Influence of faculty- and web portal design-related factors on web portal usability: A hierarchical regression analysis

Computers & Education 68 (2013) 187–198

Contents lists available at SciVerse ScienceDirect

Computers & Education journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/compedu

Influence of faculty- and web portal design-related factors on web portal usability: A hierarchical regression analysis Rex P. Bringula* College of Computer Studies and Systems, University of the East, 2219 C.M. Recto Avenue, Sampaloc, Manila 1008, Philippines

a r t i c l e i n f o

a b s t r a c t

Article history: Received 25 January 2013 Received in revised form 4 May 2013 Accepted 6 May 2013

This study determined the influence of faculty- and web portal design-related factors on web portal usability. Descriptive statistics revealed that most of the respondents were in their early 40’s, had Master’s degree, had Internet access at home, were committed to the use of the web portal, had been using the web portal for more than 4 semesters, and were intermediate users. They perceived that it was evident that the web portal was designed in terms of ease of use, information content, availability, speed, and aesthetics. Both e-learning services and library online resources were only used from time to time. The fourth step of hierarchical regression analysis showed age could only influence web portal usability provided the users were committed to the use of the web portal. The last step revealed that age, commitment to the use of the web portal, and information content found to influence web portal usability. Thus, the fourth and fifth null hypotheses were partially rejected. It was concluded that commitment was a strong positive “force” that could push older people to use Internet technologies, and technical and non-technical aspects influence web portal usability. Implications were also presented. Ó 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Age Commitment Information content Portal Usability

1. Introduction A website is one the best media in communicating the brand (Peterson, 2006; Won Jae, Green, Yong Jae, Seunghwan, & Schenewark, 2007) and mission (Peterson, 2006) of academic institutions. Prospective students could use the information found in the university website in deciding to apply in the university (Peterson, 2006). It also became a primary communication tool for students, parents, alumni, the community, donors, and funding organizations (Peterson, 2006). It is apparent that university websites can cater internal (i.e., current students, faculty, and staff) and external users (i.e., prospective students, faculty, and staff) (Padmannavar & Joshi, 2011). The functions of university websites are redefined due to advancements in Information Technology (Tabata & Johnsrud, 2008). It became more dynamic and responsive on the demands of the academic community. University websites can now support learning. Teachers can now post course materials, verify students’ class inclusion, administer students’ class performance evaluation, and post grades online. Teachers and students can also communicate through forum or chat for a formal or non-formal discussion. This form of learning that eliminates the barriers of time and distance (Alenezi, Abdul Karim, & Veloo, 2010) is called e-learning or distance learning (Alenezi et al., 2010; Al-Shboul and Alsmadi, 2010; Chan and Tung, 2008; Dabbagh, 2001). Consequently, the need for electronic forms of references, refereed articles, and other scholarly works for research, teaching, and instructional purposes emerge. Universities responded to these pressing needs by digitizing library resources. Libraries are now subscribed to electronic books (e-books), electronic journals (e-journals), magazines, newspapers, books, videos, DVDs, encyclopedias, streaming music and video, and other scholarly works which enable learners access these resources anytime and anywhere whenever an Internet connection and computer systems are available (Peterson, 2006; Rezaei Sharifabadi, 2006). The wide range of services and content available of digital libraries (Peterson, 2006) may lead to better academic research and work of both teachers and students (Rezaei Sharifabadi, 2006). It cannot be doubted that digital library services are an essential part of a quality e-learning system (Rezaei Sharifabadi, 2006). Digital library resources and e-learning capabilities of a university website are now consolidated into a single internet access point d through a web portal. A web portal integrates information, content, and enterprise applications (Averweg, Erwin, & Petkov, 2008). This makes portal a single point of access on the World Wide Web (Averweg et al., 2008; Raza, Yoo, Kim, Joo, & Jeong, 2009).

* 1508 Fajardo St., Sampaloc, Manila 1008, Philippines. Tel.: þ63 2 735 54 71x425. E-mail addresses: [email protected], [email protected]. 0360-1315/$ – see front matter Ó 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2013.05.008

188

R.P. Bringula / Computers & Education 68 (2013) 187–198

The University of the East (UE) in Manila is an institution of higher learning that utilizes the capabilities of a web portal. UE has alumni, academic, student, and faculty portals. The latter two portals have the facilities of supporting e-learning and providing library online resources. Fig. 1 shows a sample of the e-learning facilities and library online resources of a faculty portal. Fig. 1-a shows that a teacher can upload a lecture with a file size of up to 2 megabytes. It accepts Word, PowerPoint, pdf, and spreadsheet files. On the other hand, Fig. 1-b shows the search result for an e-book. Users can view the text or download a pdf copy of the searched e-book. The optimum use of the UE faculty and student portals depends on the initiative of the faculty members to use the portal. Tabata and Johnsrud (2008) commented that the growth of distance education relies on the engagement of the faculty. They further explained that: ‘faculty are a critical and core resource to the success of any distance education initiative and facilitating understanding of university educators and policy makers as to the conditions that encourage or discourage faculty participation may assist in sustaining academic quality and integrity.’ Tabata & Johnsrud, 2008, p. 626 Zaharias and Poylymenakou (2009) also noted that poor design and usability issues were two of the reasons for non-use of e-learning facilities. Thus, it is important to determine what facilitates the use of the e-learning facilities and digital library resources of teachers. In this way, the optimum use of the faculty web portal is achieved. Hence, the present study was conceived to answer the following questions: 1) What are the faculty-related factors in terms of age, highest educational attainment, length of use of the web portal, level of user experience, Internet access at home, and commitment to the use of the web portal?; 2) How do respondents perceive the web portal design-related factors in terms of ease of navigation, information content, availability, speed, and aesthetics?; 3) What is the level of usability of the web portal e-learning services and online library resources in terms of frequency of use?; and 4) Do faculty- and web portal design-related factors, singly or in combination, influence web portal usability? 2. Literature review 2.1. Faculty-related factors Katsanos, Tselios, and Avouris (2010) commented that the heterogeneity of users’ profiles make the design of a website difficult. One of the profiles to be considered is age because abilities of people change due to aging (Moreno, Castro, & Martinez, 2007) and in turn, it could influence the way a user uses a website (Banati, Bedi, & Grover, 2006). Unfortunately, this was not consistently considered in the development of websites (Moreno et al., 2007). As a result, the Internet was one of the technologies that can be difficult for older people (i.e., 60 years old and above) to use (Becker, 2005; Coyne & Nielsen, 2002 cited in Ownby (2006)). Becker (2005) explained that vision, cognition, and physical impairments associated with aging process served as barriers in using the Internet. Physiological changes impact the ability to see web objects and read online content (Becker, 2005; Curran, Walters, & Robinson, 2007; Ownby, 2006), distinguish certain colors (Curran et al., 2007; Ownby, 2006), and see links on web pages (Ownby, 2006). Ellis and Kurniawan (2000) also pointed-out that fast-moving textual or graphical objects are not appropriate for older users. The changes in motor function such as the eye-hand coordination make it difficult for old users to use the mouse (Tse, Choi, & Leung, 2008) and keyboard (Ownby, 2006). Thus, mouseovers are inappropriate designs for older users (Curran et al., 2007). Two studies established that age and level of education could influence website usability. Gagliardi, Mazzarini, Papa, Giuli, and Marcellini (2009) recruited forty-five elderly subjects (at least 65 years old) and disabled people (deaf, mute, blind, and with motor problems) to

Fig. 1. Faculty portal facilities.

