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Abstract
Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly used in higher education, but evidence on the factors associated with adoption by undergraduate management students in Nepal remains limited. This study examines associations between awareness of AI tools, digital literacy, internet accessibility, social influence, and self-reported AI adoption among 300 undergraduate management students recruited by convenience sampling in Rupandehi District. Cross-sectional questionnaire data were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM), importance-performance map analysis (IPMA), and necessary condition analysis (NCA). In the reported structural model, awareness of AI tools (coefficient = 0.816, p < 0.001) and digital literacy (coefficient = 0.109, p = 0.047) were positively associated with AI adoption, while internet accessibility (coefficient = -0.098, p = 0.001) and social influence (coefficient = -0.102, p = 0.038) were negatively associated. The model R-squared was 0.749. Given the cross-sectional convenience sample, these findings are associations and should not be generalized beyond the sample without caution.
Keywords: Artificial intelligence adoption, digital literacy, internet accessibility, awareness of AI tools, social influence.
