Web-Based Interface Elements in Team Interaction and Learning: Theoretical and Empirical Analysis

Abstract

As an important avenue of the learning community, the web has enabled interaction among learners and facilitated learning processes. This paper posits that a well-designed user interface will capably address limitations of web-based learning, and enhance team interactions and learning outcomes. It reports on an experiment that investigated the effect of interface elements on a set of interaction processes, attitudes, and learning outcomes. Availability of interface elements to engage and evaluate learning was found to promote participation, trust, and cooperation among learners. These process variables, as intervened by attitudinal factors, had significant impacts on outcome variables. Our findings provide support to a theoretical model that causally links four sets of variables: input (interface elements), processes, attitudes, and learning outcomes. The paper expounds on the implications of the findings, which have significant importance with respect to the emerging issues in web-based learning.