Adoption and Resistance: A Qualitative Study of Lecturers' Digital Literacy in The Use of Interactive Learning Platforms

Abstract

Digital transformation in higher education requires lecturers to adopt interactive learning platforms to support participatory teaching and learning. However, technology adoption remains uneven, particularly within the Sociology Education Study Program at Universitas Negeri Makassar (UNM). This study explores lecturers' digital literacy patterns in utilizing interactive learning platforms and identifies the factors driving adoption and resistance toward such technology. The study employed a qualitative approach with a case study design, using in-depth interviews and observations involving lecturers from the Sociology Education Study Program at UNM as informants. Data were analyzed through data reduction, thematic categorization, and interpretation grounded in digital literacy frameworks and technology adoption theories. The findings reveal that only around 36,4% of lecturers demonstrated adequate understanding and actively implemented commonly used interactive learning platforms, while around 63,6% continued to rely on conventional teaching methods. Lecturers who had adopted technology tended to remain confined to a single popular platform, with limited exploration of alternatives better suited to their teaching needs. The resistance found was influenced by limited training, comfort with conventional methods, academic workload, and concern over technical failure in front of students. The study concludes that the digital literacy gap among lecturers is multidimensional, encompassing technical, psychological, and structural aspects. This study recommends sustained, contextualized technology mentoring programs for lecturers in higher education.