Government Information Quarterly 28 (2011) 491–502

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Government Information Quarterly

j o u r n a l h o m e p a g e : w w w. e l s ev i e r. c o m / l o c a t e / g ov i n f

Elucidating usage of e-government learning: A perspective of the extended

technology acceptance model
Stacy Huey-Pyng Shyu a,⁎, Jen-Hung Huang b
a
Graduate Institute of Business Management, National Kaohsiung First University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan, ROC
b
Department of Management Science, National Chiao Tung University, Hsinchu, Taiwan, ROC

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Available online 25 August 2011 Learning is critical to both economic prosperity and social cohesion. E-government learning, which refers to
the government's use of web-based technologies to facilitate learning about subjects that are useful to
Keywords: citizens, is relatively new, relevant, and potentially cost-effective. This work proposes and verifies that the
E-government technology acceptance model (TAM) can explain and predict usage of e-government learning. The TAM
E-government learning examines how perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness and their antecedents influence intention and
E-learning
usage of a system. This study identifies antecedents that account for individual differences, thereby enhancing
Technology acceptance model
the explanatory power of the built model. A survey is used to collect data from users of an e-government
learning website in Taiwan. Structural equation modeling is employed to examine the fit of the data to the
model. From a theoretical point of view, this research extends the TAM to e-government learning and
identifies the perceived e-government learning value and perceived enjoyment as antecedents of usage of
e-government learning. This study also provides directions for future research and approaches to promote
e-government learning.
© 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction recognize the importance of e-learning services (Anthopoulos,

Gerogiannis, Fitsilis, & Kameas, 2010). However, none of these
Many institutions, such as the World Bank, the United Nations, evaluations and studies addressed the needs and motivations of
Europe's Information Society DG, and the American Customer individuals from a learning perspective. Learning, i.e., acquiring new
Satisfaction Index, evaluate e-government progress using various knowledge and skills, is critical to both economic prosperity and social
methods and indices (Fitsilis, Anthopoulos, & Gerogiannis, 2010). For cohesion. Learning from e-government websites is a relatively new,
example, the World Bank analyzes e-government effectiveness based relevant, and potentially cost-effective educational model; thus, the
on service delivery, information, transparency and anti-corruption, factors that encourage learning from e-government websites deserve
and efficient government purchasing. The United Nations provides an to be scrutinized.
e-government assessment model that contains indices that measure E-government learning refers to government's use of Web-based
e-government readiness, e-service provisions, e-service stages, and e- technology to facilitate learning about subjects that are useful to
participation. Academics have examined e-government success using citizens. This definition includes both government websites with
various perspectives. For instance, King's (2007) Customer Relation- educational contents and public portals with educational content. For
ship Management (CRM) progressive strategic framework showed example, the website of a tax agency can provide tax code,
that e-government CRM projects should have three primary goals — information, and forms and allows citizens to e-file their income
improving accessibility, organizational transformation, and service taxes. Additionally, the agency may publish information about court
delivery innovation. These evaluation models and studies examined cases, the pros and cons of alternatives when filing taxes, and tax
the many facets of e-government efficiency and effectiveness. Some planning, and use software to clarify tax codes and help citizens e-file
evaluation models, such as that used by the Information Society DG, their income taxes, thereby reducing the need for citizens to hire tax
experts or purchase tax-related books and software. Governments
should replace their command-and-control mandate with the
principle of shared value (Porter & Kramer, 2011). For example, if
the effort required to fill out tax forms by citizens and that of tax
⁎ Corresponding author at: National Kaohsiung First University of Science and agencies collecting taxes were minimized, the entire country would
Technology, Graduate Institute of Business Management and International Master of
Business Administration, 2 Jhuoyue Rd, Nanzih, Kaohsiung City, 811, Taiwan, ROC. Fax:
benefit. Governments can also establish online schools to teach
+ 886 7 6011070. citizens about subjects commonly taught in conventional educational
E-mail addresses: [email protected], [email protected] (S.H.-P. Shyu). institutions, such as algebra, accounting, and politics, to enhance

0740-624X/$ – see front matter © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.giq.2011.04.002
492 S.H.-P. Shyu, J.-H. Huang / Government Information Quarterly 28 (2011) 491–502

