Introduction and Literature Review 1

Running head: INTRODUCTION AND LITERATURE REVIEW

Introduction and Literature Review

Jennifer Maddrell

Old Dominion University

ELS 833 Advanced Research Design

Dr. Duggan

March 23, 2009

 Introduction and Literature Review 2

Introduction

In the 2006-07 academic year, 61 percent of U.S. higher education institutions offered

online courses (Parsad & Lewis, 2008). Enrollment in online courses is growing at a rate in

excess of the growth rate of the total higher education population. As of the fall 2007 semester,

an estimated 3.9 million students, roughly 22 percent of all students enrolled in degree-granting

U.S. higher education institutions, were taking at least one online course (Allen & Seaman,

2008). This level of online course enrollment represents a 12.9 percent growth rate over the fall

2006 enrollment which is significant higher than the 1.2 percent growth rate in overall higher

education enrollment. To facilitate their online courses, 75 percent of U.S. higher education

institutions which offer distance education courses utilize some form of synchronous computer-

based media (Parsad & Lewis). Increasing, these synchronous technologies include options for

parallel voice, video, and text based synchronous communication as found in leading online

conferencing systems such as Elluminate Live and Adobe Connect (Schullo, Hilbelink, Venable,

& Barron, 2007).

While a host of studies have examined asynchronous computer-mediated communication

(CMC) in distance education, relatively little research has been conducted on learner experiences

associated with synchronous CMC (Park & Bonk, 2007). In addition, no studies have examined

the impact of parallel communication occurring within synchronous online conferencing

systems. While some learners may perceive a positive benefit from the additional opportunities

for real-time peer and teacher support, the parallel channels of communication may also pose a

negative disorienting distraction. The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of the

competing parallel synchronous communication on learners' perceptions of social presence

through content analysis and surveys of learners enrolled in a college level online course.
 Introduction and Literature Review 3

Synchronous Computer-Mediated Communication

The set of available synchronous communication tools in online conferencing systems,

including public and private text messaging (chat), video and audio interfaces, web browsers,

polling tools, application sharing, and whiteboards, offer instructors and learners expanded

opportunity for interaction and content sharing (Shi & Morrow, 2006). While voice and video

communication tends to dominate the main channel instructional presentation in the synchronous

online conferencing environment, the text chat feature often supports spontaneous and

unfacilitated parallel (backchannel, sidebar or side-talk) exchanges among participants. However,

little research has been conducted on learner experiences in these online conferencing

environments (Shi & Morrow). Therefore, the effect of the competing parallel synchronous

communication on the learners' perceptions of social presence is unknown.

Social Presence

Social presence theory builds upon the concept of social presence from the work of Short,

Williams, and Christie (1976) in technology-mediated communication and is often used as a

theoretical framework in the study of asynchronous computer-mediated communication

(DeWever, Schellens, Valcke, & Keer, 2006). Social presence within the context of a computer-

mediated classroom is the degree to which learners present themselves and are perceived socially

and affectively as real people in mediated communication (Garrison, Anderson, & Archer, 2000).

Research on social presence in computer-mediated learning environments has moved

beyond an evaluation of the medium’s effect on social presence to an evaluation of how social

presence can be cultivated to support critical thinking and critical discourse within the computer-

mediated environment . Findings suggests social presence is related to student satisfaction and

learning (Garrison & Arbaugh, 2007; Gunawardena, 1995; Gunawardena & Zittle, 1997; Rourke,
 Introduction and Literature Review 4

Anderson, Garrison, & Walter Archer, 1999; So & Brush, 2008) and while social presence alone

will not ensure the development of critical discourse, it is difficult for such discourse to develop

without it . Overall, research suggests that (a) interactivity impacts social presence, (b) patterns

of communication and perceptions of social presence change over time, and (c) social presence

can be impacted by the social context, the design of the instruction, and the support of the

instructor (Garrison & Arbaugh, 2007; Gunawardena, 1995; Gunawardena & Zittle, 1997; So &

Brush, 2008). However, notably missing from research on social presence in the computer-

mediated classroom are studies involving synchronous CMC.

Measurement of Social Presence in CMC

Content Analysis

While a range of quantitative content analysis methods have been used to measure

presence within asynchronous CMC, presents a content analysis tool for assessing social

presence from the transcripts of an asynchronous computer-mediated environment which has

been used in several subsequent studies (Rourke & Anderson, 2004). Based on defined

categories and indicators of social presence, including (a) emotional expression seen in affective

responses, (b) open communication seen in interactive responses, and (c) group cohesion seen in

cohesive responses, messages in asynchronous text-based transcripts were assigned to one of the

three categories. The researchers measured the social presence density by dividing the number of

social presence indicators coded in the transcript by the number of words in the transcript.

