Online University Students' Perceptions of Institution and Program Community and the Activities That Support Them

Fuente: ERIC Institute of Education Sciences
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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Craig E. Shepherd, Doris U. Bolliger, Courtney McKim
Format: Recurso educativo Open Access
Language:en
Published: 2024
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author Craig E. Shepherd
Doris U. Bolliger
Courtney McKim
author_facet Craig E. Shepherd
Doris U. Bolliger
Courtney McKim
Craig E. Shepherd
Doris U. Bolliger
Courtney McKim
collection Education Resources Information Center
contents Online University Students' Perceptions of Institution and Program Community and the Activities That Support Them Craig E. Shepherd Doris U. Bolliger Courtney McKim Electronic Learning Student Attitudes Sense of Community Community Undergraduate Students Graduate Students Doctoral Students Extracurricular Activities Values Psychological Needs Trust (Psychology) Interpersonal Relationship Minority Group Students White Students Higher Education The twenty-eight item Sense of Online Community Scale was completed by 293 online students at a midsized southeastern United States university to ascertain community importance and activities associated with its formation and maintenance on the program and institutional level. A large majority of these students believed that a sense of community was important and that a sense of belonging, affiliation, and trust were valuable for community formation. Participants also believed that program and institutional activities, both academic and social, played key roles in community formation. However, academic activities (e.g., advising, program milestones, writing centers, library support) were rated as more influential than social activities (e.g., get-togethers, online games, institution sporting events). When demographic characteristics were considered, non-White participants rated their sense of affiliation with their program/institution higher than White participants. Participants who lived within a one-hour commute to campus (51% of our sample) rated institutional social activities higher than those who lived farther out. Doctoral students rated program activities as more conducive to community formation than masters, and graduate certificate students and undergraduate students rated affiliation to their program/institution higher than master's and graduate certificate students.
format Recurso educativo Open Access
id eric_EJ1418086
institution ERIC Institute of Education Sciences
language en
publishDate 2024
record_format eric
spellingShingle Online University Students' Perceptions of Institution and Program Community and the Activities That Support Them
Craig E. Shepherd
Doris U. Bolliger
Courtney McKim
Electronic Learning
Student Attitudes
Sense of Community
Community
Undergraduate Students
Graduate Students
Doctoral Students
Extracurricular Activities
Values
Psychological Needs
Trust (Psychology)
Interpersonal Relationship
Minority Group Students
White Students
Higher Education
Online University Students' Perceptions of Institution and Program Community and the Activities That Support Them Craig E. Shepherd Doris U. Bolliger Courtney McKim Electronic Learning Student Attitudes Sense of Community Community Undergraduate Students Graduate Students Doctoral Students Extracurricular Activities Values Psychological Needs Trust (Psychology) Interpersonal Relationship Minority Group Students White Students Higher Education The twenty-eight item Sense of Online Community Scale was completed by 293 online students at a midsized southeastern United States university to ascertain community importance and activities associated with its formation and maintenance on the program and institutional level. A large majority of these students believed that a sense of community was important and that a sense of belonging, affiliation, and trust were valuable for community formation. Participants also believed that program and institutional activities, both academic and social, played key roles in community formation. However, academic activities (e.g., advising, program milestones, writing centers, library support) were rated as more influential than social activities (e.g., get-togethers, online games, institution sporting events). When demographic characteristics were considered, non-White participants rated their sense of affiliation with their program/institution higher than White participants. Participants who lived within a one-hour commute to campus (51% of our sample) rated institutional social activities higher than those who lived farther out. Doctoral students rated program activities as more conducive to community formation than masters, and graduate certificate students and undergraduate students rated affiliation to their program/institution higher than master's and graduate certificate students.
title Online University Students' Perceptions of Institution and Program Community and the Activities That Support Them
topic Electronic Learning
Student Attitudes
Sense of Community
Community
Undergraduate Students
Graduate Students
Doctoral Students
Extracurricular Activities
Values
Psychological Needs
Trust (Psychology)
Interpersonal Relationship
Minority Group Students
White Students
Higher Education
url https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1418086