An empirical study on teachers’ attitudes and digital competencies in Jiangxi, China: gender as a moderating factor

Abstract

Faced with technological advancements in the digital era, this study explores the relationships between teachers’ attitudes toward the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in teaching, their digital competencies, and the moderating role of gender. Integrating the Tripartite Model of Attitudes (ABC Model), the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework, and the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT), this research quantitatively assesses attitudes and digital competencies using validated instruments among a sample of 386 TVET teachers from a higher vocational school in Jiangxi Province, China. Findings revealed that teachers generally exhibit moderate levels of digital competencies and hold positive attitudes toward ICT use. Teachers’ attitudes were significantly associated with their digital competencies, indicating that positive attitudes toward ICT facilitate higher digital competencies. More importantly, when attitudes were examined through their affective, cognitive, and behavioral dimensions, behavioral attitude emerged as the strongest predictor of teachers’ digital competencies. In addition, contrary to some existing studies, gender did not moderate this relationship significantly. This study contributes valuable insights for designing targeted professional development programs. In particular, the finding that behavioral attitude is the strongest predictor suggests that training initiatives should prioritize hands-on practice and behavioral engagement, rather than focusing solely on knowledge acquisition or gender-based assumptions.

Introduction

Teachers’ digital competencies

In recent decades, technological advancements have brought significant shifts to teaching and learning, bringing a wide range of transformative changes. The increasing use of digital platforms and tools has created more interactive and student-centered learning environments¹. In addition, ICT enables teachers to implement differentiated teaching more effectively, accommodating varied learning preferences and paces¹. Collectively, these technological developments have redefined education, making it more flexible, responsive, and personalized to meet the needs of today’s learners.

The transformative nature of the digital era requires teachers undergoing corresponding shifts in their teaching practice. As facilitators of student learning and role models, teachers need to be well-equipped to the digitally connected society², while also preparing students for future professional and civic roles³. Specifically, effectively using the potential of digital learning environments requires teachers to effectively integrate ICT into their teaching approaches, including learning management systems, multimedia resources, and tools for virtual collaboration⁴. A widely emphasized objective in this transformation is the move from teacher-centered instruction to student-centered learning, which is seen as essential for effective integration of digital technologies⁵.

Despite the growing importance of teachers’ digital competencies, there were significant disparities across national contexts. From the global perspective, many teachers lack sufficient online teaching capabilities and do not possess the necessary digital competencies for effectively instructing, supporting, and assessing students⁶. These findings are consistent with previous research in different countries. Teachers in Greece appear to exhibit relatively low levels of digital competencies, highlighting the need to strengthen their digital competencies⁷. Besides, there are various levels of teachers’ digital competencies based on the DigCompEdu framework in different countries. Chinese TVET teachers ranges from moderate to low level⁸. They are more competent in digital care and support and less competent in digital mindset as well as digital knowledge and skills⁸Besides, Santos et al.⁹, found that university teachers in Portugal demonstrated low digital competencies. However, the study conducted by Cattaneo et al.¹⁰, revealed a high level of digital competencies among vocational teachers in Switzerland with the strongest abilities in digital resources and teaching and learning, based on the same framework.

The significance of teachers’ attitudes

Attitude refers to a person’s overall positive or negative disposition toward a specific behavior¹¹, which is shaped by interconnected affective, cognitive, and behavioral components¹². In the context of teaching with ICT, it encompasses how teachers assess the use of digital tools in education, ranging from unfavorable to favorable views¹³. Within teachers’ digital competencies, attitudes are considered as internal or second-order obstacles to ICT use¹⁴. According to the theory of planned behavior¹¹, attitudes toward a specific behavior are one of the three key predictors of an individual’s intention to behavior.

Teachers’ attitudes toward the use of ICT in teaching play a significant role in shaping their intention and competencies to integrate these tools into teaching practice. Specifically, evidence from empirical studies suggests that teachers with positive attitudes toward ICT are more likely to use it in classroom¹⁵, more likely to effectively incorporate ICT into their teaching practices¹⁶, more likely to foster teachers’ digital competencies¹⁷. Positive attitudes toward the use of ICT have been linked to increase students’ attendance and participation in class, which in turn supports higher academic performance¹⁸.

Identifying factors that shape teachers’ attitudes toward ICT adoption is crucial for enhancing their engagement with ICT in educational settings. Both teachers’ self-efficacy and the ease of ICT usage significantly influence their attitudes toward using ICT in educational settings¹⁹. In addition, teachers’ attitudes are often shaped by the usefulness of them in teaching¹⁹. Regarding the virtual learning environment (VLE), research has demonstrated a strong relationship between the perceived benefits of using it and the perceived ease of its use, both of which significantly shape teachers’ attitudes toward use of ICT²⁰. Thus, exploring these influencing factors provides valuable insights into effective strategies for fostering teachers’ positive attitudes toward the use of ICT in teaching practice.

