The moderating role of technology proficiency and academic discipline in AI-chatbot adoption within higher education: Insights from a PLS-SEM analysis

The integration of AI-chatbots into higher education offers the potential to enhance learning practices. This research aims to explore the factors influencing AI-chatbots adoption within higher education, with a focus on the moderating roles of technological proficiency and academic discipline. Utilizing a survey-based approach and advanced structural equation modeling (SEM) techniques, the study establishes and validates a theoretical model informed by the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT). The findings reveal that the predictors of AI-chatbot adoption include perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, perceived efficiency, social influence, facilitating conditions, user satisfaction, and perceived learning performance. Importantly, technological proficiency emerges as a key moderator, influencing the strength of several relationships within the model. Contrary to expectations, the field of study does not significantly moderate these relationships, suggesting commonalities in perceptions across the investigated academic disciplines. This unexpected finding could be due to the core functionalities of AI-chatbots resonating across disciplines. The novelty of AI-chatbots in educational settings may also create a shared initial reaction that outweighs discipline-specific differences. These findings offer educators and institutions valuable insights for tailoring AI-chatbot implementation strategies to address users’ diverse needs and technological capabilities, ultimately leading to the optimization of these transformative tools.