Assessment of Factors that Influence the AI Use Intention Among Students in Higher Learning Institutions Using the UTAUT Model

Abstract

This study investigates the factors influencing students’ intention to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies in higher learning institutions, with particular emphasis on the mechanisms through which social influence affects AI use intention via performance expectancy and effort expectancy, as conceptualised in the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT). A cross-sectional mixed-methods design was employed. Quantitative data were collected from 328 postgraduate students at the Open University of Tanzania (OUT) using a structured questionnaire grounded in UTAUT constructs, while qualitative insights were obtained from 25 key informant interviews. Structural equation modelling using SmartPLS 4 was applied to test direct and mediating relationships among facilitating conditions, effort expectancy, social influence, performance expectancy, and AI use intention. The results indicate that facilitating conditions, effort expectancy, performance expectancy, and social influence all have significant positive effects on students’ intention to use AI technologies. Social influence emerged as the strongest direct predictor of AI use intention. Importantly, performance expectancy and effort expectancy were found to partially mediate the relationship between social influence and AI use intention, demonstrating that social endorsement shapes AI adoption both directly and indirectly by strengthening perceptions of usefulness and ease of use. The findings extend the UTAUT framework by empirically validating mediated pathways in the context of AI adoption within Open and Distance Learning (ODL) environments in a developing country. Practically, the study highlights the need for higher learning institutions to strengthen infrastructural support, provide targeted AI training, and foster positive academic norms to promote ethical, effective, and sustainable AI use among students.