INFLUENCE OF COMPUTER SELF-EFFICACY, PERSONALITY TRAITS, ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION, EXPERIENCE AND GENDER ON TECHNOPHOBIA AMONG UNDERGRADUATE IN IBADAN

Abstract

Technophobia encompasses a fear of all technologies. It can be described as a sense of unease brought on by an encounter with technology. Technophobia can cause cognitive anxiety or physical discomfort in its victims. It is one of the prominent factors that hinders the effective application of technology among students. Technophobic individuals often have trouble adopting and actively using new technologies, instead preferring to use analogue or traditional solutions. The study adopted a correlational research design. 400 participants were randomly selected from four universities (two federal and two private) within Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. The study’s objective was to investigate the influence of computer self-efficacy, personality traits, achievement motivation, computer experience, and gender on technophobia among undergraduates. Five reliable instruments were used in the collection of data. Data were analysed using Pearson Product Moment Correlation and multiple regression analysis. It was found that there was a joint influence of computer self-efficacy, personality traits, achievement motivation and computer experience in predicting technophobia, while gender was not. It was therefore recommended that students who have technophobia should be encouraged to develop self-confidence in the use of technology for their schoolwork. The more experience students have on the computer, the lower their technophobia. As such, students should be encouraged to use technology more often to gain more experience and explore different technologies. Students who suffer from technophobia should seek help from counselling psychologists to alleviate their fear of technology.