Creating Social
Presence in
Online Learning
Carol Hostetter, PhD
Indiana University
Funded in part by:
• The Mack Center for Inquiry on
Teaching and Learning
• The Indiana University Scholarship of
Teaching and Learning Program
chostett@indiana.edu
Goals
1. To examine the relationship
between social presence and
student learning outcomes in an
online class
2. To brainstorm increasing social
presence in our classes
Question for later discussion
Do you think social presence (or, learning
community) is a useful concept for online
teaching in your discipline? Why or why
not?
Theoretical Background
Teacher Immediacy Behavior
• From the field of communication education
based on Mehrabian & Wiener (1968) in
psychology.
• Immediacy can be defined as the amount of
“perceived physical and/or psychological
closeness between people” (Christophel, 1990, p.
325).
Social Presence
• Immediacy behaviors gave rise to the
concept of social presence, from social
psychology (Short, Williams, and Christie, 1976).
• Social presence is “the degree to which a
person is perceived as a ‘real person’ in
mediated communication” (Gunawardena, 1995,
p.151).
Social Presence
• Studies have shown that “…users of
computer networks are able to project
their identities whether `real’ or `pseudo,’
feel the presence of others online, and
create communities with commonly
agreed on conventions and norms …”
(Gunawardena, 1995, p. 151).
• Students were able to “create social
presence by projecting their identities and
building online communities” (p. 163).
What is Your Social Presence?
Link between Social
Presence and Community
• What is meant by “create communities
with commonly agreed on conventions
and norms” and “building online
communities?”
• Merriam-Webster’s dictionary defines
community as “an interacting population of
various kinds of individuals in a common
location”
Link between Social Presence
and Community
Reid (1995) describes the link between
social presence and community:
Social Presence
Social Interaction
Common Communication
Common Culture
Community
Link between Social Presence
and Learning?
If there is a link, what might be the
connection?
• Learning takes place in a social
environment, and cognitive understanding
and personal construction of knowledge
depend on relations with others (Fung, 2004;
Richardson and Swan, 2003; Vygotsky, 1978).
• Creating a safe environment for a learning
community in class allows students to take
risks and collaborate in an authentic
manner (Bonk, 2002).
Question for discussion
Do you think social presence (or, learning
community) is a useful concept for online
teaching in your discipline? Why or why
not?
Research Questions
1. What is the evidence of social presence
in a) students’ communication in an
online discussion forum and in b) an
attitudinal survey?
2. What pedagogical methods affect
students’ perceptions of social
presence?
3. What is the relationship between social
presence and students’ learning
outcomes?
To Facilitate Social Presence
in Online Classes
• Mandatory participation in discussion
forum
• Weekly papers synthesizing readings, with
prompt and detailed feedback from the
instructor
• Dyadic PowerPoint presentations
• Model social presence in communications
from instructor to students – use of names,
discussions of personal context,
expression of feelings and humor when
appropriate
Structure of Online Course
• On Mondays, log on to check assignments and
read lectures.
• By Wednesdays at 5 pm your response to the
discussion forum question is due.
• WarmUps are due at 9 am Monday morning on
the day they are listed on the syllabus, unless
otherwise noted. For example, the first WarmUp
is listed on the syllabus for 1-19, so it is due by 9
am on 1-19.
• Check the course announcements for possible
changes in assignments or schedules as we
adjust to our learning needs and changing
context.
14
Assignments and Weights
•
•
•
•
•
Participation in Discussion Forum – 10 pts.
WarmUps – 33 pts.
Annotated Bibliography – 7 pts.
Group Presentation – 20 pts.
Final Paper – 30 pts.
15
Discussion Forums
• Unit One Discussion topics due 1-21
midnight
• Unit Two Discussion topic due 1-28
midnight
• Unit Three Discussion Topic due 2-4
midnight
• Unit Four Discussion topic due 2-11
midnight
16
Discussion Questions
• Regarding the theories discussed on
pages 290-291, which do you feel most
comfortable with? How do you see
yourself using the theory?
• From your reading of Chapter 6, which do
you think is more likely to provide more
justice – the family court or the juvenile
court, and why?
17
Brainstorming Question
What is one way you could
increase the social presence
in one of your classes?
Creating Social
Presence in
Online Learning
Carol Hostetter, PhD
Indiana University
Funded in part by:
• The Mack Center for Inquiry on
Teaching and Learning
• The Indiana University Scholarship of
Teaching and Learning Program
chostett@indiana.edu
Data Collection
• Questionnaires on perception of social
presence (Richardson and Swan, 2003),
collected on all four sections from 2004
to 2006
• Content analysis of online discussions
(Rourke, et al., 1999)
• Ratings of Classroom Assessment
Technique (Angelo and Cross, 1993)
Research Question 1
What is the evidence of social presence
in a) students’ communication in an
online discussion forum and in b) an
attitudinal survey?
