Internet enables construction of flexible online learning environments without time and distance barriers. However, learners typically experience isolation and alienation in online learning environments. These negative experiences can be reduced by enhancing perceived social presence of learners. With the development of learning technologies, learners can communicate asynchronously and synchronously with other participants. If social cues could be delivered adequately in online classrooms, it may become a real possibility for learners to experience the benefits that are typically only available in the social environment of a traditional classroom. However, the perceived social presence among learners is not the same for everyone. In order to better facilitate the social presence in an online classroom, this study attempted to build a model for measuring social presence and its relationships with other factors in online learning based on the social cognitive theory.
An instrument with sufficient reliability and validity was developed to measure these factors. A formal study was carried out with a paper-based questionnaire for those learners who had previous learning experiences in online learning. A total of 535 valid samples were collected and analyzed from three schools in Taiwan. The method of structural equation modeling was applied to examine the proposed model and test the hypotheses. The results of measurement model testing show that five second-order constructs, user interface, mediated communication, social presence, interaction performance, and learning performance, can be synthesized from eleven first-order constructs. The results of structural model testing show that user interface and mediated communication have significant influences on social presence. User interface also has positive impact on mediated communication. Moreover, this study provided evidence that social presence has significant effects on interaction performance, and then interaction performance has significant effects on learning performance. Finally, the implications of research findings were discussed for further research directions and practical applications.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:NSYSU/oai:NSYSU:etd-0318110-033432 |
| Date | 18 March 2010 |
| Creators | Wei, Chun-Wang |
| Contributors | Nian-Shing Chen, Wu-Yuin Hwang, Yueh-Min Huang, Kinshuk, Chao-Min Chiu, Meng-Hsiang Hsu |
| Publisher | NSYSU |
| Source Sets | NSYSU Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Archive |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | http://etd.lib.nsysu.edu.tw/ETD-db/ETD-search/view_etd?URN=etd-0318110-033432 |
| Rights | not_available, Copyright information available at source archive |
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