public education effectiveness; they can also teach subjects usually Davis (1996, p. 473) argued: “In order to be able to explain user
not offered by educational institutions such as negotiation and crisis acceptance and use, it is important to understand the antecedents of
management (Anthopoulos et al., 2010) for life-long learning. the key TAM constructs, perceived ease of use and usefulness”.
E-government learning, as compared with e-learning initiated by The goals of this study are to investigate the factors influencing e-
private institutions, has several advantages. First, many countries government learning acceptance, to build an extended TAM model for
spend a fair amount of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on education. If e-government learning, and to test the resulting model empirically.
a very small percentage of this expenditure were allocated to build e- Specifically, the objectives of this study are as follows:
learning websites that are free to all citizens, all citizens with Internet
(1) Propose a new construct – perceived e-government learning
connections would be able to learn these subjects. This is a cost-
value – and to empirically test its relationship with perceived
effective method of raising the educational level of a country. Second,
usefulness of e-government learning.
since e-learning initiated by governments is free, those in remote
(2) Identify the individual difference variable – perceived enjoy-
areas or in low-income brackets would be able to improve themselves
ment – and to examine its relationship with perceived ease of
and increase their potential for earning higher wages, thus leveling a
use.
nation's income distribution. Third, a governmental agency has a
(3) Examine the causal relationships among TAM variables leading
pivotal role in providing information and educating its citizens about
to e-government learning website usage.
subjects related to that agency. For example, when a citizen wants to
(4) Investigate the relative importance of each determinant in
learn about environmental protection, where can that individual find
influencing e-government learning website usage.
this information? One of the first sources should be the Environmental
Protection Agency website. If such a site can provide sufficient To achieve these objectives, this study answers the following
information about environmental protection and deliver this infor- research questions:
mation in an interesting way, citizens would be able to learn about
(1) Is perceived e-government learning value a valid construct? Does
environmental protection and may then take action to alleviate
it affect perceived usefulness in e-government learning?
pollution. Society's needs are enormous, ranging from environmental
(2) Does perceived enjoyment influence perceived ease of use in e-
protection, nutrition, health, and raising the young generation. The
government learning?
more citizens learn about such subjects, the better off a country will
(3) Do casual relationships exist among TAM variables and use of
be. Governments should take the initiative in educating its citizens
e-government learning site?
about issues important to the nation and its citizens.
(4) Among predictive factors, which factors have a relatively
To improve the effectiveness of knowledge sharing and lifelong
significant impact on the use of the e-government learning
learning, Taiwan's government established various Web-based learn-
site?
ing portals. For instance, the Lifelong Learning Portal, established by
the Central Personnel Administration, Executive Yuan, is targeted at The contributions of this study are fourfold. First, the study
Taiwanese civil servants with the goal of improving their job-related enhances the current understanding of e-government learning
skills. Another government Web-learning body is the Bureau of determinants. This study identifies perceived e-government learning
Foreign Trade (BOFT), which aims to provide learners with knowledge value and perceived enjoyment as antecedents of e-government
about international business regulations, overseas governmental learning site usage. Second, this study advances the theoretical
policies, international business analysis, and trade opportunities. development of behavior formation regarding citizens' usage of e-
SME Online University, developed by the Small and Medium government learning websites. Third, this study provides empirical
Enterprise Administration, Ministry of Economic Affairs, is an e- support for the effects of external factors on attitude, which lead to
learning website for small and medium enterprises (SMEs). This site intention to use and actual usage. Finally, this study reveals the
has over 800 free online courses organized in five categories — relative importance of each antecedent variable in influencing
information technology, finance, marketing and channel manage- attitude, behavioral intention, and actual usage of the e-government
ment, general knowledge, and human resources. According to the learning site. Study results also have implications for practitioners
website, the SME Online University has served over 300,000 SME implementing effective strategies to motivate citizens to accept and
employers and employees since it was first launched in 2003. use the e-government learning website.
Although e-government learning is both valuable to and accepted
by many citizens, those using the SME Online University account for 2. Background and literature review
only 5% of all potential learners in Taiwan. Understanding citizen
motivation and intention to learn from e-government websites and This section first discusses e-government learning. Since this study
the issue of promoting website usage warrant investigation. uses the TAM as its theoretical framework for analysis and students of
This study applied the technology acceptance model (TAM) (Davis, the SME Online University are the study subjects, research related to
1989; Davis, Bagozzi, & Warshaw, 1989) to explain e-government the TAM is reviewed and, finally, the SME Online University is
learning site usage. The TAM, adapted from the theory of reasoned described.
action (TRA) (Ajzen & Fishbein, 1980), has been utilized as the
theoretical basis for numerous empirical studies of user acceptance of 2.1. E-government learning
information technology (King & He, 2006; Turner, Kitchenham,
Brereton, Charters, & Budgen, 2010). The primary objective of the Both e-learning and e-government have been studied extensively
TAM is to determine why performance improvements are often in the literature. E-learning is the use of Web-based technologies to
inhibited by user unwillingness to accept new technology (Davis, facilitate learning, freeing learners from the limitations of time and
1989). Thus, the TAM is the most promising model for understanding space and allowing learners to learn at their own pace (Sun, Tsai,
learner motivation and to promote utilization of the e-government Finger, Chen, & Yeh, 2008). E-learning is typically initiated by
learning website. However, e-government learning is relatively new educational institutions for students, corporations for employees, or
and learners may differ from user groups in previous studies. Factors governments for civil servants and citizens, usually for governmental
affecting acceptance of e-government services likely vary with service processes. E-government refers to a government's use of Web-
technology, context, and users (Moon & Kim, 2001). Thus, existing based technologies to enhance the delivery of government services
variables in the TAM cannot fully capture learner motives, calling for and information to citizens, employees, business partners, and other
identification of additional motivational factors. As Venkatesh and governmental entities (Layne & Lee, 2001). What is lacking in
 S.H.-P. Shyu, J.-H. Huang / Government Information Quarterly 28 (2011) 491–502 493

literature and practice is e-government learning, which we define as a knowledge acquisition and integration; knowledge extension and
government's use of web-based technologies to facilitate learning refinement; and, meaningful application of knowledge.
about subjects that are useful to citizens. Many citizens are interested Based on learner values and in consideration of learning di-
in learning about a wide assortment of subjects — entrepreneurship, mensions already discussed, this study integrates two novel anteced-
reducing air and water pollution, and baby care, to name just a few. ent variables, perceived e-government learning value and perceived
Courses in some subjects can be offered by government-sponsored enjoyment, into the proposed TAM. Perceived e-government learning
online universities, while others can be offered by e-government. One value, representing the dimensions of informativeness, connectivity,
main issue is to have the ever-increasing use of e-government and responsiveness, refers to the benefits of using a website.
learning sites, which warrants an understanding of learner Perceived enjoyment, representing the dimensions of playfulness,
motivation. friendliness, and responsiveness, refers to the process of website use.
Rosenberg (2001) defined learning as the way “people acquire Perceived e-government learning value is an extrinsic motivator
new skills or knowledge for the purpose of improving their while perceived enjoyment is an intrinsic motivator.
performance” (p. 4). Providing learning activities via a Web-based Both online university and e-government websites can employ
medium is distributed among social and educational environments strategies to enhance perceived e-government learning value. For
and can directly enhance learner experiences (Deek & Espinosa, example, citizens interested in environmental protection would likely
2005). Distributed learning is an instructional paradigm based on be interested in learning how to reduce or eliminate product
learner needs and the application of electronic tools to facilitate packaging and reduce air and water pollution. The website of an
learning. The customers for a governmental organization providing environmental protection agency can offer useful and interesting
information and training are learners. These learners may compare information about those topics. Furthermore, the agency can offer
their experiences using other commercial websites with those when accomplished learners certificates based on learning achievement.
utilizing governmental websites. Hence, Web features and customer These certificates would enhance learner employability, thereby
values experienced on business websites are important factors enhancing perceived e-government learning value.
affecting learner evaluations of governmental websites.
Chiu, Hsieh, and Kao (2005) categorized customer concerns
when customers search for product information in the following 2.2. Learner acceptance of e-government learning
five factors: (1) connectivity; (2) information quality; (3) interactivity;
(4) playfulness; and (5) learning. Huang and Shyu (2008) argued that Understanding the factors related to and predicting e-government
the values a learner looks for from an e-government website are learning usage are extremely important for successful e-government
(1) informativeness, (2) connectivity, (3) playfulness, (4) friendliness, learning. Explanation and prediction of behavior are major purposes
and (5) responsiveness. Informativeness, considered as the most of psychological theories. Some of the most useful theories are the
significant value (Ducoffe, 1996), means that information on a website theory of reasoned action (Ajzen & Fishbein, 1980; Fishbein & Ajzen,
meets various information needs and is useful. Particularly, educators 1975), social cognitive theory (Compeau & Higgins, 1995; Hill, Smith,
require relevant and stimulating materials to teach students and & Mann, 1987), and the TAM (Davis, 1989, 1993). Comparisons of the
support research (Sepic & Kase, 2002). Connectivity is the ability of TAM with other theoretical models have yielded favorable results
customers to access relevant websites (Chiu et al., 2005; Huizingh, (Davis et al., 1989; Hong, Thong, & Tam, 2006). Originally developed
2000). Prior investigations have characterized playfulness as an intrinsic by Davis (1989), the TAM is a robust tool for measuring new
motivator for learners to engage in Web-based learning (Lee, Cheung, & technology adoption by users (Agarwal & Prasad, 1999; Davis, 1989;
Chen, 2005). The decision to acquire knowledge through virtual learning Doll, Hendrickson, & Deng, 1998; King & He, 2006; Segars & Grover,
environments is determined partly on a rational calculation of benefits. 1993). Over the years, the TAM has been validated by various
However, website visitors need a virtual learning environment that applications and extensions, including Web-based information sys-
attracts their attention by being fun, enjoyable, and pleasurable. Users tems (van der Heijden, 2003; Yi & Hwang, 2003), Internet banking
are mostly likely to visit a website repeatedly when their visits are (Wang, Wang, Lin, & Tang, 2003), electronic tax filing systems (Chang,
enjoyable. Huizingh (2000) and Chiu et al. (2005) found that customers Li, Hung, & Hwang, 2005; Wang, 2003), and e-commerce (Henderson
often attribute entertainment to account for their involvement with & Divett, 2003; van Dolen & de Ruyter, 2002). As e-government
websites. Similar to a service encounter in the physical world, learning is novel, examining e-government learning using the TAM
friendliness is a measure of a website's ease of use. Website content model is appropriate.
and accessibility can be assessed in terms of “irritation” versus Fig. 1 shows the TAM, which consists of six constructs, namely
“entertainment” (Wan, 2000). Knowledge-based e-governmental web- external variables, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use,
sites generally allow visiting, browsing, and querying, present search attitude, behavioral intention, and actual usage. Fig. 1 also shows
results, and have clear and easy-to-follow instructions for e-services. the causal flow from beliefs, attitudes, and intentions to behaviors.
Responsiveness, which is defined as willingness to assist customers User behavior is determined by behavioral intention, which is affected
(Wan, 2000; Watson, Pitt, & Kavan, 1998), can be measured by the by attitude and perceived usefulness. Perceptions of usefulness and
duration of time needed to reply to a customer's inquiries. However, the ease of use of a technology determined attitude (Adams, Nelson, &
responsiveness of an e-government learning site can also be measured Todd, 1992; Davis, 1989; Davis et al., 1989; Mathieson, 1991).
by new course offerings related to the latest practical knowledge or External variables, depending on technology, context, and users,
information changes in macro environments such as new regulations, influence perceptions of usefulness and ease of use.
policies, and business/training opportunities. The TAM posits that two behavioral beliefs, perceived usefulness
The goal of education is to develop mature thinkers who can and perceived ease of use, are fundamental factors for predicting user
acquire and utilize knowledge (Marzano et al., 1988). For instance, acceptance, and that the effects of external variables on intention are
Anderson (1977) and Rumelhart (1980) stressed the importance of mediated by these two beliefs (Adams et al., 1992; Davis, 1989; Davis
“searching for meaning” in cognition. To this end, model learners et al., 1989; Mathieson, 1991). Perceived usefulness is defined as an
actively work to combine new information with what is already individual's perception that using a new technology will enhance or
known, select important facts, make inferences from the information improve her/his performance (Davis, 1989, 1993). Based on this
given, and think strategically about their own learning (Marzano et definition, perceived usefulness in this study is a user's perception
al., 1988). The 21 thinking processes derived by Marzano et al. (1988) that e-government learning will enhance their job performance.
can be categorized into the following three learning dimensions: Strengthening this belief creates a positive attitude toward e-
494 S.H.-P. Shyu, J.-H. Huang / Government Information Quarterly 28 (2011) 491–502

