This thesis is on the basis of searching EWOM actively and attempt to treat the motivation of using discussion board, and how these motivations explain the influence of discussion board. Reviewing literatures, the thesis generalize the motivations of searching WOM actively and use product involvement to be situational variable in order to explore that the motivation and the consequence of using different discussion board. The thesis adopted bulletin board systems to be the research field, and distributed questionnaires. The research found that though consumers had different motivations of using discussion boards while facing products with diverse level of involvement, in fact, they normally take ¡§information searching¡¨ and ¡§recognition seeking¡¨ as the main motivations. Further, the explanatory power of these motivation factors on the consumers¡¦ behaviors changed by the discussion boards will differ with the product involvement.

<p>Jag har undersökt vad människor i Folkmusiksverige vill läsa om på en kommande internetportal, folkmusikportalen.se. Detta har jag gjort genom en enkät, som låg på Internet och var öppen i två veckor. Jag fick in 81 svar. Frågorna jag ställde handlade om respondenternas bakgrund, hur de ställer sig till reklam, vad de vill läsa/diskutera om och vilka konferenser de eventuellt har besökt och vilka ämnen som isf togs upp där.Jag har kommit fram till att intresset för en kommande portal är stort. Jag har fått mycket förslag på vilka ämnen och funktioner som skulle kunna finnas med på portalen. Det rör sig om CD-recensioner, reportage, händelsekalender, länkar och ett forum där det finns ett oändligt antal ämnen som bara väntar på att få diskuteras!</p> / <p>I examined what people, who take part in Swedish folk music, want to read and discuss on the upcoming internet forum, folkmusikportalen.se. I used a survey to obtain my answers. The inquiry was posted online, and was available for users during a two-week period. 81 people answered my survey. The questions dealt with the background of the recipients, if they want to advertise, what they want to read/discuss, and which conferences they attended and which subjects were discussed there. I discovered that the forum was received with great interest. I have received numerous suggestions with regard to what subjects and functions would be fun to have on this internet portal. Many would like to see CD-reviews, reports, a calendar, links and a forum where there is an infinite amount of subjects waiting to be discussed.</p>

Jag har undersökt vad människor i Folkmusiksverige vill läsa om på en kommande internetportal, folkmusikportalen.se. Detta har jag gjort genom en enkät, som låg på Internet och var öppen i två veckor. Jag fick in 81 svar. Frågorna jag ställde handlade om respondenternas bakgrund, hur de ställer sig till reklam, vad de vill läsa/diskutera om och vilka konferenser de eventuellt har besökt och vilka ämnen som isf togs upp där.Jag har kommit fram till att intresset för en kommande portal är stort. Jag har fått mycket förslag på vilka ämnen och funktioner som skulle kunna finnas med på portalen. Det rör sig om CD-recensioner, reportage, händelsekalender, länkar och ett forum där det finns ett oändligt antal ämnen som bara väntar på att få diskuteras! / I examined what people, who take part in Swedish folk music, want to read and discuss on the upcoming internet forum, folkmusikportalen.se. I used a survey to obtain my answers. The inquiry was posted online, and was available for users during a two-week period. 81 people answered my survey. The questions dealt with the background of the recipients, if they want to advertise, what they want to read/discuss, and which conferences they attended and which subjects were discussed there. I discovered that the forum was received with great interest. I have received numerous suggestions with regard to what subjects and functions would be fun to have on this internet portal. Many would like to see CD-reviews, reports, a calendar, links and a forum where there is an infinite amount of subjects waiting to be discussed.

In recent years, literature in the area of web-based interventions for health-related concerns has burgeoned due to the increasing popularity and accessibility of the World Wide Web. Researchers have investigated the success of web-based programs to facilitate improved health behaviors, weight loss, and social support. However, due to the relatively recent application of web-based health-behavior programs, little research has studied whether these interventions are effective with overweight older adolescents. The purpose of this study was to test the application of health behavior theory in an on-line intervention designed to address health behaviors such as exercise and nutrition in a sample of overweight older adolescents. Using a pre-test, post-test, randomized, control group design, participants (n=71) were randomly assigned to either the comparison (Information) group, or the treatment (Information plus Discussion) group. Specific aims of the study were: 1) To test a new health behavior theory, the Model of Influence of Social Support on Health Behavior (MISSHRB), in a group of older adolescents; 2) To determine the feasibility and clinical utility of an internet intervention for social support for overweight older adolescents, and 3) To examine the impact of that intervention on the MISSHB variables. Results provided partial support for the MISSHRB, with social support correlating significantly with expectancies, attitudes, and perceived behavioral control. Results also provided support for the hypotheses that family general support, family specific support, attitudes, and engagement in health behaviors would improve over time. Results supported the feasibility of using an internet intervention with overweight older adolescents, with participants easily engaging in the study, fulfilling study requirements and reporting improved perceptions of the utility of online groups for providing social support. Additionally, results approached significance for medical outcomes, with trends representing Body Mass Index decrease over time, and suggesting that the Information plus Discussion group lost more weight than the Information group. These data suggest that internet information and discussion groups have promise as a means of social support for older overweight adolescents who are interested in improving their health behaviors. These results also provide information about the usefulness of web-based programs in facilitating overweight older adolescents’ engagement in health-related behaviors and the utilization of internet support groups for other marginalized or socially stigmatized groups.

