A proposed framework to understand the intrinsic motivation factors on university students' behavioral intention to use a mobile application for learning

Aim/Purpose: By integrating a motivational perspective into the Technology Acceptance Model, the goal of this study is to empirically test the causal relationship of intrinsic motivational factors on students’ behavioral intention to use (BIU) a mobile application for learning.

Background: Although the Technology Acceptance Model is a significant model, it largely remains incomplete as it does not take into consideration the motivation factors and/or outside influences in the adoption of new technology.

Methodology: A Mobile Application Motivation Instrument (MAMI) was developed from a comprehensive review of literature on intrinsic motivation and verified using a formalized card sorting procedure. Four intrinsic motivation scales were developed: perceived competence (COM), perceived challenge (CHA), perceived choice (CHO), and perceived interest (INT). Consequently, a scale to assess students’ behavioral intention (BIU) to use mobile applications was developed using existing scales from prior TAM instruments.

Contribution: Incorporating the motivational factors into TAM may provide better explanation and prediction of student acceptance and usage of mobile applications. A potential contribution of this study is the development of a reliable and valid instrument that could be further used by a growing community of researchers, instructional designers, and instructors.

Findings: Data were collected from 193 participants to test the causal relationship of perceived competence (COM), perceived challenge (CHA), perceived choice (CHO), and perceived interest (INT) on students’ behavioral intention to use (BIU) a mobile application, using a structural equation modeling approach. The structural path model indicated that perceived competence (COM), perceived challenge (CHA), perceived choice (CHO), and perceived interest (INT) had a significant influence on students’ behavioral intention to use (BIU) a mobile application for learning. Implications of this study are important for researchers and educational practitioners

Future Research: One environmental dimension, understudied but with likely implications for intrinsic motivation, is the social environment.