Despite the recognized benefits of ICT, many teachers remain cautious or even resistant toward integrating ICT into their instructional practices. Bas et al.²¹, highlights that in-service teachers with less supportive attitudes toward ICT are often less motivated to invest effort in applying ICT during teaching. The challenges of engaging students virtually concern over student well-being, and unequal access to ICT tools²². Besides, many teachers became less convinced of the value of online teaching as a substitute for face-to-face teaching, and their emotions reflected this growing skepticism²³. Recently, the study conducted by DeCoito and Estaiteyeh²⁴ revealed that teachers faced numerous challenges that adversely influenced their attitudes and perspectives on online teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic. Hence, acknowledging and addressing these emotional and practical barriers is essential for developing positive attitudes among teachers in embracing ICT-driven pedagogical change.

Research into teachers’ attitudes toward the use of ICT reveals varying levels of acceptance and readiness. Pre-service teachers generally possess a positive attitude towards using ICT in their teaching²⁵. The respondents in De La Rama et al.²⁶, demonstrated a generally positive attitude toward their digital competencies. This suggests a high level of readiness among them when it comes to engaging with ICT, reflecting a sense of confidence in their digital competencies. Therefore, these varied attitudes underline the importance of targeted interventions and professional development programs designed to enhance teachers’ digital competencies across different contexts.

The moderating role of teachers’ gender

The relationship between gender and teachers’ attitudes toward the use of ICT in education has produced mixed findings, showing the complexity of this demographic factor. These findings from previous studies found no significant gender differences in attitudes toward distance teaching or ICT integration²⁷. However, gender may significantly influence teachers’ perceptions of online educational activities within digital classrooms²⁸. Male teachers held more favorable attitudes toward the use of ICT in their teaching who perceived its use as particularly motivating and they showed more inspirational views toward mobile learning than their female peers²⁹. Collectively, male participants often show higher levels of digital competencies³⁰. However, contrasting findings have emerged, female teachers showed significantly higher levels of engagement and appreciation for distance education³¹ and they were more likely to invest ICT as essential³². However, they reported significantly higher levels of stress, depression, and anxiety than their male counterparts³³.

Besides, there are gender differences in teachers’ digital competencies and their practical application of ICT in educational settings based on previous studies. While female teachers outperformed their male counterparts in this aspect³⁴, more findings suggest that male teachers possessed stronger competencies in using ICT tools and resources compared to their female counterparts^35,36. Specifically, Male teachers applied a broader range of ICT more frequently than women³⁷, adopted digital tools more rapidly, used subject-specific digital resources more frequently than their female counterparts³⁸. Besides, male teachers showed a greater level of engagement in online teaching compared to female teachers³⁹ and had greater access to technological resources such as digital devices, applications, and internet connectivity²⁶. Hence, clarifying these gender-related disparities in teachers’ attitudes and their digital competencies is crucial in this study for developing inclusive professional development initiatives and promoting equitable digital education practices.

The previous studies present mixed findings regarding the relationship between teachers’ attitudes and their digital competencies, as well as inconsistent results on how gender moderates this relationship. Thus, the objectives of this study are to: assess the level of teachers’ attitudes towards the use of ICT in teaching; assess the level of digital competencies among teachers; investigate the extent to which teachers’ attitudes influence their digital competencies; examine whether gender significantly moderates the relationship between teachers’ attitudes and their digital competencies. By achieving these objectives, the study aims to provide targeted insights to inform professional development initiatives and policies, thereby enhancing the effectiveness of ICT integration.

Beyond addressing the stated research objectives, this study contributes to the literature in two important ways. First, it moves beyond the common treatment of attitude as a unidimensional construct by distinguishing among affective, cognitive, and behavioral attitudes toward the use of ICT in teaching. It offers a more comprehensive understanding of how different attitudinal dimensions relate to teachers’ digital competencies. Second, it contributes to the mixed literature on gender and ICT-related teaching outcomes by showing whether gender moderates the relationship between attitudes and digital competencies among teachers. In doing so, the study helps clarify previous inconsistencies and provides a more refined understanding of the factors associated with the development of teachers’ digital competencies.

1. Research Questions.

1. What is the level of teachers’ attitudes towards the use of ICT in teaching?

2. What is the level of teachers’ digital competencies?

3. To what extent does teachers’ attitudes influence their digital competencies?

4. Does teachers’ gender significantly moderate the relationship between their attitudes toward ICT use and their digital competencies?

5. Research Hypothesis.

H1: There is a significant relationship between teachers’ attitudes and their digital competencies.

H2: There is a significant moderating effect of teachers’ gender on the relationship between their attitudes and their digital competencies.

The theoretical and conceptual framework

In this study, teachers’ attitudes, digital competencies, and their relationship are examined through an integrated theoretical framework that combines the Tripartite Model of Attitudes, the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) model, and the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT). First, the ABC model is used to conceptualize teachers’ attitudes toward ICT in teaching through affective, cognitive, and behavioral dimensions, thereby providing the psychological foundation of the research model. Building on this foundation, UTAUT explains how these attitudinal dimensions may shape teachers’ perceptions of ICT use, such as its usefulness, ease of use, social expectations, and facilitating conditions, and how these perceptions may translate into actual ICT-related practice. TPACK further extends this process by framing digital competence as the competencies base that develops through and is enacted in effective ICT integration in teaching. In this sense, the three frameworks interact in a sequential and complementary manner: ABC explains the internal structure of attitudes, UTAUT clarifies the mechanism through which attitudes influence ICT-related practice, and TPACK captures the competence outcomes associated with such practice. Accordingly, they jointly support a coherent research model linking teachers’ attitudes, ICT-related engagement, and the development of digital competencies, as illustrated in Fig. 1.

