University instructors’ concerns and perceptions of technology integration Azadeh Ashrafzadeh a,⇑ , Sima Sayadian b a Department of English Language, College of Foreign Languages, Yazd Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Yazd, Iran b English Department, Maybod Branch, Islamic Azad University, Yazd, Iran article info Article history: Keywords: Technology integration Instructors’ concerns Instructors’ perceptions Instructional technology Barrier abstract This study attempted to investigate the concerns and perceptions of Iranian EFL university instructors of technology integration in their classes. A sequential mixed method design was used in this study includ- ing Hall, George, & Rutherford’s (1977) Stages of Concern Questionnaire (SoCQ) and Rogers’ (1995) Diffusion of Innovation (DOI) questionnaire followed by a semi-structured interview. There were 91 uni- versity instructors asked to participate in the survey, out of whom nine were interviewed and finally, a focus group of five participants was conducted. The findings of the study revealed that the university instructors showed more Self concerns (Informational and Personal stages). ‘‘Relative advantage and compatibility’’ attributes of Diffusion of Innovation model were proved to be significantly different among instructors of different fields of study while the participants’ gender revealed a significant differ- ence in their ‘‘trialability’’ attribute. Moreover, based on the quantitative data of the study, lack of admin- istrative facilities, instructors’ technology literacy toward technology integration and accessibility of technology for all the students were reported to be the source of the instructors’ concerns. Ó 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction Along with the rapid development of technology in all fields, computer-based tasks and other types of instructional technolo- gies have entered the educational programs in recent years. Beside the regular use of technology in people’s everyday life, applying technology in educational systems can make teaching and learning more practical (Dwyer, Ringstaff, & Sandholtz, 1991; Sheingold & Hadley, 1990; Warschauer, 2000). Technology can make the teaching and learning environment more interactive and the instructions more effective. By applying technology in the classroom and involving it in the curriculum, teachers can improve their teaching and also collaboration and cooperation among students (Warschauer, 2000). To integrate technology in the classroom, teachers need to feel competent enough to use tech- nology in their instructions. The way they integrate technology in their instruction, the amount of their technology use and success can be related to some factors like the way they think about tech- nology, their degree of technology acceptance and their beliefs and concerns about integrating it. Although most Iranian teachers use technology in their daily lives, some do not seem to integrate technology in their work and classes. From the vast area of applications that technology could have in teaching, some Iranian EFL instructors usually use technology merely for preparing teaching materials and activities in the classroom. This can be due to some factors including their concerns and perceptions of technology integration in the classes, their weakness in technology integration, lack of appropriate administration support, lack of sufficient facilities and training, lack of cultural awareness of technology integration, and finally their social tendencies. The cultural setting of Iran is similar to its some neighboring countries in the area and the role of culture regarding technology integration is rather ignored in some Asians countries. English is taught as a foreign language in most of these Asian countries. Hence, given the diversity of social and cultural differences, Asian teachers have with their native counterparts, dif- ferent educational policies are likely to be taken into account in these settings. Cultural background of language teachers can play a determining role in application and integration of educational technology; however, not ample attention is given to cultural atti- tudes and differences particularly in Asian content. So, the present study tends to shed more lights to the role of culture in integrating technology in language classes in Asian countries and provide some solutions to the possible barriers. Consequently, the present study attempted to identify the stages of concern and perceptions http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2015.01.071 0747-5632/Ó 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. ⇑ Corresponding author at: 118033, 16 Azar St., Baharan St., Kaj St., Kaj Sq., Safaieyeh, Yazd 8916885177, Iran. Tel.: +98 35 38222026. E-mail addresses: Azadeh.ashrafzadeh1@gmail.com (A. Ashrafzadeh), simasaya- dian@gmail.com (S. Sayadian). Computers in Human Behavior 49 (2015) 62–73 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Computers in Human Behavior journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/comphumbeh