R.P. Bringula / Computers & Education 68 (2013) 187–198

189

determine the website barriers in this group. Participants signed-up for computer science courses. These courses include computer science basics, Internet and e-mail, and use of Marcheaccessibili website. The Marcheaccessibili website was designed for the above participants in order to address usability issues. Respondents were given exercises at the end of each course and completed a questionnaire. Participants were asked to answer the questionnaire anonymously except for the blind participants who were assisted by a volunteer. The questionnaire aimed to determine the quality of the learning program, satisfaction of participants in the program in terms of teaching, course organization, self-rated evaluation of outcome, website utility and usability, and difficulties in computer use. It was revealed that the level of education was significantly correlated with website design and content. Gagliardi et al. (2009) showed that people with fewer physical problems and the better educated among subjects were more receptive and able to process new information which enabled them to use the computer correctly and more quickly than their disadvantaged peers. In the study of Flood and O’Reilly (2006), credibility, usability, and accessibility were the three issues in formulating the minimal set of guidelines for website design. In order to address these issues, they identified the minimal set of guidelines such as limiting the use of images and ensuring a text attribute exists for each image, avoiding the use of frames, balancing component layout (e.g., graphics not overpower the text), ensuring proper structural elements, ensuring that the text should be concise, scannable, and objective, ensuring that the table content makes sense, providing clear and consistent navigation mechanisms, using Flash or other animation techniques to enhance the website, and choosing appropriate color scheme. They developed two versions of websites – one that did not follow the guideline and one that followed the guidelines. Four groups of users (user with disabilities, novice users, experienced users, and older users) used the two versions of the websites. After completing five tasks on each version of the website, they answered an open-ended questionnaire. The questionnaire aimed to determine the users’ initial perception and expectations on the website, and views on the looks, colors, images, content, animations, navigation, and trustworthiness of the website. The study revealed that using the minimal set of guidelines left many participants disappointed with the lack of color, animations and images. However, it must be noted that the older participants liked the minimal usage of images and animations in the websites design while the younger participants preferred to see more use of these in the website design. The study concluded that minimizing the design of the website influence the participants’ expectations on the website. On the other hand, Tabata and Johnsrud (2008) showed that age had a positive influence in the participation of faculty in distance education. Using logistic regression analysis, Tabata and Johnsrud (2008) showed that for each additional year of respondents’ age, there was a 1% increase in the probability of participating in distance education. Effective design is not absolute since it depends on skills of individual users (Sandvig & Bajwa, 2004). Internet or user experience could influence website use. Internet experience is the extent of a person’s experience of performance specific tasks using the Internet (Alenezi et al., 2010). Broadly, Banati et al. (2006) used the term user experience to classify novice, expert, and professional users. It also referred to the amount and the frequency of usage of Internet by the user (Banati et al., 2006). Abbad (2011) presented a literature review in e-learning and opined that user experience could influence usage of e-learning. Furthermore, the study of Hub and Zatloukal (2009) performed usability evaluation of ten (10) selected Web Portals of Public Administration (WPPAs). They categorized the ten (10) evaluators as novice, average, and experienced users. Evaluators could rate the usability of the websites from 0 to 100. It was revealed that experienced users had the lowest perception (74.7 points) on the usability of the WPPAs. They argued that this low evaluation of experienced users were due to the fact that experienced users were more critical in evaluating a website and could easily discern a good or bad design. Norris, Topp, and Soloway (2005) explored the impact of teachers’ access to computers in their own home. To achieve this goal, they compared the levels of technology experience of seventy (70) grade school teachers who competed and won between $5000 and $10,000 grants for educational technology projects and one hundred forty (140) grade school teachers from a rural school district in Michigan. Through a “snapshot” survey, it was revealed that the more technologically sophisticated teachers (i.e., those who competed and won grants for educational technology projects) used email at home (81%) and integrate the used of the Internet in their classrooms for teaching activities (60%). They also perceived (1 – strongly disagree to 5 – strongly agree) that their teaching was improved through the use of technology (mean ¼ 4.05), and needed more time to integrate the technology into the curriculum. On the contrary, they found out that few rural school district teachers used email at home (47%), used the Internet in the classroom for teaching (24%), and convinced that their teaching was improved by technology (mean ¼ 3.05). While the more technology-sophisticated teachers perceived that they need more time to integrate the technology into the curriculum, the lesser technology-sophisticated teachers believed that they need more time to learn to use the technology. Interestingly, it was revealed that more technology-sophisticated teachers could influence their students to use the same technology (Norris et al., 2005). Given these findings, the study of Norris et al. (2005) recommended that the government should support teachers by providing the latter computer access at home and at school. Teachers who are committed to use e-learning and online digital library resources could be expected to use the technology even if the benefits are not apparent. Commitment is a “force that binds an individual to a course of action” (Meyer & Herscovitch, 2001, p. 301). It is also “an enduring desire to maintain a valued relationship” (Moorman, Zaltman, & Deshpande, 1992, p. 316). Once a person commits to a course of action, that person enters “a state of being” in which he “becomes bound by his actions and through these actions to beliefs that sustain the activities and his own involvement” (Salancik, 1977, p. 62). In other words, commitment is what makes us like what we do and continue doing it in similar circumstances (Li, Browne, & Chau, 2006; Salancik, 1977; Yildiz, 2007). Commitment was empirically tested in the study of a sports website. Won Jae, Green, Yong Jae, Seunghwan, and Schenewark (2007) investigated the influence of commitment to the website, cohesion, and attitude on intentions to use National Football League teams’ websites. Using structural equation modeling on the data gathered from one hundred forty-four (144) respondents who answered an online survey, it was revealed that commitment and attitude directly influenced the intention to use the website. 2.2. Website design-related factors The study of Preece (2001) identified some key determinants of sociability (concerned with developing software, policies and practices to support social interaction online) and usability (concerned with how intuitive and easy it is for individuals to learn to use and interact with a