Fig. 1.

Conceptual framework of the study.

Teachers’ attitudes toward the use of ICT in teaching can be effectively analyzed through the Tripartite Model of Attitudes, also known as the ABC model. It is a foundational theory in social psychology that conceptualizes attitudes as comprising three interrelated components: affect, behavior, and cognition¹². The affective dimension refers to TVET teachers’ emotional responses to ICT use, such as confidence, concern, and satisfaction when integrating ICT into TVET teaching. Targeted professional development can help alleviate TVET teachers’ concerns about ICT integration⁴⁰. The behavioral component refers to their actual use or avoidance of ICT in the classroom, such as adopting educational platforms, using interactive media, or participating in digital training. TVET teachers’ behavioral intention have been found to significantly affect their instructional use of ICT in China⁴¹. The cognitive component involves teachers’ perceptions about the value of digital competencies in teaching. In the Chinese context, perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use have been shown to positively shape TVET teachers’ attitudes toward ICT adoption⁴². Taken together, the ABC model provides a contextually grounded framework for understanding TVET teachers’ emotional responses, cognitive evaluations, and behavioral tendencies toward ICT use in TVET teaching.

To avoid conceptual ambiguity, this study uses the term teachers’ digital competencies consistently throughout the manuscript. Although related terms such as digital literacy and digital capability appear in prior studies, digital competencies are considered the most appropriate term in this research because it aligns with the TPACK framework and refers to teachers’ integrated competencies to apply technological, pedagogical, and content knowledge in instructional practice. Accordingly, this study adopts the TPACK model to examine teachers’ digital competencies. The model developed by Mishra and Koehler⁴³, emphasizing the complex interplay between content knowledge (CK), pedagogical knowledge (PK), and technological knowledge (TK). In the context of education, effective integration of ICT requires more than mere technical skills; it necessitates the understanding of how technology can support specific pedagogical approaches and subject matter delivery. Thus, teachers’ digital competencies in this study are defined as the integration of TK, PK, CK, Technological Pedagogical Knowledge (TPK), Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK), Technological Content Knowledge (TCK), and Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPCK).

UTAUT complements the above two frameworks by explaining the mechanism through which teachers’ attitudes may be associated with their digital competencies. The UTAUT proposed by Venkatesh et al.⁴⁴,, is a widely recognized theoretical model used to understand the factors influencing individuals’ acceptance and usage of ICT. The UTAUT model was composed of four core constructs: performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, and facilitating conditions. Additionally, the model includes four moderating variables: gender, age, experience, and voluntariness of use, which can shape the strength of these relationships. Although attitude is not a core construct in UTAUT, the model offers a useful perspective for understanding how teachers’ positive perceptions of usefulness and ease of use may facilitate their willingness to engage with ICT in teaching practice. In turn, such engagement may contribute to the development of higher levels of digital competencies as conceptualized by TPACK. From this perspective, teachers with more positive attitudes toward ICT are more likely to perceive it as beneficial and manageable, thereby increasing their opportunities to apply, experiment with, and refine ICT-integrated teaching practices. Furthermore, gender is one of the key moderating variables in the UTAUT model. This study hypothesizes that gender may significantly influence the strength or direction of the relationship between attitudes and digital competencies. For instance, male and female teachers may differ in how their attitudes translate into their digital competencies.

Based on this integrated framework, this study posits that teachers’ attitudes, as conceptualized by the ABC model, are positively associated with their digital competencies, as represented by TPACK. UTAUT further provides the theoretical rationale for examining gender as a moderating variable, since gender has been identified as one of the key moderators influencing ICT-related perceptions and behaviors. Within the present study, the UTAUT construct of facilitating conditions is particularly relevant for understanding how teachers’ attitudes are translated into actual ICT-related practice. In educational contexts, facilitating conditions may include access to equipment, digital infrastructure, implementation support, and enabling school environments. This contextualization is especially relevant in Jiangxi Province. Although Jiangxi holds a policy-relevant position in China’s TVET reform agenda (Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China⁴⁵,, facilitating conditions for ICT integration remain uneven across institutions. For example, only seven Jiangxi TVET schools were included in the national digital-campus pilot list, indicating relatively limited structural support for digital transformation (Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China⁴⁶,. In addition, many TVET schools continue to face constraints in digital infrastructure, teaching resources, and access to technology-focused teacher professional development, with participation in digital training sometimes limited to one or two teachers per school in Jiangxi⁴⁷.

These contextual conditions are especially important in TVET, where ICT use often extends beyond general classroom presentation to practice-oriented instruction and competencies training. In this sense, facilitating conditions are closely linked to the behavioral dimension of the ABC model. Teachers may hold positive affective and cognitive attitudes toward ICT, but these attitudes are more likely to be transformed into actual teaching behavior only when sufficient institutional support is available⁴¹. Conversely, limited resources or weak implementation support in TVET schools may constrain teachers’ behavioral engagement with ICT, thereby reducing opportunities for them to develop higher levels of digital competencies.

