationship between gender identity, perceived social support for using computers, and computer self-efficacy and value beliefs of undergraduate students

This study investigated relationship between gender identity, social support for using computers and computer self-efficacy and value beliefs. Data was collected from first year undergraduate students at a university near Bangkok (72.3 % females, mean ageź=ź18.52 years). The respondents in our survey did not intend to major in computer sciences. Results show parental and peer support for using computers were positively associated with computer self-efficacy and value beliefs for both males and females. Gender typicality was positively associated with the level of computer self-efficacy for males and personal endorsement of gender-stereotypes was negatively associated with the level of computer self-efficacy for females. Students who responded "yes" to whether they would pursue employment in a job that may require them to work with computers reported significantly higher computer self-efficacy and value for using computers than students who responded "no" or "undecided". Gender role socialization and expectancy-value theories are used to interpret group differences in computer self-efficacy and value beliefs.

SOCIAL STUDIES PRE-SERVICE TEACHERS COMPUTER SELF EFFICACY BELIEFS AND ATTITUDES ON COMPUTER-ASSISTED INSTRUCTION

As a result of the study, social science teacher candidates’ perceptions on computer-assisted instruction are positive and their computer self-efficacy beliefs are at good levels. These indicate that social science teacher candidates have positive attitudes towards computer-assisted instruction, and they trust their selves to use computers. In present study, it was aimed to measure social science preservice teachers’ computer self efficacy beliefs and attitudes on computer-assisted instruction. The research group consists of 219 teacher candidates who study social science education during the 20122013 education year at the Kazim Karabekir College of Education in Ataturk University. This study was designed by quantitative research approach. Descriptive research method one of the correlational survey models was used. Survey research discovers characteristic attributions of a specific population. SPSS 17.0 package program, Pearson's product-moment correlation coefficient, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), independent groups t test, and Bonferroni post hoc technique are used in the direction of research problems. As a result of the study, social science teacher candidates’ perceptions on computer-assisted instruction are positive and their computer self-efficacy beliefs are at good levels. These indicate that social science teacher candidates have positive attitudes towards computer-assisted instruction, and they trust their selves to use computers.

Autoeficácia e Experiência de Professores no uso de Tecnologias de Informática

Despite significant government investment for the implementation of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in Brazilian public schools, its use has been little explored. The relationship between teachers and computers is complex and involves variables as context characteristics, knowledge about the application of technology, pedagogical beliefs and psychological variables, such as self-efficacy. The computer self-efficacy beliefs involves teacher’ beliefs about their own ability to use computer technologies in educational contexts and are considered an important predictor of teachers involvement in the use of such technologies. This study intended to determine whether the experience of using an educational software affects the degree of information about the use of computers and teacher’s computer self-efficacy. Study participants were 34 elementary school teachers from four schools divided into two groups. Teachers in Group 1 (N = 9) had been applying a program of individualized instruction, held on computer, while teachers in Group 2 (N = 25) teach regular subjects. All teachers answered a characterization questionnaire and a scale for assessing teacher computer self-efficacy. Teachers in Group 1 had significantly higher levels of computer self-efficacy and a higher percentage of them said were they prepared to use the computer as a teaching tool. We emphasize the importance of self-efficacy for the effective use of ICT in the educational context and suggest experiences that can improve its development in training courses.

Gender issues in technology use: Perceived social support, computer self-efficacy and value beliefs, and computer use beyond school

In this study, we examined relations between outside school computer experiences, perceived social support for using computers, and self-efficacy and value beliefs about computer learning for 340 Greek elementary school boys and girls. Participants responded to a questionnaire about their access to computer use outside school (e.g. frequency of use and nature of activities), perceived parental and peer support, and computer self-efficacy and value beliefs. Although almost all students used computers outside school, there were significant gender differences in frequency and type of computer use. Also, boys reported more perceived support from their parents and peers to use computers and more positive computer self-efficacy and value beliefs than girls. Parental support and, to a lesser extent, peer support were the factors more strongly associated with boys’ and girls’ computer self-efficacy and value beliefs, while home computer access was not related to students’ motivation. Our findings highlight the role of socialization in the gender gap in computing and the need for research and educational interventions that focus on the social practices that communicate gendered expectations to young boys and girls.

Anxiety And Avoidance: The Mediating Effects Of Computer Self-Efficacy On Computer Anxiety And Intention To Use Computers

Computer anxiety effect on intention to use computers is discussed. Computer self-efficacy, based on social cognitive theory is suggested as a way to influence avoidance behavior. The mediating effect of computer self-efficacy on individual computer anxiety and intention to use computers is tested. Results indicate that the effects of computer anxiety on intention to use computers are fully mediated by an individual’s computer self-efficacy beliefs.

Effects of a Long-Duration, Professional Development Academy on Technology Skills, Computer Self-Efficacy, and Technology Integration Beliefs and Practices

A variety of barriers relating to resources, institutional and administrative policies, skills development and attitudes can hinder the effectiveness of technology professional development resulting in underutilized technology resources and lack of integration of those resources within instruction. Multiple methods were used to evaluate the effectiveness of a long-term professional development academy intended to address those barriers and promote increased use of technology in the academy participants’ instruction. Results revealed significant gains in participants’ self assessed technology skills and computer self efficacy, with little or no change to self assessed technology integration beliefs and practices despite interview data indicating participants felt their teaching had changed as a result of their academy participation. This article suggests the design of the academy was successful in addressing some but not all of its intended objectives. Suggestions for the design of long-term technology professional development are discussed.

