Cultural Acceptance and Social Pathways as Predictors of Technology-Mediated Translanguaging Adoption in African Higher Education

The conditions for adopting technology for translanguaging in African higher education remain poorly understood, particularly with respect to cultural and social factors. This study therefore examines how cultural acceptance determines technology use for translanguaging among lecturers and students at two Nigerian universities. It pays keen attention to the social pathways through which cultural acceptance translates into technology adoption for translanguaging. Premised on translanguaging theory, the sociocultural theory of learning, and the Technology Acceptance Model, the study employed a quantitative cross-sectional survey design with a purposively selected sample of 98 participants, using a structured four-point Likert scale questionnaire. Data were analysed using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) in Jamovi v2.6 with 5,000 bootstrap resamples. The structural model explained 78.3% of variance in technology adoption for translanguaging. The acceptance of indigenous languages was the strongest cultural predictor of technology adoption. In contrast, attitude toward multilingual practices was not a significant predictor of technology adoption. Collaboration and peer-to-peer communication also emerged as notable social pathways supporting technology adoption. Technology adoption significantly predicted both multilingual proficiency and engagement in translanguaging practices. The study advances a culturally contextualised extension of the Technology Acceptance Model and provides practicable implications for language policy, institutional design, and educational technology development in postcolonial multilingual university settings in sub-Saharan Africa.