Methodology

This study employed a quantitative research design to investigate the relationships among teachers’ attitudes and their digital competencies in Jiangxi province, China. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire designed to measure key constructs derived from the Tripartite Model of Attitudes and the TPACK framework. The questionnaire consisted of closed-ended items rated on a Likert scale and was developed based on validated instruments from existing literature. In this study, teachers’ attitudes toward ICT were measured by the instrument developed by Ravy⁴⁸, with a Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) value of 0.88 and a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.84. Besides, TPACK.xs instrument was used to assess teachers’ digital competencies by Schmid (2020), with Cronbach’s alpha values ranging from 0.77 to 0.91 and McDonald’s Omega values ranging from 0.79 to 0.92.

To assess the internal consistency and convergent validity of the measurement model, composite reliability (CR) and average variance extracted (AVE) were calculated based on the results of the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). As presented in the table, the CR values for all first-order constructs range from 0.830 to 0.934, all exceeding the recommended threshold of 0.70. This indicates satisfactory internal consistency, suggesting that the items within each construct reliably measure their respective underlying latent variables. Furthermore, convergent validity was evaluated through the AVE. The AVE values for all constructs range from 0.550 to 0.772. Notably, all AVE values are above or very close to the widely accepted cutoff of 0.50, confirming that the constructs explain more than half of the variance of their respective indicators. Collectively, the CR and AVE results demonstrate that the measurement model exhibits robust internal consistency and convergent validity, providing empirical support for the reliability of the constructs and the appropriateness of the model.

The final survey was distributed to a sample of 386 TVET teachers from a higher vocational school in Jiangxi Province, China. Among the respondents, 52.6% were male and 47.4% were female. The largest age group was 31–40 years, accounting for 34.2% of respondents, followed by the 21–30 age group. Participants were drawn from various vocational and technical disciplines within the school.

The questionnaire distribution process involved several key steps to ensure effective participation and data quality. First, ethical approval for this study was obtained from the relevant institutional review board on September 20, 2025 (Approval No. available upon request) prior to the commencement of participant recruitment and data collection. Detailed ethical approval information is provided in the Related Files. All procedures were performed in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. Informed consent was obtained from all participants prior to their participation in the study.

Then, this study employed a simple random sampling procedure. A complete sampling frame consisting of teachers was obtained and participants were randomly selected using Excel’s random number generation function. The selected teachers were then invited to complete the online questionnaire through Questionnaire Star. As participation was voluntary, the final sample consisted of those selected teachers who agreed to participate and submitted valid responses. To increase response rates, teachers were informed of the study’s purpose and confidentiality measures. All responses were anonymous, and incomplete questionnaires were filtered out during the data cleaning process before statistical analysis.

Finally, the collected data were analyzed according to the research questions and the characteristics of the variables. Descriptive statistics, including means and standard deviations, were used to determine the levels of teachers’ attitudes toward ICT and their digital competencies, thereby addressing Research Questions 1 and 2. Pearson correlation analysis was conducted as an initial step to examine the direction and strength of the relationship between teachers’ attitudes and digital competencies. To address Research Question 3 more rigorously, structural equation modeling (SEM) was employed because teachers’ attitudes and digital competencies were conceptualized as latent constructs measured by multiple observed items. SEM was particularly appropriate for this study because it allows the simultaneous examination of measurement and structural models while accounting for measurement error⁴⁹. To answer Research Question 4, hierarchical multiple regression analysis was used to test whether gender significantly moderates the relationship between teachers’ attitudes and digital competencies. This method was selected because moderation can be examined by including the interaction term between the predictor and the moderator and evaluating its additional contribution to the explained variance⁵⁰.

Data analysis

Teachers’ attitudes toward the use of ICT in teaching

Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the attitudes of teachers toward the use of ICT in teaching. The overall mean score of teachers’ attitudes toward ICT was 3.713 (SD = 0.375), indicating a moderately positive attitude across all dimensions. Regarding the construct of attitudes, the affection dimension, which reflects teachers’ emotional responses to ICT, showed the highest mean score of 3.717 (SD = 0.511). Notably, the statement “I use ICT in teaching if the relevant equipment is available at school” received the highest behavioral mean (M = 3.740, SD = 0.596), highlighting the role of institutional support in actual ICT use.

Teachers’ digital competencies

As shown in the results, the overall mean score of teachers’ digital competencies is 2.247 (SD = 0.199), indicating a moderate to low level. Among the seven TPACK dimensions, the highest mean score was found in TPACK with a mean of 2.269 (SD = 0.403), suggesting that teachers feel relatively more confident in combining content, pedagogy, and technology in their teaching practices. This is followed by TCK (M = 2.253, SD = 0.413) and PK (M = 2.253, SD = 0.415), both reflecting moderate confidence in teaching methods and subject-related technology understanding. Conversely, TPK had the lowest mean score of 2.214 (SD = 0.428), indicating that teachers may struggle more with selecting and adapting technologies to fit different pedagogical strategies.

To determine the relationship between teachers’ attitudes and their digital competencies

A Pearson correlation analysis was conducted to examine the relationship between teachers’ attitudes (TA) and their digital competencies (TDC). There is a moderate and statistically significant positive correlation between the two variables (r = 0.310, p < 0.001), which is presented in Tables 1, 2. This suggests that teachers who hold more positive attitudes toward ICT tend to possess higher levels of digital competencies. The significance level (2-tailed p < 0.001) confirms that the relationship is statistically reliable at the 0.01 level.

