The Role of Gender in Distance Learning: A Meta-Analytic Review of Gender Differences in Academic Performance and Self-Efficacy in Distance Learning

Abstract

This meta-analytic review was performed to determine the relationship between gender and two constructs measuring success in distance learning—academic performance and self-efficacy—with a particular interest in identifying whether females or males have an advantage in distance learning environments. Data from 15 studies resulted in 18 effect sizes for aggregation and comparison, with 9 of those effect sizes attributed to academic performance and 9 attributed to measures of self-efficacy. The aggregate effect sizes for both academic performance and self-efficacy were found to be significant (d = .36, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) = .25–.46, p < .001; d = .22, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) = .04–.41, p < .05), and were small or small-to-medium, respectively. The effect sizes for academic performance were not significantly heterogeneous, but the effect sizes for self-efficacy were. Exploratory moderator analyses indicated that the combination mode of learning with both online contact and face-to-face interaction moderated the effect of gender on self-efficacy, and also indicated a significant relationship between self-efficacy and participants in Asia versus Europe and the United States. These significant relationships were only apparent in a fixed-effects model. The study discusses the implications of the results, as well as the limitations.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Alstete

J. W.

Beutell

N. J.

(2004). Performance indicators in online distance learning courses: A study of management education. Quality Assurance in Education, 12(1), 6–14.

Anderson

D. M.

Haddad

C. J.

(2005, March). Gender, voice, and learning in online course environments. Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks, 9(1), 3–14.

Astleitner

Steinberg

(2005). Are there gender differences in web-based learning? An integrated model and related effect sizes. AACE Journal, 13(1), 47–63.

Bandura

(1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84(2), 191–215.

Bordia

(1997). Face-to-face versus computer-mediated communication: A synthesis of the experimental literature. Journal of Business Communication, 34(1), 99–118.

Borenstein

Hedges

Higgins

Rothstein

(2005). Comprehensive meta-analysis (Version 2). Englewood, NJ: Biostat.

Borenstein

Hedges

L. V.

Higgins

J. P. T.

Rothstein

H. R.

(2009). Introduction to meta-analysis: Statistics in practice. Chichester, UK: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Chu

R. J.

(2010). How family support and Internet self-efficacy influence the effects of e-learning among higher aged adults–Analyses of gender and age differences. Computers & Education, 55(1), 255–264.

Chu

R. J.

Chu

A. Z.

(2010). Multi-level analysis of peer support, Internet self-efficacy and e-learning outcomes–The contextual effects of collectivism and group potency. Computers & Education, 55(1), 145–154.

10.

Chyung

S. Y.

(2007). Age and gender differences in online behavior, self-efficacy, and academic performance. Quarterly Review of Distance Education, 8(3), 213–222.

11.

Cohen

(1977). Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences. New York, NY: Academic Press.

12.

Crawford

MacLeod

(1990). Gender in the college classroom: An assessment of the “chilly climate” for women. Sex Roles, 23(3–4), 101–122.

13.

Cuadrado-García

Ruiz-Molina

M. E.

Montoro-Pons

J. D.

(2010). Are there gender differences in e-learning use and assessment? Evidence from an interuniversity online project in Europe. Procedia–Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2(2), 367–371.

14.

European Commission. (2012/2013). “Tertiary education statistics”—Statistics explained. Available at http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/statistics_explained/index.php/Tertiary_education_statistics

15.

Friday

Friday-Stroud

S. S.

Green

A. L.

Hill

A. Y.

(2006). A multi-semester comparison of student performance between multiple traditional and online sections of two management courses. Journal of Behavioral and Applied Management, 8(1), 66–81.

16.

Hall

R. M.

Sandler

B. R.

(1982). The classroom climate: A chilly one for women. In Project on the Status and Education of Women. Washington, DC: Association of American Colleges.

17.

Horn

Nevill

Griffith

(2006). Profile of undergraduates in US postsecondary education institutions, 2003–04: With a special analysis of community college students. Statistical Analysis Report. NCES 2006-184. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics.

18.

Imhof

Vollmeyer

Beierlein

(2007). Computer use and the gender gap: The issue of access, use, motivation, and performance. Computers in Human Behavior, 23(6), 2823–2837.

19.

Lim

D. H.

Kim

(2003). Motivation and learner characteristics affecting online learning and learning application. Journal of Educational Technology Systems, 31(4), 423–439.

20.

Lin

S. Y.

Overbaugh

R. C.

(2009). Computer-mediated discussion, self-efficacy and gender. British Journal of Educational Technology, 40(6), 999–1013.

21.

Lipsey

M. W.

Wilson

D. B.

(2001). Practical meta-analysis. Applied Social Research Methods Series (Vol. 49). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

22.

Means

Toyama

Murphy

Bakia

Jones

(2010, September). Evaluation of evidence-based practices in online learning. A meta-analysis and review of online learning studies. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, Office of Planning, Evaluation, and Policy Development.

23.

Ong

C. S.

Lai

J. Y.

(2006). Gender differences in perceptions and relationships among dominants of e-learning acceptance. Computers in Human Behavior, 22(5), 816–829.

24.

Price

(2006). Gender differences and similarities in online courses: Challenging stereotypical views of women. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 22(5), 349–359.

25.

Simmering

M. J.

Posey

Piccoli

(2009). Computer self-efficacy and motivation to learn in a self-directed online course. Decision Sciences Journal of Innovative Education, 7(1), 99–121.

26.

Smith

G. G.

Ferguson

Caris

(2002). Teaching over the web versus in the classroom: Differences in the instructor experience. International Journal of Instructional Media, 29(1), 61–67.

27.

Tsai

M. J.

Tsai

C. C.

(2010). Junior high school students' Internet usage and self-efficacy: A re-examination of the gender gap. Computers & Education, 54(4), 1182–1192.

28.

U.S. Department of Education. (2001). Digest of Education Statistics, 2000, NCES 2001-034, by Snyder

Thomas D.

Hoffman

Charlene M.

, Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics.

29.

Wojciechowski

Palmer

L. B.

(2005). Individual student characteristics: Can any be predictors of success in online classes? Online Journal of Distance Learning Administration, 8(2).

30.

Yukselturk

Bulut

(2009). Gender differences in self-regulated online learning environment. Educational Technology & Society, 12(3), 12–22.