Full length articleOnline and face-to-face classroom multitasking and academic performance: Moderated mediation with self-efficacy for self-regulated learning and gender
Introduction
Technology has unquestionably contributed to the creation of flexible educational opportunities that allow college students to learn remotely. Universities have afforded students the opportunity to enroll in either distance learning and/or blended learning programs where face-to-face and online classes are merged (Kirkwood & Price, 2005). Additionally, universities provide free and fast wireless internet to their students, which encourages them to be simultaneously involved in multiple technological activities through their cell phones, laptops, and tablets. Evidence has shown that college students tend to spend a considerable amount of time working on non-academic tasks while using personal laptops and other Internet-connected devices in class (Fried, 2008). They check their email, browse the Internet, and communicate via social networks with the belief that they are efficiently using their time by multitasking (Fulton, Schweitzer, Scharff, & Boleng, 2011).
Previous studies have found that working on several tasks concurrently is less efficient than performing each task separately (Pashler, 2000). Multitasking diminishes students’ focus and performance and can increase impulsivity (Hallowell, 2005). A stream of research has demonstrated that students in physical classrooms who misuse technology become distracted, which subsequently lowers their academic performance (e.g., Fried, 2008, Kraushaar and Novak, 2010, Wainer et al., 2008). However, the excessive use of technology and switching from one digital task to another may differ in online classrooms, especially because college students have a great tendency to multitask while engaging in online activities (Moreno et al., 2012). Recent research has found that multitasking behaviors are more evident in online classrooms compared to traditional classes (Lepp, Barkley, Karpinski, & Singh, 2019).
Despite the increased enrollment rate in distance learning (McFarland et al., 2018), previous research has mostly focused on examining multitasking behaviors in traditional face-to-face classrooms. Additionally, little attention has been directed to learning variables such as self-efficacy, which can explain the nature of the relationship between multitasking behaviors and academic performance (e.g., Zhang, 2015). Therefore, this study aims to investigate college students’ multitasking behaviors in online classrooms versus traditional, face-to-face (F2F) classrooms. Specifically, this study examines the relationship between multitasking behaviors and self-efficacy for self-regulated learning (SESRL), and if SESRL mitigates the negative relationship between multitasking behaviors and academic performance (grade point average [GPA]). A secondary focus of the current study addresses the impact of gender on these relationships in two moderated mediation models. In the first model, the association between multitasking behaviors in online classrooms and GPA as mediated through SESRL is examined. In the second model, the same associations in the context of F2F classrooms are explored. The relationships in both models were hypothesized to be contingent upon gender. The research questions are as follows:
Research Question 1 (RQ1). In online classes, is the mediated relationship between multitasking behaviors and grade point average (GPA) through self-efficacy for self-regulated learning (SESRL) moderated by gender?
Research Question 2 (RQ2). In traditional, face-to-face (F2F) classes, is the mediated relationship between multitasking behaviors and grade point average (GPA) through self-efficacy for self-regulated learning (SESRL) moderated by gender?
The current study contributes to the multitasking and distance learning literature by exploring the relationship between multitasking and academic performance in online courses compared to F2F courses. This study addresses the impact of students' self-efficacious beliefs on efficiently managing their multitasking activities in order to enhance their learning outcomes in online and F2F courses. This study also makes a methodological contribution by applying path analysis in a complex model of moderated mediation.
Section snippets
Multitasking and academic performance
Multitasking can briefly be defined as doing different tasks at the same time. Kenyon and Lyons (2007) defined multitasking as “… the simultaneous conduct of two or more activities, during a given time period.” (p.3). The spread of technology has promoted media multitasking, which is the involvement in more than one media platform simultaneously (e.g., watching TV, using the Internet, and listening to digitally-downloaded music; Pilotta, Schultz, Drenik, & Rist, 2004), or in media and non-media
Self-efficacy for self-regulated learning (SESRL)
Although there is evidence of multitasking's negative consequences (e.g., Bowman et al., 2010, Burak, 2012, Ellis et al., 2010, Fried, 2008, Kraushaar and Novak, 2010), it is difficult to prevent students from engaging in such behaviors. One recommendation to impede these negative effects is to encourage behaviors conducive to learning as well as students' beliefs in their ability to successfully perform these behaviors (i.e., self-efficacy beliefs) (Weimer, 2012). Self-efficacy beliefs for
Gender as a moderator
The literature details the relationships between multitasking and demographic characteristics (e.g., age, gender, education level). Several studies have shown that females tend to multitask more than males (Foehr, 2006, Jeong and Fishbein, 2007, Pilotta et al., 2004). This has been attributed to gender differences in cognitive ability associated with adaptation to dual information processing (Stoet, O'Connor, Conner, & Laws, 2013). Conversely, other studies have found no significant differences
Participants and procedures
Participants were 278 students who were enrolled in courses required by a variety of majors (e.g., Introduction to Sociology, Human Nutrition, Applied Statistics, Introduction to Gerontology) at a public, Midwestern university. All participants reported that they had previously taken at least one 100% online college course. Students were notified that participation was completely voluntary. After giving informed consent, students completed a survey during class time. An a priori sample size
Research question 1 (RQ1)
For RQ1 (“In online classes, is the mediated relationship between multitasking behaviors and GPA through SESRL moderated by gender?”), a simple mediation model was used to test whether SESRL mediated the relationship between multitasking behaviors and GPA in online classrooms (see Fig. 2). The regression coefficients are shown in Table 2. The direct effect of multitasking behaviors on GPA was statistically different from zero (path c; −0.174, t [253] = – 4.19, p < .001; 95% CI [–0.255,
Discussion
The current study aimed to investigate the important role that self-efficacy for self-regulated learning (SESRL) has in controlling multitasking behaviors in both the physical and virtual classroom. Specifically, this study compared two moderated mediation models, with the first in online classes and the second in traditional face-to-face (F2F) classes. The models empirically tested the extent to which the relationship between multitasking behaviors and academic performance was mediated by
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