Perceived
usefulness

External Behavioral Actual

Variable Attitude intention usage

Perceived
ease of use

Source: Davis,et al. (1989, p.985)

Fig. 1. Technology acceptance model.

government learning, thereby increasing user intention to use e- SMEs. Improving knowledge of workers at SMEs is one of its primary
government learning sites. missions. Most businesses in Taiwan are SMEs, with over 1 million
Perceived ease of use is defined as an individual's perception that businesses employing over 6 million workers. The SME Administra-
using a new technology will be effort-free (Davis, 1989, 1993). Based tion thus serves an economically vital community in Taiwan.
on this definition, perceived ease of use in this study represents the Taiwan's SME Online University is the first e-government learning
perception that e-government learning websites are user-friendly. website for SMEs in Asia. Anyone who can access the Internet can
Perceived ease of use has been shown to affect perceived usefulness. enroll as a student. Enrollment and courses are free. The government
Moreover, both perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use are allocates roughly US$1.2 million to the university annually. This
affected by external variables and have a positive effect on attitude funding is mainly used to purchase network bandwidth, e-learning
(Hu, Chau, Sheng, & Tam, 1999; Venkatesh, Speier, & Morris, 2002; platform services, and e-learning course licenses. The university
Wang et al., 2003). currently offers 800 online courses in five categories; the number of
Although the TAM is applicable to various technologies (Adams et courses offered and categories they're offered in is always increasing.
al., 1992; Chin & Todd, 1995; Doll et al., 1998), it has been criticized for Most courses are 60-minute video lectures in Mandarin combined
not providing adequate information concerning opinions of individ- with PowerPoint transparencies. In addition to these courses, 80
uals about novel systems (Burton-Jones & Hubona, 2006; Mathieson, videos of business speeches delivered by celebrities are currently
1991; Moon & Kim, 2001). Davis (1989, p. 985) observed that external available.
variables enhance the ability of the TAM to predict acceptance of The SME Online University can customize e-learning programs to
future technologies. In other words, constructs in the TAM must be meet the varying training requirements of individual SMEs. When
extended by incorporating additional factors. These additional factors requested by a company, the university sends a consultant to the
depend on the target technology, users, and the context (Moon & Kim, company to help define its training needs. Based on a company's
2001). Wang et al. (2003) noted that variables related to individual needs, the consultant creates a virtual learning platform for the
differences play vital roles in technology implementation. Addition- company and uploads selected courses. The company can monitor the
ally, empirical research using the TAM has identified strong relation- learning progress of each employee via this platform. Companies can
ships between individual differences and IT acceptance (Agarwal & also upload training materials. For instance, a company can upload
Prasad, 1999; Venkatesh, 2000). training materials to the platform to train new employees residing in
The initial issues associated with e-government include technolog- various locations in Taiwan, thereby reducing training costs.
ical factors such as accessibility, connection, Internet familiarity, and To enhance learner interest, the university's platform is interactive
credibility. A few e-government studies have extended the TAM by and the university offers awards and passports for life-long learning.
adding such variables as subjective norms, self-efficacy, and facilitating When logging into a course, a student can find out who is also taking
conditions (Wang, 2003; Yi & Hwang, 2003). However, as technology the course and can chat with classmates after they respond positively
advanced, the problem of adopting e-government shifted toward to a chat request. This interactivity creates a social learning
knowledge sharing from learner perspectives. A relatively more environment. Tutors are available online during pre-announced
complex learning and thinking process associated with user-perceived periods to answer student questions. Students can also host
value may become an important determinant for e-government discussions on the platform. To encourage participation in online
success. The shift from a transaction-based citizenry to a knowledge- discussions, awards of NT$100 (about US$3.1) are occasionally given
based citizenry has created requirements specific to e-governmental to students chosen randomly who join discussions. The passport for
knowledge-sharing platforms. This calls for the use of distinctive life-long learning keeps the records of each student taking courses
antecedent variables, such as perceived e-government learning value and offered by the university. The university gives certificates to students
perceived enjoyment, when examining technology adoption behavior in after they complete a course.
the e-government learning environment.
3. Research model and hypotheses
2.3. The SME Online University in Taiwan
The proposed TAM has two external variables, namely, perceived
The SME Administration, a governmental agency under the e-government value and perceived enjoyment (Fig. 2). These two
Ministry of Economic Affairs, is responsible for helping Taiwan's constructs may significantly affect other variables in the TAM.
 S.H.-P. Shyu, J.-H. Huang / Government Information Quarterly 28 (2011) 491–502 495

Perceived H1 Perceived
e-government usefulness
learning value

H6 H7
H4

H5 H8 H9
Perceived Behavioral Actual
ease of use Attitude intention usage

H2
H3

Perceived
enjoyment

Fig. 2. Proposed extended TAM.