190

R.P. Bringula / Computers & Education 68 (2013) 187–198

product) of online communities. Online community is defined as “a virtual social space where people come together to get and give information or support, to learn or to find company” (Preece, 2001, p. 348). The author advocated that the usability of an online community had four components. The components were dialogue and social interaction support (e.g., prompts and feedback that support interaction, ease with which commands can be executed, ease with which avatars can be moved, spatial relationships in the environment), information design (easy, understandable, aesthetically-pleasing information associated with the community), navigation (ease with which users can move around and find what they want in the community and associated websites), and access (clear requirements to download and run online community software). A usability study was also conducted in government websites. The study of Becker (2005) assessed 50 state and 50 federal e-government home pages in terms of potential usability barrier for older adults (at least 60 years old). Becker (2005) disclosed that there were eight (8) design components that served as usability barriers for older users. Hence, these barriers should be eliminated in US government websites. The first component was advertisements. Advertisements could negatively impact the usability of a site since it adds clutter to a page and make web navigation and information content of the site less intuitive. Consequently, this resulted to confusion to users. Older adults had difficulties to differentiate between visited and unvisited links. Becker (2005) found out that 62% of federal and 76% of state home pages that did not provide visual cues whether the link was already visited or not and 60% of all government home pages have redundant links. There were also less meaningful links such as abbreviations, acronyms, or jargons that impact the comprehension of website. Overall, these reduced the readability and navigability of the website. Physically-challenging website designs were also reported by Becker (2005). Adults with less dexterity and unsteady hands find it difficult to execute mouseovers. This maneuver requires precise movement of the mouse in order to highlight and select a web object. Becker reported that more than one-third of the websites assessed used mouseover technology to display menu items on the home page. Also, 84% of the websites displayed one or more website objects in smaller than 12-point font (e.g., “help”, “privacy policy”, and “contact us” links) and this impact the readability of web content. A small font size is not appropriate for older users with aging vision. A lengthy home page was also a barrier in web usability for older users. It impacts memory recalls since it increases the amount of vertical scrolling from top to bottom of the page. Unfortunately, almost one-fourth of federal and 10% of state websites had home pages that were three or more vertical screen pages in length (Becker, 2005). When this is coupled with patterned background images, the website usability decreases. Overlaying text in a small font size, inadequate or non-availability of color contrast capability, or italicized font sizes negatively impact the readability of websites for older users. Performance, in terms of download time, was also a factor of website usability. Becker (2005) reported that 25% of the websites investigated took 30 s or more to download. The Administration on Aging site (www.aoa.gov) was the slowest to download at 71 s. Bilingual functionality of website was also investigated by Becker (2005). This is suitable since there are Spanish-speaking Mexican-Americans in the United States. Only 10% of state and 33% of federal sites provided Spanish versions of the website. Meanwhile, most usability studies were in the domain of business or e-commerce. For example, Tarafdar and Zhang (2005) determined the factors that could influence website usability of portals and search engines, retail, entertainment, news and information, and financial services. In order to achieve this goal, they pre-identified that factors and tested whether these factors contribute to website usability. These factors were Information Content (refers to the content, nature, and organization of information in a website), Ease of Navigation (the ease with which users can navigate the website), Customization and Personalization (the extent to which the website can be customized to the needs of individual customers), Download Speed (the technical superiority of the website in terms of download speed), Security (the extent to which the website as perceived and characterized as safe), and Availability (the extent to which the website makes its contents available to users in a form that is easy to acquire and understand). Tarafdar and Zhang (2005) developed a content-validated questionnaire with 46 questions. The questions could be answered in a five-point Likert scale. This questionnaire was utilized by two Information Systems (IS) researchers in evaluating 200 websites. The data gathered from the two IS researchers were subjected to statistical test. Test of difference between means revealed that information content, ease of navigation, download speed, and availability affect usability. They explained why website security and customization did not influence usability. Website security includes authentication, authorization, encryption, and password protection that require additional processing which in turn increased the complexity of the website. This also requires extra tasks to be performed by users. Likewise, customization did not emerge as a factor of usability since customizing web pages requires additional efforts and expertise of the users. A similar, yet methodologically-different, study was conducted by Wang and Senecal (2007). Wang and Senecal (2007) developed a short, reliable, and valid website usability measurement scale. A sample of 350 participants participated in the study and was asked to buy a sweater in an online store. Afterward, they were asked to complete a paper-based questionnaire. The questionnaire was used to assess the perceptions’ of the respondents on the usability of the website and also their attitudes toward the website. In this study, ease of navigation, speed and interactivity were the constructs of website usability. Ease of navigation relates to the level of time and effort required to accomplish specific tasks (Venkatesh, 2000 cited by Wang and Senecal (2007)). It helps users acquire the information they are seeking and makes the information easier to find. In the literature reviewed by Wang and Senecal (2007), ease of navigation has been deemed important by majority (9 out of 10 studies reviewed) of researchers. Speed refers to the attainment of the goals of the users in using the website without too much wait. This was measured in terms of the user’s perception on the download delay of the website. Meanwhile, Interactivity is a functionality of a system wherein a customer can customize websites. Statistical analyses (structural equation modeling and linear regression) revealed that ease of navigation, speed and interactivity were the underlying factors of website usability. It was also disclosed that website usability and attitudes toward website had significant positive relationship. Finally, it was also revealed that the underlying factors of website usability had positive relationships with attitude toward the website. Ease of navigation had the largest effect on attitude, followed by interactivity, and speed. Tung, Xu, and Tan (2009) utilized the Repertory Grid Technique (RGT) to determine the attributes that web users consider important when using business-to-consumer (B2C) Websites. RGT is a qualitative inductive approach that could elicit what people think about a given topic without the interference of interviewer bias. Twenty-five (25) respondents were drawn from companies in the Singapore 1000 list. The Singapore 1000 list is the list of top 1000 companies in Singapore based on their financial performance. Qualitative responses were coded and classified.

