Value-based adoption of open-source software in higher education: An empirical investigation

Open-Source Software (OSS) is computer software developed in a public collaborative manner with source codes available under a license that guarantees certain freedom. This includes the right to study, modify, and distribute the source code to any individual for any purpose without constraint or undue cost. It has gained much importance in the academic sector because it is best used for research, derivatives, analytics, statistics, and even the use of the Linux operating system is highly recommended. Academic institutions, particularly in emerging economies like the Philippines, are also under pressure to look for the lowest-cost solutions while having an effective course provision. However, several issues and challenges are identified, especially when it comes to its usability in terms of learnability, efficiency of use, memorability, and subjective satisfaction, among others. Thus, this study was conducted to investigate the different factors that can influence students to appreciate the open-source software’s value and adoption in the classroom setting. The results of the study showed that enjoyment, technicality, and attribute have a significant correlation with perceived value while usefulness has no significant correlation with perceived value. Also, perceived value has a significant correlation with software adoption intention, while gender and age have no significant correlation with adoption intention. Therefore, enjoyment, technicality, and attribute are predictors of one’s perceived value of OSS. The students’ OSS adoption intention is also determined through the positive valuation of it which leads to adoption or continuous usage of it, whether for personal use or classroom use. © ICCE 2019 - 27th International Conference on Computers in Education, Proceedings. All rights reserved