Embedding Culture and Grit in the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) for Higher Education

Abstract: The implementors of learning technologies within education environments often follow strategies that assume the educational environment within which they are being introduced is culturally neutral. A comprehensive literature review including 150 papers on educational technology challenges was undertaken. The purpose of this review is explore different contextual challenges to the adoption of educational technology in the higher education sector. The cultural factors that define the key stakeholders (e.g., teachers, lectures, students and support staff) are often ignored when the implementation processes are undertaken. Furthermore, it is often assumed that the personnel responsible for the implementation are also culturally neutral and do not possess any attributes unique to their culture. It has been shown that cultural factors may significantly influence the implementation of learning technologies and to design strategies that fail to consider factors may limit their efficiency and effectiveness. The challenges are interrelated and based on the findings, this review proposes a conceptual framework by integrating culture and grit into the Technology Acceptance Model(TAM) for implementing educational technology in higher education. The framework will be useful to guide both practice and research.