R.P. Bringula / Computers & Education 68 (2013) 187–198

191

The analysis of the data revealed that content, ease of use, emotion, promotion, and made-for-the-medium were the important attributes of website usability. Tung et al. (2009) defined content as to the extent to which the website offers information and transactional capability. They further divided it in terms of Relevance, Quality, Media Use, Depth and Breath, Timeliness of the website content. The extent to which website is free of effort is the domain of Ease of Use. Its two major elements include Navigation and Presentation. The former allows users to acquire more information they seek in an easy manner while the latter ensures that website information are not cluttered and can be clearly seen. The third category was about the satisfaction on the use of a website, confidence of the web users in using a website, and perceived playfulness of the website. These were the subcategories of Emotion. It was defined as the extent to which website evokes emotional reactions from the users. The fourth category is promotion which refers to the extent to which website is well-promoted on web and other media. Lastly, made-for-the-medium is the extent to which website can be tailored to fit the specific needs of the users. This is similar to customization as shown in the previous studies. Website industries were also the focus of study of Nathan and Yeow (2011). Four hundred respondents evaluated the websites of thirtysix (36) industries (e.g., application service provider, automotive, financial, travel, etc.) in terms of seven website usability factors, i.e., use of color and font, use of graphics and multimedia, clarity of goals in website, trustworthiness of website, interactivity of website, ease of web navigation, and downloading speed of website. Multiple regression analysis revealed that use of color and font is the most important predictor of overall website usability. It was found to be the most important factor for websites from the Financial Information, Web Design, Employment, Food and Beverage, Flowers, Furniture, Health/Medicine, Legal Aid, Management Consultancy, Mass Marketing, Music, Publicity, Sports, and Equipment industries. In the Education industry, it was revealed that the predictors of education website usability (arranged from the most to least important) were use of color and font, trustworthiness of website, clarity of goals in website, use of graphics and multimedia, ease of web navigation and interactivity of website. Wang, Wei, and Guo (2012) reviewed the literature in website design and adapted information content in the design of an electronic retail website. They identified four categories of attributes with seventeen (17) attributes of electronic retail website. These categories were media richness (e.g., number of text clusters, number of elements with animation, number of colors, graphs, and images used in a home page, background texture of home page, pop-up ads, and sound), business formality (e.g., contact, customer service, language selection, and logo appearance), legal formality (e.g., security site and copyright notice), and navigability (e.g., search engine, site map, consistent design, and number of text and graphic links). They compared these design factors between 50 U.S. websites and 50 Chinese websites. It was revealed that among the seventeen (17) attributes being examined, cross-cultural differences exhibited in the thirteen (13) attributes. There was no significant difference in the e-retail website design in terms of graphs and images, presence of text colors, sounds, and contact information. A study conducted by Bellman, Lohse, and Johnson (1999) confirmed that information content could predict online sales. Bellman et al. (1999) conducted the Wharton Virtual Test Market (WVTM) in 1997. It seeks to understand web consumer demographics, attitudes about online shopping, and predictors of online buying behavior. The study reported that the 10,180 respondents answered a 62-item questionnaire. The data was subjected to logistic regression analysis. It was revealed that the most important predictor of online sales was the meaningful product information. Cai and Xu (2011) argued that aesthetics has largely been ignored in research on website design. In order fill this gap, they focused their study on aesthetics and asserted that it could influence consumer shopping. According to Cai and Xu (2011), aesthetics could either be expressive (i.e., relates to the fascinating and decorative features of a website, such as rich graphics and intriguing images) or classical (i.e., relates to how the website elements are well-organized in an orderly and clarified manner). A sample of 173 students was asked to evaluate a website using a questionnaire developed by the researchers. Analysis of variance revealed that expressive and classical aesthetics had significant effects on shopping enjoyment and were also positively associated with consumers’ shopping process value. Shopping process value refers to the saving of time and effort associated with the process of shopping. There were also few studies that investigated website usability in the context of education. Chan and Tung (2008) proposed a technology acceptance model that could serve as basis in studying the students’ behavioral intentions to use the online learning course websites. They hypothesized that 1) compatibility, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, perceived system quality, and computer self-efficacy would have a positive effect on behavioral intention to use the online learning course websites, 2) compatibility would have a direct effect on perceived usefulness, and 3) perceived ease of use would have a positive effect on the perceived usefulness of the online learning course websites. Chan and Tung (2008) operationally defined these terms as follows.  Compatibility refers to the degree to which the innovation is perceived to be consistent with the potential users’ existing values, previous experiences and needs.  Perceived usefulness is the degree to which a person believes that using a particular system will enhance his or her job performance.  Perceived ease of use is the degree to which a person believes that using a particular system will be free of effort.  System quality is concerned with whether or not there are ‘bugs’ in the system, the consistency of the user interface, ease of use, response rates in interactive systems, quality documentation, and sometimes, quality and maintainability of the program code (adapted by Chan and Tung (2008) from Seddon (1997)).  Computer self-efficacy is defined as ‘an individual’s perceptions of his or her ability to use computers in the accomplishment of a task rather than reflecting simple component skills’ (adapted by Chan and Tung (2008) from Compeau and Higgins (1995, p. 192)). To test the hypotheses, data were gathered from 736 undergraduate students in Taiwan. Respondents were asked to answer a 21-item questionnaire. Respondents could answer from 1 (exceptionally disagree) to 7 (exceptionally agree). Only two hundred twelve (212) usable survey forms were retrieved. These were all used in the analysis. Using structural equation modeling, all hypotheses were supported. The practical implication of the findings of the study is that “the study predicts how students will respond to the online learning course websites, and increases students acceptance by improving the techniques and processes by which they are implemented” (Chan & Tung, 2008, p. 81). The study of Teoh, Ong, Lim, Liong, and Yap (2009) was also focused on educational website. It determined the rank of the seven factors of the usability framework in designing the website for the Center of Biometrics and Bioinformatics of Multimedia University. The seven factors were screen appearance, consistency, web accessibility, navigation, media use, interactivity, and content. Screen appearance indicates the design of the website in terms of the on-screen information. Consistency refers to the uniformity of the design. The ability to access the

192

R.P. Bringula / Computers & Education 68 (2013) 187–198

website from different browser platforms is the focus of web accessibility. “Hypermovements” between pages and between websites and the use of multimedia (i.e., text, graphics, video, and animation) were the considerations of navigation and media use, respectively. Interactivity is the level of communication of the website in the form of contact information, enquiries, and forum. Lastly, content refers to the information and general substance of the website. Forty respondents consisting of lecturers, researchers, postgraduate students, research officers, and undergraduate students in the said university ranked (from 1-highest to 7-lowest) the importance of the seven factors. Content was the most important factor while Consistency was the least important factor. The order of ranking, from highest to lowest, was Content, Interactivity, Media Use, Navigation, Screen Appearance, Accessibility, and Consistency. Zaharias and Poylymenakou (2009) also developed a psychometric-type of questionnaire that intended to measure users’ perception of elearning usability, instructional design, and motivation to learn in an e-learning environment. The questionnaire was focused on usability evaluation of asynchronous e-learning applications in a corporate setting for training purposes. The study intended to find valid and reliable questions for e-learning usability, instruction design of e-learning applications, and motivation. The attributes of e-learning were navigation, learnability, accessibility, consistency, and visual design. All except learnability is already defined by previous studies presented above. Learnability is an attribute of the web course wherein the course could be understood easily so that online help or other documentation would not interfere with learning and/or finding the desired information in the website. On the other hand, the attributes of instructional design include interactivity, content and resources, media use, learning strategies design, feedback, instructional assessment, and learner guidance and support. Factor analysis was conducted in order to find the underlying dimensions of e-learning usability and reduced the number of items contained in the questionnaire. Reliability analysis was then performed to test the consistency of the identified factors. One hundred thirteen (113) trainees of user organizations participated in the project and answered the questionnaire. From the initial questionnaire with 64 questions, it was reduced to 49 questions. Multiple regression analysis was also performed to determine the relationship between e-learning usability dimensions and motivation. It was shown that there was a strong relationship between e-learning usability dimensions and motivation to learn. The study recommended that the developed questionnaire be utilized to measure usability of asynchronous e-learning systems. 3. Research framework and hypotheses The foregoing review of related studies served as a basis in the formulation of the research framework shown in Fig. 2. The independent variables were composed of two constructs. Faculty-related factors were the first set of constructs. These were composed of Age, Highest Educational Attainment, Length of Use of the Web Portal, Level of User Experience, Internet Access at Home, and Commitment to the Use of the Web Portal (i.e., sense of obligation of the respondents in using the web portal). Web Portal Design-Related Factors were the second set of constructs which were composed of Ease of Navigation, Information Content, Availability, Speed, and Aesthetics. Faculty Web Portal Usability was the dependent variable. It was composed of two web portal elements – e-learning services and online library resources. The study only included two demographic variables – Age and Highest Educational Attainment. Length of Use of the Web Portal and Level of User Experience were chosen as measures of computer efficacy and user experience. Length of Use of the Web Portal denotes a level of familiarity with the web portal while Level of User Experience denotes self-rated confidence on using the web portal. It is also argued that Internet Access at Home played a significant role in the usability of the web portal since the primary objective of the web portal is to access educational materials even at home at anytime of the day. It takes commitment to use the web portal since the university does not oblige faculty members to use the web portal. Finally, the variables under Web Portal Design-Related Factors were selected because these were deemed to be applicable to the nature of the website being investigated. In light of the research framework, the following null hypotheses were tested. H0a. Age and Highest Educational Attainment of Faculty-Related Factors, singly or in combination, do not influence web portal usability. H0b. Age, Highest Educational Attainment, Length of Use of the Web Portal, and Level of User Experience of Faculty-Related Factors, singly or in combination, do not influence web portal usability. H0c. Age, Highest Educational Attainment, Length of Use of the Web Portal, Level of User Experience, and Internet Access at Home of Faculty-Related Factors, singly or in combination, do not influence web portal usability. H0d. Age, Highest Educational Attainment, Length of Use of the Web Portal, Level of User Experience, Internet Access at Home, and Commitment to the Use of the Web Portal of Faculty-Related Factors, singly or in combination, do not influence web portal usability. H0e. Faculty- and Web Portal Design-Related factors, singly or in combination, do not influence web portal usability. Hierarchical regression analysis was utilized to examine the amount of variability in web portal usability that web portal design-related factors account after controlling for the variables of faculty-related factors. This is depicted in Fig. 2. In other words, it aimed to determine the net influence (if there was any) of each independent variable on the dependent variable. It would also allow us to examine if an independent variable would have or would not have a significant influence with the dependent variable when group to other independent variables.

