Beyond the Screen: Socio-Virtualization in Online Higher Education

Abstract

This study aims to explore the perception of socio-virtualization among e-learners in online higher education in terms of negativity in communication (NC) and social attention in virtualization (SAV) with the investigation of the relationship between demographic variables, satisfaction with online courses, and use of the internet with their perception of socio-virtualization. A quantitative research design was employed, and the sample of this study consisted of 427 e-learners who were taking online courses at different faculties of different Turkish universities across the country. The results of descriptive analyses indicated that e-learners’ overall perception of socio-virtualization was detected as moderate. While their NC perceptions were identified as high, their SAV perceptions were also found as moderate. Moreover, significant variations in their perceptions of socio-virtualization were observed across different demographic variables such as gender and internet usage habits. This study contributes to the understanding of the socio-virtualization process in online higher education and its implications are beneficial for designing effective virtual learning environments.