Perception of African Youth on Personal Computer Utilization: The Case of Ethiopia and Rwanda

The tendency to pursue innovativeness and adopt new technologies has been found more likely with younger individuals and a strong relationship between attitude and personal computer (PC) utilization has been found. However, research in these areas is mainly focused on high-income countries. Do these findings hold for low-income countries? What are the perceptions of African youth on the factors that impact PC use? There is a dearth of micro-level studies that promote understanding about the behavior of individuals in low-income countries. This study looked at demographic data including age, gender, grade level, region, and prior experience among 228 youth from Ethiopia and Rwanda. PC utilization constructs including complexity, long-term consequences, and facilitating conditions were studied. The author found access to PCs at least three times a week and providing structured computer training programs as major factor for increased PC utilization. Computer centers with more female instructors were found to have larger female enrollment. The author also found younger groups (15 year olds and younger) disagreed about PC utilization factors. Implications and directions for future research are also included.