4. Methodology The study was a descriptive research design. It was conducted at the University of the East (UE) during the Second Semester of School Year 2010–2011. Using Sloven’s formula (e ¼ 0.10), a minimum sample size of 88 was derived from 725 full- and part-time faculty members of the six colleges of UE. The names of the faculty members were written on a piece of paper and randomly picked out. To accommodate low return rate, 353 forms were distributed. One hundred and twenty four (124) forms were retrieved but only 118 forms were usable. Only the usable forms were used in the analysis.

R.P. Bringula / Computers & Education 68 (2013) 187–198

Independent variables

193

Dependent variables

Step 1: Faculty-Related Factors • Age • Highest Educational Attainment Step 2: Faculty-Related Factors • Age • Highest Educational Attainment • Length of Use of the Web Portal • Level of User Experience Step 3: Faculty-Related Factors • Age • Highest Educational Attainment • Length of Use of the Web Portal • Level of User Experience • Internet Access at Home Step 4: Faculty-Related Factors • Age • Highest Educational Attainment • Length of Use of the Web Portal • Level of User Experience • Internet Access at Home • Commitment to the Use of the Web Portal Step 5: Faculty-Related Factors • Age • Highest Educational Attainment • Length of Use of the Web Portal • Level of User Experience • Internet Access at Home • Commitment to the Use of the Web Portal

Ha

Hb

Hc

Faculty Web Portal Usability e-learning services • Class list download • Lecture upload • Student-teacher forums • Evaluation results

Hd

Library online resources • e-journals • e-books • Articles • Case studies He

Web Portal Design-Related Factors • Ease of Navigation • Information Content • Availability • Speed • Aesthetics Fig. 2. Research framework.

The study adopted the validated and pre-tested questionnaire developed by Bringula and Basa (2011). The adopted questionnaire was found to be valid (factor loading greater than 0.50) and reliable (above the minimum criterion of 0.70). Table 1 shows the coding used to measure the following variables. Commitment to the Use of the Web Portal (1 – Not committed to 5 – Highly committed), Web Portal Design-Related Factors (1 – Not evident to 5 – Highly evident), and Faculty Web Portal Usability (1 – Never to 5 – Very often) utilized a five-point scale shown in Table 2. Frequency counts, mean, and percentage were utilized to describe the data. Five steps of hierarchical regression analysis at 1% level of probability and 99% reliability were employed to determine which of the factors influence faculty web portal usability.

5. Findings and discussion 5.1. Descriptives Table 3 shows that the respondents of the study were relatively young (Mean (M) ¼ 39.7), most had attained their Master’s degree (f ¼ 85, 72%), had used the portal for more than four semesters (f ¼ 60, 51%), and were intermediate users of the web portal (f ¼ 69, 59%). The length of portal use and the self-reported user experience were indications that respondents attained a level of familiarity of web portal use. One hundred and two (f ¼ 102, 86%) respondents had Internet access at home. This implies that respondents can conveniently access the web portal services at home. The convenience of having an Internet connection at home enables teachers to communicate with their students and share their lectures online. It was also found that respondents were committed (M ¼ 3.68) to the use of the web portal. Faculty members are not compelled to use the web portal but they are highly encouraged by the University to do so. This finding is a clear indication

194

R.P. Bringula / Computers & Education 68 (2013) 187–198

Table 1 Coding of variables. Variable

Possible response

Assigned numerical values

Highest Educational Attainment

Bachelor’s degree Master’s degree Doctoral degree

1 2 3

Length of Use of the Web Portal

Less than 1 semester 1 semester 2 semesters 3 semesters 4 semesters More than 4 semesters

1 2 3 4 5 6

Level of User Experience

Beginner Intermediate Expert

1 2 3

Internet Access at Home

Without Internet Access at Home With Internet Access at Home

0 1

that even without an existing policy on the use of the faculty web portal, it can be expected that faculty members will use the educational technology provided by the university. Follow-up interviews with two faculty members revealed that their commitment arose from a sense of dedication in teaching. They would use the portal simply because they wanted to ensure that students had copies of their lectures and were informed about announcements. Nonetheless, an in-depth study could be initiated to shed light on this gap. Overall, respondents perceived (Grand Mean ¼ 3.81, Evident) that the web portal was designed in accordance with web portal designrelated factors (See Table 4). This means that the design of the web portal was acceptable to the respondents. Specifically, it was evident that the web portal was designed in accordance with Ease of Navigation (M ¼ 3.84), Information Content (M ¼ 4.00), Availability (M ¼ 3.73), Speed (M ¼ 3.56), and Aesthetics (M ¼ 4.13). Aesthetics received the highest mean rating, while Speed received the lowest. As can be seen in Table 5, faculty members use e-learning services only from time to time (Grand Mean ¼ 3.32, Sometimes). Two of the elearning services were used often (Downloading of Class list, M ¼ 3.56; and Viewing of Evaluation Results, M ¼ 3.60). Downloading of class lists is now often used because of two main reasons. First, it provides better classroom management in checking students’ inclusion in the class. Electronic copies of class lists provide up-to-date records and, therefore, late enrollees can be verified easily in the records. The second reason, which is related to the first reason, is that teachers are now aware that accepting students unofficially enrolled in a class is a serious offense. The university treats this as a very serious offense and can impose sanctions. On the other hand, faculty members only upload lecture materials (M ¼ 3.36, Sometimes) and use student–teacher forums (M ¼ 2.75, Sometimes) from time to time. It was previously shown through informal interviews that faculty members were committed to using the web portal since they would like to provide their students with handouts and inform them of important announcements. While it seems contradictory that commitment to use the web portal did not match the frequency of use of the above e-learning services, it can be explained by the fact that teachers do not give handouts that often. However, if there is a need to distribute handouts, it is expected that teachers will utilize the web portal services since this ensures that all officially enrolled students on a particular course will receive the handouts and the announcements. This finding also suggests that frequency of use is not a full proof indicator of web portal usability. The elements of e-learning services may not be used that often, but the services offered are very reliable. As mentioned earlier, once lecture notes and announcements are posted for a course, it is possible to ensure that all students will receive the materials. In this regard, the intended purpose of the web portal was achieved. This could lead to satisfaction with the use of technology (Teoh et al., 2009) of web portal services, which can also be used as an indicator of web portal usability. Similarly, despite the pedagogical value of online library resources, these resources were only used occasionally (Grand Mean ¼ 3.14, Sometimes). Teachers are aware of the benefits of online library resources to learning and teaching. However, reading other source materials such as e-books and e-journals would require more time. Since teachers have other responsibilities to attend to, they would conveniently use the same teaching and reading materials for the next semesters. In short, time constraints (Al-Shboul & Alsmadi, 2010; Kamba, 2009) hampered the use of online library resources. Other constraints pointed out by Kamba (2009) and Al-Shboul and Alsmadi (2010) could serve as bases for further investigation in the context of this study. 5.2. Hierarchical regression of faculty web portal usability on faculty- and web portal design-related factors As shown in Table 6, the first three steps of hierarchical regression revealed that Age (p1, p2, p3 > 0.01), Highest Educational Attainment (p1, p2, p3 > 0.01), Length of Use of Web Portal, Level of User Experience (p1, p2, p3 > 0.01), and Internet Access at Home (p1, p2, p3 > 0.01) did Table 2 The 5-point scale, mean range, and its verbal interpretation. Weight

