IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bcp/journl/v9y2025issue-3sp7643-7650.html

Factors Affecting the Behavioural Intentions of the Users in Adopting Artificial Intelligence (AI) Tools in Higher Education

Author

Listed:
  • Gunasekara M. Y.

    (Department of Decision Sciences, Faculty of Management Studies & Commerce, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka)

  • De Silva M. W. A.

    (Department of Decision Sciences, Faculty of Management Studies & Commerce, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka)

Abstract

In the global context, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming higher education; however, its acceptance among students in developing nations, such as Sri Lanka, remains underexplored. With an emphasis on how specific attributes of AI influence the acceptance and use of AI, this study examines the behavioural intentions of Sri Lankan university students regarding the adoption of AI technologies, guided by the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT). The objectives of the research were to (1) identify the attributes of AI technologies that affect undergraduates’ behavioural intention, (2) identify the impact of the attributes of AI technologies that affect undergraduates’ behavioural intention, and (3) identify the impact of attitude on the relationship between those attributes and undergraduates’ behavioural intention. A structured survey questionnaire was circulated among the undergraduate students, and IBM SPSS statistical software was used to analyse the collected data. According to the findings, Performance Expectancy (PE) has a significant positive influence on behavioural intention, while Perceived Risk (PR), Effort Expectancy (EE), and Facilitating Conditions (FC) did not show significant effects. Furthermore, it was discovered that the association between behavioural intention and AI characteristics was partially mediated by attitude (ATT). As the findings suggest, risk perceptions, ease of use, and institutional support appear to have a lesser impact on Sri Lankan undergraduates' readiness to adopt AI than their conviction that it may enhance their academic performance. This study extends the application of UTAUT in the context of Sri Lankan higher education, offering practical implications for universities and policymakers to highlight the academic benefits, foster positive student attitudes, and strategically integrate AI into educational practices.