With the trend of using of Internet and multimedia, e-Learning has became an important learning method. e-Learning is easy to use and bring into practice, but it also has the defects inversely. One of those defects is the reuse of important and valuable discussing knowledge from asynchronous discussion boards. Nobody has time and be willing to make effort to manage the important discussion from asynchronous discussion boards in e-Learning except enthusiastic teachers or assistants. All of us know that asynchronous discussion boards is an important tool used in e-Learning for communicating and discussing with all class information for teachers and students. And reusing of important class discussing knowledge can aid teachers and students to teach and study with efficiency and effect. But up to the present, there are few researches in this domain. So, in this research we create an automatic essential content extraction method from asynchronous discussion boards in e-Learning. We explain the usage, management, and shortcomings of asynchronous discussion boards in e-Learning before. And we also describe the designing process of the research in detail. Finally, we describe the operation and the result of content extraction in this research system. All of those are hope to help teachers and students can reuse the valuable knowledge easily and quickly from past class discussion in e-Learning.

abstract: The discussion board is a facet of online education that continues to confound students, educators, and researchers alike. Currently, the majority of research insists that instructors should structure and control online discussions as well as evaluate such discussions. However, the existing literature has yet to compare the various strategies that instructors have identified and employed to facilitate discussion board participation. How should instructors communicate their expectations online? Should instructors create detailed instructions that outline and model exactly how students should participate, or should generalized instructions be communicated? An experiment was conducted in an online course for undergraduate students at Arizona State University. Three variations of instructional conditions were developed for use in the experiment: (1) detailed, (2) general, and (3) limited. The results of the experiment indentified a pedagogically valuable finding that should positively influence the design of future online courses that utilize discussion boards. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.A. Communication Studies 2012

Asynchronous discussion board (ADB) is considered to be a key online learning component. Although ADB has become an important teaching method in higher education for blended courses, the literature shows low levels of both the quality and quantity of learner interaction in the discussion boards of Saudi blended learning courses. The purpose of the current study was to explore the effects of different blended learning discussion formats on the motivation level of learners, the quality of ADB posts, and the quantity of ADB posts in a blended information and communication technology (ICT) course. The mode of online instruction was the independent variable with two levels: ADB-alone and blended online instruction that combined live virtual classroom (LVC) and ADB (ADB+LVC). The study took the form of a quasi-experimental design and a total sample of 42 students was involved. Learner motivation levels were measured using Keller’s Course Interest Survey (CIS). The ADB quantity was defined as the number of posts by one student in one discussion forum divided by the number of participants in that forum. The ADB quality was measured using a comprehensive rubric. This study found no statistically significant differences in motivation level and quantity of ADB posts between the ADB-alone group and ADB+LVC group. This study did find a significant difference in ADB quality scores between the two groups. The study contributed to improving Saudi higher education’s online practices by exploring ways to improve interactions amongst students and their peers as well as their instructors in online or blended courses.

abstract: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of instructor response prompts and rubrics on students' performance in an asynchronous discussion-board assignment, their learning achievement on an objective-type posttest, and their reported satisfaction levels. Researchers who have studied asynchronous computer-mediated student discussion transcripts have found evidence of mostly mid-level critical thinking skills, with fewer examples limited to lower or higher order thinking skill demonstration. Some researchers suggest that instructors may facilitate increased demonstration of higher-order critical thinking skills within asynchronous discussion-board activities. However, there is little empirical evidence available to compare the use of different external supports to facilitate students' critical thinking skills performance and learning achievement in blended learning environments. Results of the present study indicate that response prompts and rubrics can affect students' discussion performance, learning, and satisfaction ratings. The results, however, are complex, perhaps mirroring the complexity of instructor-led online learning environments. Regarding discussion board performance, presenting students with a rubric tended to yield higher scores on most aspects that is, on overall performance, as well as depth and breadth of performance, though these differences were not significant. In contrast, instructor prompts tended to yield lower scores on aspects of discussion board performance. On breadth, in fact, this main effect difference was significant. Interactions also indicated significant differences on several aspects of discussion board performance, in most cases indicating that the combination of rubric and prompt was detrimental to scores. The learning performance on the quiz showed, again, the effectiveness of rubrics, with students who received the rubric earning significantly higher scores, and with no main effects or interactions for instructor prompts. Regarding student satisfaction, again, the picture is complicated. Results indicated that, in some instances, the integration of prompts resulted in lower satisfaction ratings, particularly in the areas of students' perceptions of the amount of work required, learning in the partially online format, and student-to-student interaction. Based on these results, design considerations to support rubric use and explicit feedback in asynchronous discussions to support student learning are proposed. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Educational Technology 2012