Additionally, other relationships between constructs in the original Therefore, we propose that perceived e-government learning value is a
TAM are also presented (Davis et al., 1989; Venkatesh & Davis, 2000). direct antecedent of perceived usefulness.
The following sections discuss in detail all hypotheses concerning the
relationships among variables in the TAM. H1. Perceived e-government learning value positively affects per-
ceived usefulness.
3.1. Effect of perceived e-government learning value
3.2. Effect of perceived enjoyment
Perceived value can be considered a net benefit resulting from an
overall assessment of a trade-off between benefits and costs of using a Individuals engage in activities because these activities foster
service or product. If a consumer perceives benefit or value in the enjoyment and pleasure (Teo & Lim, 1997). Davis, Bagozzi, and
quality of a product or if a service exceeds its cost, the consumer is likely Warshaw (1992) defined perceived enjoyment as “the extent to
to use that product or service (Kotler & Keller, 2008). In examining the which the activity of using the technology is perceived to be enjoyable
acceptance of hotel front-office systems, Kim, Lee, and Law (2008) in its own right, apart from any performance consequences that may be
demonstrated that perceived value positively influenced attitudes anticipated” (p. 113). In this study, perceived enjoyment is the extent to
toward using hotel front-office systems. Perceived e-government which an individual finds e-government learning intrinsically enjoy-
learning value is the user-determined value of using e-government able or interesting. Perceived enjoyment is considered an intrinsic
learning websites. E-government learning is valuable because it helps motivator, significantly influencing user acceptance of a system.
users obtain and integrate knowledge, accumulate and organize Prior studies of technology acceptance behavior examined the
knowledge, and apply knowledge. Furthermore, e-government learn- effect of perceived enjoyment on perceived ease of use (Venkatesh,
ing in Taiwan is free. Citizens, via e-government learning websites, can 2000; Venkatesh et al., 2002; Yi & Hwang, 2003). Early studies using
earn certificates, thereby improving their employability. Consequently, the TAM identified a causal flow from perceived ease of use to an
perceived e-government learning value is a critical factor of individual intrinsic motivator such as perceived enjoyment (Davis et al., 1992).
differences affecting user behaviors. However, Venkatesh (2000) found that perceived enjoyment en-
Notably, perceived e-government learning value has not been tested hanced perceived ease of use and intention of use. The link between
previously. This construct is similar to benefits used in the study by perceived enjoyment and perceived ease of use strengthened as user's
López-Nicolás, Molina-Castillo, and Bouwman (2008), who integrated gained experience with a training system. In predicting the use of
diffusion theory with the TAM and used perceived status benefits and Web-based information systems, Yi and Hwang (2003) found that
perceived flexibility benefits as two antecedent variables of perceived perceived enjoyment positively affected perceived ease of use. New
usefulness. In innovation diffusion literature (Rogers, 2003), relative technologies that are considered enjoyable are less likely to be
advantage, along with four other characteristics – complexity, difficult to use. If a user of an e-government learning system were to
compatibility, trialability, and observability – positively affected perceive the interaction with a system enjoyable, this user is very
innovation diffusion speed. As the relative benefit of a new technology likely to perceive that system as easy to use.
increased, the speed at which a new technology was accepted by users Because most people enjoy virtual experiences such as watching a
increased. Among these five characteristics, relative advantage was film or playing computer games, educators have designed educational
related to the extrinsic motivator, perceived usefulness, while the other games to enhance e-learning enjoyment (Barab, Thomas, Dodge,
four characteristics were related to ease of use. López-Nicolás et al. Carteaux, & Tuzun, 2005; Jenkins, Klopfer, Squire, & Tan, 2003).
(2008) showed that perceived status benefits and perceived flexibility Sancho, Torrente, and Fernandez-Manjon (2009) showed that multi-
benefits positively affected perceived usefulness of mobile data user virtual environments integrated into a learning management
services. Users who perceive e-government learning value as high system can enhance the motivation of college students in learning
understand benefits relative to cost, resulting in a strong perception of computer programming and reduce the dropout rate. E-learning can
its usefulness. In other words, a perceived e-government learning value also enhance the effectiveness of lifelong training for demanding
positively affects the perceived usefulness of e-government learning. learners who have to negotiate and manage crises in unfamiliar
496 S.H.-P. Shyu, J.-H. Huang / Government Information Quarterly 28 (2011) 491–502

environments (Anthopoulos et al., 2010). Anthopoulos et al. (2010) 4. Research methodology

described an information system in which learning occurs in a virtual
world presented as a three-dimensional (3D) videogame. Thus, A survey was conducted to collect data from students of the SME
learning enjoyment can increase the strength of the perception of Online University. This section first explains the rationale behind
ease of use and improve attitudes toward e-government learning. choosing these university students and describes the sample
Thus, the following hypothesis is proposed: characteristics. Measurement instruments are then explained.

H2. Perceived enjoyment positively affects perceived ease of use. 4.1. Study context and sample

A causal relationship exists between perceived enjoyment and The SME Online University students were chosen for several
attitude. When users see e-government learning as enjoyable, the reasons. First, most enterprises in Taiwan are SMEs. Promoting and
stimulus of happiness enhances their attitude toward using e- enhancing quality lifelong learning for SME employees is very
government learning sites. Venkatesh and Davis (2000) found that important for the economic growth in Taiwan. Second, SMEs in
perceived enjoyment indirectly influenced users in the adoption of a Taiwan usually lack sufficient budgets for training employees. Thus,
system. Other studies showed that attitudinal outcomes, such as SMEs rely on the SME Online University to enhance employee
happiness, pleasure, and satisfaction, resulted from enjoyable experi- knowledge and skills. Third, most SME Online University students
ences (Childers, Carr, Peck, & Carson, 2001; Yu, Ha, Choi, & Rho, 2005). come from different enterprises and disciplines; thus, this sample can
For example, Davis et al. (1992) found that enjoyment affected adoption be more representative of general users of e-government learning
of specific word processing and graphics programs. Childers et al. (2001) sites than users of other sites.
found that perceived enjoyment positively influenced attitude toward The SME Online University students can communicate with each
e-shopping. Yu et al. (2005) noted that consumer-perceived enjoyment other when online for the same course at the same time. Users were
of TV commerce (t-commerce) positively affected attitude toward t- asked to participate in the survey and were rewarded with a
commerce use. Moon and Kim (2001) demonstrated that intrinsic McDonald's gift certificate worth NT$50 (about US$1.55) as a token
motivation positively influenced attitude toward Web use. These of appreciation. Once they agreed to take part in this study, a
findings indicate that enjoyment is highly correlated with positive questionnaire was emailed. Among the 371 questionnaires collected,
user attitudes. In the current context, a user with a high rate of perceived 64 were eliminated for incompleteness, resulting in 307 useful
enjoyment would likely have a very positive attitude toward using e- responses. Tables 1 and 2 show sample characteristics.
government learning sites. Thus, the following hypothesis is proposed: The reasons students gave for using the SME Online University
include self-improvement (93%), convenient for learning (64%), helpful
H3. Perceived enjoyment positively affects a user's attitude toward e-
for improving job performance (55%), easy to navigate the website
government learning.
(30%), and required by employer (19%) as learning on the SME Online
University can be credited as learning hours in the civil servant life-long
3.3. Perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, attitude, and behavioral
learning program which requires participation by civil servants.
intention

