Understanding Students' Online Forum Usage

This paper reports the result of online survey to investigate online forum usage for different purposes. In general, there are two different purposes on why students engage in an online forum: to seek answer and to share ideas. Based on the Technology Acceptance Model and the Social Exchange Theory, we proposed three hypotheses. The hypotheses are to compare whether perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness have different effect on attitude toward seeking answers and on attitude toward sharing ideas, as well as whether intention to seek answers and to share ideas have the same effect on online forum usage. To test the hypotheses, we invited students who have some experiences on using online forum related to the course module. Of the three proposed hypotheses, two of them are confirmed by the data.

[1]  K. Cook,et al.  Two Approaches to Social Structure: Exchange Theory and Network Analysis , 1992 .

[2]  Marcel Creemers,et al.  Predicting online purchase behavior: replications and tests of competing models , 2001, Proceedings of the 34th Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences.

[3]  Hubert Gatignon,et al.  An Exchange Theory Model of Interpersonal Communication , 1986 .

[4]  Judy Chuan-Chuan Lin,et al.  Towards an understanding of the behavioural intention to use a web site , 2000, Int. J. Inf. Manag..

[5]  Fred D. Davis.  Perceived Usefulness, Perceived Ease of Use, and User Acceptance of Information Technology , 1989, MIS Q..

[6]  Hassan M. Selim,et al.  An empirical investigation of student acceptance of course websites , 2003, Comput. Educ..

[7]  Viswanath Venkatesh,et al.  Why Don't Men Ever Stop to Ask for Directions? Gender, Social Influence, and Their Role in Technology Acceptance and Usage Behavior , 2000, MIS Q..

[8]  I. Ajzen.  The theory of planned behavior , 1991 .

[9]  Yvonne Rogers,et al.  Cognitive strategies in web searching. , 1999 .

[10]  Peter A. Todd,et al.  Assessing IT usage: the role of prior experience , 1995 .

[11]  Linda D. Molm.  Coercive power in social exchange , 1997 .

[12]  Jane M. Howell,et al.  Personal Computing: Toward a Conceptual Model of Utilization , 1991, MIS Q..

[13]  Chang Liu,et al.  Technology acceptance model for wireless Internet , 2003, Internet Res..

[14]  Timothy Paul Cronan,et al.  On the Test-Retest Reliability of Perceived Usefulness and Perceived Ease of Use Scales , 1993 .

[15]  Margaret Mazzolini,et al.  Sage, guide or ghost? The effect of instructor intervention on student participation in online discussion forums , 2003, Comput. Educ..

[16]  Paul H. Cheney,et al.  Effects of individual characteristics, organizational factors and task characteristics on computer programmer productivity and job satisfaction , 1984, Inf. Manag..

[17]  Bernard C. Y. Tan,et al.  A Cross-Cultural Study on Escalation of Commitment Behavior in Software Projects , 2000, MIS Q..

[18]  Kar Yan Tam,et al.  Determinants of User Acceptance of Digital Libraries: An Empirical Examination of Individual Differences and System Characteristics , 2002, J. Manag. Inf. Syst..

[19]  Robert S. Weisskirch,et al.  Virtual Discussion: Understanding College Students' Electronic Bulletin Board Use , 2003 .

[20]  G. Mantovani.  New Communication Environments: From Everyday to Virtual , 1996 .

[21]  Judith B. Pena-Shaff,et al.  Analyzing student interactions and meaning construction in computer bulletin board discussions , 2004, Comput. Educ..

[22]  I. Ajzen,et al.  Belief, Attitude, Intention, and Behavior: An Introduction to Theory and Research , 1977 .

[23]  Peter A. Todd,et al.  Perceived Usefulness, Ease of Use, and Usage of Information Technology: A Replication , 1992, MIS Q..

[24]  Detmar W. Straub,et al.  Structural Equation Modeling and Regression: Guidelines for Research Practice , 2000, Commun. Assoc. Inf. Syst..

[25]  R. Bagozzi.  Marketing as Exchange , 1975 .

[26]  Jörn‐Axel Meyer,et al.  Information overload in marketing management , 1998 .

[27]  P. Ekeh,et al.  Social Exchange Theory: The Two Traditions. , 1975 .

[28]  Diane M. Strong,et al.  Extending the technology acceptance model with task-technology fit constructs , 1999, Inf. Manag..