The factors influencing the decision to accept QoS of cloud service in Palestinian education sector: A survey

Cloud computing service has been found to be effective in increasing the capacity of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) since it delivers services through enhanced information technology capabilities. Quality of Service (QoS) in cloud service is considered a rapidly growing phenomenon to guarantee a high level of service and is identified as an essential aspect of service provision. Despite the importance of QoS, identifying the QoS acceptance factors by decision-makers for cloud-based services in HEIs in Palestine has been a critical challenge. There are limited studies conducted on QoS acceptance factors from Technological, Organizational, Environmental and Human aspects, hence, this study addressed this gap and investigated potential factors influencing QoS acceptance by decision makers in the context of HEIs in Palestine. This study proposed a research model by combining Technological Organizational Environmental (TOE) framework and Human Organizational Technology (HOT) fit framework. fourteen hypotheses were developed and the significance of the relationship between the factors were investigated using a quantitative approach. A survey method using a paper-based questionnaire was employed to collect data from 267 decision makers in the target higher education institutions. The data were analysed using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) with Partial Least Squares (PLS) technique. The results of this study and the proposed model would assist the decision makers in HEIs to better understand the importance of QoS acceptance in cloud service.