Method of
Discussion Forum Analysis
• Students responded to a weekly question
• Students replied to others’ responses
• Comments were content analyzed by a
research team, to look for demonstrations
of social presence
Content Analysis: Rourke et al.
Three Components
• Affective
• Interactive
• Cohesives
Rourke, L, Anderson, T., Garrison, D.R., &
Archer, W. (1999).
Content Analysis:
Affective:
•
Expressions of emotions
•
Use of humor
•
Self-disclosure
Content Analysis:
Interactive:
• Quoting from others’ messages
• Referring explicitly to others’
messages
• Asking questions
• Complimenting, expressing
appreciation
• Expressing agreement
Content Analysis:
Cohesives:
• Vocatives
• Addresses or refers to the group
using inclusive pronouns
• Phatics, salutations
RESULTS:
1a) What is the evidence of social
presence in students’ communication in a
discussion forum?
Table 1. Mean and Standard Deviation
for Evidence of SP in Discussion
Postings
Mean St. Dev.
SP in Dsn Forum
N of postings ≈ 4,000
N of students = 121
86.45%
0.08
Method of
Survey Analysis
• Attitudinal survey – section on perception of
social presence in course overall
• End of semester online surveys were distributed
to students
• One point was awarded for sending the survey by
email to research assistant (filled out or not)
• Research assistant removed names, assigned ID
numbers, and put data into Excel
• Data was entered into SPSS and analyzed
Survey Analysis
• N = 121 students who completed survey,
discussion forums, and CAT (85%
response rate)
• Reliability testing for survey instrument
found an alpha of .95 (Gunawardina & Zittle = .88)
• Factor analysis:
– Perception of social presence
– Satisfaction with learning community
RESULTS:
1b) What is the evidence of social
presence in an attitudinal survey?
Table 2. Mean and Standard Deviation
for Social Presence Scale
Mean
St. Dev.
51.35
6.22
Perceptions of SP
Survey
N = 121
Response options of 1-6, 10 questions
Research Question 2
What pedagogical methods affect
students’ perceptions of social
presence?
Method of
Pedagogical Method Analysis
Attitudinal survey – section on
perception of social presence in
three main teaching methods:
1. Discussion Forum
2. PowerPoint Presentations
3. WarmUps – Weekly graded papers
on readings (Novak, Patterson, Gavrin, &
Christian, 1999)
2) What pedagogical methods affect
students’ perceptions of social presence?
Table 3. Perception of Social Presence
in Assignments
Mean St. Dev.
Discussion Forum
49.56
8.50
Powerpoint
47.95
8.19
WarmUps
38.42
11.10
N = 121
Response options of 1-6, 10 questions
2) What pedagogical methods affect
students’ perceptions of social presence?
Table 4. The effect of Discussion Forum
on students' perceptions of social
presence
B
Std. Error
Discussion Forum
0.47*
0.05
R2
.42
N = 121, *p. < .01
2) What pedagogical methods affect
students’ perceptions of social presence?
Table 5. The effect of PowerPoint
Presentation on students' perceptions
of social presence
B
Std. Error
Powerpoint
0.33*
0.06
R2
.19
N = 121, *p. < .01
2) What pedagogical methods affect
students’ perceptions of social presence?
Table 6. The effect of WarmUps on
students' perceptions of social
presence
B
Std. Error
WarmUps
R2
N = 121, *p. < .01
0.25*
.21
0.05
2) What pedagogical methods affect
students’ perceptions of social presence?
Table 7. The effect of pedagogical methods
on students' perceptions of social presence
B
Std. Error
WarmUps
0.10
0.05
Discussion Forum
0.44*
0.07
Powerpoint
-0.06
0.08
R2
.44
N = 121, *p. < .01
Research Question 3
What is the relationship between
social presence and students’ learning
outcomes?
Method
• Used one assignment (CAT)
• Research team developed rubric for rating
• Rated by two independent raters
Es
p
ec
iall
y
Go
o
Ty
d
States Problem
Establishes Authority
Demonstrates that Well-being of Child
is Paramount Concern
Shows Empathy
Shows Concern
Establishes Plan/Offers Services
Grand Total
Of
pic f-Bas Non
al
e
e
Scores on CAT
• 3 = especially good
• 2 = typical
• 1 = off-base
• 0 = no use of that dimension
• Maximum score = 18
Scores ranged from 3 to 18
Mean = 16.15
Standard deviation = 11.02
3) What is the relationship between social
presence and students’ learning
outcomes?
Table 8. The Effect of Social Presence
Variables on Student Learning Outcomes
Social Presence:
in WarmUp
in Discussion Forum
in Powerpoint
Overall Perceptions
Dsn Frm Posts
R2
N = ,*p. < .01
B
0.05
SE B
0.12
0.30
-0.16
-0.41
0.18
0.18
0.21
45.22*
.13
12.18