Internet-based instruction: a national survey of psychology faculty.

Survey responses from a national sample of psychology faculty (N = 150) found that respondents generally held favorable attitudes toward the Internet and incorporated online technology for instructional purposes. The specific usage of the Internet for teaching purposes was somewhat fundamental (e.g., e-mail, dissemination of course syllabi, literature searches). Respondents indicated that the primary drawbacks of Internet-based instruction were the substantial time requirements involved and a lack of formal training for faculty.

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Computer-based instruction is a dominant area of research focus in education (e.g., Gueldenzoph, Guidera, Whipple, Mertler, & Dutton, 1999). Interestingly, online education, despite its attributes, has been viewed as a potential threat to traditional instruction (Eamon, 1999; Piotrowski & Vodanovich, 2000; Ridley & Husband, 1998). Yet, it is noteworthy that relatively few studies have discussed the impact of Web-based instruction on the field of psychology (e.g., Sherman, 1998), although there has been some recent attention on the advantages that the Internet could offer for the sub-discipline of clinical psychology (Smith & Senior, 2001). However, the research focus, to date, has been largely on the impact of the Internet upon pedagogical needs of psychology students (Maki, Maki, Patterson, & Whittaker, 2000; Pious, 2000; Varnhagen, Drake, & Finley, 1997).

But, what are the attitudes of faculty in psychology toward Web-based instruction? One recent empirical study (Vodanovich & Piotrowski, 1999), using a sample of industrial-organizational psychology faculty, found that the advantages of online instruction (i.e., information availability, remote access, convenience) were counterbalanced by several critical drawbacks (e.g., time commitment for course design, sparse training for faculty). Indeed, more data, preferably on national samples, are needed in this area. Thus, the purpose of the present study was to determine the attitudes, usage patterns, and perceived drawbacks of psychology faculty regarding Web-based instruction.

Method

Our sample was selected from psychology programs in the United States and Canada listed in the 2000 Graduate Study in Psychology catalog (American Psychological Association.) A two-page questionnaire was mailed to the Chair of each department (N = 500) with the request to distribute the survey to the one faculty member most involved in online instruction. The survey included a brief section on personal attitudes toward Internet use, didactic applications of specific online functions, and the pros/cons of Internet use for instructional purposes. The respondents were asked to respond to each question by completing a series of 5-point scales with a rating of" 1" indicating a negative or low response (e.g., none/very ineffective) and a "5" depicting a positive score (e.g., extensively/very effective.) A total of 150 usable surveys were returned for an adjusted response rate of 30 percent. The response sample characteristics were as follows: 86% males, 12% females; 19% Assistant Professor, 21% Associate Professor, and 60% Full Professor. The respondents taught at the university-level for a median of 20 years.

Results and Discussion

Generally, our findings indicate that psychology faculty hold favorable attitudes toward the Internet and incorporate online technology for instructional purposes. That is, faculty indicated that they use the Internet in their teaching to a large extent (M = 3.6), that their general view toward the Internet for instruction is quite positive (M = 4.3), and that they perceive its use as an effective educational tool (M = 4.0). These ratings are somewhat higher than those obtained by Vodanovich and Piotrowski (1999) in a similar survey based on a national sample of industrial-organizational psychologists. Perhaps this is an indication that psychology faculty are becoming even more accepting of the Internet as an evolving instructional technology.

The results of the present study offer additional confirmatory evidence to prior research on Internet-based instruction. For instance, the instructors in our sample indicated that they did not have much access to formal training or a personal assistant in using the Web for teaching purposes. The lack of systematic training for faculty is consistent with prior findings (e.g., Matthew, Parker, & Wilkinson, 1998; Vodanovich & Piotrowski, 1999). Also, in support of past research (e.g., Vodanovich & Piotrowski, 1999), the present findings indicate that the primary use of the Internet by instructors is for e-mail (M = 4.2), providing course syllabi (M = 3.8), and assessing professional literature (M = 3.5). Moreover, the faculty in our sample reported that time requirements and technical difficulties are notable shortcomings of teaching via the Internet (see Table 1). These specific problems with online instruction have been identified in the recent literature (e.g., Daly, 1997-1998; Hantula, 1998; Piotrowski & Vodanovich, 2000; Sherman, 1998.)

