A Learning-Centred Conceptual Framework of Technology Acceptance in Vocational Education: A Systematic Review

Digital transformation has reshaped technical and vocational education and training (TVET), accelerating the adoption of learning management systems, mobile learning, immersive technologies, and AI-enabled instructional tools. Although technology acceptance has been widely studied, existing research remains theoretically fragmented and insufficiently synthesised within vocational contexts characterised by practice-oriented, skill-based, and industry-aligned learning.This study presents a systematic review of approximately 100 empirical and review studies published between 1989 and 2025, guided by PRISMA 2020 guidelines. Integrating perspectives from the Technology Acceptance Model, UTAUT/UTAUT2, Social Cognitive Theory, the Stimulus–Organism–Response framework, and learning sciences, the review identifies four overarching categories of factors influencing technology acceptance in TVET: technical, psychological, environmental and institutional, and cognitive–affective mechanisms.The findings demonstrate that technology acceptance in vocational education is a multi-level, learning-centred process shaped by learners’ cognitive processing, emotional experience, motivation, and engagement. Building on this synthesis, the study proposes an integrated conceptual framework that embeds technology acceptance within the pedagogical and institutional context of TVET, highlighting procedural learning, authenticity, industry alignment, and cultural context.