Table 1.

Results of CFA.

Second-order	First-order	CR	AVE
TA	AFF	0.934	0.740
	COG	0.923	0.749
	BEH	0.910	0.772
TDC	PK	0.850	0.587
	CK	0.849	0.584
	TK	0.850	0.586
	PCK	0.852	0.591
	TPK	0.858	0.602
	TCK	0.840	0.568
	TPCK	0.830	0.550

Table 3.

Model fit summary for structural equation model.

Model Fit Indicators
Common Indicators	χ2	df	p	Chi-square(χ²)/df	GFI	RMSEA	RMR	CFI	NFI	NNFI
Standard Criteria	-	-	> 0.05	< 3	> 0.9	< 0.10	< 0.05	> 0.9	> 0.9	> 0.9
Value	836.744	729	0.003	1.148	0.905	0.020	0.014	0.980	0.863	-
Other Indicators	TLI	AGFI	IFI	PGFI	PNFI	PCFI	SRMR	RMSEA 90% CI
Standard Criteria	> 0.9	> 0.9	> 0.9	> 0.5	> 0.5	> 0.5	< 0.1	-
Value	0.978	0.893	0.980	0.805	0.806	0.916	-	-

Note: Default Model when χ²(729) = 836.744, p = 0.003.

Table 2.

Pearson correlation coefficient among the variables.

Variable	M	SD	TDC
TA	3.713	0.375	0.310**
TDC	2.247	0.199	-

** Correlation Coefficient is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).

To further examine the effect of teachers’ attitudes (TA) on their digital competencies (TDC), a structural equation modeling (SEM) approach was employed. The overall model demonstrated a good fit to the data based on multiple fit indices (shown in Table 2). The chi-square statistic was χ² = 836.744, df = 729, with a ratio χ²/df = 1.148, which is below the recommended threshold of 3. The RMSEA was 0.020, indicating excellent fit (< 0.05), and the CFI and TLI were both 0.980 and 0.978 respectively, exceeding the 0.95 threshold for good model fit. The GFI was 0.905 and the Adjusted GFI (AGFI) was 0.893, both reflecting acceptable levels of model adequacy.

Prior to the SEM analysis, multicollinearity was assessed using variance inflation factor (VIF) and tolerance values. All VIF values were below the threshold of 3, and all tolerance values were above 0.20, indicating that multicollinearity was not a serious concern. Residual analysis was conducted by examining standardized residual covariances. Most standardized residual covariances were within the recommended range of ± 2.58, indicating no substantial localized areas of model misfit. Modification indices (MI) were examined to identify potential areas of model misfit. No post hoc modifications were made because the suggested changes were not theoretically justified.

The explanatory power of the structural model was assessed using Squared Multiple Correlations (SMC), which can be interpreted as R² values for endogenous variables. In the present model, the SMC value for TDC was 0.421, indicating that the predictors explained 42.1% of the variance in TDC, suggesting a moderate level of explanatory power.

The regression path from TA to TDC was statistically significant, was illustrated in Fig. 2. The standardized regression weight from teachers’ attitudes toward the use of ICT was β = 0.65, with an unstandardized estimate of 0.256, SE = 0.085, CR = 3.000, and p = 0.003, indicating that teachers’ attitudes have a significant positive influence on their digital competencies. Therefore, Hypothesis 1: There is a significant relationship between teachers’ attitudes and their digital competencies, was accepted.

Fig. 2.

Structural equation model for the effect of teachers’ attitudes on digital competencies.

To examine the multidimensional nature of teachers’ attitudes toward ICT and their differential relationships with digital competencies, a SEM was specified in which the three dimensions of the ABC model—affective (AFF), behavioral (BEH), and cognitive (COG)—were entered as separate latent predictors of teachers’ digital competencies (TDC). The measurement model demonstrated good fit across multiple indices: χ²/df = 1.256 (below the recommended 3.0), RMSEA = 0.026 (90% CI [0.020, 0.031]), CFI = 0.965, TLI = 0.962, and SRMR = 0.024. All indices met or exceeded the conventional thresholds.

The standardized path coefficients reveal notable differences in the predictive power of the three attitude dimensions (presented in Table 3; Fig. 3). Behavioral attitude emerged as the strongest predictor of digital competencies (β = 0.332, p = 0.008), indicating that teachers’ intentions to use ICT in their teaching practice are positively associated with their digital competencies. Cognitive attitude also showed a significant, smaller, positive effect (β = 0.216, p = 0.025). In contrast, affective attitude did not show a statistically significant relationship with TDC (β = 0.190, p = 0.059), indicating that teachers’ emotional responses toward ICT do not uniquely predict their digital competencies.

Table 4.

Path coefficients of the relationship between attitude dimensions and digital competencies.

Path	Unstandardized estimate	S.E.	Z(C.R.)	P-value	Standardized estimate (β)
BEH→TDC	0.071	0.027	2.655	0.008	0.332
COG→TDC	0.044	0.020	2.245	0.025	0.216
AFF→TDC	0.039	0.021	1.891	0.059	0.190

Fig. 3.