4.2. Measurements
The TAM delineates the causal relationships between perceived
usefulness, perceived ease of use, attitude, and behavioral intention to
Except the items for e-government learning value, the items used
explain user acceptance of new technologies. Perceived ease of use
to construct each variable were adopted from previous studies
has been empirically verified by many studies as a predictor of
(Table 3) to ensure content validity. Participants responded to
perceived usefulness (King & He, 2006). When all other factors are
statements on a 7-point Likert-type scale ranging from 1 for “strongly
equal, users likely consider a technology useful when they perceive it
disagree” to 7 for “strongly agree.” The questionnaire consisted of 22
as easy to use (Bruner & Kumar, 2005; Hu et al., 1999; Igbaria & Iivari,
items for seven constructs.
1995). Attitude toward using a given technology is an overall
Perceived e-government learning value was measured by four
evaluation that predicts a user's likelihood of adopting the emerging
items created by this research (Table 3). The four items, based on
technology. Previous research indicated that attitude was influenced
learning dimensions, were as follows: “The value of the SME Online
by both perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness (Childers et al.,
University is that it helps me obtain and integrate knowledge”; “The
2001; Dabholkar & Bagozzi, 2002; Davis, 1989, 1993; Mathieson,
value of the SME Online University is that it helps me accumulate and
1991). In the TAM, behavioral intention is influenced by both
organize knowledge”; “The value of the SME Online University is that
perceived usefulness and attitude. This relationship has been
it helps me gain in-depth knowledge”; and “The value of the SME
examined and supported by many studies (Adams et al., 1992;
Online University is that it helps me apply knowledge.” Perceived
Davis et al., 1992; Hu et al., 1999; Venkatesh & Davis, 1996, 2000).
enjoyment was measured by four items from Moon and Kim (2001),
Finally, actual usage is determined by behavioral intention. Those
Yi and Hwang (2003), and Yu et al. (2005). Perceived usefulness was
relationships are well established in TAM literature. For meta-
measured using four items from Davis (1989, 1993). Perceived ease of
analyses, see King & He (2006) and Turner et al. (2010). This study
use was measured using three items from Davis (1989, 1993),
revalidates those relationships in an e-government learning context.
Venkatesh and Davis (1996), and Yang (2005). Attitude was
Thus, the following hypotheses are proposed:
measured using three items from Davis et al. (1992) and Hu et al.
(1999). Behavioral intention was assessed by three items from Davis
H4. Perceived ease of use positively affects perceived usefulness.
et al. (1992) and Hu et al. (1999). Actual usage was measured by two
H5. Perceived ease of use positively affects a user's attitude. items from Igbaria et al. (1995).

H6. Perceived usefulness positively affects a user's attitude. 5. Analysis and results

H7. Perceived usefulness positively affects behavioral intention.

5.1. Reliability, and convergent and discriminant validity of scales
H8. Attitude positively affects a user's behavioral intention.
First, the internal consistency of constructs, the Cronbach's alpha,
H9. Behavioral intention positively affects actual usage. was calculated. The reliability coefficients for the seven constructs
 S.H.-P. Shyu, J.-H. Huang / Government Information Quarterly 28 (2011) 491–502 497

Table 1
Research variables.

Variable Description Type Items Source Questionnaires

PE Perceived Independent 4 Moon and Kim (2001); (PE1) E-government learning makes me feel good.
enjoyment Yi and Hwang (2003); (PE2) E-government learning is interesting.
Yu et al. (2005) (PE3) I have fun using the e-government learning site.
(PE4) I forget about time when using the e-government learning site.
PEV Perceived Independent 4 Created by this research (PEV1) The value of the SME Online University is that it helps me obtain
e-government and integrate knowledge.
learning value (PEV2) The value of the SME Online University is that it helps me accumulate
and organize knowledge.
(PEV3) The value of the SME Online University is that it helps me gain
knowledge in depth.
(PEV4) The value of the SME Online University is that it helps me apply knowledge.
PU Perceived Independent/dependent 4 Davis (1989, 1993) (PU1) Using the e-government learning site saves me much time.
usefulness (PU2) E-government learning enhances my job effectiveness.
(PU3) E-government learning is useful in my life.
(PU4) The SME Online University offers a lot of choices for information and learning.
PEOU Perceived ease Independent/dependent 3 Davis (1989, 1993); (PEOU1) Using the e-government learning site does not require a lot of mental effort.
of use Venkatesh and Davis (PEOU2) The e-government learning site is clear and understandable.
(1996); Yang (2005) (PEOU3) The e-government learning site is easy to use.
ATT Attitude Independent/dependent 3 Davis et al. (1992); Hu (ATT1) In my opinion, using the e-government learning site is very desirable.
et al. (1999) (ATT2) I like to use the e-government learning site.
(ATT3) I have a positive evaluation of the e-government learning site.
BI Behavioral Independent/dependent 3 Davis et al. (1992); Hu (BI1) I intend to use e-government learning whenever possible.
intention et al. (1999) (BI2) If I were asked about my opinion of e-government learning, I would say
something favorable.
(BI3) In the future, I intend to use e-government learning routinely.
AU Actual usage Dependent 2 Igbaria et al. (1995) Average hours of usage per day
Average frequency of usage

