Generative AI and Media Content Creation: Investigating the Factors Shaping User Acceptance in the Arab Gulf States

This article aims to investigate the factors that affect behavioural intention (BI) and user behaviour (UB) among Arabian users of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) applications in the context of media content creation. The study’s theoretical framework is grounded in the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT2). A sample of 496 users was analysed using the partial least squares structural equation modelling technique (PLS-SEM). The results revealed that BI is significantly influenced by performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, hedonic motivation, habit, and user trust, with hedonic motivation having the greatest impact. In terms of UB, facilitation conditions, habit, user trust, and BI were all found to have a positive and significant impact. This study contributes to the existing theory on the utilisation of GenAI applications by organising findings pertaining to the use of AI technology for media content creation.