Structural equation model for the differential effects of affective, cognitive, and behavioral attitudes on digital competencies.

To determine the moderating influence of teachers’ gender on the relationship between their attitudes and their digital competencies

To test whether gender moderates the relationship between teachers’ attitudes (TA) and their digital competencies (TDC), a hierarchical multiple regression analysis was conducted in three steps (Table 4). In Model 1, TA was entered as the sole predictor and showed a significant positive effect on TDC (B = 0.165, p < 0.001), explaining approximately 9.6% of the variance (R² = 0.096, F (1, 384) = 40.949, p < 0.001). This finding confirms that teachers with more positive attitudes toward ICT tend to report higher levels of digital competencies. In Model 2, gender was added as a predictor. The inclusion of gender led to a marginal increase in R² to 0.098, but the change was not statistically significant (ΔR² = 0.002, p = 0.434). The standardized coefficient for gender was not significant (B = 0.015, p = 0.434), indicating that gender alone does not significantly predict teachers’ digital competencies. In Model 3, the interaction term (TA × Gender) was entered to test for moderation. The interaction effect was not significant (B = − 0.022, p = 0.669), and the change in explained variance was negligible (ΔR² = 0.000, F (1, 382) = 0.183, p = 0.669). This suggests that gender does not moderate the relationship between attitudes and digital competencies among teachers. Hence, Hypothesis 2: There is a significant moderating effect of teachers’ gender on the relationship between their attitudes and their digital competencies, was rejected.

Table 5.

Regression analysis of the moderating effect of teachers’ gender on the relationship between teachers’ attitudes and teachers’ digital competencies.

	Model 1				Model 2				Model 3
	B (Unstandardized Coefficient)	SE (Standard Error)	T-value	P-value	B (Unstandardized Coefficient)	SE (Standard Error)	T-value	P-value	B (Unstandardized Coefficient)	SE (Standard Error)	T-value	P-value
const	2.247	0.010	233.065	0.000**	2.240	0.013	167.899	0.000**	2.240	0.013	167.276	0.000**
TA	0.165	0.026	6.399	0.000**	0.167	0.026	6.443	0.000**	0.177	0.035	5.022	0.000**
Gender					0.015	0.019	0.783	0.434	0.015	0.019	0.776	0.438
TA*Gender									−0.022	0.052	−0.428	0.669
R²	0.096				0.098				0.098
Adjusted R²	0.094				0.093				0.091
F	F (1,384) = 40.949, p = 0.000				F (2,383) = 20.761p = 0.000				F (3,382) = 13.872, p = 0.000
△R²	0.096				0.002				0.000
△F	F (1,384) = 40.949, p = 0.000				F (1,383) = 0.614, p = 0.434				F (1,382) = 0.183, p = 0.669

Dependent Variable: TDC.

Note: p-values marked with ***, **, and * indicate significance at the 1%, 5%, and 10% levels, respectively.

Discussion

Level of teachers’ digital competencies

This study finds that teachers’ digital competencies in Jiangxi, China possess a moderate level based on the TPACK framework. This finding suggests that although teachers have developed a certain degree of readiness to use ICT in teaching, their competence has not yet reached a level that would enable consistently sophisticated and transformative ICT integration in teaching practice.

Recent studies indicate that teachers in Greece tend to demonstrate relatively low levels of digital competencies⁷. The similar findings could be found among university teachers in Portugal⁹. In contrast, vocational teachers in Switzerland exhibit significantly higher levels of digital competencies, as highlighted in a study by Cattaneo et al.¹⁰,. Rather than interpreting these differences as simple cross-national inconsistencies, they may reflect variations in policy support, digital infrastructure, teacher professional development opportunities, and the extent to which ICT have been embedded in teaching cultures across national contexts. From this perspective, the moderate level identified in the present study should be understood within the specific context of Chinese vocational education, where teachers may face both increasing expectations for digital teaching and uneven access to consistent professional support⁵¹. This interpretation is also in line with the global findings that many teachers still lack the necessary digital competencies to effectively teach and support students⁶.

Among the seven dimensions of teachers’ digital competencies, TPCK recorded the highest average score, whereas TPK received the lowest. This finding contradicts with other studies, since these two constructs are often consistent within the relationship. The development of TPACK is often seen as a progression that builds upon TK and TPK, with TPCK emerging subsequently⁵². In this sense, the present finding appears somewhat unexpected and therefore needs further interpretation.

One possible explanation is that teachers may have developed a relatively strong sense of combining technology, pedagogy, and content at a general level, while still lacking confidence in the more practice-oriented pedagogical use of ICT represented by TPK. This pattern may also point to a deeper issue in TVET teacher development. In vocational education settings, teachers are often required to connect subject content with practical training tasks, and they may therefore perceive themselves as capable of aligning ICT with content-specific instruction⁴¹. However, this does not necessarily mean that they are equally proficient in selecting and applying technology to support broader pedagogical strategies, classroom interaction, or student-centered instructional design⁵¹. This may help explain why TPCK was rated relatively high while TPK remained comparatively low.