(0.97 for perceived e-government learning value; 0.93 for perceived the constructs were all highly significant (p b 0.01). All SMC values
enjoyment; 0.94 for perceived usefulness; 0.89 for perceived ease of were N0.5, accounting for more than 50% of variation of the items
use; 0.95 for attitude; 0.94 for behavioral intention; and 0.73 for actual (Hair et al., 2006); thus, convergent validity was established.
usage) exceeded the suggested 0.7 cut-off value (Table 4) (Hair, Black, Furthermore, average variance extracted (AVE) (Fornell & Larcker,
Babin, Anderson, & Tatham, 2006; Nunnally, 1978). Therefore, all 1981) were calculated to evaluate whether a measurement variable
constructs had acceptable reliability. represented the related construct. The AVE of all constructs (0.89 for
The data were subjected to confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to perceived e-government learning value; 0.75 for perceived enjoy-
ensure convergent and discriminant validity. The CFA results (Table 4) ment; 0.78 for perceived usefulness; 0.79 for perceived ease of use;
demonstrated a good fit with χ2 =349.42, df = 204, normed-χ2 =1.71, 0.86 for attitude; 0.87 for behavioral intention; and 0.59 for actual
goodness-of-fit index (GFI)= 0.91, adjusted goodness-of-fit index usage) exceeded the suggested 0.5 cut-off value (Fornell & Larcker,
(AGFI)= 0.88, comparative fit index (CFI)= 0.99, and root-mean-square 1981; Hair et al., 2006). Overall, these analytical results showed
error of approximation (RMSEA)= 0.048. The CFA showed that the convergent validity for each construct.
indices exceeded their respective acceptance levels as suggested by The composite score for each construct, computed by averaging
previous research (Bollen, 1989; Hair, Black, Babin, Anderson, & Tatham, scores across items, was used to calculate means, standard deviations,
2006; Joreskog & Sorbom, 1993). Thus, the measurement model fits the and correlations among the constructs. Table 5 shows the correlations,
data well. ranging from 0.17 (behavioral intention and actual usage) to 0.90
To ensure convergent validity, standardized loadings and the
squared multiple correlation (SMC) for the measurement variables
and the constructs were investigated (Bollen, 1989; Hair et al., 2006). Table 3
The t-values for standardized loadings in measurement variables for Average hours of daily use, frequency of usage, and reasons for usage.

Number of respondents Percentage

Hours of daily use

Table 2 Under 0.5 h 131 42.7%
Respondent characteristics. 0.5–1 h 107 34.9%
1–2 h 41 13.3%
Variable Category Number of respondents Percentage
2–3 h 17 5.5%
Age Under 20 1 0.4% Over 3 h 11 3.6%
21–25 27 8.8% Frequency
26–30 51 16.6% Less than 1 time per month 44 14.3%
31–35 67 21.8% Once per month 48 15.6%
36–40 62 20.2% Several times per month 124 40.4%
Over 41 99 32.2% Several times per week 61 19.9%
Sex Male 159 51.8% Once each day 16 5.2%
Female 148 48.2% Several times per day 14 4.6%
Education High school 37 12.0% Reason
College 220 71.7% Self-improvement 284 93%
Graduate school 50 16.3% Convenient to use for learning 197 64%
Usage Within 3 months 85 27.7% Helpful for improving job performance 168 55%
3–6 months 63 20.5% Easy to navigate the website 93 30%
6 months–1 year 57 18.6% Demanded by employer 58 19%
Over 1 year 102 33.2% Others 10 3%
498 S.H.-P. Shyu, J.-H. Huang / Government Information Quarterly 28 (2011) 491–502

Table 4 df = 213, normed-χ 2 = 1.79, CFI = 0.99, GFI = 0.90, AGFI = 0.87,
Results of measurement model analysis. NFI = 0.99, NNFI = 0.99, PGFI = 0.696, CN = 205.805, and
Scale items Standardized t-values SMCs AVE RMSEA= 0.051), indicating that the data fit the model reasonably
loadings well (Bentler, 1995; Bentler & Bonnet, 1980; Hoelter, 1983; Joreskog &
Perceived enjoyment (α = 0.93) 0.75 Sorbom, 1993). The signs of all structural paths but one were consistent
PE1 0.92 –a 0.84 with hypothesized relationships. Although the path from perceived
PE2 0.92 37.48 0.85 ease of use to attitude was negative, it was small and not significant.
PE3 0.91 26.10 0.84
Except for actual usage, the model accounted for a large portion of
PE4 0.77 17.96 0.59
Perceived e-government learning value 0.89 variation (R2) of the other four endogenous variables (86.5% variance of
(α = 0.97) perceived usefulness; 78.2% of the variance of perceived ease of use;
PLV1 0.95 –a 0.90 91.3% of the variance of attitude; and 88.5% of the variance of behavioral
PLV2 0.95 36.77 0.91 intention). The R2 of actual usage was only 5.3%.
PLV3 0.95 35.20 0.90
Fig. 3 and Table 6 also show path coefficients for each path in the
PLV4 0.93 33.37 0.87
Perceived usefulness (α = 0.94) 0.78 model. The relationship between perceived e-government learning
PU1 0.91 –a 0.82 value and perceived usefulness was highly significant (β = 0.71,
PU2 0.90 25.44 0.82 p b 0.001). Thus, H1, i.e., perceived e-government learning value
PU3 0.87 23.34 0.77
positively affects perceived usefulness, is supported. As the degree to
PU4 0.85 24.20 0.79
Perceived ease of use (α = 0.89) 0.79 which a user believed that SME Online University help them gain
PEOU1 0.79 –a 0.63 knowledge, integrate knowledge and apply knowledge increased, the
PEOU2 0.97 17.06 0.75 degree to which the user considered e-government learning useful
PEOU3 0.90 17.92 0.81 increased. The path coefficient from perceived enjoyment to per-
Attitude (α = 0.95) 0.86
ceived ease of use was highly significant (β = 0.88, p b 0.001),
ATT1 0.93 –a 0.86
ATT2 0.93 29.95 0.87 supporting H2. Perceived enjoyment positively affected perceived
ATT3 0.93 30.53 0.87 ease of use, which is in agreement with analytical results from Yi and
Behavioral intention (α = 0.94) 0.87 Hwang (2003) and Venkatesh (2000). The path coefficient from
BI1 0.93 –a 0.86
perceived enjoyment to attitude was 0.37 and highly significant,
BI2 0.91 27.21 0.83
BI3 0.96 27.17 0.91
supporting H3. Consistent with previous research (Childers et al.,
Actual usage (α = 0.73) 0.59 2001; Davis et al., 1992; Yu et al., 2005), perceived enjoyment
AU1 0.81 –a 0.65 positively affected attitude. Perceived ease of use had a significant
AU2 0.72 4.11 0.51 effect on perceived usefulness (β = 0.26, p b 0.001), supporting H4.
Model fit statistics: χ2 = 349.42, df = 204, normed-χ2 = 1.71, GFI = 0.91, AGFI = 0.88, This is consistent with findings obtained by previous studies. King and
RMSEA = 0.048, CFI = 0.995. He (2006), in a meta-analysis, showed that average β from perceived
Note: All items were measured on a 7-point Likert-type scale from “1 (strongly disagree)” to
ease of use to perceived usefulness was 0.479.
“7 (strongly agree)”. AVE = (Σ squared standardized loadings)/((Σ squared standardized
loadings)+Σ item measurement error). GFI = goodness-of-fit index, AGFI = adjusted Notably, perceived ease of use did not affect attitude; thus, H5 was
goodness-of-fit index, RMSEA = root-mean-square-error of approximation, CFI = not supported (β = −0.02, p N 0.1). The influence of perceived ease of
comparative fit index, SMC = squared multiple correlation, AVE = average variance use on attitude was fully mediated by perceived usefulness. King and
extracted. He (2006), in a meta-analysis, determined that the average path
a
This path was fixed to one to identify the corresponding parameters.
coefficient from perceived ease of use to attitude was 0.179 (median,
0.152), indicating that many studies found this path insignificant. In
(attitude and behavioral intention). No confidence interval of the fact, of the 67 studies that reported test results for the core TAM, the
correlations contained the value of 1.0 (Anderson & Gerbing, 1988; path was insignificant at α = 0.05 level in 30. Thus, this study's finding
Bagozzi, 1995). Furthermore, in the structural model (estimated is consistent with many previous studies. To continue to use university
later), no confidence interval of the structural correlation between services, users must find the university useful, not just easy to use.
constructs included the value of 1.0 (Joreskog & Sorbom, 1993). Perceived usefulness had a significant effect on attitude (β = 0.63,
Therefore, the discriminant validity was acceptable. p b 0.001), supporting H6. This finding is similar to that obtained by Kim
et al. (2008), who found that perceived usefulness affected attitude
5.2. The structural equation model and hypotheses testing toward using hotel front-office systems. Perceived usefulness had a
significant effect on behavioral intention (β = 0.41, p b 0.001), support-
The structural equation model (SEM) was estimated using LISREL ing H7. This is similar to meta-analysis results obtained by King and He
software (Joreskog & Sorbom, 1993) to examine relationships among (2006), who found that the average path coefficient from perceived
constructs. Fig. 3 and Table 6 show analytical results (χ2 = 381.44, usefulness to behavioral intention was 0.487.
Behavioral intention affects actual usage significantly (β = 0.23,
Table 5 p b 0.001), supporting H8. Users who have a strong intention to use
Descriptive statistics and correlations among composite scores for constructs. the university would access university websites more frequently and
Constructs Mean SD 1 2 3 4 5 6
stay longer than those with weak intention. The magnitude of the
path coefficient is similar to that reported by Yi and Hwang (2003),
1. Perceived enjoyment 5.17 1.03 1.00
who found that the path coefficient from behavioral intention to
2. Perceived e-government 5.44 1.06 0.82 1.00
learning value usage was 0.19. A meta-analysis by Turner et al. (2010) found that
3. Perceived usefulness 5.39 1.03 0.79 0.86 1.00 most studies including usage in their model showed that behavioral
4. Perceived ease of use 5.15 1.08 0.77 0.74 0.74 1.00 intention affected actual usage.
5. Attitude 5.49 1.08 0.82 0.88 0.88 0.77 1.00
6. Behavioral intention 5.67 1.05 0.75 0.86 0.86 0.72 0.90 1.00
7. Actual usage 2.46 1.02 0.24 0.22 0.22 0.19 0.19 0.17 5.3. Relative importance of antecedent variables