Delineating the effects of general and system-specific computer self-efficacy beliefs on IS acceptance

This paper discusses extensions to previous research on computer self-efficacy (CSE) and systems acceptance by examining the impact of multilevel CSE on IS acceptance. Based on the technology acceptance model (TAM), we examined the effects of general and system-specific CSE on perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, and behavioral intention to use a system. The results of a field experiment indicated that system-specific CSE represented a stronger predictor of perceived usefulness and behavioral intention than general CSE. In contrast, general CSE had a stronger effect on perceived ease of use. The research and practical implications of these findings are discussed.

Learning Transfer of Computer Skills: Examining the Impact of Multilevel Computer Self-Efficacy Beliefs

The information systems literature has demonstrated a positive relationship between an individual's computer self-efficacy (CSE) and his/her ability to learn new computing skills. However, most past studies have overlooked the multilevel nature of the CSE construct and have not differentiated between near-transfer and far-transfer learning of computing skills. Accordingly, this study focuses on these two issues by investigating the impact of two levels of CSE (general and software specific) on two types of learning (near- and far-transfer) in computer training. The results of an experiment conducted to empirically test the relationships hypothesised among the study variables showed that software-specific CSE had significant effects on near-transfer and far-transfer learning and software-specific self-efficacy. In contrast, general CSE was found to have a significant effect on far-transfer learning only. The results provide valuable implications of computer training practice and research.

Computer anxiety and anger: the impact of computer use, computer experience, and self-efficacy beliefs

Abstract Past research has demonstrated that the level of computer experience users have is the most valuable predictor in whether or not they will suffer computer anxiety symptoms, but this was not the case in the present study. No research was found which examined the correlates of computer anger symptoms. In the current study, the relationship between the computer use (frequency and duration), computer experience, and self-efficacy beliefs of users were analyzed as predictors for computer anxiety and anger symptoms. Questionnaire data from a sample of 242 university students were analyzed. The results indicated that computer self-efficacy beliefs, not computer experience or use, had the largest significant relationship with both computer anxiety, and anger. It is suggested that self-efficacy beliefs be increased so that users may experience lower levels of anxiety and anger. These findings are contrary to the trend of training computer users in specific computer domains. As computer anxiety and anger are negative psychological “states”, an immediate method to deal with these negative emotions should be developed. One possibility that is explored is the application of computer-based therapy that can be used while a user is experiencing negative emotional symptoms.

The influence of specific computer experiences on computer self-efficacy beliefs

Previous research has demonstrated that computer experience has a positive impact on computer self-efficacy. However, little or no research has investigated the unique influence of specific types of computer experiences or knowledge on computer self-efficacy beliefs. This study examines the influence of eight types of computer experiences on computer self-efficacy. The results indicate that experience with computer programming and graphics applications have strong and significant effects on computer self-efficacy beliefs, whereas experience with spreadsheet and database applications demonstrated weak effects. The results offer useful insights into designing training courses and educational programs to enhance computer self-efficacy beliefs.

A field study of computer efficacy beliefs as an outcome of training: the role of computer playfulness, computer knowledge, and performance during training

Prior research has established the importance of enhanced task-specific self-efficacy (SSE) as an outcome of training, including computer-related training. This field study of 56 newly hired computer programmers explored potential antecedents of post-training computer self-efficacy beliefs regarding trainees' programming capabilities. Specifically, the relationship between computer playfulness, computer knowledge and experience, performance during training, and post-training efficacy was explored. Self-rated knowledge of computers and performance during training were positively correlated with post-training programming efficacy. After controlling for general pre-training computer efficacy, there were no main effects for the independent variables studied. However, the three antecedent variables included in a regression model explained a significantly greater portion of the variance in post-training efficacy beyond the control measure of pre-training computer efficacy, suggesting that post-training SSE may depend on a composite of relevant individual characteristics and training experiences. Interestingly, results suggested a significant interaction effect between computer playfulness and performance during training, such that more playful individuals who performed well on hands-on exercises during training made the highest post-training programming efficacy judgments. Suggestions for future research on computer efficacy are discussed.

Research Report: The Evolving Relationship Between General and Specific Computer Self-Efficacy—An Empirical Assessment

The concept of computer self-efficacy (CSE) recently has been proposed as important to the study of individual behavior toward information technology. This paper extends current understanding about the concept of self-efficacy in the context of computer software. We describe how two broad types of computer self-efficacy beliefs, general self-efficacy and task-specific self-efficacy, are constructed across different computing tasks by suggesting that initial general CSE beliefs will strongly predict subsequent specific CSE beliefs. The theorized causal relationships illustrate the malleability and development of CSE beliefs over time, within a training environment where individuals are progressively provided with greater opportunity for hands-on experience and practice with different software. Consistent with the findings of prior research, judgments of self-efficacy then serve as key antecedents of the perceived cognitive effort (ease of use) associated with technology usage. Further, we theorize that self-efficacy judgments in the task domain of computing are strongly influenced by the extent to which individuals believe that they are personally innovative with respect to information technology. Panel data were collected using a longitudinal research design within a training context where 186 subjects were taught two software packages in a sequential manner over a 14-week period. The emergent patterns of the hypothesized relationships are examined using structural equation modeling techniques. Results largely support the relationships posited.