However, Rourke and Anderson (2004) argue additional research is still needed to

validate prior findings. In addition, Shi, Mishara, Bonk, Tan, & Zhao (2006) argue content

analysis methods for asynchronous computer-mediated communication must be modified to

address the nature of synchronous text chat which is characterized by disrupted, fragmented, and
 Introduction and Literature Review 5

often disjointed threads of discourse. Therefore, the present study will utilize the content analysis

tool forwarded by utilizing the threaded discourse analysis modifications suggested by Shi et al.

Surveys of Student Perceptions

Gunawardena (1995) and Gunawardena and Zittle (1997) utilized a survey instrument to

solicit learner perceptions of their experience with the computer-mediated communication,

including satisfaction, social presence, participation, reactions to training, and attitudes toward

the medium. Suggesting that previous survey methods failed to capture a thorough perception of

social presence, Tu (2002) devised the Social Presence and Privacy Questionnaire (SPPQ) which

measured student’s perception of social context, online communication, interactivity, and

privacy. So and Brush (2008) subsequently combined social presence scale items of Tu’s SPPQ

with satisfaction measures used in the survey instrument developed by Gunawardena and Zittle

(1997). The resulting Collaborative Learning, Social Presence, and Satisfaction (CLSS)

questionnaire measures general demographic information, satisfaction, and social presence and

will be utilized in this study.

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References

Allen, I. E., & Seaman, J. (2008). Staying the Course Online Education in the United States,

2008. Sloan Survey of Online Learning (p. 23). 2008 Sloan Survey of Online Learning,

Babson Survey Research Group and The Sloan Consortium.

De Wever, B., Schellens, T., Valcke, M., & Keer, H. V. (2006). Content analysis schemes to

analyze transcripts of online asynchronous discussion groups: A review. Computers &

Education, 46(1), 6-28. doi: 10.1016/j.compedu.2005.04.005.

Garrison, D. R., Anderson, T., & Archer, W. (2000). Critical inquiry in a text-based environment:

Computer conferencing in higher education. The Internet and Higher Education, 2(2-3),

87-105.

Garrison, D. R., & Arbaugh, J. (2007). Researching the community of inquiry framework:

Review, issues, and future directions. Internet & Higher Education, 10(3), 157-172. doi:

Article.

Gunawardena, C. N. (1995). Social Presence Theory and Implications for Interaction and

Collaborative Learning in Computer Conferences. International Journal of Educational

Telecommunications, 1(2), 147-166.

Gunawardena, C. N., & Zittle, F. J. (1997). Social Presence as a Predictor of Satisfaction within a

Computer-Mediated Conferencing Environment. American Journal of Distance

Education, 11(3), 8.

Park, Y. J., & Bonk, C. J. (2007). Synchronous learning experiences: Distance and residential

learners’ perspectives in a blended graduate course. Journal of Interactive Online

Learning, 6(3), 245-264.

 Introduction and Literature Review 7

Parsad, B., & Lewis, L. (2008). Distance Education at Degree-Granting Postsecondary

Institutions: 2006-07. National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of

Education.

Rourke, L., & Anderson, T. (2004). Validity in quantitative content analysis. Educational

Technology Research and Development, 52(1), 5-18. doi: 10.1007/BF02504769.

Rourke, L., Anderson, T., Garrison, D. R., & Archer, W. (1999). Assessing Social Presence in

Asynchronous Text-Based Computer Conferencing. Journal of Distance Education,

14(2), 50-71.

Schullo, S., Hilbelink, A., Venable, M., & Barron, A. (2007). Selecting a Virtual Classroom

System: Elluminate Live vs. Macromedia Breeze (Adobe Acrobat Connect Professional).

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Shi, S., & Morrow, B. V. (2006). E-Conferencing for Instruction: What Works? Educause

Quarterly, 29(4), 42.

Shi, S., Mishara, P., Bonk, C. J., Tan, S., & Zhao, Y. (2006). Thread Theory:

A Framework Applied to Content Analysis of Synchronous Computer Mediated

Communication Data. International Journal of Instructional Technology and Distance

Learning, Vol. 3(No. 3).

So, H., & Brush, T. A. (2008). Student Perceptions of Collaborative Learning, Social Presence

and Satisfaction in a Blended Learning Environment: Relationships and Critical Factors.

Computers & Education, 51(1), 318-336.

Tu, C. (2002). The Measurement of Social Presence in an Online Learning Environment.

International Journal on E-Learning, 1(2), 34-45.