examination of motivating factors on faculty participation in online higher education

• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/2047/d20003126

Online education has become a vital component of the American higher education system. Demand for online education is expected to grow, as online education offers a number of tangible benefits to potential students. Faculty member participation in online education has been found to be crucial to the success of new or expanded online education initiatives. This research was conducted to determine the extent to which a number of extrinsic and intrinsic factors influence a faculty member's decision to participate in online education. Ten subscale factors across four motivational dimensions were identified in the literature as potentially important to faculty participation in online education. This research study employed survey research and quantitative methods to determine the extent to which these factors influenced faculty member participation in online education at one liberal arts institution. Both extrinsic and intrinsic factors were found to have a positive, statistically significant relationship with faculty member willingness to participate in online education. Intrinsic factors, including a faculty member's beliefs regarding the efficacy of online education, a faculty member's desire to increase student access to education, and opportunities for professional growth were found to have the strongest relationship with faculty member willingness to participate in online education. Higher education administrators who are seeking to increase faculty participation in online education are advised to implement encouragement programs that, while emphasizing the aforementioned intrinsic factors, incorporate a broad range of motivational factors.