An experimental study of satisfaction response: Evaluation of online collaborative learning

Xusen Cheng, Xueyin Wang, Jianqing Huang, Alex Zarifis

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

On the one hand, a growing amount of research discusses support for improving online collaborative learning quality, and many indicators are focused to assess its success. On the other hand, thinkLets for designing reputable and valuable collaborative processes have been developed for more than ten years. However, few studies try to apply thinkLets to online collaborative learning. This paper introduces thinkLets to online collaborative learning and experimentally tests its effectiveness with participants' responses on their satisfaction. Yield Shift Theory (YST), a causal theory explaining inner satisfaction, is adopted. In the experiment, 113 students from Universities in Beijing, China are chosen as a sample. They were divided into two groups, collaborating online in a simulated class. Then, YST in student groups under online collaborative learning is validated, a comparison study of online collaborative learning with and without thinkLets is implemented, and the satisfaction response of participants are analyzed. As a result of this comparison, YST is proved applicable in this context, and satisfaction is higher in online collaborative learning with thinkLets.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)60-78
Number of pages19
JournalInternational Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning
Volume17
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2016
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Collaborative process
  • Online collaboration
  • Online collaborative learning
  • Satisfaction
  • ThinkLets

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