Mean range

Verbal interpretation

5 4 3 2 1

4.51–5.00 3.51–4.50 2.51–3.50 1.51–2.50 1.00–1.50

Highly (committed/evident)/Very often Committed/Evident/Often Moderately (committed/evident)/Sometimes Slightly (committed/evident)/Seldom Not (committed/evident)/Never

R.P. Bringula / Computers & Education 68 (2013) 187–198

195

Table 3 Faculty-related factors. Faculty-related factors

Frequency (f)

%

Highest Educational Attainment Bachelor’s degree Master’s degree Doctoral degree Total

15 85 18 118

13 72 15 100

Length of Use of Web Portal Less than 1 semester 1 semester 2 semesters 3 semesters 4 semesters More than 4 semesters Total

0 10 12 22 14 60 118

0 8 10 19 12 51 100

Level of User Experience Beginner Intermediate Expert Total

17 69 32 118

14 59 27 100

Internet Access at Home With Internet access at home Without Internet access at home Total

102 16 118

86 14 100

Age The average age of the respondents is 39.7.

Commitment to the Use of the Web Portal The commitment of the respondents to the use of the web portal is 3.68.

not influence faculty web portal usability. (The subscripts in p-values indicate the steps in regression.) In the fourth step, Commitment to the Use of the Web Portal (p4 < 0.01; beta ¼ 0.423) was entered in the regression and it was found to influence positively web portal usability. There was a significant increase in the variance (DR2 ¼ 0.171) of the variables and the result was unlikely to have arisen from sampling error (F(2,120) ¼ 6.347, p < 0.01). The change in variance (DR2) indicates that 17% in the variability of web portal usability is on account of Commitment and Age. It can also be noted that the beta value of Commitment to the Use of the Web Portal (beta ¼ 0.423) is larger than the beta value of Age (beta ¼ 0.304). This signifies that the former has a stronger influence than the latter. The study also revealed an interesting finding. When Commitment to the Use of the Web Portal was entered in the fourth regression, the influencing value of Age (p4 < 0.01; beta ¼ 0.304) on web portal usability became significant. The beta value of Age also indicates that the influence of Age is positive. The results show that age alone could not influence web portal usability. Age has to be accompanied by Commitment to the Use of the Web Portal in order for the users to make use of the web portal. This further explains the findings of Li et al. (2006), Won Jae et al. (2007), and Tabata and Johnsrud (2008). The results also supported the commitment theories of Salancik (1977), Moorman et al. (1992), and Meyer and Herscovitch (2001). The implications of the findings are twofold. First, the difficulties brought by old age may be barriers in using a web portal, but it does not warrant the total exclusion of older users. In fact, as shown by Table 6, the beta value of Age is positive. This indicates that aging would not indicate non-use of the portal. Difficulties may arise while using a website, but if the users are persistent and committed, they should still be able to use a web portal. The second implication of the findings concerns web portal management. Teachers are committed to using the web portal in spite of the absence of institutional policy enjoining them to do this. Teachers already possess one of the fundamental ingredients of optimizing the use of technology and the institution should sustain this. Sustaining the commitment to the use of the web portal can be in the form of converting an eligible course to a blended learning. In this way, the web portal will be used frequently and the issue of time constraints will also be resolved. Additionally, the last step hierarchical regression revealed that among the web portal design-related factors, only Information Content (beta ¼ 0.402; p5 < 0.01) influenced web portal usability. The finding was similar to the studies of Bellman et al. (1999), Tarafdar and Zhang (2005), Teoh et al. (2009), and Tung et al. (2009). It also supported the study of Chan and Tung (2008). Age (beta ¼ 0.227, p5 < 0.01) and Table 4 Respondents’ perceptions of the web portal design-related factors. Web portal design-related factors

Mean

Verbal interpretation

Ease of Navigation Information Content Availability Speed Aesthetics Grand Mean

3.83 4.00 3.73 3.56 4.13 3.81

Evident Evident Evident Evident Evident Evident

196

R.P. Bringula / Computers & Education 68 (2013) 187–198 Table 5 Frequency of use of the web portal elements. Web portal elements

Mean

Verbal Interpretation

E-learning services Downloading of class list Uploading of lecture materials Student-Teacher forums Evaluation results Grand Mean

3.56 3.36 2.75 3.60 3.32

Often Sometimes Sometimes Often Sometimes

Online library resources e-journals e-books Articles Case studies Grand Mean Overall Mean

3.19 3.13 3.22 3.03 3.14 3.23

Sometimes Sometimes Sometimes Sometimes Sometimes Sometimes

Commitment (beta ¼ 0.306; p5 < 0.01) were also found to be consistent predictors of web portal usability. Among the three predictors, Information Content was the strongest. The percentage of variability went up from 17.1% to 19.8% (DR2 ¼ 0.198) – not much of an increase. Other variables that were not included could be considered, such as perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and attitudes (Abbad, 2011). Nonetheless, the results were unlikely to have arisen from sampling error (F(11,106) ¼ 7.982; p < 0.01). The results suggest that in order for the web portal to be usable, website designers should focus on the relevance and comprehensiveness of online library resources. In this study, Information Content also refers to the mechanisms of disseminating information (i.e., uploading lectures and posting announcements). Therefore, web portal designers should ensure that these services are always functional. The web portal should also be more flexible in accepting files such as videos. Consequently, larger file size should also be allocated. It can be seen from Table 6 that the last step of hierarchical regression analysis shows that web portal usability is influenced by two faculty-related factors and one web portal design-related factors. Thus, it implies that web portal usability is influenced by technical (i.e., Information Content) and non-technical (i.e., Age and Commitment) aspects. This suggests that achieving high usability of educational technologies (e.g., web portal) is a consensus effort of teachers, educational institutions, and web portal designers. Teachers should commit to using educational technologies provided by the institutions.

