The Effects of Instant Messages on Distance Education Students’ Perception of Transactional Distance

Abstract

In this study, effects of instant messages that are sent on a regular basis to the distant education students on how they perceive transactional distance were investigated. These text messages are designed to have either an informative or a remindful nature. Participants were undergraduate students that were randomly assigned to four groups (N=99). Participants in this study who attended distance education classes online regularly received instant messages. The impact of these text messages on students' perceptions of transactional distance was assessed using Perceived Transactional Distance Scale in Distance Education Environments (Horzum, 2011).  Dialogue, Structure Flexibility, Content Organization, Control, and Learner Autonomy were the five subscales that made up the survey. The instant messages were intended to have little to no effect on the dynamics and content of the class. The students received all of the texts over WhatsApp.  The hypothesis which those students receive instant messages periodically will have lower score of perception of transactional distance was largely supported.