The discrepancy between the present findings and earlier studies also highlights the contextual nature of TPACK-related competencies. For example, teachers had the highest level in PCK and PK, followed by CK and TPCK, with ICT use often restricted to digital tools⁵³. However, Batiibwe et al.⁵⁴, reported teachers’ high self-ratings in the CK, PK, and PCK domains, while lower levels were reported regarding TK and TPCK. This can be explained that teachers’ competencies to integrate ICT with pedagogical approaches requires to enhance their ability for complex learning tasks⁵⁵.

From this perspective, the relatively low TPK score may reflect a gap between general awareness of integration and the pedagogical capacity required for effective classroom implementation. This finding suggests that TVET teacher professional development should place greater emphasis not only on promoting ICT use in general, but also on helping teachers develop the practical pedagogical method needed to align specific ICT with specific teaching strategies.

Level of teachers’ attitudes and its relationship with their digital competencies

Based on this study, teachers’ attitudes toward the use of ICT were positive. The similar finding can be observed in other studies. This suggests that, at least at the attitudinal level, teachers are willing to accept and engage with ICT in educational settings. Such a finding is important because a positive attitude toward ICT can provide a motivational foundation for ICT integration, even when teachers’ actual digital competencies may still require further development⁵⁶. In other words, favorable attitudes may not automatically guarantee effective practice, but they create an essential psychological condition for sustained digital engagement and professional growth.

This finding is consistent with previous studies conducted in different educational contexts. The respondents in De La Rama et al.²⁶, demonstrated a positive attitude toward their digital competencies. Besides, pre-service teachers and Spanish university teachers also showed the favorable position²⁵. Specifically, around half of the teachers indicated that they regularly or frequently allowed students to use ICT in the classroom, reflecting their positive attitude toward integrating ICT into teaching practices³². Hence, these consistent findings across diverse educational contexts highlight a favorable attitude among teachers to embrace ICT for more digitally integrated teaching environments. One possible explanation is that positive attitudes increase teachers’ willingness to use ICT and persist when they encounter difficulties in ICT integration⁵⁷. In this sense, attitudes may function as an enabling condition that supports the development of teachers’ digital competencies.

Evidence from empirical studies can find the consistent result, suggesting that teachers with positive attitudes toward ICT are more likely to foster teachers’ digital competencies¹⁷. Supporting this view, Scherer and Teo¹⁵, found in their meta-analysis that teachers’ attitudes significantly predict their intentions to use ICT. Specifically, attitudes toward ICT influence not only how often teachers use digital tools but also the type of tools¹⁶. Teachers’ attitudes toward ICT are closely linked to their self-efficacy, the extent to which they use ICT, and the value they place on its integration in education¹⁸. Rather than viewing these relationships as purely individual psychological tendencies, they may be better understood as part of a broader developmental process in which beliefs, emotions, experience, and practice mutually reinforce one another.

One of the most noteworthy findings of this study is the contrast between the descriptive and predictive results across the three dimensions of teachers’ attitudes toward ICT. Although the affective dimension recorded the highest mean score, indicating that teachers generally held positive emotional responses toward ICT, it was the behavioral dimension that emerged as the strongest predictor of digital competencies. This suggests that positive emotions toward ICT alone are insufficient to explain stronger digital competencies.

Previous research has shown that teachers’ emotions explain more than 70% of the variance in teaching effectiveness in ICT-integrated settings⁵⁸, highlighting the important role of affective factors. Nevertheless, the present study shows a different pattern. This finding aligns closely with the theoretical perspective of the Theory of Planned Behavior¹¹, which posits that behavioral intention is the most immediate predictor of actual behavior. From the UTAUT model, the behavioral component of attitude is embedded in the institutional environment, and its influence on digital competencies may partly reflect the extent to which facilitating conditions support teachers’ ICT use. The results are also consistent with prior empirical research. For instance, Moradi⁵⁷, concluded that behavioral attitude reflects teachers’ practical readiness to adopt ICT in teaching, making it more directly related to digital competencies.

This finding suggests that what matters most is not merely whether teachers feel positively about ICT or recognize its value, but whether they are prepared to act on those attitudes in actual teaching practice. In this sense, behavioral attitude reflects a more practice-oriented disposition toward ICT use, which may be more closely connected to the development of digital competencies than affective response alone. This also helps explain why affective attitude, although generally positive, did not show a unique significant effect after the behavioral and cognitive components were considered.

Hence, from a practical perspective, this finding implies that teacher professional development should move beyond awareness-raising or attitude-enhancement at a general level. More specifically, interventions should create opportunities for repeated hands-on use of ICT, structured ICT-based teaching tasks, and concrete behavioral commitments to ICT integration. Such strategies may be more effective in strengthening teachers’ digital competencies than approaches that focus primarily on reducing anxiety or improving general perceptions of ICT.

Teachers’ gender as a moderator on the relationship between their attitudes and their digital competencies

Based on this study, there is no significant moderating effect of teachers’ gender on the relationship between their attitudes and their digital competencies. This suggests that although teachers may differ individually in their perceptions or experiences of ICT, gender does not appear to substantially alter how attitudes toward ICT are translated into digital competencies in this context.