nÃo hà / O presente estudo investigou a perspectiva de professores e alunos acerca das ferramentas de interaÃÃo em EducaÃÃo a DistÃncia. Optou-se por duas ferramentas que representam modos de comunicaÃÃo diferenciados: o Chat (sÃncrono) e o FÃrum (assÃncrono). Foi aplicado um questionÃrio num universo de 100 professores e alunos de cursos na modalidade a distÃncia, visando identificar a forma como essas ferramentas sÃo utilizadas, as potencialidades e limitaÃÃes que determinam a preferÃncia por esta ou aquela ferramenta. Os resultados apontaram maior preferÃncia dos participantes pelo FÃrum. O motivo principal foi a flexibilidade de tempo que o mesmo permite, pois nÃo depende que todos os usuÃrios estejam conectados ao mesmo tempo. / The current study investigated the point of view of teachers and students about interactive tools in distance education. Two different kinds of tools were chosen: a synchronous (chat) and a non- synchronous (discussion board). A questionnaire was filled by a universe of 100 teachers and students from distance education courses, aimed to identify how these tools were used, their potential and limitations which define the choice by this or that tool. Results show that the majority of the participants prefer the discussion board for the time flexibility because it does not require all users to be connected at the same time.

Les Technologies de l’Information et de la Communication (TIC) font désormais partie du paysage de nombreux établissements d’enseignement supérieur, secondaire et même primaire en Afrique. Les avantages pour l’Institution, l’enseignant et l’apprenant sont avérés (Mvoto Meyong, 2010). Cependant les expériences, à l’échelle des établissements de formation, sont encore peu nombreuses et peu concluantes. Cette thèse porte sur l’intégration des TIC dans un cours de français pour anglophones à l’université de Buéa au Cameroun. Le cours traditionnel, dans sa version uniquement présentiel en classe, se déroule dans un contexte limitant fortement la satisfaction d’objectifs pédagogiques essentiels. En effet, les effectifs pléthoriques, le peu de temps alloué à la formation, l’hétérogénéité des groupes d’apprenants font que les compétences de production ainsi que les compétences en interaction des intéressés ne peuvent être développées. En réponse à cet existant, cette thèse, de type recherche-action, présente un dispositif hybride articulant travail en classe et dans le centre technologique de l’université. Là sont offertes des activités de communication en petits groupes dans une modalité quasi-synchrone. Cette modalité, peu souvent étudiée dans la littérature de recherche, offre une alternative réaliste aux environnements synchrones peu fiables, compte tenu de l’état des réseaux et de l’Internet dans cette partie du monde. Afin d’étudier si ce nouveau dispositif de formation permet de dépasser les difficultés évoquées et de faciliter l’apprentissage, je l’ai déployé deux années successives, en l’entourant d’un protocole de recherche. Les données recueillies m’ont permis d’analyser les interactions, de mettre en évidence les traces d’apprentissage. Mais cette double expérimentation apporte aussi un nouvel éclairage au travers de l’analyse des obstacles qui ont handicapé la mise en œuvre du dispositif technopédagogique. Je questionne le modèle d’intégration des TIC qui traditionnellement concentre toutes les ressources en un seul endroit, sans tenir compte des contextes technologiquement limités. J’esquisse une voie alternative destinée, grâce à l’apprentissage mobile, à intégrer les TIC dans des dispositifs de formation de langues et un contexte technologique proches de notre situation prototypique. / Information and Communication Technologies are now part of the life of many institutions of higher education, secondary education and even primary education. The benefits for these institutions, as well as for teachers and learners are established. However, there are very few cases of experiments carried out in learning Institutions with positive results. This thesis is about integrating ICTs into a French course in the Anglo-Saxon university of Buea in Cameroon. The context in which the course is taught in classrooms makes it difficult for the objectives to be met. Because of the large class size, the little time allocated to the course and the heterogeneous nature of students’ language levels, speaking, writing and interactional skills are not worked out in class. This action research thesis sets out to propose a blended learning set-up that hinges around the university IT Centre. Online classes are articulated with classroom sessions. Thus, students have the opportunity to involve in small groups, in communicative activities and in quasi synchronous mode. These communication modality, very often less studied by CMC researchers, is an efficient alternative to synchronous communication and environments that are very much reliable as far as internet quality is concerned in that part of the world. The general question that has driven the research is: How can a technology instrumented approach help in overcoming difficulties and ease learning? To answer that question, two technology based experiences were carried out. They were guided by a research protocol. Data collected enable me to analyse interactions and determine traces of language acquisition. From the circumstances surrounding the experiments, it is discovered that there are a number of obstacles to the integration of ICT in “low tech context” like that which is studied. The technology-based stet-up pattern is then questioned. This research work goes further to propose mobile learning as an alternative to the ICT integration model that concentrates all the resources in a single location.