Metaverse can be applied in several aspects of life such as the Economy, finance, social life, working environment, healthcare, real estate, and education. In the last 2 and a half years, during the COVID-19 pandemic, universities made immediate use of learning technologies, providing students with access to online learning content and platforms. Previous considerations on how to better integrate technology into universities or how the institutions can be better prepared in terms of infrastructure vanished almost immediately due to the necessity of immediate actions towards the need for social distance and global health. The present study proposes a framework for university students metaverse technologies in education acceptance and intention to use. The present study develops a structural model of MetaEducation acceptance. This model will be useful to university managers, policymakers, and professors to better incorporate the upcoming metaverse technology. The present study tests (if supported) the correlations among the aforementioned constructs. Preliminary results show hesitance to use MetaEducation technologies from university students. Self-efficacy and Subjective Norms affect Attitude and Perceived Usefulness positively, but on the other side, there is no strong correlation between Perceived Ease of Use and Attitude or Perceived Usefulness and Attitude. Authors believe that the weak ties among the study constructs have to do with the lack of knowledge of what really MetaEducation really is, and which are its advantages of use.
翻译:摘要:元宇宙可应用于生活的多个领域,如经济、金融、社会生活、工作环境、医疗保健、房地产及教育。在过去两年半的新冠疫情期间,各大学迅速采用学习技术,为学生提供在线学习内容和平台接入。由于社会隔离和全球健康需求的迫切行动,此前关于如何更好地将技术融入大学或机构如何在基础设施方面做好充分准备的考量几乎立刻消失。本研究提出一个框架,用于理解大学生在教育领域接受和使用元宇宙技术的意向。本研究构建了元宇宙教育接受的结构模型,该模型将有助于大学管理者、政策制定者和教授更好地融入即将到来的元宇宙技术。本研究验证了上述构念间的相关性(如成立)。初步结果显示大学生对使用元宇宙教育技术存在犹豫。自我效能感和主观规范对态度和感知有用性有正向影响,但另一方面,感知易用性与态度、或感知有用性与态度之间未发现强相关性。作者认为,研究构念间的弱关联可能与对元宇宙教育的本质及其使用优势缺乏认知有关。