Effects of Student Context and Synchronicity in a Hybrid Course
Abstract: Cooperative learning is associated with positive outcomes but little is known about how cooperative processes may be affected by student context (face-to-face or online) and communication synchrony. Social interdependence theory is used as a framework for examining cooperative perceptions and multitasking behavior in three contexts: face-to-face (FTF), synchronously online, and asynchronously online. Fourteen students participated in a hybrid course that blended FTF students with synchronous online students. As predicted, cooperative perceptions decreased and individualistic perceptions increased during asynchronous activities. Multitasking behavior also increased in asynchronous contexts compared to synchronous /face-to-face (FTF). For practice, results suggest that asynchrony represents a boundary condition in which cooperative learning operates differently than expected during face-to-face and synchronous interaction.