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Explanatory model of barriers to integration of digital technologies in higher education institutions

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Abstract

Digital technologies are powerful resources that have not been globally integrated in higher education teaching. Previous studies have pointed out several barriers that can slow down this integration. This study, therefore, aims to elaborate an explanatory model of the barriers to digital technology integration into university teaching, including both links between them and between social and demographic factors that may be influencing them. Through a mixed method approach, a multiple case study with a sample of 527 teachers was developed in Spain. The results show that there are seven main barriers to technology integration: technophobia, lack of time, absence of planning, lack of incentives, lack of evaluation, work saturation, and university accreditation model. The model will help organizations and teachers to identify both the specific barriers and their linkages to other factors. Thus, they will be able to carry out improvements regarding the integration of digital technologies in higher education.

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Funding

This work was supported by the University Teacher Training Program (FPU), Ministry of Education, Sports and Culture of Spain, under Grant FPU/2650.

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  1. Department of Applied Pedagogy, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Plaça del Coneixement, G6 Building, Zip Code 08193, Bellaterra, Barcelona, Spain

    Cristina Mercader

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  1. Cristina Mercader
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Correspondence to Cristina Mercader.

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Mercader, C. Explanatory model of barriers to integration of digital technologies in higher education institutions. Educ Inf Technol 25, 5133–5147 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-020-10222-3

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