This finding aligns with previous studies. Results from a bootstrap-based multiple group analysis revealed that gender did not significantly moderate the path relationships within the proposed conceptual model⁵⁹. Specifically, these findings from previous studies found no significant gender differences in attitudes toward distance teaching or ICT integration^27,28 and toward computer-assisted language learning among Spanish and Iranian language teachers⁶⁰. However, contrary evidence exists in the literature, with some studies identifying significant associations between gender and TPACK (Azgın & Şenler, 2018). By contrast, there is no statistically significant difference in teachers’ TPACK based on gender⁶¹.

One possible explanation for the non-significant moderating effect observed in the present study is that differences in teachers’ actual opportunities to access and use ICT may have narrowed over time. Sánchez Prieto et al.⁶², noted that although male teachers tend to rate themselves more highly in ICT-related competencies compared with female counterparts, there was no difference in their actual ICT use and competencies. This suggests that perceived gender differences may sometimes reflect differences in self-evaluation rather than differences in actual competencies. Furthermore, research has shown that gender differences in ICT-related competencies tend to level out among younger populations, since access to ICT is equal to them⁶³. In addition, the absence of gender’ moderating role likely reflects China’s longstanding emphasis on educational gender equality⁶⁴. In the Chinese context, ICT integration hinges on teachers’ technological proficiency, pedagogical skills, and training access, rather than on gender identity⁶⁵. Hence, with ICT-related professional development equally available to all teachers, digital competencies appear to be determined by competencies-related factors rather than demographic attributes.

More importantly, the present finding should not be interpreted merely as the absence of a statistical effect. Rather, it offers contribution to a literature that has reported inconsistent conclusions regarding gender and ICT-related teaching outcomes. While some previous studies have suggested that male and female teachers differ in their ICT-related perceptions or competencies, the current result indicates that such differences do not necessarily change the way attitudes are translated into digital competencies. Hence, the finding also has practical implications. It suggests that teacher professional development initiatives aimed at enhancing teachers’ digital competencies may not need to be differentiated primarily based on gender. Instead, greater emphasis should be placed on providing equitable access to training, sustained opportunities for ICT use, and support for teachers’ active engagement with digital teaching practices.

Limitation

Despite the contributions of this study, several limitations should be acknowledged. First, the study adopted a cross-sectional design, which limits the ability to draw firm causal inferences regarding the relationships. Future research may adopt a longitudinal design grounded in the UTAUT2 framework to address this gap. Unlike the current study, which examined static relationships, a longitudinal approach could track how behavioral intentions at one time point predict actual digital competencies at subsequent time points, revealing causal pathways and developmental trajectories. As demonstrated by Liu et al.⁶⁶, in their longitudinal study of Chinese students, such an approach can reveal how technology acceptance evolves into digital competencies. Applying this framework to teachers would provide valuable insights for designing professional development programs that address teachers’ changing needs across their careers. Second, the sample in this study was drawn from a vocational school in Jiangxi Province, which may limit the generalizability of the findings. Teachers’ digital competencies and attitudes toward ICT may be influenced by institutional conditions, regional educational policies, access to technological resources. Therefore, caution is needed when extending the present findings to other vocational colleges in Jiangxi Province, other regions of China, or different educational contexts. Future studies are encouraged to include more diverse samples from multiple institutions and geographical areas to enhance the external validity of the findings. Third, this study did not consider several potentially contextual and professional variables, such as teaching experience and academic discipline, that may influence teachers’ digital competencies. Future research could incorporate these factors as possible moderators or control variables to provide a more comprehensive understanding of the relationships examined in this study^67–72.

Conclusion

This study examined teachers’ digital competencies, their attitudes toward the use of ICT in teaching, and the moderating role of gender among teachers in Jiangxi Province, China. The findings indicate that teachers demonstrate a moderate level of digital competencies, with relative strength in TPCK and comparatively weaker performance in TPK. Teachers also reported generally positive attitudes toward ICT, and a significant positive relationship was found between attitudes and digital competencies.

More importantly, this study shows that the relationship between teachers’ attitudes toward ICT and digital competencies is not uniform across attitude dimensions. Although the affective dimension recorded the highest mean score, behavioral attitude emerged as the strongest predictor of digital competencies, while cognitive attitude also showed a smaller but significant effect. This suggests that teachers’ digital development depends less on favorable feelings toward ICT alone and more on their readiness and willingness to engage with ICT in actual teaching practice. In addition, gender did not significantly moderate the relationship between attitudes and digital competencies, indicating that this relationship operates similarly across male and female teachers in the present context.

This study contributes to the literature in two main respects. First, it provides a more differentiated understanding of the attitude-competence relationship by showing that not all components of attitude contribute equally to teachers’ digital competencies, with behavioral attitude playing the most prominent role. Second, it offers clarifying evidence regarding the role of gender by showing that gender does not significantly alter the relationship between attitudes and digital competencies in this context. Taken together, these findings suggest that teachers’ digital competencies are shaped more by practice-oriented attitudinal engagement than by gender differences. Therefore, efforts to strengthen teachers’ digital competencies should focus on creating opportunities for active ICT use, hands-on professional development, and sustained behavioral engagement with ICT-integrated teaching practice.

Author contributions

Q.G. led the study conception, data analysis, and manuscript preparation. M.K.O. and A.S.M.H. contributed to study design, interpretation of results, and manuscript revision. All authors approved the final version of the manuscript and agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work.

Data availability

The datasets generated and analyzed during the current study are not publicly available but are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.