The acceptance of AI tools and their impact on students’ academic productivity and research in Iraqi universities

This study investigates the determinants of university students’ acceptance and actual use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools in Iraqi higher education and examines their implications for academic productivity and research activities within an extended Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) framework. Specifically, the study analyses the effects of Perceived Usefulness (PU), Perceived Ease of Use (PEOU), Trust (TR), and Perceived Actual Cost (AC) on students’ Attitude toward AI tools (ATT) and their Actual Use (AU). A quantitative cross-sectional research design was employed, and data were collected through a structured questionnaire administered to 257 undergraduate and postgraduate students from public and private universities in Iraq. The data were analysed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) in SmartPLS 4 to assess the reliability and validity of the measurement model, as well as the direct, mediating, and predictive relationships among the study constructs, including the application of Importance–Performance Map Analysis (IPMA). The findings reveal that Perceived Usefulness and Trust are the strongest predictors of students’ Attitude toward AI tools, with Attitude emerging as the primary determinant of Actual Use, while Perceived Ease of Use exerts a positive but comparatively weaker effect and Perceived Actual Cost demonstrates a negative influence on both Attitude and Actual Use. The study contributes theoretically by validating the applicability of an extended TAM framework in a developing-country context and practically by providing evidence-based insights for policymakers and higher education institutions to support the ethical, accessible, and sustainable integration of AI tools in Iraqi universities.