Causes of Resistance to Change - and how to deal with these

Major causes for resistance to change are related to Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt (F-U-D):

• Fear of the unknown, of being shown to be incompetent, or of losing alliances (friends and colleagues: one's social community).
• Uncertainty (i.e. lack of clarity) about implications or about where one is going; ultimately also the related risks (considering everyone has a certain level of risk acceptance/avoidance).
• Doubt in the stated intentions of the change.

Avoiding or minimising resistance to change therefore depends on the extent to which one deals with 

• clearly/transparently communicating the intentions,
• involving all stakeholders in discussing the implications of the proposed changes
• providing the required training, so as to build the necessary competences and ultimately confidence in using the new tools

In respect of the latter, the MERLOT site provides discipline-specific tips on how to best teach using technology.