Suggested Citation

  • Gunasekara M. Y. & De Silva M. W. A., 2025. "Factors Affecting the Behavioural Intentions of the Users in Adopting Artificial Intelligence (AI) Tools in Higher Education," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 9(3s), pages 7643-7650, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:bcp:journl:v:9:y:2025:issue-3s:p:7643-7650
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.rsisinternational.org/journals/ijriss/Digital-Library/volume-9-issue-3s/7643-7650.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://rsisinternational.org/journals/ijriss/articles/factors-affecting-the-behavioural-intentions-of-the-users-in-adopting-artificial-intelligence-ai-tools-in-higher-education/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Sharma, Sujeet Kumar & Sharma, Manisha, 2019. "Examining the role of trust and quality dimensions in the actual usage of mobile banking services: An empirical investigation," International Journal of Information Management, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 65-75.
    2. Martins, Carolina & Oliveira, Tiago & Popovič, Aleš, 2014. "Understanding the Internet banking adoption: A unified theory of acceptance and use of technology and perceived risk application," International Journal of Information Management, Elsevier, vol. 34(1), pages 1-13.
    3. Viswanath Venkatesh & Fred D. Davis, 2000. "A Theoretical Extension of the Technology Acceptance Model: Four Longitudinal Field Studies," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 46(2), pages 186-204, February.
    4. Alalwan, Ali Abdallah & Dwivedi, Yogesh K. & Rana, Nripendra P., 2017. "Factors influencing adoption of mobile banking by Jordanian bank customers: Extending UTAUT2 with trust," International Journal of Information Management, Elsevier, vol. 37(3), pages 99-110.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Queiroz, Maciel M. & Fosso Wamba, Samuel, 2019. "Blockchain adoption challenges in supply chain: An empirical investigation of the main drivers in India and the USA," International Journal of Information Management, Elsevier, vol. 46(C), pages 70-82.
    2. Qingyu Zhang & Salman Khan & Safeer Ullah Khan & Ikram Ullah Khan, 2023. "Understanding Blockchain Technology Adoption in Operation and Supply Chain Management of Pakistan: Extending UTAUT Model With Technology Readiness, Technology Affinity and Trust," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(4), pages 21582440231, October.
    3. Hossain, Akram & Quaresma, Rui & Rahman, Habibur, 2019. "Investigating factors influencing the physicians’ adoption of electronic health record (EHR) in healthcare system of Bangladesh: An empirical study," International Journal of Information Management, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 76-87.
    4. Simarpreet Kaur & Sangeeta Arora, 2023. "Understanding customers’ usage behavior towards online banking services: an integrated risk–benefit framework," Journal of Financial Services Marketing, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 28(1), pages 74-98, March.
    5. Sumita Jagdishprasad Shroff & Rajkumari Nitin Soni & Simran Rohira, 2026. "Digital currency usage intention among existing fintech users: testing the modified UTAUT using hybrid SEM-ANN approach," Journal of Financial Services Marketing, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 31(1), pages 1-27, March.
    6. Malaquias, Rodrigo F. & Hwang, Yujong, 2019. "Mobile banking use: A comparative study with Brazilian and U.S. participants," International Journal of Information Management, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 132-140.
    7. Mehra, Aashish & Rajput, Sneha & Paul, Justin, 2022. "Determinants of adoption of latest version smartphones: Theory and evidence," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 175(C).
    8. Shaw, Norman & Sergueeva, Ksenia, 2019. "The non-monetary benefits of mobile commerce: Extending UTAUT2 with perceived value," International Journal of Information Management, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 44-55.
    9. Baabdullah, Abdullah M. & Alalwan, Ali Abdallah & Rana, Nripendra P. & Kizgin, Hatice & Patil, Pushp, 2019. "Consumer use of mobile banking (M-Banking) in Saudi Arabia: Towards an integrated model," International Journal of Information Management, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 38-52.
    10. Sujeeth Ungratwar & Dipasha Sharma & Satish Kumar, 2025. "Mapping the digital banking landscape: a multi-dimensional exploration of fintech, digital payments, and e-wallets, with insights into current scenarios and future research," Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 12(1), pages 1-22, December.
    11. María Dolores Redondo-Rodríguez & Diana C. Pérez-Bustamante Yábar & Eloísa Díaz-Garrido, 2026. "What factors drive technology adoption in entrepreneurship? a qualitative analysis," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 22(2), pages 1-56, June.
    12. Camilleri, Mark Anthony & Camilleri, Adriana Caterina, 2022. "Remote learning via video conferencing technologies: Implications for research and practice," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    13. Amina Almarzouqi & Ahmad Aburayya & Said A Salloum, 2022. "Determinants predicting the electronic medical record adoption in healthcare: A SEM-Artificial Neural Network approach," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 17(8), pages 1-29, August.
    14. Tianyang Huang & Gang Wang & Chiwu Huang, 2024. "What promotes the mobile payment behavior of the elderly?," Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 11(1), pages 1-14, December.
    15. Bhukya, Ramulu & Paul, Justin, 2023. "Social influence research in consumer behavior: What we learned and what we need to learn? – A hybrid systematic literature review," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 162(C).
    16. Bindu K. Nambiar & Kartikeya Bolar, 2023. "Factors influencing customer preference of cardless technology over the card for cash withdrawals: an extended technology acceptance model," Journal of Financial Services Marketing, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 28(1), pages 58-73, March.
    17. Md. Alamgir Hossain & Ruhul Amin & Abdullah Al Masud & Md. Imran Hossain & Mohammad Awal Hossen & Mohammad Kamal Hossain, 2023. "What Drives People’s Behavioral Intention Toward Telemedicine? An Emerging Economy Perspective," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(3), pages 21582440231, July.
    18. Christoph Gerling & Timm Teubner & Fabian Braesemann, 2026. "Who uses general-purpose AI? A typology of ChatGPT early adopters," Electronic Markets, Springer;IIM University of St. Gallen, vol. 36(1), pages 1-35, December.
    19. Shafiqul Islam & Mohammad Fakhrul Islam & Noor-E- Zannat, 2023. "Behavioral Intention to Use Online for Shopping in Bangladesh: A Technology Acceptance Model Analysis," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(3), pages 21582440231, September.
    20. Esmaili, Arsalan & Rejali, Sina & Aghabayk, Kayvan & Mohammadi, Amin & De Gruyter, Chris, 2025. "Autonomous delivery vehicle acceptance: The moderating role of perceived risk of theft," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 162(C), pages 406-423.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bcp:journl:v:9:y:2025:issue-3s:p:7643-7650. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Dr. Pawan Verma (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://rsisinternational.org/journals/ijriss/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.