Exploring the Behavioral Intention to Use e-Government Services: Validating the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology

Abstract

This study explores the online users’ behavioral intention to utilize the governments’ websites and their electronic services. The research methodology validates the measuring items from the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) to better understand the participants’ attitudes toward their performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social norms, facilitating condition and behavioral intention to use the electronic government (e-gov) services. The findings from the structural equations modeling approach reported a satisfactory fit for this study’s research model. The results suggest that there were highly significant, direct effects from the UTAUT constructs, where the utilitarian motives predicted the online users’ behavioral intentions to use e-gov. Moreover, there were significant moderating influences from the demographic variables, including age, gender and experiences that effected the individuals’ usage of the governments’ online services. In conclusion, this contribution identifies its limitations and suggests possible research avenues to academia.

Keywords: unified theory of acceptance and use of technology, UTAUT, Technology Acceptance Model, Theory of Planned Behavior, e-government, egovernment, structural equation modelling

JEL Classification: L8, L80, L88, L30, L32, L86, O3, O30, O31, O32, O33, O38