Technology Acceptance Model and Moodle: A systematic mapping study

Abstract

Moodle is one of the most widely used learning management systems currently and has traditionally been studied through the Technology Acceptance Model. Existing literature is scattered and does not allow us to clearly conclude what characteristics this technological acceptance has as well as its main progress. The study aimed to provide an overview of the scientific literature on the application of TAM in the study of the acceptance and technological use of Moodle through a Systematic Mapping Study (SMS). Results from 24 selected studies indicate that the topic is of increasing interest and that the literature is characterized by studies that 1) use extended versions of TAM; 2) are based on university students from different programs; 3) take place in Europe or Asia; 4) are published in journals with different impact factors; and 5) have focused on testing mainly the original TAM hypotheses. Although a lot of hypotheses have been studied (271), only 16 have been accepted more times than rejected by 2 or more studies, with Perceived Ease of Use being the most commonly present construct in the hypotheses. Results imply that although TAM remains as a robust model for studying Moodle there are still important gaps to be addressed.