Table 6 Hierarchical regression of faculty web portal usability on faculty- and web portal design-related factors. Predictor

Beta

p-Value

Step 1 (R2 ¼ 0.042; DR2 ¼ 0.042; F(2,115) ¼ 2.519; Sig. ¼ 0.085) Age Highest Educational Attainment

0.230 0.105

0.027 0.307

Step 2 (R2 ¼ 0.046; DR2 ¼ 0.004; F(4,113) ¼ 1.348; Sig. ¼ 0.257) Age Highest Educational Attainment Length of Use of Web Portal Level of User Experience

0.222 0.108 0.062 0.051

0.038 0.298 0.547 0.630

Step 3 (R2 ¼ 0.084; DR2 ¼ 0.038; F(5,112) ¼ 2.053; Sig. ¼ 0.077) Age Highest Educational Attainment Length of Use of Web Portal Level of User Experience Internet Access at Home

0.272 0.162 0.053 0.043 0.204

0.012 0.124 0.600 0.684 0.032

Step 4 (R2 ¼ 0.255; DR2 ¼ 0.171; F(6,111) ¼ 6.347; Sig. ¼ 0.000) Age Highest Educational Attainment Length of Use of Web Portal Level of User Experience Internet Access at Home Commitment to the Use of Web Portal

0.304 0.171 0.044 0.113 0.211 0.423

0.002 0.074 0.636 0.239 0.015 0.000

Step 5 (R2 ¼ 0.453; DR2 ¼ 0.198; F(11,106) ¼ 7.982; Sig. ¼ 0.000) Age Highest Educational Attainment Length of Use of Web Portal Level of User Experience Internet Access at Home Commitment to the Use of Web Portal Ease of Use Information Content Availability Speed Aesthetics

0.227 0.111 0.092 0.120 0.155 0.306 0.121 0.402 0.058 0.201 0.096

0.010 0.192 0.259 0.175 0.045 0.000 0.204 0.000 0.533 0.066 0.313

R.P. Bringula / Computers & Education 68 (2013) 187–198

197

On the other hand, educational institutions should monitor the use of these educational technologies and provide support whenever necessary. Educational institutions are also encouraged to update constantly and acquire more online library resources. Lastly, designers should prioritize content in designing web portals. 6. Conclusions, recommendations, and limitations On the basis of the findings presented, the first three null hypotheses (H0a, H0b, and H0c) were accepted while H0d and H0e were partially rejected. As to the fifth hypotheses, Information content was the only web portal design-related factors that influenced web portal usability. Of the three predictors, Information Content had the strongest influence on web portal usability. Hence, the difficulties of using the web portal due to aging could be overcome by their commitment to using the web portal. Commitment becomes a “strong force” that could push older users to use the said technology. It could also be concluded that technical and non-technical aspects of web portal design considerations influence web portal usability. The findings of the study contributed to the existing literature in two ways. It can be noted that existing studies inform readers that older users were confronted with the barriers in using websites but failed to explain why older users still use website technologies. This study explained these gaps through a different statistical analysis and through the inclusion of commitment in the framework. This is the first contribution of the paper. Second, the study showed that web portal usability could only be achieved by focusing on the technical and non-technical considerations in developing a web portal. While it is true that the technical aspect (i.e., Information Content of the web portal) should be the primary consideration in web portal development, the commitment to its use and age of the users should also be considered. Consequently, the study established that three stakeholders are involved in the success of web portal – web portal developers, the school management, and the users. Thus, it is recommended that web portal designers should ensure that the uploading and messaging mechanisms of the web portal are always functional and reliable. The school administration must ensure that the web portal is always subscribed to up-to-date, relevant, and comprehensive online library resources. This should be the major consideration in designing a web portal. Web portal designers and school administration should be in constant communication in upgrading the contents of the web portal. School administrators could also look into the possibilities that the web portal be incorporated as an educational tool in blended learning courses. The findings also call for the continuous use of the faculty of the web portal. Institutions should provide support in order to sustain the commitment of the faculty. The studies have limitations that are worth investigating. First, satisfaction is not considered an indicator of usability. Second, quantitative techniques could not capture all the necessary responses to determine usability. This could be augmented by qualitative techniques. Third, the study is only confined to one portal. A study of portals of higher education institutions in the Philippines could be investigated. Fourth, the pedagogical value of the web portal could also be investigated. Lastly, other independent variables such as perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and attitudes could also be included in further research. Acknowledgments The author is greatly indebted to Dr. Ester A. Garcia, Dr. Linda P. Santiago, Dr. Olivia C. Caoili, Rodany A. Merida, Roselle S. Basa, and to all deans and faculty members participated in this study. References Abbad, M. (2011). A conceptual model of e-Learning adoption. International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning, 6(2), 5–10. http://dx.doi.org/10.3991/ijet.v6iS2.1652. Alenezi, A. R., Abdul Karim, A. M., & Veloo, A. (2010). An empirical investigation into the role of enjoyment, computer anxiety, computer self-efficacy and Internet experience in influencing the students’ intention to use e-learning: a case study from Saudi Arabian governmental universities. TOJET: The Turkish Online Journal of Educational Technology, 9(2), 22–34. Retrieved September 10, 2012, from www.tojet.net/articles/v9i4/943.pdf. Al-Shboul, M., & Alsmadi, I. (2010). Challenges of utilizing e-Learning systems in public universities in Jordan. International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning, 5(2), 4–10. http://dx.doi.org/10.3991/ijet.v5i2. Averweg, U., Erwin, G., & Petkov, D. (2008). Impact of portal technologies on executive information systems. In M. Freire, & M. Pereira (Eds.), Encyclopedia of internet technologies and applications (pp. 215–221). Hershey, PA: Information Science Reference. Banati, H., Bedi, P., & Grover, P. S. (2006). Evaluating web usability from the user’s perspective. Journal of Computer Science, 2(4), 314–317. Becker, S. A. (2005). E-government usability for older adults. Communications of the ACM, 48(2), 102–104. Bellman, S., Lohse, G. L., & Johnson, E. J. (1999). Predictors of online buying behavior. Communications of the ACM, 42(12), 32–38. Bringula, R. P., & Basa, R. S. (2011). Factors affecting faculty web portal usability. Journal of Educational Technology & Society, 14(4), 253–265. Cai, S., & Xu, Y. (2011). Designing not just for pleasure: effects of web site aesthetics on consumer shopping value. International Journal of Electronic Commerce, 15(4), 159–187. http://dx.doi.org/10.2753/JEC1086-4415150405. Chan, S.-C., & Tung, F.-C. (2008). An empirical investigation of students’ behavioural intentions to use the online learning course websites. British Journal of Educational Technology, 39(1), 71–83. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8535.2007.00742.x. Compeau, D. R., & Higgins, C. A. (1995). Computer self-efficacy: development of a measure and initial test. MIS Quarterly, 19(2), 189–211. Coyne, K. P., & Nielsen, J. (2002). Web usability for senior citizens. Retrieved November 5, 2005 from http://www.nngroup.com/reports/seniors. Curran, K., Walters, N., & Robinson, D. (2007). Investigating the problems faced by older adults and people with disabilities in online environments. Behaviour & Information Technology, 26(6), 447–453. Dabbagh, N. (2001). Authoring tools and learning systems: a historical perspective. In Paper presented at the annual proceedings of selected research and development and practice papers presented at the national convention of the association for educational communications and technology, 8–12 November, Atlanta, GA (pp. 87–95). Retrieved September 21, 2012, from http://www.design4instruction.com/articles/pdf/Authoring%20Tools.pdf. Ellis, R. D., & Kurniawan, S. H. (2000). Increasing the usability of online information for older users: a case study in participatory design. International Journal of HumanComputer Interaction, 12(2), 263–276. Flood, M., & O’Reilly, D. (2006). Guidelines for website design for all users. In Paper presented at the IADIS international conference web based communities, San Sebastian, Spain. Retrieved September 21, 2012, from http://www.iadis.net/dl/final_uploads/200602L008.pdf. Gagliardi, C., Mazzarini, G., Papa, R., Giuli, C., & Marcellini, F. (2009). Designing a learning program to link old and disabled people to computers. Educational Gerontology, 34(1), 15–29. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03601270701763902. Hub, M., & Zatloukal, M. (2009). Usability evaluation of selected web portals. In Proceedings of the 9th WSEAS international conference on applied informatics and communications (AIC ’09) (pp. 259–264). Retrieved April 10, 2013, from http://www.wseas.us/e-library/conferences/2009/moscow/AIC/AIC45.pdf.

