Cyber Connections Across Age and Gender Differences: How Communication Technologies Enhance Social Communication in Learning Communities in Online College Courses

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine if age and gender had an effect on how students use communication technologies and the students' use of non-task social communications in online college courses at a community college. Descriptive statistics were used for this study. Fisher's exact tests were used to analyze the students' use of discussion board and virtual café based on age and gender. A One-way Analysis of Variance was used to analyze if there was any difference in social communication based on age and gender. T-tests were used to find out if the use of different communication tools had an effect upon social communication.

The analysis revealed the following findings: (a) that there was no significant difference in the participant's use of discussion boards and virtual café based on age and gender; (b) that there was no significant difference in social communication based on age and gender; (c) no significant difference among communication tools that would increase social communication; (d) Online group discussion forums were not used more for social communications than other discussion boards and the virtual café, and (e) the pre and post questionnaires revealed that there was a positive increase in the following responses: online education is an excellent medium for social interaction; respondent's comfort level from pre to post questionnaire that they felt comfortable conversing in the online environment, and that respondents strongly agreed that online education was an excellent way for them to learn. The study's results provided no evidence that the use of communication technologies and social communications are based on age and gender.