Zhao Shu, Yao Ying, Ya Nan
College of Education, Shaanxi Normal University, No.199, South Chang'an Road, Yanta District, Xi'an, 710062 People's Republic of China.
College of Information, University of North Texas, 3940 N. Elm St, Denton, TX 76207 USA.
Educ Technol Res Dev. 2021;69(6):3413-3435. doi: 10.1007/s11423-021-10048-x. Epub 2021 Sep 27.
Mobile social media are increasingly being used in education. They provide an effective way to address the imbalance between teaching supply and demand for older adults. However, few studies have investigated which factors contribute to older adults' intention to use mobile social media for learning. This study uses a sequential explanatory mixed method to investigate the factors impacting older Chinese adults' adoption of mobile social media for learning. Results of the quantitative phase indicated that Technology Anxiety (TA), Self-efficacy (SE), Previous Experience (PE), and Subjective Norm (SN) had significant effects on Perceived Usefulness (PU). TA, SE, PE, and Facilitating Conditions (FC) had significant effects on Perceived Ease of Use (PEU). PU and PEU are significant predictors of Behavioral Intention (BI), and PEU had a positive effect on PU. In the qualitative study, the significant effects of these extension factors on PU and/or PEU were investigated further. Perceptions and concerns about using mobile social media for learning were analyzed based on the participants' interview data. On the basis of these results, recommendations are made to promote the use of mobile social media for learning by older adults. Specifically, teachers and colleges should: (a) select appropriate social media applications and set up relevant courses, and (b) supply inexpensive network service and high-quality learning support service. These research results have important implications for academic researchers, senior college managers, and teachers.
移动社交媒体在教育中的应用越来越广泛。它们为解决老年人教学供需不平衡问题提供了一种有效方式。然而，很少有研究调查哪些因素促成了老年人使用移动社交媒体进行学习的意愿。本研究采用顺序解释性混合方法，调查影响中国老年人采用移动社交媒体进行学习的因素。定量阶段的结果表明，技术焦虑（TA）、自我效能感（SE）、先前经验（PE）和主观规范（SN）对感知有用性（PU）有显著影响。TA、SE、PE和促进条件（FC）对感知易用性（PEU）有显著影响。PU和PEU是行为意愿（BI）的重要预测因素，且PEU对PU有积极影响。在定性研究中，进一步调查了这些扩展因素对PU和/或PEU的显著影响。基于参与者的访谈数据，分析了对使用移动社交媒体进行学习的看法和担忧。基于这些结果，提出了促进老年人使用移动社交媒体进行学习的建议。具体而言，教师和高校应：（a）选择合适的社交媒体应用并开设相关课程，以及（b）提供廉价的网络服务和高质量的学习支持服务。这些研究结果对学术研究人员、高校高级管理人员和教师具有重要意义。
