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Abstract
Purpose: Educators are central to the successful integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in health sciences education, yet evidence from North African contexts remains scarce. This study examined the factors associated with nursing educators' behavioral intention to adopt AI in their teaching practices in Laayoune, Morocco.
Methods: A cross-sectional analytical study was conducted among 108 nursing educators (response rate: 90.8%) between June and July 2025. A French-language, self-administered questionnaire based on the Technology Acceptance Model and the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology measured behavioral intention and ten individual, technological, and organizational dimensions (45 items; Cronbach's α = 0.835–0.983). Behavioral intention, the canonical acceptance outcome in both models, was analyzed as a continuous variable using independent-samples t-tests with effect sizes, Pearson correlations, and multiple linear regression with backward elimination, bootstrap confidence intervals, and a logistic sensitivity analysis.
Results: Behavioral intention was high (per-item mean 4.29 ± 0.53 out of 5), and 94.4% of educators already used AI tools in teaching, despite high anxiety (4.50 ± 0.70), high perceived risk (3.98 ± 0.73), and very low perceived facilitating conditions (2.11 ± 1.27). In the final regression model, awareness (β = 0.556, p < 0.001) and self-efficacy (β = 0.248, p = 0.010) were the only independent predictors, together explaining 57.4% of the variance in intention (F(2, 105) = 70.62, p < 0.001). The bivariate associations of age, teaching experience, AI knowledge, and AI proficiency with intention were fully accounted for by these two factors.
Conclusion: AI adoption among these nursing educators appears largely individual and self-directed, driven by awareness and confidence rather than institutional support, which was perceived as weak. Strengthening AI literacy and self-efficacy, alongside institutional investment in infrastructure, training, and guidelines, may support responsible AI integration. Findings from this single-institution study should be interpreted with appropriate caution.
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This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Article Type: Research Article
PEDAGOGICAL RES, Volume 11, Issue 4, October 2026, Article No: em0294
https://doi.org/10.29333/pr/19626
Publication date: 16 Oct 2026
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