Relationship between motivations, personality traits and intention to continue using MOOCs

Abstract

MOOCs represent an emerging model for delivering education services. Notwithstanding their potential, they suffer significant dropout rates, which have been attributed to the low motivation of the registered students. This research seeks to understand the variance in the levels of intention to continue using MOOCs (ICM) in relation to motivation (internal and external) and personality traits (agreeableness, extraversion, and conscientiousness). In this study, Structural Equation Modelling was applied to conduct an analysis of 212 professionals from Saudi Arabia who had used MOOCs in the previous three months. Internal motivations, but not the external ones, affect the ICM. Conscientiousness directly affects ICM and external motivation. Agreeableness affects the ICM with full mediation of internal motivations. Extraversion and agreeableness affect internal motivations. The main implication of this research is that, to use MOOCs in the future, different personalities need different motivations in their first use of them.