An analysis of the effect of information technology (IT) adoption and staff knowledge capabilities on the innovative behaviour of universities in Northern Nigeria

Nowadays information technology (IT) adoption is considered to be the main driver of improved performance in all types of knowledge-based organizations. This article is an attempt to provide insight into whether IT adoption (ITA) increases innovation tendency by universities and what kind of influence the level of staff capabilities exerts in this relationship. By using data from a survey of 228 individuals drawn from universities in Northern Nigeria, three models were developed and tested by means of parametric analyses of multiple correlation and regression to explain the relationships between ITA, staff knowledge capabilities (SKC) and universities’ innovative behaviour (UIB). Results of the analysis show a positive link between the variables, signifying that universities exhibiting high level of innovative output are those that have intensely adopted IT and employ and train staff to increase their knowledge capabilities.