FACTORS INFLUENCING THE ADOPTION OF MOBILE TELEPHONY BY STUDENTS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF IBADAN, NIGERIA

This paper deployed Roger’s innovation adoption theory to explain the penetration of mobile technology in Nigeria’s premier higher educational institution, the University of Ibadan, using data collected from 370 students. Technological characteristics such as relative advantage, complexity, trialability and compatibility explained adoption. Age is negatively and significantly related to adoption, and enrollees for the PhD. programme appear to be less intensive adopters of mobile phones than those in the master s and bachelor s degree programmes. Except for interpersonal relationship, all psychological variables, perceived popularity, perceived need and mass media use have a significant relationship with adoption of the technology. This study is limited to respondents selected from one university using a questionnaire. Apart from providing policy information to the university which is currently implementing mobile learning systems, the results of the study may provide useful information to telecom companies on how to target student communities in designing and packaging their products and services.