COMPUTER TECHNOLOGIES - ATTITUDES AND SELF-EFFICACY ACROSS UNDERGRADUATE DISCIPLINES

Computer technologies are important tools for learning, communicating, and retrieving information. For individuals to effectively employ these tools, they must feel self-efficacious in using them. For this reason it is important to examine attitudes and perceptions of competence that are encouraged by undergraduate educational programs. This paper reports on the factor validation of two affective measures related to computer technologies, ATTITUDES TOWARD COMPUTER TECHNOLOGIES (ACT) and SELF-EFFICACY FOR COMPUTER TECHNOLOGIES (SCT). ACT assesses perceived usefulness of and comfort/anxiety with computer technologies. Perceived self efficacy for computer technologies (word processing, electronic mail, spreadsheets, database programs, statistical packages, and CD-ROM databases) is measured by the SCT. In addition to data on construct validity, the results of exploratory analyses examining predictors of self-efficacy for undergraduate students in business, education, and nursing are presented, and implications and future research directions are discussed.