Factors Affecting Usefulness of Social Networking in E-Learning at German University of Technology in Oman

Factors Affecting the Usefulness of Social Networking in E-learning at German University of Technology in Oman
Revinson G. Martin
“what are the factors affecting the usefulness of social networking in e-learning at GUtech”? This will help the university administrator, students, and educators to know the value of social networking in e-learning and will help and guide those who develop, implement, and deliver e-learning systems. There are many social networking sites available that the researcher perceived to be useful in the academe. However, the researcher have used Facebook group for this study because of its popularity to the students and educators of GUtech. II. BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY The TAM developed by Davis is one of the most widely used and influential models in the field of information systems, technology, and services [3]. It is an adaptation of the theory of reasoned action (TRA) [4] specifically tailored for modeling user acceptance of information technology. According to the TRA, belief influence attitudes, which lead to intentions, which then generate behavior. The TAM posits that two factors, perceived usefulness (PU) and perceived ease of use (PEU) are of primary relevance in influencing IT acceptance behaviors. PU is defined as the extent to which a person believes that using a particular system will enhance his or her job performance while PEU is defined as the extent to which a person believes that using a particular system will be free of effort [3]. Among the beliefs, PEU is hypothesized to be a predictor of PU, defined as the user’s desirability of his or her using the system. Furthermore, both types of beliefs are influenced by external variables. Although information system researchers have investigated and replicated the TAM, and agreed that it is valid in predicting the individual 's acceptance of various technology [5], the TAM 's fundamental constructs do not fully reflect the specific influences of technological and usage-context

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