198

R.P. Bringula / Computers & Education 68 (2013) 187–198

Kamba, M. A. (2009). Problems, challenges and benefits of implementing e-learning in Nigerian universities: an empirical study. International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning, 4(1), 66–69. http://dx.doi.org/10.3991/ijet.v4i1.653. Katsanos, C., Tselios, N., & Avouris, N. (2010). A survey of tools supporting design and evaluation of websites based on models of human information interaction. International Journal on Artificial Intelligence Tools, 19(6), 755–781. http://dx.doi.org/10.1142/S0218213010000418. Li, D., Browne, G. J., & Chau, P. Y. K. (2006). An empirical investigation of web site use using a commitment-based model. Decision Sciences, 37(3), 427–444. Meyer, J. P., & Herscovitch, L. (2001). Commitment in the workplace toward a general model. Human Resource Management Review, 11(3), 299–326. Moorman, C., Zaltman, G., & Deshpande, R. (1992). Relationships between providers and users of market research: the dynamics of trust within and between organizations. Journal of Marketing Research, 29(3), 314–328. Moreno, L., Castro, E., & Martinez, P. (2007). An automatic and methodological approach for accessible web applications. Journal of Information and Organizational Sciences, 31(1), 131–139. Nathan, R. J., & Yeow, P. H. P. (2011). Crucial web usability factors of 36 industries for students: a large-scale empirical study. Electronic Commerce Research, 11(2), 151–180. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10660-010-9054-0. Norris, C., Topp, N., & Soloway, E. (2005). Access to computers at home. Communications of the ACM, 43(6), 25–26. Ownby, R. L. (2006). Making the Internet a friendlier place for older people. Technology Innovations and Aging, 30(2), 58–60. Padmannavar, S. S., & Joshi, M. J. (2011). Survey analysis on the web: similarities and differences in university website information. International Journal of Engineering Science and Technology, 3(7), 6101–6113. Peterson, K. (2006). Academic web site design and academic templates: where does the library fit in? Information Technology and Libraries, 25(4), 217–221. Preece, J. (2001). Sociability and usability in online communities: determining and measuring success. Behaviour & Information Technology, 20(5), 347–356. http://dx.doi.org/ 10.1080/01449290110084683. Raza, M. T., Yoo, S.-W., Kim, K.-H., Joo, S.-S., & Jeong, W.-C. (2009). Design and implementation of an architectural framework for web portals in a ubiquitous pervasive environment. Sensors, 9(7), 5201–5223. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/s90705201. Rezaei Sharifabadi, S. (2006). How digital libraries can support e-learning. The Electronic Library, 24(3), 389–401. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/02640470610671231. Salancik, G. R. (1977). Commitment is too easy! Organizational Dynamics, 6(1), 62–80. Sandvig, J. C., & Bajwa, D. (2004). Information seeking of university web sites: an exploratory study. The Journal of Computer Information Systems, 45(1), 13–22. Seddon, P. B. (1997). A respecification and extension of the DeLone and McLean model of IS success. Information Systems Research, 8(3), 240–253. Tabata, L. N., & Johnsrud, L. K. (2008). The impact of faculty attitudes toward technology, distance education, and innovation. Research in Higher Education, 49(7), 625–646. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11162-008-9094-7. Tarafdar, M., & Zhang, J. (2005). Analyzing the influence of web site design parameters on web site usability. Information Resource Management Journal, 18(4), 62–80. Teoh, K. K., Ong, T. S., Lim, P. W., Liong, R. P. Y., & Yap, C. Y. (2009). Explorations on web usability. American Journal of Applied Sciences, 6(3), 424–429. Tse, M. M. Y., Choi, K. C. Y., & Leung, R. S. W. (2008). E-health for older people: the use of technology in health promotion. Cyberpsychology & Behavior, 11(4), 475–479. http:// dx.doi.org/10.1089/cpb.2007.0151. Tung, L. L., Xu, Y., & Tan, F. B. (2009). Attributes of web site usability: a study of web users with the repertory grid technique. International Journal of Electronic Commerce, 13(4), 97–126. http://dx.doi.org/10.2753/JEC1086-4415130405. Venkatesh, V. (2000). Determinants of perceived ease of use: integrating perceived behavioral control, computer anxiety and enjoyment into the Technology Acceptance Model. Information Systems Research, 11(4), 342–365. Wang, J., & Senecal, S. (2007). Measuring perceived website usability. Journal of Internet Commerce, 6(4), 97–112. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15332860802086318. Wang, Y. J., Wei, J., & Guo, C. (2012). A multi-attribute comparison of U.S. and Chinese e-tail website design. International Journal of Business Research, 12(2), 183–189. Won Jae, S., Green, B., Yong Jae, K., Seunghwan, L., & Schenewark, J. (2007). The effect of web cohesion, web commitment, and attitude toward the website on intentions to use NFL teams’ websites. Sport Management Review (Sport Management Association of Australia & New Zealand), 10(3), 231–252. Yildiz, H. (2007). Permission marketing and commitment: proposal for a theoretical framework applied to e-mail opt-in. Recherche et Applications en Marketing (English Edition), 22(3), 5–26. Zaharias, P., & Poylymenakou, A. (2009). Developing a usability evaluation method for e-learning applications: beyond functional usability. International Journal of HumanComputer Interaction, 25(1), 75–98. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10447310802546716.