Understanding the Continuance Usage Intention of Distance Learning during COVID-19: An Empirical Study on Tourism Academic Staff and Undergraduates in Egypt

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Tourism Studies Department, Faculty of Tourism and Hotels, Minia University, Minia, Egypt

2 Hotels Management Department, Faculty of Tourism and Hotels, Minia University, Minia, Egypt

Abstract

Lockdown measures in response to COVID-19 have disrupted the education system worldwide, where universities quickly have replaced face-to-face classes with distance learning. This paper aims to determine factors that predict tourism academic staff and undergraduates’ continuance usage intention of distance learning in Egypt during the COVID-19 era. The effects of perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use on attitude toward distance learning, the influence of attitude on satisfaction with distance learning, the effects of attitude and satisfaction on continuance usage intention of distance learning are explored. The survey data is obtained from 87 academic staff and 350 undergraduates and analyzed with SmartPLS software utilizing the partial least square method. The results indicate that continuance usage intention of distance learning is predicated by attitude towards distance learning and satisfaction with distance learning; together, these variables explained almost 70% of the variance of continuance usage intention (R2 = 0.695). Also, it is found that attitude towards distance learning is the strongest predictor, compared to satisfaction, of continuance usage intention of distance learning. This research provides insightful understandings and empirical evidence on the factors that influence the continuance usage intention of distance learning.

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