Exploring the Role of ICT in Promoting and Preserving Kadazan-Dusun Culture

ICT has transformed daily life, but many cultures risk being forgotten as technology advances and values shift. While ICT use in cultural heritage is growing, communities need to take the lead in using it for preservation. For ICT to support cultural preservation, it must be accessible and provide platforms for documentation and sharing. Although the government has invested heavily in ICT in Malaysia, indigenous communities in Sabah, like the Kadazan-Dusun, have not benefited equally, raising concerns about their ability to preserve their culture using ICT. This paper investigates (1) the determinants of ICT adoption in cultural preservation and (2) how it impacts Kadazan-Dusun culture. A mixed-method approach with a sequential explanatory design was employed, beginning with quantitative data collection from 400 respondents, followed by qualitative data from in-depth interviews with 12 key informants. Descriptive and regression analyses were used to examine the ICT adoption determinants, while thematic analysis explored its impacts. Findings indicate that social influence (SI) has the strongest significant influence on cultural preservation within the Kadazan-Dusun community, highlighting the community’s reliance on social networks to drive technological engagement for preserving cultural heritage. The interviews reveal that ICT adoption positively supports cultural preservation efforts by facilitating easier documentation, sharing, and promotion of cultural practices through various digital platforms despite the challenges posed by modernization and limited resources. The study underscores the importance of integrating cultural factors into technology adoption models, such as UTAUT. It highlights the role of social influence and facilitating, such as enhancing ICT accessibility and affordability and providing skills training, to enable successful ICT adoption for cultural preservation among the Kadazan-Dusun community.