6.1. Contributions to research
This longitudinal study has proposed two models to investigate factors
that influenced undergraduate students' satisfaction with and use
of the University Libraries Web portal, applying a semester-long,
credit-bearing, IL-integrated general education course as an intervention.
The findings have theoretical implications regarding the dynamic
relationships among user satisfaction, voluntariness of use, competing
resources, and portal use. Further examining voluntary and mandatory
use, as well as the presence of competing resources goes beyond the
limitations of the TAM models, which tend to apply dichotomous settings
(voluntary vs. mandatory) in organizational contexts and consider
users' acceptance of a technology in isolation. Instead of being a moderator
theorized in TAMs, voluntariness of use can actually have a direct
impact on system use. The effect of voluntariness of use on system
usage can vary depending on if an intervention is in place exerting its
full function. As a library portal is an essential learning and research
tool for students' academic pursuits, only when we observe voluntary
continued use after intervention, can we declare it a successful educational
information system.