EXPLORING THE DETERMINANTS OF THE EXTENT OF ICT TOOLS UTILIZATION AMONG AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH SCHOLARS

ICT tools are used in various sectors and they have gained importance in educational sector during the COVID-19 lockdown, as they were a crucial means for dissemination of educational content during that period. In order to make the utilization of ICT tools better, it is imperative to understand the determinants of utilization of ICT tools. The present study was conducted to identify the determinants of extent of utilization of ICT tools among the post graduate research scholars of State Agricultural Universities in the year 2021 along with their direct and indirect effects on each other. Sample size of 179 post graduate research scholars of two state agricultural institutes namely, Indira Gandhi Krishi Vishwavidyalaya, Raipur and Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth, Akola, pursuing final year of post-graduation were chosen for the study. Questionnaire developed using google forms were mailed to each of them through e-mail and responses were recorded. Correlation, linear multiple regression analysis and path analysis were conducted for delineation of major determinants of utilization of ICT tools. The findings revealed that cognitive, psychological and infrastructure-related variables were strongly correlated with the extent of utilization of ICT tools. Regression analysis revealed that possession, effectiveness and knowledge about ICT tools, subject matter browsed and interactive apps used were the factors significantly influencing the extent of utilization of ICT tools. The R2 value was found to be 0.662. Further path analysis approach revealed that the mass media exposure, subjects browsed on internet and effectiveness of ICT tools had a significant effect on usage of ICT tools, thus reinforcing the results provided by the prior regression and correlational analysis. Since the socio-demographic factors were overshadowed by cognitive and psychological variables, attempts should be made to improve these factors with regards to research scholars. Further, policies centred around ICT based training should be developed to improve the cognitive and psychological behaviours of the individuals.