Exploring the factors influencing the adoption of artificial intelligence technology by university teachers: the mediating role of confidence and AI readiness.

Objectives: This study aims to explore the mediating role of confidence and artificial intelligence (AI) readiness in university teachers' behavioral intention to adopt AI technology, providing empirical support for enhancing teachers' willingness to use AI technology from both theoretical and practical perspectives.

Methods: This study used a random sampling method to conduct an online survey of 504 university teachers, assessing the impact of subjective norms on behavioral intention. The survey included scales for subjective norms, confidence, AI readiness, and behavioral intention. Data analysis was performed using AMOS 26, SPSS Statistics 27 software and Model 6 from the PROCESS 4.0 plugin, aiming to investigate the mediating role of confidence and AI readiness between subjective norms and behavioral intention.

Results: Subjective norms were found to have a significant positive correlation with behavioral intention. Subjective norms indirectly influenced behavioral intention through confidence or AI readiness. Confidence and AI readiness played a chain-mediating role in the relationship between subjective norms and behavioral intention (β = 0.0324, 95% CI: [0.0129, 0.0551]), accounting for 12.87% of the total effect.

Conclusions and implications: This study reveals the positive role of subjective norms in university teachers' behavioral intention to adopt AI technology, indicating that subjective norms not only directly enhance behavioral intention but also exert indirect effects through both single and chain mediation of confidence and AI readiness. The findings highlight the critical role of confidence and AI readiness in the relationship between subjective norms and behavioral intention, suggesting that to effectively increase university teachers' willingness to use AI technology, it is important to focus on improving their confidence in and readiness for AI technology, thereby strengthening the positive impact of subjective norms.