Understanding Information and Communication Technology Behavioral Intention to Use: Applying the UTAUT Model to Social Networking Site Adoption by Young People in a Least Developed Country

According to many studies, social network sites (SNS) have become some of the most popular online destinations. It has been pointed out that very little is known about the psychosocial variables that predict people's use of these websites. In this article, our general objective is to understand behavioral intentions to use SNS employing the well-known unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT), which has been validated in a number of studies. Data were collected through a questionnaire survey from a final sample of 1,039 social networking website users in Africa. We have shown that there are contexts, such as the African context, in which the UTAUT does not hold up. Explanations are provided to support the findings.