Exploring Factors Influencing Teachers' Digital Competence Based on the Social Cognitive Theory

Based on social cognitive theory, this study aimed to examine the personal, behavioral, and environmental determinants of digital competence among Chinese primary and secondary school teachers. Participants in the study included 3,587 primary and secondary school teachers. The results of the study were as follows: (1) The overall digital competence of primary and secondary school teachers was at the intermediate integrator (B1) stage. (2) Teachers' personal determinants indicated that teachers with higher levels of self-efficacy and job satisfaction had higher levels of digital competence; burnout and teachers' digital competence levels were significantly negatively correlated. (3) Teachers' behavioral determinants showed that the more frequent the informational teaching behaviors, the higher the level of digital competence. (4) Environmental determinants revealed that the richer the informational environment and management evaluation mechanism of the school where they work, the higher the level of digital competence of the teachers. Based on the results of this study, this paper presents recommendations to improve teachers' digital competence in order to promote digital teaching and the national digitization process.