ATTITUDES OF TURKISH DISTANCE LEARNERS TOWARD INTERNET-BASED LEARNING: An Investigation Depending on Demographical Characteristics

ABSTRACTThe purpose of this study is to develop an attitude scale toward Internet-based learning (IBL) and to investigate whether attitude levels of Turkish distance learners in an IBL environment differ according to their demographical characteristics (i.e. age, gender, marital status, parental status, employment status, grade point average (GPA). Research data were gathered from 804 (491 male and 313 female) learners in an IBL environment at Sakarya University, Turkey. Explanatory factor analysis identified three factors with eigenvalues >1. The scale appears to be a reliable and valid instrument to assess the attitude levels of learners toward IBL. The analyses of demographical characteristic differences on the scale indicate that married learners, working learners and learners with children have significantly higher attitude levels toward IBL than those of unemployed and single learners and learners with no children. Male distance learners demonstrate significantly higher attitude levels than females do on the majority of the subscales. In general, learners over age of 26 have statistically higher attitude levels than those of younger learners. Attitude levels of learners with poor GPAs are significantly lower than those of learners with better GPAs. The findings are consistent with the related literature