Note: All items were measured on a 7-point Likert-type scale from “1 (strongly
disagree)” to “7 (strongly agree)”. Composite scores were obtained by averaging item
To determine the relative importance of variables in influencing
scores of that construct. All correlations are significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). SD = actual usage, this study examined direct and indirect effects in the
Standard Deviation. model (Table 6). Perceived e-government learning value affected
 S.H.-P. Shyu, J.-H. Huang / Government Information Quarterly 28 (2011) 491–502 499

Perceived 0.711*** Perceived

e-government usefulness
(R2=0.865)
learning value

0.634*** 0.405***
0.258***

-0.023 Attitude 0.550*** 0.231**

Perceived Behavioral Actual
ease of use (R2 =0.913) intention usage
(R 2=0.782) (R2=0.885) (R2 =0.053)

0.884***
0.373***

Perceived
enjoyment

Fig. 3. Structural equation model analysis and hypotheses testing. Model fit statistics: χ2 = 381.44, df = 213, normed-χ2 = 1.79, GFI = 0.90, AGFI = 0.87, RMSEA = 0.051, CFI = 0.995.
GFI = goodness-of-fit index, AGFI = adjusted goodness-of-fit index, RMSEA = root-mean-square-error of approximation, CFI = comparative fit index. Solid line: significant paths,
Dotted line: non-significant paths. **Significant at p b 0.01. ***Significant at p b 0.001.

attitude (0.450) and behavioral intention (0.536) positively via perceived usefulness. The direct effect of perceived usefulness on
perceived usefulness. Perceived usefulness affected actual usage behavioral intention was also significant (0.405), as was the indirect
(0.174) positively via attitude and behavioral intention. Attitude effect via attitude on behavioral intention (0.349). Therefore, attitude
affected actual usage (0.127) positively via behavior intention. had a partial mediating role between perceived usefulness and
Perceived enjoyment affected perceived usefulness (0.228) positively behavioral intention. Empirical results also showed that perceived
via perceived ease of use. enjoyment positively affected attitude (0.124) via perceived ease of
The direct effect of perceived ease of use on attitude was not use and perceived usefulness. Therefore, these two constructs –
significant (−0.023); however, the indirect effect via perceived perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness – partially mediated
usefulness on attitude was significant (0.164). Therefore, perceived the perceived enjoyment in influencing user attitudes toward using e-
usefulness fully mediated the relationship between perceived ease of government learning websites.
use and attitude. These findings are supported by Davis (1989), who Analytical results also show that the two external variables,
demonstrated that perceived ease of use was an antecedent of perceived e-government learning value and perceived enjoyment,

Table 6
Structural equation model analysis and hypotheses testing results.

Hypothesized paths Direct effects Indirect Total Hypothesis

effects effects testing
Path coefficients t-values

H1 Perceived e-government learning value → Perceived usefulness 0.711 12.86*** 0.711*** Supported
H2 Perceived Enjoyment → Perceived ease of use 0.884 14.97*** 0.884*** Supported
H3 Perceived Enjoyment → Attitude 0.373 4.24*** 0.124* 0.497*** Supported
H4 Perceived ease of use → Perceived usefulness 0.258 4.78*** 0.258*** Supported
H5 Perceived ease of use → Attitude − 0.023 − 0.34 0.164** 0.140* Not Supported
H6 Perceived usefulness → Attitude 0.634 9.42*** 0.634*** Supported
H7 Perceived usefulness → Behavioral intention 0.405 4.19*** 0.349*** 0.754*** Supported
H8 Attitude → Behavioral intention 0.550 5.72*** 0.550*** Supported
H9 Behavioral intention → Actual usage 0.231 2.98** 0.231** Supported
Perceived e-government learning value → Attitude 0.450*** 0.450***
Perceived e-government learning value → Behavioral intention 0.536*** 0.536***
Perceived e-government learning value → Actual usage 0.124** 0.124**
Perceived Enjoyment → Perceived usefulness 0.228*** 0.228***
Perceived Enjoyment → Behavioral intention 0.366*** 0.366***
Perceived Enjoyment → Actual usage 0.085** 0.085**
Perceived ease of use → Behavioral intention 0.182** 0.182**
Perceived ease of use → Actual usage 0.042* 0.042*
Perceived usefulness → Actual usage 0.174** 0.174**
Attitude → Actual usage 0.127** 0.127**
R2 (Perceived ease of use) 0.782
R2 (Perceived usefulness) 0.865
R2 (Attitude) 0.913
R2 (Behavioral intention) 0.885
R2 (Actual usage) 0.053

Goodness fit statistics: χ2 = 381.44, df = 213, normed- χ2 = 1.79, GFI = 0.90, AGFI = 0.87, RMSEA = 0.051, CFI = 0.995.
Note: GFI = Goodness-of-fit index, AGFI = adjusted goodness-of-fit index, RMSEA = root-mean-square-error of approximation, CFI = comparative fit index. Total effect = direct
effect + indirect effect.*Significant at p b 0.05. **Significant at p b 0.01. ***Significant at p b 0.001.
500 S.H.-P. Shyu, J.-H. Huang / Government Information Quarterly 28 (2011) 491–502

positively affected behavioral intention (0.536 and 0.366, respective- also add real-time news and virtual communities to reduce user
ly) via perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, and attitude. These boredom and enhance user interest in learning since a perceived lack of
two external variables also positively affected actual usage (0.124 and a sense of community was a challenge facing e-learners (Song,
0.085, respectively) via perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, Singleton, Hill, & Koh, 2004). Blogs and discussion forums can also be
attitude, and behavioral intention. Perceived e-government learning used to involve users in knowledgeable interactivity. Social network
value had a larger effect on behavioral intention and actual usage than sites such as Facebook can also be used to improve learning. Bandura
did perceived enjoyment. Therefore, to encourage acceptance of e- (1977) posits that people learn from others via observation, imitation,
government learning, the SME Online University should focus more and modeling. By using online social networks, students can meet new
on enhancing e-government learning value than on perceived acquaintances and maintain close relationships with old friends,
enjoyment. Furthermore, the total effect of perceived usefulness on thereby expanding their interaction with peers and ability to learn
behavioral intention (0.754) was much higher than that of the effect about new environments. Yu, Tian, Vogel, and Kwok (2010) showed
of perceived enjoyment on behavioral intention (0.366) and the effect that online social network engagement on Facebook by university
of perceived ease of use on behavioral intention (0.182), suggesting students was positively related to their learning outcomes, including
that promoting perceived usefulness and any of its antecedents is an cognitive, affective, and skill-based domains. Furthermore, current
effective way to enhance acceptance and use of e-government course materials consist of lectures and PowerPoint presentations. In
learning websites. the future, the university should adopt game-like materials to improve
learning enjoyment.
6. Discussion One important finding in this study is concerned with the
determinants of attitude, behavioral intention, and actual site usage.
Analytical results indicate that perceived e-government learning Perceived enjoyment and perceived usefulness positively influenced
value influenced perceived usefulness and perceived enjoyment attitude, and perceived usefulness had a relatively greater impact.
affected perceived ease of use. Perceived ease of use also affected Furthermore, perceived usefulness influences behavioral intention
perceived usefulness, which in turn influenced both attitude and directly. These findings make sense since users intend to learn
behavioral intention. Finally, behavioral intention affected actual something useful, not just enjoy themselves by visiting the university
usage. The proposed model provides insights into how acceptance and site. This finding differs from that obtained by Yu et al. (2005), who
use of the e-government learning websites can be further facilitated. found that enjoyment played a key role in electronically mediated
The construct of perceived e-government learning value consisted commerce when using an interactive television. The difference in
of the three learning dimensions — obtaining and integrating contexts between the two studies shows that different variables play
knowledge, accumulating, organizing and refining knowledge, and key roles in influencing behavioral intention. Most studies found that
applying knowledge. This construct is strongly related to perceived perceived usefulness strongly impacted behavioral intention, while
usefulness, indicating that users use the e-government learning the influence of perceived ease of use on behavioral intention was
websites to improve themselves. The university has to provide rich mostly via perceived usefulness (King & He, 2006). This finding was
and relevant information in a straightforward and efficient manner. reasonable since most TAM studies investigated acceptance in the
Additionally, the university can present topical issues through context of job-related environments, not entertainment environ-
business events and seminars on a continual basis. The university ments. To promote e-government learning, the government should
can also provide an e-learning service similar to one-stop e- attempt to enhance e-government learning value, which can increase
government (Dias & Rafael, 2007; Glassey, 2004). The website can perceived usefulness and behavioral intention.
show the date on which course information was updated so that The relationship between behavior intention and actual usage was
learners can determine course timeliness. For knowledge extension significant. However, the strength of this relationship, though compa-
and refinement, the website can provide real case studies of best rable to that in previous studies (Yi & Hwang, 2003), was lower than
practices and experience sharing among students. For meaningful that of most relationships between other model constructs. This
knowledge applications, the university can solicit and reward indicates that many factors, such as availability of time, connection
responses from learners about actual use of knowledge obtained speed, or other external factors, may moderate the relationship
from its websites. The most up-to-date information can also enhance between behavioral intention and actual usage or influence actual use
the perception of e-government learning value. For example, all directly (Burton-Jones & Hubona, 2006). Future studies are needed to
companies listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange will be required to explore the effects of those and other possible variables.
report their financial statements based on the IFRS (International This study has some limitations that point to directions for future
Financial Reporting Standards) by 2013. Companies listed on the study. First, perceived e-government learning value and perceived
exchange are exerting considerable effort to meet this requirement. If enjoyment in this study are antecedent factors affecting perceived
the university were to develop courses related to the IFRSs, e- usefulness and perceived ease of use. The influence of other variables
government learning value would be enhanced greatly. such as computer self-efficacy, perception of external control, or other
In this study, perceived enjoyment was a significant determinant of psychological variables such as learning goal orientation vs. perfor-
perceived ease of use and attitude. Based on simple correlation, mance goal orientation (Yi & Hwang, 2003), on perceived usefulness
perceived ease of use was highly related to attitude (r = 0.77, p b 0.01) and perceived ease of use in the context of e-government learning can
(Table 5). In the structural model in which perceived enjoyment be tested by further research. Furthermore, factors suggested by other
existed, perceived ease of use no longer had a significant direct effect on theories such as subjective norm and trust may or may not directly
attitude, indicating that perceived enjoyment was a stronger predictor influence behavioral intention. Additionally, researchers may identify
of attitude than perceived ease of use, and that the proportion of other antecedent variables that influence attitude and behavioral
attitude variance accounted for by perceived ease of use beyond that intention.
accounted for by perceived enjoyment was not significant. This result Second, perceived enjoyment may change over time. Venkatesh
indicates that the university should focus on enhancing perceived (2000) argued that as experience increases, system use may become
enjoyment more than improving perceived ease of use. The university more routinized, less challenging, and less discovery-oriented, leading
can present courses more actively and lively. This is consistent with the to low perceived enjoyment. However, perceived enjoyment with e-
conclusion by Richard (2005), who determined that entertainment government learning seems to rely less on the system itself,
influences site involvement and attitude toward a site. At this moment, depending instead on content and activities put forth by the
the university website provides discussion rooms. The university can university. For continual acceptance and use of the e-government
 S.H.-P. Shyu, J.-H. Huang / Government Information Quarterly 28 (2011) 491–502 501

learning site, maintaining and increasing perceived enjoyment is thank the National Science Council of Taiwan for financially support-
extremely important. How perceived enjoyment changes with ing this study under Contracts No. NSC 97-2410-H-009-026. Jing-Ya
increased experience in using the e-government learning site on the Tzeng is appreciated for her data collection.
one hand and promotional activities from an e-government learning
website on the other hand deserve exploration.
Third, limitations related to measurement must be mentioned. All References
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