Publication Type

Journal Article

Version

publishedVersion

Publication Date

11-2012

Abstract

Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia, is the preferred choice among resources used by college students to meet their research needs. However, Wikipedia has been criticized for its low information quality, lack of accountability, inconsistency, and vulnerability to vandalism. Despite the warnings and concerns voiced by academia, online learning tools such as Wikipedia will continue their rise as major learning resource in today's classroom. Using a sample of 184 college students, the study proposed theoretical models to test the effects of internal beliefs, motivations, and social influences on Wikipedia use and information-seeking, and further empirically tested those models. The findings of this study suggested that Wikipedia use is driven by internal belief and peer pressure, whereas information-seeking is influenced by belief, motivation, and subjective norms. The implications of the findings for the research and practice are discussed.

Keywords

Wikipedia, online learning tool, motivation, belief, social influences, information-seeking.

Discipline

Business | Communication Technology and New Media | Higher Education

Research Areas

Corporate Communication

Publication

Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology

Volume

38

Issue

3

First Page

1

Last Page

20

ISSN

1499-6677

Identifier

10.21432/T25K59

Publisher

Association for Media and Technology in Education in Canada

Additional URL

https://www.cjlt.ca/index.php/cjlt/article/view/654

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