This work aims to investigate the cultural and psychological factors that significantly affect teachers’ intention to accept VR technology and use it long-term in their classes in elementary and secondary schools. The extended unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT2) model effectively measured such factors in this context. We conducted a questionnaire survey with 351 elementary and secondary school teachers in four provinces in China and analyzed their responses utilizing Partial Least Squares (PLS) technique. The results of this work showed that performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, facilitating conditions, and hedonic motivation significantly impacted continued usage intention. However, the habit did not promote continued usage intention. Based on the results, research on VR classroom application guidance and teachers’ professional development with VR technology applications should be strengthened. Meanwhile, increasing the publicity of integrating VR technology into classroom teaching, creating a favorable climate for VR technology adoption, and enhancing the fun of VR technology can also contribute to teachers’ continued VR technology usage intention in classroom teaching.

Teachers’ continuous usage intention for virtual reality (VR) technology is a prerequisite for achieving its expected educational value in elementary and secondary education. Through a comprehensive model considering task-technology fit (TTF) and usage satisfaction, this study involved an analysis framework for the intention of teachers to continue using VR technology for classroom teaching. A questionnaire survey was conducted on 291 teachers of elementary and secondary schools in Jiangsu Province, China, to identify factors affecting their continuous usage intention for VR technology. The results indicated that perceived usefulness and perceived ease-of-usage significantly impacted usage satisfaction. Surprisingly, usage satisfaction did not promote continuous usage intention. System quality and service quality of VR technology were key factors influencing perceived usefulness and perceived ease-of-use, respectively. Meanwhile, TTF promoted teachers’ continuous usage intention while being positively affected by quality factors. Therefore, teachers are more concerned about optimizing pedagogical effectiveness by VR technology. Thus, further applications of VR technology in teaching should focus on improving the application modes. Moreover, a teaching environment supporting the pedagogical application of VR technology and a more autonomous classroom ecology for teachers to conduct VR-supported classroom teaching reform may be important factors to promote teachers’ usage intention for VR technology.

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether and how users’ familiarity with symbols affects the performance of complex cognitive tasks which place considerable demands on working memory resources. We combined a modified math task paradigm with our previous icon familiarity training paradigm. Participants were required to complete a mathematical task involving icons to test their ability to perform complex cognitive tasks. The complexity of the task was manipulated using three independent variables: icon familiarity (high-frequency vs. low-frequency), whether or not the equation requires substitution (substitution vs. no-substitution), and the number of steps required for solution (one step vs. two steps). The results showed that participants performed better on the equation-solving task when it used icons they were more extensively trained on. Importantly, icon familiarity interacted with the complexity of the task and the familiarity effect on performance (accuracy and response time) became greater when the complexity increased. These findings provide evidence that familiarity affects not only the ease of information retrieval but also the ease of subsequent processing activities associated with these information, which extends our understanding of how familiarity affects working memory. Moreover, our findings have practical implications for improving interaction efficiency. Before the operators formally use a digital system, they need to learn the precise meaning of those complex or unfamiliar symbols in a certain context as much as possible.

Firm-hosted online communities are user-centred, and their efficacy depends on the users’ sustained participation. This study investigated the impact of social capital on users’ continued usage intention. Specifically, since very little work has been done to explore the antecedents of social capital, we tested the role of operator-related and individual-related factors in cultivating social capital by proposing an integrated research model to fill this gap. Furthermore, to gain deeper insights into continuance intention, we postulate that active degree moderates the relationship between social capital and users’ continued usage intention. Our model is empirically examined using survey data collected from 373 members of a well-known firm-hosted online community in China. The results reveal that the firm’s reaction, offline activities, interaction support, seeking reputation and perceived enjoyment are the significant antecedents of social capital. Additionally, social tie and shared vision exert a stronger effect on continued usage intention for active users, whereas identification has a higher influence on continued usage intention for inactive users. Finally, this study discusses the theoretical and practical implications of these findings and provides possible directions for future research.

Purpose: An increasing number of companies have become aware of the considerable commercial potential of firm-hosted online communities (FOC) and initiated their own platform for different purposes. However, limited research has systematically explored oppositional loyalty and customer satisfaction in the context of FOC. By applying the expectation–confirmation model (ECM), the purpose of this paper is to investigate the determinants of oppositional loyalty and satisfaction from the perspective of social capital and e-quality. Design/methodology/approach: A research model was tested by applying partial least squares technique, and data were collected from a survey of members (n=512) of two popular smartphone communities in China. Findings: Results revealed that satisfaction, trust and shared language are the significant antecedents of oppositional loyalty. Benefits confirmation, information quality, service quality, trust and social tie exert strong effects on the formation of satisfaction. Originality/value: This study is an original empirical research guided by several theories. It contributes to the information system usage literature and provides opinions regarding how users’ oppositional loyalty and satisfaction can be developed in the FOCs. This work also widens the application of ECM and provides an alternative theoretical framework for future research on oppositional brand loyalty.