ED-MEDIA 1999 Proceedings Book - Association for the ...

An Investigation into Faculty Attitudes Regarding
Distance Learning Instruction
Dr. Gail West, College of Education,
University of Central Florida, gwest@pegasus.cc.ucf.edu
Carol S. Halfhill, Department of Management,
College of Business, University of Central Florida, USA, halfhill@mail.ucf.edu
This research, conducted by Gail West and Carol Halfhill, investigated the affects of faculty
attitudes concerning distance learning instruction. Previous research indicated there are significant
negative faculty perceptions of and attitudes toward distance learning which may be a barrier to its
implementation. The purpose of this study was to investigate how the Theory of Planned Behavior
could be used to predict which faculty might be encouraged to participate successfully in instruction
using distance learning technology. Specifically this research studied faculty attitudes, the perceived
attitudes of peers, as well as faculty beliefs in their ability to be successful with instruction via distance
learning technology. The investigation was modeled after Icek Ajzen’s Theory of Planned Behavior, a
well documented intention model that has successfully predicted and explained behavior in a wide
number of behavior-related areas. The theory suggests that attitudes regarding a behavior as well as
motivation to perform the behavior can be measured and this measurement can be used as a predictor
of actual behavior.
A quantitative and qualitative study was conducted to determine if the theory successfully
predicted a faculty member’s intention to instruct a course using distance learning technology. A
survey of faculty in the Florida State University System, which is comprised of ten accredited public
universities within Florida, was conducted. A stratified random sampling of faculty chosen by a
random number generator method was obtained from the 1997-98 faculty lists in the college catalogs
from each of the ten universities. Selections from each institution were adjusted proportionally to
insure each institution was properly represented. In an attempt to insure that the survey would include
faculty who have experience with distance learning technology, efforts were made to add faculty to the
survey mailing list who had taught a variety of courses via distance learning using either interactive
television or the World Wide Web.
Faculty members were questioned regarding their intention to instruct a course via distance
learning during the 1998-1999 academic year as well as their attitudes regarding distance instruction.
They were also surveyed on their perceptions of their peers' attitudes regarding distance learning.
Finally, faculty were asked items to determine how successful they expected they would be if they
taught a course via distance learning. The three constructs, faculty members' personal attitudes, the
attitudes of their peers, and the strength of their belief in success form the foundation of Ajzen's theory.
Survey items were constructed to measure the power of each construct. Personal attitudes, peer
attitudes, and belief in success were combined mathematically according to Ajzen's model to measure
intention. Qualitative interviews were also conducted to further explore the survey results.
Faculty returned 345 usable survey instruments representing a 60 percent return rate. Of
those responding, 73 percent were male with 27 percent female. Mean age was 50 years. Of those
who indicated, 68.2 percent were tenured, 15.2 percent were on a tenure track and 15.2 percent were
non-tenured. Instructional experience ranged from none to 51 years with a mean of 17.8 years. Past
distance experience was limited among the respondents: 65 percent of the respondents had no previous
distance instruction experience. Of those with pervious experience, most had taught between one and
five courses. The majority did not intend to instruct using distance learning technology: 67.3 percent
described themselves as very unlikely or unlikely to instruct using distance learning technology.
Findings revealed that the Theory of Planned Behavior could predict correctly a faculty
member’s intention to instruct a distance learning course 83 percent of the time. The theory predicted
with great accuracy those faculty who do not intend to instruct via distance learning (93.9 percent). It
had less success predicting faculty who do intend to instruct (56.6 percent).