ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Educ.
Sec. Higher Education
This article is part of the Research TopicPredicting Student Retention and Success in Higher EducationView all 3 articles
Factors influencing continuity in online education: a replication study in the Ecuadorian university context
Provisionally accepted
- State University of Milagro, Milagro, Ecuador
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The rapid development of digital technologies has established e-learning as an essential component of modern higher education. In Ecuador, the expansion of online education has created new challenges in terms of student retention and the sustainability of virtual programs. The objective of this study was to identify the factors that influence Ecuadorian university students' intention to continue in virtual environments and to replicate and validate a model previously applied in China. For the empirical analysis, a structured survey was administered to 477 students enrolled in virtual programs at the State University of Milagro during May and June 2025. Data processing was performed using structural equation modeling (SEM), based on the information systems success model and service quality theory. The measurement instrument showed adequate reliability and convergent validity (Cronbach's α = 0.872; CR > 0.87; √AVE > 0.75). The results indicate that interactions particularly teacher-student and peer relationships have a significant effect on perceived value and, consequently, on intention to continue, while service quality and course quality play a lesser role in the Ecuadorian context. Overall, the results replicate several patterns described in the Chinese study, although contextual differences suggest that the online education experience in Ecuador is more strongly determined by sociocultural and relational factors. Practical implications include strengthening pedagogical interaction strategies and promoting student-centered methodologies. Future studies should incorporate longitudinal and mixed-method approaches to deepen the understanding of perceived value and continuity of online learning in Latin America.
Keywords: online education1, intention to continue2, Ecuador3, Perceived value4, service quality5
Received: 28 Oct 2025; Accepted: 28 Nov 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Cedillo Pucha, Guevara-Viejó, Pacheco-Olea and Valenzuela Cobos. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: María Natalia Cedillo Pucha
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