3-Literature+Review

Review of relevant research

Articles about Social Exchange Theory and its history: from Handbook of Sociology of Emotions (2006). Lawler is chapter 13. *Kristin has citation info.

Social theory drives ethnographic research; it encompasses the configuration of social relations and position as well as the substratum that drives it (Cook & Whitmeyer, 1992). Homan, according to Emerson (1976), outlines several basic propositions of human behavior: the success proposition, the stimulus proposition, the deprivation-satiation proposition, the value proposition and the rationality proposition (p. 339). These propositions, primarily based in reward reinforcement, are evident in the decision making process exhibited by students, currently participating in the online doctoral program in Educational Technology at the University of Florida, in choosing a doctoral program. The utilitarianism approach to social exchange theory of Blau, as explained by Cook and Rice (2006), is also evident in this research study with respect to group dynamics (the cohort) and the anticipation of rewards the students expect.

Social exchange theory is a means for explaining social behavior (Cook & Rice, 2006). Deeply rooted in Skinner’s behaviorism, social exchange theory evaluates the costs and benefits of exchange activities. In the case of this study, the costs are often opportunities and alternative activities sacrificed for the process. The benefits, or payoffs, are typically career enhancement, increased pay and status. This dyadic exchange is evident in the semantic relationships identified in our data (Spradley, 1979). These relationships include the rationale regarding reasons for pursuing doctoral programs, educational technology, the program at the University of Florida and an online program.

Although social exchange theory typically focuses on exchanges between actors (Emerson, 1976; Lawler & Thye, 2006), according to Lawler and Thye (2006) emotions are often utilized as an exchange for solving social order problems by associating affective attachments to social units such as relations, groups and organization. Although social exchange theory is often considered a frame of reference rather than a theory (Emerson, 1976), there is strong empirical evidence that components of social exchange theory such as rewards and punishments produce and are influenced by emotions (Lawler & Thye, 2006).

These emotional attachments are very evident in much of the data regarding frustrations and positive attributes of online learning and graduate program choice. The attachments of students in a cohort based program, such as this, promote collectivity, trust and a narrowing of self-interest attitudes (Lawler & Thye, 2006). The implications of incorporating emotion into a modified social exchange theory as Lawler and Thye (2006) propose in Figure 1, include emotion affecting the strength of group



Figure 1: Modified Social Exchange Theory (Lawler & Thye, p. 301)

affiliation, interdependency and future patterns for exchange. This is reiterated by Cook & Rice (2006) who utilize Brian Uzzi’s term, “embeddedness,” to describe the depth and influence exchange relationships have on goals.

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Students are increasingly enrolling in online courses (Allen & Seaman, 2007, 2010). Students that are choosing to take online courses tend to be older students with many responsibilities; they are often working full-time with families (Lorenzetti, 2005). These students are thought to be students that would not be served by the selected institution in a traditional format (Allen & Seaman, 2007). * They are those that live a distance away from the school they are attending and have schedules that do not allow for extended commuting times. These students are looking for flexibility (Lorenzetti, 2005).

Students that participate in online graduate programs are not only looking for a program with flexibility. They are also looking to find a program that allows for the application of their coursework to their workplace; faculty that communicate well, frequently and with appropriate feedback; and support systems that are available and easy to use (Deggs, Grover, & Kacirek, 2010).

Students in online degree programs find many factors that enhance and hinder their experience in the program. Müller (2008) examined women’s experiences in online degree programs. He found that the key barriers were multiple responsibilities, poor or few interactions with faculty, and issues with the use of technology. Key factors that enhanced the students’ experiences were having a sense of community within the online program and feeling that the coursework was challenging and applicable to the students’ workplaces (Müller, 2008).

Students are beginning to have much more choice in the way that they learning. Adults students particularly are moving toward a more constructivist way of learning (Moore, 2005).

Allen, I.E., & Seaman, J. (2007). Making the grade: Online education in the United States, 2006, Southern Edition. Needham, MA: Sloan-C. Allen I.E., & Seaman, J. (2010). Class differences: Online education in the United States, 2010. Needham, MA: Babson Survey Research Group. Deggs, D., Grover, K., Kacirek, K. (2010). Expecatations of adult graduate students in an online degree program. //College Student Journal, 44//(3): 690-699. Lorenzetti, J.P. (2005). Secrets of online success: Lessons from the community colleges. //Distance Education Report, 9//(11): 3, 6. Moore, B. (2005). Key issues in web based education in the human services: A review of the literature. //Journal of Technology in Human Services, 23 (1/2),// 11-28. Müller, T. (2008). Persistence of women in online degree-completion programs. //The International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 9//(2). []

Articles about online education and online graduate programs: