Communication Enabled By LMS: an Empirical Study Based on TAM

Abstract

Following the global trend and facing the need of the hour, most Indian universities have adopted open-source LMS. However, the utilization of LMS in India is still a matter of concern. Even if institutions spend a lot of money and resources on LMS implementation, the system will not be properly utilized if the users do not accept and use it. When users are faced with a new form of elearning, they must adapt it; their perceptions of how to use and accept an e-learning system can influence a variety of elements. Thus, this study aimed to explore the acceptance of LMS within the context of India. The study utilizes Technology Acceptance Model (Davis, 1989) to understand the students’ acceptance of an LMS in an Indian University. Apart from the existing TAM constructs, the investigation also included one external variable, communication enabled by LMS, to study the LMS acceptance by the students. Thus, for the purpose of SEM, the present study employs both Amos 24.0 and SmartPLS3 to develop and analyze the model developed in the current research. The research findings revealed a significant positive relationship between Communicativeness enabled by LMS and perceived ease of use of LMS, Perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use and attitude towards LMS, perceived usefulness and attitude towards LMS and lastly between attitude towards LMS and behavioural intentions to use LMS. A significant model fit was obtained for the model when analyzed from both AMOS 24.0 and SmartPLS3. Therefore, findings reveal that Communicativeness enabled by LMS plays a significant role in the acceptance of LMS by the students at an Indian university.