Although the present findings suggest an acceptance of Internet usage among psychology faculty, it is important to note that the specific uses of this technology are relatively basic (e.g., e-mail, dissemination of course syllabi, literature searches). Given the results of this and prior studies in this area, it seems reasonable to speculate that faculty may not be readily incorporating the Internet for more advanced purposes, such as testing or interactive teaching, due to time considerations and the lack of proper technological training. It would be fruitful for future research to investigate why faculty in the behavioral sciences do not incorporate complex Internet functions and to identify methods to help increase instructional technology usage in university-level teaching.

Table 1

Frequencies, Means, and Standard Deviations of
Internet Usage and Perceived Problems

                                   Scale ratings

Survey Questions         1    2    3    4    5   Mean   SD

Instructional usage
Syllabus                18   12   21   20   75    3.8   1.4
Exams/tests             85   20   22    4   15    1.9   1.3
E-mail                   4    2   24   42   76    4.2    .96
Distance learning       69   32   17    9   15    2.1   1.4
Tutorials               55   30   29   17   14    2.4   1.4
Exercises               29   24   51   21   19    2.8   1.3
Course content          27   19   50   23   27    3.0   1.3
Teleconferencing       114   12   10    8    0    1.4    .85
Assignments             22   25   45   25   30    3.1   1.3
Accessing literature    15   23   31   36   42    3.5   1.3
Perceived Problems
Impersonal nature       40   56   33   15    1    2.2    .98
Time requirements        4   13   35   72   20    3.7    .95
Technical problems       8   22   67   41    7    3.1    .92

Note: 1 = none/never, 2 = rarely, 3 = moderately, 4 = considerably,
5 = extensively. Mean values are based on 5-point scale ratings.

References

Daly, J. E. (1997-1998). Hypertext links to learning: Roadblocks and obstacles along the information super highway. Journal of Educational Technology Systems, 26, 309-314.

Eamon, D. B. (1999). Distance education: Has technology become a threat to the academy? Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, and Computers, 31, 197-207.

Hantula, D. A. (1998). The virtual industrial/organizational psychology class: Learning and teaching in cyberspace in three iterations. Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, and Computers, 30, 205-216.

Gueldenzoph, L. E., Guidera, S., Whipple, D., Mertler, C., & Dutton, L. (1999-2000). Faculty use of instructional technology in the university classroom. Journal of Instructional Technology Systems, 28(2), 121-135.

Maki, R. H., Maki, W. S., Patterson, M., & Whittaker, P. D. (2000). Evaluation of a web-based introductory psychology course: 1. Learning and satisfaction in on-line versus lecture courses. Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, and Computers, 32, 230-239.

Matthew, K. L., Parker, R., & Wilkerson, L. 1998, March). Faculty adoption of technology: Stages of concern. Paper presented at the Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education Conference, Washington, DC.

Piotrowski, C., & Vodanovich, S. J. (2000). Are the reported barriers to Internet-based instruction warranted? A synthesis of recent research. Education, 121(1), 48-53.

Pious, S. (2000). Tips on creating and maintaining an educational World Wide Web site. Teaching of Psychology, 27, 63-70.

Ridley, D. R., & Husband, J. E. (1998). Online education: A study of academic rigor and integrity. Journal of Instructional Psychology, 25, 184-188.

Sherman, R. C. (1998). Using the World Wide Web to teach everyday applications of social psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 25, 212-216.

Smith, M. A., & Senior, C. (2001). The Internet and clinical psychology: A general review of the implications. Clinical Psychology Review, 21, 129-136.

Varnhagan, C. K., Drake, S. M., & Finley, G. (1997). Teaching statistics with the Internet. Teaching of Psychology, 24, 275-278.

Vodanovich, S. J., & Piotrowski, C. (1999). Views of academic I-O psychologists toward Internet-based instruction. The Industrial-Organizational Psychologist, 37(1), 52-55.

Stephen J. Vodanovich, Associate Professor, University of West Florida. Chris Piotrowski, Research Consultant, University of West Florida.

Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Chris Piotrowski, Research Consultant, University of West Florida, Psychology Department, Pensacola, FL 32514.