A Look at Technology Use for English Language Learning from a Structural Equation Modeling Perspective

Abstract

Mobile-Assisted Language Learning (MALL) has become an essential approach in the field of language education, especially for English as a foreign language (EFL) teaching. This study enhanced the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) to examine the determinants that influence the acceptance of mobile technology use for English language learning. A quantitative method was applied in this study, which involved 342 pre-service teachers in an English department at a state university in Indonesia. The instrument used in collecting the data was a questionnaire. The collected data were analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling – Partial Least Square (SEM- PLS) with the SmartPLS3 program to analyze the proposed hypotheses of the study objectives. The SEM results supported the entire main constructs of UTAUT proposed in the hypotheses. Findings suggest that determinants of mobile technology acceptance are the major factors influencing the usage of mobile technology. The study concluded that the usage behavior of mobile technology had been influenced by four main variables of UTAUT, namely performance expectancy (PE), Effort Expectancy (EE), Social Influence (SI), and Facilitating Conditions (FC). Besides, the effect of behavioral intention (BI) uses on usage behavior (UB) of mobile technology had not been moderated by gender.