Ranking of factors affecting faculty members’ participation in e-learning before Covid-19 crisis based on the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP): A case study of Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences in 2019

E-learning is a process in which information and communication technologies are used to design, manage, present, guide, exchange, support and develop learning. The purpose of this study is to identify factors affecting the willingness of faculty members to use e-learning. The criteria and sub-criteria based on which faculty members use e-learning were extracted from previous studies. Matrix tables of these criteria and sub-criteria were prepared and completed by faculty members working in the university on an hourly basis and the weight of the criteria and sub-criteria was determined using Expert Choice 11. Comparison of factor weights in independent subgroups was performed using Mann-Whitney test. The mean age of participants was 44.37± 7.64 years, and the majority of them (60.4 %) were men. The weights of personal, pedagogical and administrative / legal criteria were 0.395, 0.281, and 0.138, respectively. The following sub-criteria were the most important factors affecting the willingness of faculty members to use e-learning: Computer self-efficacy, skill in producing electronic content, poor information of professors in using information technology, lack of culture and publicizing for virtual teaching, and lack of policies, plans, and executive rules in this respect. E-learning is a special and exceptional opportunity that can be successful by removing the existing barriers and considering incentives and supportive factors for its use and application by faculty members and universities.