Formation of Intention to Use Digital Information Media: A Case Study of Medical Students' Learning

Purpose: The purpose of this research was to clarify how users select digital information media. As a research framework, TAM 2 was used. In the TAM 2 framework, perceived usefulness and ease of use are regarded as the central concepts affecting the formation of intention to use the media. This research relies on this basic structure. To examine the intention of using digital media in more detail, we focused on the learning of medical students because the influence of the individual circumstances of digital media should be taken into consideration. By applying the model by Davies et al., the individual learning situation is specified. Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 18 medical students from grades 1 to 6. Results: The learning stages were classified into five types: basic contextual learning, further social contextual learning, preparing sources of repetition, repetition, and reflection. There were nine types of behavior and 16 types of media. By analyzing each behavior, 12 kinds of media characteristics and seven kinds of factors affecting intention to use were identified. For example, when sharing information, there was a pattern that the ease of data sharing was recognized and that digital media was always selected unless there was an influence by individual's custom. However, it is impossible to specify patterns of combinations of factors in common for all learning stages and behaviors. It was revealed that the formation of each individual's intention to use is complicated. Perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use were difficult to distinguish clearly.