Date of Conferral

2021

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Education

Advisor

Darci J. Harland

Abstract

Faculty hesitancy to implement educational technologies for instruction is problematic in dental hygiene education. Little or no scholarly research has been conducted on faculty use of educational technologies for instructional practices in the dental hygiene field. Grounded in the technology acceptance model, the purpose of this inquiry was to explore the perceptions of dental hygiene faculty regarding their attitudes toward use, usefulness, and ease of use of educational technologies for instruction. The research questions focused on dental hygiene faculty attitudes toward use of educational technologies for instruction, the usefulness of educational technologies for instruction, and the ease of use of educational technologies for instruction. For this basic qualitative study, data were collected through an online synchronous interview of 5 dental hygiene faculty at 1 university in the Midwest. The data were analyzed and coded using open coding; codes were clustered into categories and then broadened to themes. Key findings for the study were that faculty (a) had positive attitudes toward the use of technology, (b) perceived technology as useful for instruction to improve student learning and their own effectiveness, and (c) perceived technology easy to use after practice or training. The results from this study may provide support for dental hygiene program directors, faculty, and other key stakeholders on how to better prepare for using educational technologies for instructional purposes. This study may contribute to positive social change by helping to understand why dental hygiene faculty are hesitant to implement educational technologies despite the rise in the ubiquitousness of technology in everyday life.

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